Shiloh Rifle Forums

Just acquired an 1863 Shiloh Sharps military rifle three digit serial number,patchbox wolfs head stamped on barrel,in 50 caliber the cartridge making kit came with it also, great looking overall tang not tapped for sights.

It shouldn’t be taped for tang sights it was an infantry weapon

My Farmingdale .50 '63 Military Rifle (serial #1250) is not drilled and tapped for a tang sight.

I like the .50 bore in a '63 as the .54s have too great a powder chamber for my liking.

63's did not have a patch box that makes it a,59.
Just saying

Then you know better than what is clearly mentioned and illustrated in Sellers books where there are several pictures of '63 Military Rifles with a patchbox. Check page 85.

In fact, one picture is of a '63 Military Rifle where the caption says - "New Model '63 Military Rifle with bayonet lug and no patchbox. This is a somewhat unusual combination." On page 82 there is a picture of a '59 Military Rifle without a patchbox.

When it comes to what options appear on historic Sharps rifles, there seems to be no absolutes, especially amongst the Sporting rifles.

Maybe a brain fart on my part. I'm stuck in carbine mod. I am going by what I was told on the carbines ridle didn't dawn on me. . Didn't even realize we where talking about the

I bought an MVA tang sight and globe sight and am eagerly awaiting the Shiloh people to install them on my 1863 carbine! Also it has a 10 or 15 pound trigger pull. Am having a trigger job also. Can't wait to see what it will do at 200 yards.

I bought an MVA tang sight and globe sight and am eagerly awaiting the Shiloh people to install them on my 1863 carbine! Also it has a 10 or 15 pound trigger pull. Am having a trigger job also. Can't wait to see what it will do at 200 yards.

I think you'll be pleasantly surprised at what your '63 Military Rifle will do at 200 yds.

Mine is in .50 so it doesn't have that cavernous .54 powder chamber. I bought it for $500 in the era when it would have required registration in Canada. I had to pledge that I would NOT register it as a condition of the sale. Call it a protest against an onerous law.

I got into the '63 learning curve on the Shiloh forum and eventually entered a postal match with three US '63 owners, two of them shooting .54s, one a .52 Garrett. We shot off hand at 50 yds, x-sticks at 100, same for 150 and 200 was prone, x-ticks or bench. One of the guys was in a wheel chair and he shot his carbine.

None of us knew what to expect out of these guns. All of them had the factory sights; ladder or buckhorn. I didn't even know how to adjust the ladder sight for windage!

We were all surprised with the accuracy we got. Not on a par with my 50-70 Military Rifle, but certainly minute-of-moose or man. If I recall, my load consisted of a 60 gr .54 calibre Pyrodex pellet rolled with a lubed as-cast Lyman 515141 450 gr bullet. I did this for convenience and it made a very original looking round that could take handling well for hunting.