Recently picked up a original 69 cal. 1842 Springfield musket

rebelyell

Private
Joined
Oct 17, 2008
Location
Texas
I picked up a original Springfield 69 cal. 1842 musket, the barrel and lock are both marked 1842. The metal, bore and lock are in good condition. Lock works perfectly. The wood is pretty dry a few small dry cracks at the butt plate. What would be good to use on the wood to help the dryness ? I am not talking about refinish I want to keep it as original as possiable. I would appreciate any suggestions. hank You
 
I like Scott's Liquid Gold, it will restore some life to the wood without damaging anything.

Now, I am very interested in your new acquisition. Why? Because there are no known Springfield Model 1842 Muskets actually dated 1842. Even the Springfield Armory records state they didn't make any in 1842. Any hope of you being able to post some photos? I am a long time student of these types of arms and am willing to share any information I may have.
J.
 
I use lemon oil furniture polish on wood and metal. I remember reading that a well known collector used it on all his high end rare guns.
 
I use GERLITZ Pure Brazilian Carnauba Wax. Put it on all my guitars. Wonderful stuff. Nice sheen and protectant. Seals the wood from moisture. Check it out at AMAZON or EBAY.

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Wax is good and it's reversible. You could also apply a little boiled linseed oil--drops at a time--rubbed on with the palm of your hand. If you do that, wait a couple of days for it to dry and then repeat until you get a sheen to your liking.

PROVISO: Take this to heart, and I mean it. If you use any rags or paper towels to wipe off excess linseed oil, spread them out flat on your garage floor or seal them tightly in an air tight can with water until you can throw them away. Or put them under a rock in your garden until trash day. I'm not kidding. Wadded up rags and towels retain the heat that linseed oil gives off while it dries. They can get hot enough to spontaneously combust. You don't want that to happen.
 
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Even though the collecting world identifies the musket shown as a Model 1835/40, and has done so for decades, the Federal government nomenclature is/was Model 1840. The reference source is from George Moller's wonderful set of books.
J.
 
Someone at sometime has used something like Old English for dark wood on the stock. I am using Scott's Liquid Gold it seem's to be cleaning it pretty well. The metal was already cleaned like that when I got it. Yeah that is the musket that was the seller's photo's. Somebody had put a thick heavy coat of wax on the stock is what I was more concerned with.
 
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It has a couple of small cracks at the butt plate but not bad over all it is in pretty good condition.
 
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