P58 Enfield and the N-SSA

[Dan Wambaugh]

Terry,

The Enfield rifle (what many call the two bander today) was not issued interchangeably with the rifle-muskets such as the P53 Enfield and 1861 Springfield. Especially when discussing federal units, in general it was only special units that received the short rifle in lieu of the rifle musket. In British service the short rifle was intended for use by file closers and in rifle regiments (as well as on board ships), whereas the privates and corporals in the line carried the rifle-musket. This basic pattern was followed by the US army, and also roughly adhered to in the CS army, especially as the war progressed with rifles being culled from the ranks of line infantry regiments and handed over to special sharpshooter units.

Bottom line: the Enfield rifle would be appropriate for only a very small number of specific Federal soldier impressions. I hope this helps clear things up.

[tjdull]

The Enfield rifle was issued to some Federal forces (i.e. 45th IL, New York State Militia, etc. . .), but compared to other weapons as the M1853 Enfield Rifle Musket or Lorenz Rifle the numbers of issued weapons would be small. Confederate forces also imported the Enfield Rifle, with these showing up in a much wider range of regiments in the field.

All the best,

Yes, that confirms what I have found too ... Thank you.

As I have come to discover, many N-SSA competitors try and use 33” barrel length “rifles” … the M1841 Mississippi seems a popular model. As it is a timed competition, this only makes sense … shorter barrels re-load faster, equating to more rounds heading down range to break more targets = a win!

I’m just disappointed that they combine the “short” rifle muskets (ie rifles) and the “long” rifle muskets in the same category. With the 1853 Enfield and the 1861 Springfield making up the largest numbers of shoulder arms during the Civil War, I had hoped otherwise.

Thanks for all your input, it was very helpful.