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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Sep 2009
    Location
    Heading for Florida
    Posts
    390

    Default Help with Trapdoor Cadet 50-70

    I think I have come across a Trapdoor Cadet in 50-70. Here is the data:
    Length 48 7/8
    Barrel 29 1/2

    Serial number on breech and barrel do not match.

    The ramrod is the in the stock
    Bayonet is 19 inches
    no swivel on the trigger guard
    Lock dated 1863
    Breech block date 1870
    There is no spoon in the stock for the ramrod.

    Are there any defining characteristics to confirm that it is fact a 50-70 cadet.
    "Three people can keep a secret as long as two of them are dead" Mark Twain

  2. #2

    Default

    Barrel should be 29-5/8", you may have been a little loose in reading the tape.

    The non-matching numbers are a REAL issue - at best they indicate a rebuild, at worst they could reveal someone's garage exercise. Are both of the numbers below 3500? How much off are they? Any doubling up of cartouches? One of mine is from the 300 which were overhauled in 1881, and bears an extra large .45-70 style cartouche of [SWP/1881]. Barrel numbers still match, however. Over 50 years of collecting, I have only seen two or three mismatched numbers on M1868s and M1869s, so it cannot have been a common practice to change receivers.

    Everything else sounds right for a Model 1869 Cadet (production did not start until 1870) Rifle. What is the asking price?

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Sep 2009
    Location
    Heading for Florida
    Posts
    390

    Default

    If I remember the barrel was number 546 and the receiver was 750. The finish on the barrel and receiver is the same. I did not see and cartouches.
    "Three people can keep a secret as long as two of them are dead" Mark Twain

  4. #4

    Default

    Hmmm - the barrel was bright and the receiver was black oil-case-hardened. On minty specimens they are like night and day, but with wear they tend to come out a steely grey, though some small difference should still be evident. All depends on price. Though fairly scarce, cadets are - in general - unloved, and the number issue will hamper eventual resale.

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Sep 2009
    Location
    Heading for Florida
    Posts
    390

    Default

    the bore is bright. The exterior metal (barrel and receiver) are a uniform patina.
    "Three people can keep a secret as long as two of them are dead" Mark Twain

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Dec 2017
    Location
    New Jersey
    Posts
    452

    Default

    Dick Hosmer, I have to disagree with unloved. I'm kinda fond of mine but then again I'm fond of them all LOL!!IMG_1331.jpg

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Dec 2017
    Location
    New Jersey
    Posts
    452

    Default

    1mark, I don't believe the cleaning rod was in the stock on the 1869 cadet. My 1869 cadet has the cleaning rod under the barrel. The stock should only have one cartouche as they were produced from new manufactured stocks that were narrower in the butt stock and thinner along the barrel. The cleaning rod was the m1868.

  8. #8

    Default

    Oh, present company excepted - I meant unloved by "other" people! I've got several. 1867, 1869(2), 1873, 1877, 1879, 1884-I, 1884-II. Need to pare them down, which I will do after a couple more writing projects - not going to sell anything until I get it completely photographed.

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Dec 2017
    Location
    New Jersey
    Posts
    452

    Default

    Did not know there was an 1867 cadet. Do you have any photos of it?

  10. #10

    Default

    1mark some photos would be great;y appreciated.

    I am in the camp that greatly appreciates the cadet

    Mark
    "A man with a tractor and a chain saw has no excuses, nor does he need any"
    Me. "Consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds" Emerson "Consistency is the darling of those that stack wood or cast bullets" Me.

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