I have to agree, the single most important gun in US History… This is it.
What is really impressive about these guns is the pressure they operate at. Not only that, but the number of shots they can shoot before they lose velocity. They used bone for the gaskets. The performance has not been matched with modern materials in modern air rifles. Those air-rifles were truly amazing.
It seems those air soft folks got it right and I have found a new wave of respect for Air Soft. Not that it is at all applicable, but a rifle powerful enough to hunt and battle that is over 100 years old and it is powered by compressed air? Ingenious and amazing. And a precursor to lever bolt action no less. What an amazing weapon. And it’s virtually silenced! This is like a great, best kept secret. We should modernize it…
Interesting bit of history.
Now where can I get one? Unkle Musket’s been wanting one for a long time.
Here’s something new to look at. Crosman precharged pnuematic in .357 with a built in moderator: http://www.crosman.com/airguns/benjamin/BPE3571