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58-calibre, copper-cased rimfire ammunition.
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The musket barrels were left as they were and utilised. The idea was put out to tender and from the designs submitted the most suitable was deemed to be that submitted by Erskine Allin, the Master Armourer at the Springfield Armoury.Īllin’s proposal, based on the Springfield Model 1861 musket, was to cut the section from the breech end of the barrel, which contained the percussion lock, and replace it with a new part with an upwardhinging ‘trapdoor’. The government arsenals had large numbers of serviceable muzzle loaders on hand and it was decided to assess the feasibility of converting these to breech loaders. Although the peace time army was much smaller than during the conflict, it would still be a massive monetary outlay to provide the many thousands of weapons needed and the cost of the War had left the country in a very poor state financially. The advantages of cartridge arms were not lost on the political leaders of the day, however, and at the end of the conflict it was obvious that breech loading technology was the way forward. Although breech loading, magazine fed cartridge weapons were around, their development was still in its infancy and military leaders of the day, like their predecessors, were reluctant to adopt new technology.
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The American Civil War was fought, by-and-large, by infantry armed with single shot percussion muskets and rifles.