Original British P-1864 Snider Conversion Rifle marked Maybury & Sons – Dated 1857 Original Items

Original Item: Only One Available. This fine rifle stared life in 1857 as a percussion three band Enfield P-1853 Rifle, made by MAYBURY & SONS, as indicated on the lock plate. This Birmingham Maker started business in 1840, and produced arms for several decades. The rifle was then converted to the Snider system in Kathmandu Nepal at the NAKKU Arsenal, overseen by British “advisers”.

Full Infantry length with regulation brass mounts, this example which was retrieved in our 2003 purchase from the Royal Nepalese Army, and is in outstanding condition. It shows very little use, and is quite attractive.

The metalwork and barrel are just as issued: in the white. The trigger guard does bear Gurkha Battalion markings as does the top arm of the brass butt plate. This is the only example of a three band Rifle made by this BIRMINGHAM MAKER.

A lovely example ready to display.

History of the Snider rifle– Jacob Snider, an American from New York, developed this breech loading system for the P-1853 Enfield, the most prolific imported Percussion rifle in use by both the North and South during the U.S. Civil War. When the British Board of Ordnance appointed a Select Committee in 1864 the Snider system was swiftly adopted with the first breech loaders being issued in 1865 to British forces.

Improved in 1867 by the use of Colonel Boxer’s center fire brass bodied cartridge, the rifle was used very effectively in the Abyssinian Campaign of 1868. The system utilized a hinged breech block with an internal firing pin assembly that permitted the use of a self contained cartridge of lead bullet in cardboard, and, after 1867, brass casing. This highly efficient conversion system prolonged the active life of the P-1853 rifles up until 1871 when the Martini System was adopted. Snider rifles saw continued use throughout the Empire but were officially obsoleted by the late 1880s.

Specifications: 

Year of Manufacture: 1857 – Converted c.1867
Caliber: .58 inches
Ammunition Type: .577 Centerfire Cartridge
Barrel Length: 36.5 inches 
Overall Length: 55 inches
Action: Side Action Lock
Feed System: Side Hinge Rotating Breech block

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