Springfield 1873 Trapdoor .45-70

Wyoredman

New member
I attended a benefit dinner at the local Elks lodge Friday night. They were raising money for a fella without health insurance. One of the auction items was a beautiful Springfield 1873 Trapdoor in .45-70!

I wish I would have taken a picture of the gun before they sold it! It had a serial number in the 100,000 range. The fella who donated it said it was manufactured in 1878. The stock was excellent and the bore was shiny.

It ended up selling for $2,000.00! My question - Is this a good price? I wanted to bid, but the price soared above the amount I had to spend.

Anyhow, what a beautiful gun with such an interesting action. I wish I knew the history of that rifle. Who it was issued to, when was it last used in military operations. Things like that.

Sorry for rambling, just thought some of you may be interested in this story.
 
Trapdoors are neat guns and fun to shoot. I have owned a couple of the rifles and one 1873 carbine that I wish I still had, but is now in a museum.
 
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JMO, but whatever's being auctioned off doesn't need to be "worth it" - the whole idea of a Benefit Dinner's to generate the maximum help/refief for whomever, not have somebody get a "deal".



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JMO, but whatever's being auctioned off doesn't need to be "worth it" - the whole idea of a Benefit Dinner's to generate the maximum help/refief for whomever, not have somebody get a "deal".

Very true.
 
Aside from the "benefit" factor, it depends on the gun whether $2000 is a high, average, or great price. It is high for an average rifle, even in decent shape; it would be more than OK for one in near-new condition. It would be a fantastic buy for an Officers' rifle and grand theft for a Marksman rifle.

Jim
 
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