Why did the US opt for the trap-door design instead of a bolt-action? How did the 1873 and 1884 Springfields compare to their contemporaries like the Gras, Martini-Henry etc.?
>>34634673
>Why did the US opt for the trap-door design instead of a bolt-action?
Because it was cheaper and used existing stocks of weapons. Remember that for most of US history the standing army was kind of an afterthought until war broke out.
>>34634673
If we are talking about the gun with the diagonal firing pin I heard that congress "didn't trust the look of the new gun" so they put a "lock" on the side of the gun to make it look like a musket.
>>34634673
It was cheaper to retrofit the bazillions of muskets left over from the Great White Trash Uprising Of 1861 that to design and buy a new rifle in an era where the greatest military threat were the goddam Indians.
>>34634714
>Remember that for most of US history the standing army was kind of an afterthought until war broke out.
Also this.
>>34634772
I looked up "The Great White Trash Uprising of 1861" and all I got was the Polish Uprising of 1848.
The fuck were we doing jn Poland?
>>34635000
>>34634772
Same, I looked up"The Great White Trash Uprising of 1861" and couldn't find anything. I did find "The War To Let Niggers Destroy White Cities of 1861"
>>34635000
>>34635135
Sorry. That's what we call it in my family.
Blood under the bridge.
>>34635164
Boy I had an ancestor one both sides of the civil war and.......
what
>>34635179
Phil is a gay pederast, don't give what he says much thought.
>>34635298
Oh pardon I didn't even realize it was phil
Though I like to respond based on the merits of the post rather than the merits of the poster, hence why i don't use reddit
>>34635328
>>34635135
>>34634772
I found "The War To Make The World Safe For Blacked.com"
>>34634732
Shit how old are you that you heard what congress was saying in the 1800s
>>34634772
>Thread derailment 101
>>34634772
All I found was "The Irish Invasion of 1862"
>>34634673
Because shut up. That's why
>>34634714
Weapons technology was also changing very, very quickly at the time and there was no real clear path. Conversions were the cheap, conservative option and worked well enough.