Whats the best repro 1853 enfield on the market?

John, H & H Guns of Prescott Wisconsin has a Parker Hale tricked out as a Sharpshooters rifle for $729... might well be worth making a call.

(715) 262-5024
 
Shane, do u have H&H's email address? (do they have a sight i could check it out on?)I hope it hasnt been debarfed, it sounds cool. And I've tried to contact Lodgewood via email via the website, but i havent had a reply in the last 2 weeks
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James, I'm not certain they have a website... actually I kind of doubt it. I don't believe it has been defarbed... You'll have to try and call them.

I like to stop in there because they have a nice selection of rifles that are right up my line. A lot of stuff from the turn o the last century, pre War 2 & often pre War 1 stuff etc.
Good crew there, they'll likely answer your questions. If it comes down to it I can try and get some digital pics of it for you. But that would have to be okayed w/ them. Let me know. My email is [email protected]
 
Have any of u guys had any experience with sending firearms overseas? It seems most companies won't send firearms overseas for orders less than $5000. As I only want a single rifled-musket, is it easier for a civilian to send a firearm overseas compared to that of a buisness? Lodgewood have said they haven't ship any thing to Australia let alone a rifled-musket and aren't sure of what's involved. So I've been looking at european companies selling the parker hale in case Lodgewood can't help me.

Most people have said the Parker Hale's are excellent, but they aren't made by England anymore and are the new italian ones as good as the old English ones?

Lodgewood use the armi sport, is it a good shooter, I know if will be historically accurate for markings and furniture, but will it have progressive rifling and fire like an original? On other shooting chat sites many say the old English Parker Hales fired most like an original.
 
James, No the Italian jobs are not as good as originals, I have finally been able to shoot a Parker Hale... It is a world of difference between my Armisport & a Parker Hale. That said I have heard some talk about the Armi-Sport being a poor shooter as the sites are off... I must have a fluke as mine gives me a nice tight group... though typically a bit high and to the right.

Jim Westberg the owner of MUZZLELOADERS ETC @ 952-884-1161 has a nice Parker Hale 3 band Enfield w/ sling for $575 and a set of Leathers including an original bayonet for $250 I can't help you w/ sending firearms overseas as I have no knowledge of the process... but I would think UPS will do so. It isn't a modern firearm and in the US buying a black powder rifle requires no special checks. Australia is likely a whole different matter.
 
Thanks Shane I've e-mailed Mr. Westberg. And his website boasts serving clients nationally and internationally
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Thanks for the tip off, I hope this one is a winnner!
 
Awesome it looks as if it is a winner, thank u Shane for keeping an eye out for me. He is able to send to Australia, and guess what the Parker Hale is an ENGLISH made one! I'm very excited! I'd post some pics but my attachment box doesn't work. I'm getting the webbing with original bayonet too! But it's going to take 2 weeks for the paper work to go through, 4-6weeks for it to be shipped out, and as u can imagine I want it all yesterday, luckily because its not my first gun there is no cooling off period, still it's a long time to wait. I'll have many posts once it arrives filled with question on use and maintenance tips, as this is my first muzzle loader
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Thanks again Shane.
 
A friend of mine has a pedersoli confederate model rifle (I don't think pedersoli makes it anymore, they do make a springfield '61 and sharps '59), it's a beautiful looking rifle, his father bought it for his 18th birthday (very cool dad), I was talking to his father about the rifled-musket I was after and he told me that he had been told that Peredsoli rifles were excellent and the best by the man who sold it to him (as he would). It looks awesome to me but I haven't seen many replica rifled-muskets, how do pedersoli stack up against other reproduction brands?
 
Pedersoli are iffy... I've seen beautiful & I've also seen junk. I've noted that the Italian repops have had questionable quality control over the last few years... My experiance has been that used Armi-Sport, Euro-Arms & Pedersoli re-pops seem to be of better quality in used condition.

Congrats, I'm glad you jumped on that Parker Hale, bayonet & leathers... the original bayonet is in VERY nice condition... I would appreciate when you receive it that you might take some digital photos of the proof marks & stamps on it & pass them on to me I would appreciate it. If I'd had the money you would be out of luck.

(Message edited by johan steele on September 25, 2004)
 
Shane i'd be more than happy to post some picks of the bayonet markings. I hope i didnt step on your feet with buying the bayonet, i didn't know u were interested in it, sorry if i did, but don't worry it will bend perfectly into a camp fire tool......Just joking! Thanks again for the tip off.
 
James, it's ok as the bayonet & leathers was a package deal... I have a set of leathers already and my wife would have murdered me... especially as there is no way I would have bought the leathers w/out that exellent Parker Hale. Of coarse then my wife would have murdered me. So think of it this way, you removed a suicidal temptation...

IIRC the fella who sold Mr Westberg the leathers & Parker Hale was a long time member of the 1st MN and of coarse it's all Union leathers, though captured union accoutraments weren't all that uncommon, just flip the belt upside down so it reads SN for your CS impression and it will certainly be easy enough to galvanize...

$15 for Edwards is indeed an excellent score, congrats on that as I haven't seen one for less than $45 in most of a decade.

As I repeatedly told school children over the last two days _16 classes came through our little camp) "...makes a wonderful candle holder, can opener, tentstake and it even fits on the end of the rifle so you can make a nice tripod to hang your traps off of!
 
James... I finally sucumbed to temptation and picked up that Parker Hale, I'm glad you got the leathers and bayonet and were able to pick up a good repro in Australia. It is refreshing to know I've helped somebody out a little bit.
 
Good for you Shane, I'm amazed that it stayed on the shelf for as long as it did, are you hiding from you wife hehehe, I have been try to convince my fiancee that our life would be better with another rifled-musket!

I had an old friend of mine take a look at that bayonet, he has been collecting and repairing original enfields for 40 odd years (mainly 1853), thinks the bayonet my be for an earlier model than the 1853, as it's loose on the barrel, it would be interesing to know what model it was for. He also said the marking E for enfield made it slightly rarer that the Bummingham B , though it this was before he found it was loose on the barrel, which could mean the Enfield was the common bayonet for the model, so it will be interesting to see him again (which I will soon) and find out more about it. I will take a photo of the only markings on the bayonet itself, which is a crown over an E over an 11. He did explain the 11 but I have forgotten, I must take the time to right down the information I get. I could see if there were any markings on the scabbard as it is firmly squeezed into a US patten frog.

Oh I finally got a chance to live fire my PH down the range, it was fantastic, I did a fair bit of group at 50 yards, then the majority of firing at 100 yards with great effect, LOL later in the day we were having a few shots at a 500 yard target, hehehe we didn't hit it but I think with a lot more practice we could, what amused me so much weas that you could fire, let the smoke clear, look up and and see you fall of shot (we did have some one watching on field gl***** so we could make better adjustments to our fire) I usually fire my MkIII .303 that fires a round at about 3 times faster than the P53. My girlfriend fired my friend's wife's .50 cal patch and ball rifle that only uses about 30 grains to throw the ball, and turns out she is quiet a marksman...markswoman. Her first shot hit right on the out side edge of the bulls eye and she rarely strayed far from there with every shot (at 50yards), LOL every time she put the gun down she would shake like a leaf.
 
One of the finest shots I've had the pleasure of knowing was a woman... another that I taught shoots the lug nuts out of wheels. She is nuts.

THe scabard was not an original.. at least I don't think so. I wonder if the looseness of the bayonet reflects your newer Parker Hale as it fit this one like a glove. Also keep in mind that bayonets were made for the rifle they were issued with, which often resulted in some time with a file if a different weapon were procured.

As an experiment (you may have already tried this) bring your forehand closer to the front of the lock and try your shooting. If that forearm is as close to vertical as possible it makes a huge difference.
 
This thread has been very helpful to me. I'm looking for the BEST made reproduction Enfield. I see that Dixie is selling a Gibbs Rifle Co. made Parker Hale for almost double the amount of the Euroarms or Armisports. Is it that much of a better rifle? Accuracy is the number one concern. It seems that many believe the 1970's made, all-English Enfield's are the best made repro's? Is it possible to find these guns if that is true? If price is not an issue, would the best route be to have one made, using a Whitacre barrel or such? Accuracy is my first concern follwed closely by historical accuracy. Any help here is much appreciated.
 
Snowbart, the new Parker Hales are not the old by any stretch of the imagination. My own suggestion is to get a hold of Lodgewood and see what they have. They often have customs for the price of a new Parker Hale. And they can do custom w/ a whiatcre barrel & enough original parts that it will perform every bit as well as an original.

www.lodgewood.com

I own a Miroku Springfield and a 1970's Parker Hale, I am quite content w/ both. I plan to send my Parker Hale to Lodgewood and have them convert it to a Windson made Type 2 P53. That way I will have an American made Enfield.

If you are going to decide between an Armi-Sport & a Euro-Arms... go Armi-Sport, their quality control is better and they are a little easier to de****. Fo what it's worth I apparently had a fluk ew/ my Armi-Sport as I was quite happy w/ its accuracy.

Good Luck
 
Ok thanks Johan. I will contact Lodgewood for sure. I'm also scanning the N-SSA boards. What you desribed is just what I want!
 
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