Original British P-1864 Tower-Marked Three Band Snider Rifle dated 1871 – Snider Patent Marked Original Items

Original item: Only one Available. This may have been one of the LAST SNIDER Rifles to be constructed for Military use in that it is dated 1871, the year the British Government adopted THE MARTINI HENRY system. The Martini took the Military by and forged an Empire for Queen Victoria.

This late Snider is marked TOWER / 1871 on the Lock Plate and also carries the stamping of the CROWN across its tail. HOWEVER there is NO “V.R.” royal cypher. This tells us that although made to Government specifications this particular rifle NEVER belonged to the British Military. It was made in Birmingham and sold into the Private sector, most probably to the Local Military in any of Queen Victoria’s many Colonies. Birmingham was the location where all of the private trade Snider rifles were produced.

In fine shape, it is fitted with a first model breech block bearing the SNIDER PATENT logo on the top. The barrel still has the original proof marks on the left side under the sight, and there are still traces of the original stock markings on both sides of the butt stock. Very clean, well serviced and comes complete with ramrod. This rifle also comes with its original and now very unusual “chained nipple protector.”

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: 1871
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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