Quote:
Originally Posted by gettysburgfreak
Most likely. Its tough finding those old muskets in good enough condition to fire and the ones that are are very expensive I wouldn't fire it. Still a sweet gun though.
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I sent off an email to College Hill Arsenal and Tim Prince hooked me up. He says it definitely is an Austrian M1842, manufactured in 1848, and converted to percussion, possibly by Leman in Lancaster, PA, though the bolster is missing the clean out screw he used. He also said the cut stock was probably done in the 1920s, one guy (forgot his name) was notorious for cutting stocks to ship surplus arms in smaller boxes. He did tell me not to even consider firing it, as the Austrians used crappy iron that probably isn't any good 160 yrs down the road, regardless of apparent condition. Also valued it at ~$600. I do like the look of it, might try and find a functional repro just for fun
I'd definitely recommend Tim and College Hill Arsenal for anyone interested in CW-era 'stuff'!