Trying to identify a Rifle w/ an 1864 U.S. W. m Mason Taunton Lock and a 33" Barrel

Cheecho42

Cadet
Joined
Feb 9, 2019
Hello all, first post to this cool site. I have a CW era rifle that I'm trying to identify. My knowledge is extremely limited. It looks very close to a 1861 Springfield, but has only two bands and a shorter 33" barrel. The lock is marked with 1864 W. m MASON TAUNTON with the Eagle barely visible. The barrel has "J. H. JOHNSTON GREAT WESTERN GUN WORKS PITTSBURGH, PA" inscribed on it. There are no visible markings on the exterior of the stock. The butt plate says U.S. Any help on identification and value would be great.

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An interesting put together part guns of a mix of original and repro disassociated parts. I have seen a number of these over the years often in .45 or .50 caliber instead of the original .58.

I can't give a real good estimate of the value but I have seen them at gunshows in the last few years from between $450-750.
 
It isn't a Civil War piece, but there are some original US model 1863/4 parts there in good condition. A lock plate and hammer in good condition with the makers name visible could bring a couple hundred bucks. This particular lock plate and hammer don't belong together though. You also have a couple good barrel bands, two band springs and a US marked butt plate.
 
Welcome From The Heart Of Dixie. I see your question have been answered.
 
Wow! Thank you and a hello right back to all of you. That would make sense it being put together from a variety of parts. Everything functions as far as I can tell. Never fired it. I acquired from a friend a few years back and prior to that it just sat in their fathers safe for many years. I don’t have a real connection to it and feel it would be better served in someone elses collection. If anyone is interested please let me know. Again, thank you for all the info and the great article.
 
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