U. S. Model 1873 Officer's Rifle, caliber .45-70 Government, 26" barrel, bead front sight, tang sight, swivel mounts, used, by Harrington & Richardson

Part Number: AAW-396 Availability: Special Restrictions Apply Not available for export outside the U.S.A. Must be delivered to a Federal Firearms Licensed dealer. A signed copy of your dealer's FFL license is required before shipment.

This beautiful American made replica trapdoor Springfield Officer's Rifle was manufactured during the 1973 centennial of the original 1873 rifle, designed by the famous Erskine S. Allin, master of the Springfield Armoury. Apparently Springfield Armoury disliked making special hand finished guns for officers, but they were ordered to provide this service. Several were sold, despite the high cost for the period. Originals are very rare and valuable. This handsome replica is used, and has had sling swivel mounts attached to the stock and barrel band. This rifle qualifies for FFL transfer and can be picked up by a Minnesota resident, or it must be shipped to a FFL dealer in another state.

This 7.6 pound rifle has a trigger reach of 13-1/8" for the today's average size shooter. It is made of modern materials, and will give you the opportunity to own and shoot a brand new specimen of a 125+ year old rifle, made exclusively for important or wealthy officers. Buffalo Bill Cody had a similar trapdoor conversion, probably made by the famous gunsmith Carlos Gove, of Denver. Cody named his custom trapdoor rifle Lucrecia Borgia. General George Armstrong Custer also owned a custom made Officer's rifle. Photos of Custer hunting with famous guests often show his favorite customized trapdoor Springfield rifle.

Unlike conventional infantry issue rifles, cadet rifles, and cavalry carbines, these custom made Officer's rifles offered such extra features as checkering of the wrist and forend. This nicely reddish brown colored American black walnut stock is neatly hand checkered, and the work is probably as good or better than the original. A sling swivel stud is mounted in the toe of the stock and a second stud is mounted to the bottom of the barrel band. Both of these studs were added and were not original.

The 26" barrel is chambered for the .45-70 Government cartridge. The barrel is finished to a dark blue with a few small marks in the finish. No rear sight has been fitted to the barrel, instead the rifle makes use of a special wrist mounted tang sight. The bore is bright and has been well maintained. This fine rifle includes a checkered wrist and forend, and engraved triggerguard. A engraved pewter nosecap protects the end grain of the stock. A civilian style wooden ramrod or cleaning rod, passes through the forend cap. The stock is marked with a period style inspector's mark located behind the checkered wrist.

Notice the brilliant color case hardening pattern on the lock and trapdoor action. Another special feature of this Officer's rifle is the long range tang sight, said to be the design of the famous marksman, Freeman R. Bull, born 1833. He was employed by Springfield Armoury, and he began his shooting career in 1867. Easily adjusted, this style tang sight with rounded top is shown in The 45-70 Springfield, Book II, 1865 - 1893, by Albert J. Frasca, Ph.D. Simple to operate, this tang sight features both sliding elevation and sliding windage, locked securely by turning the knurled eye disk. The two lock bolts are neatly fitted with slots aligned to individual sideplates. The stock does have a few scattered handling marks. The wrist is checkered to provide a secure grip.

Mr. Bull organized the state team that won state and national matches. In 1889 his team traveled to England to win the International Match, and $1,000.00 prize. Imagine the value of a $1,000.00 prize, back in the year 1889. Mr. Bull worked at Springfield Armoury for 51 years. While many shooters on his team used Remington rolling block rifles, and others used 1874 Sharps rifles, Bull used his trapdoor Springfield to defend the honor of the United States in the famous International matches against the English and the Irish, at Creedmoor Range on Long Island, New York, and Wimbledon Range in England. Sadly, political intrigue and bad judgment ended such competition. The Creedmoor Range became a U. S. Army Insane Asylum, after the Army decided that marksmanship would not be important, because of machine guns.

We stock .45-70 dies, cases, and reloading equipment to fire this nice rifle. We enjoy casting bullets, hand loading black powder cartridges, and enjoyable afternoons at our local 100, 200, and 400 yard range. We strongly prefer black powder handloads for use with this sporting rifle and have had good success firing similar models. We recommend cast lead alloy bullets, sized to fit the grooves, with SPG lubricant, over our thin card wad. You can easily assemble your own cartridges using our inexpensive reloading tools and molds. The bore is bright, in as-new condition.

Track of the Wolf, Inc.
18308 Joplin St NW
Elk River, MN 55330-1773
Copyright © 2025 Track of the Wolf, Inc.