Photo:ArthurrhCC BY-SA 3.0
United States · 1871–1881
Sharps Rifle Co. Model 1874
- Landmark model
- Out of production
Specifications
- Maker
- Sharps Rifle Co.
- Type
- Rifle
- Action
- Falling block
- Era
- Black powder (before 1890)
- Produced
- 1871–1881
- Magazine
- None
- Swedish class
- 1
On a common factory load. Check the box against Naturvårdsverket's figures.
Chambered in
- .45-70 Government
Stock
- Wood
What it is worth
Value unknown
No published price was found for this model. Rather than estimate one from a comparable gun, the compendium leaves it blank.
Chapter 01
Overview
The Sharps 1874 is the buffalo rifle, and the reason a single-shot black-powder cartridge gun is still made new a century and a half later. It is the gun of the long shot taken from prone with a set trigger and no hurry at all.
Chapter 02
How it works
A falling-block breech dropped by the lever, strong enough for heavy black-powder charges and simple enough to work with cold hands. Double-set triggers on most guns: pull the rear trigger to set, and the front one releases at ounces.
Chapter 03
In the field
Historically the market hunt that emptied the plains, and today a deliberately handicapped way to hunt — one shot, iron or tang sights, and a cartridge that arcs. Several US states have muzzleloader and single-shot seasons written around exactly this kind of gun.
Sources
Written from: Sharps rifle — Wikipedia — read 2026-08-05
Cross-reference
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