What got you interested in the Spencer?

[PvtGreg]

So I've been wondering what event/experience got the membership interested in the Spencer?

For me it was one of the first books I bought after I moved to Nashville (1997). 

I had a week before I started my new job and I decided to do a day trip to Union City TN, home of Dixie Gun Works.  There I bought a book by John McAuley about Civil War Carbines.  I saw the Spencer and was hooked.  I later bought a Romano Spencer carbine.  Waited a year for it to be made & paid a little every month. 

Greg

[Two Flints]

When I first got involved with SASS my revolver of choice was the S&W .45 Schofield . . . I had my two Schofields and needed a rifle or carbine, and decided that shooting the same caliber was a good idea and economical for me . . . so I went looking for a carbine or rifle that shot the .45 Schofield cartridge . . . and found the Spencer Carbine in that caliber.  Later, I think there were about twenty-three of us who wanted to form our own forum . . . I took it one step further and went looking for a home for our Spencer Shooting Society (SSS) . . . this was about ten years ago . . .  Then one day I received an Email from  Marshal Halloway inviting SSS to join CasCity and the rest is history  

Two Flints

[Sgt Scott]

I do civil war reenacting and was doing some research for my role. I was looking into 'Cavalry Leaders' and found Wilson along with his changes to the Cavalry while in the Cavalry Bureau. I picked up a copy of 'Under the Old Flag' and found his guidon/badge and had m wife embroider the symbol of the Spencer on a handkerchief. It was prior to Two Flints getting the one here but it looks very similar. Next I found a carbine in .44 that worked out real well and I was off.  I roll and box my own rounds and have just about worn that piece out but it has been fun.

I did enough research to have a plausible story for why and how a western theater cavalry sergeant would have a carbine of this type in his possession. That has been some time ago...
Sgt Scott

[Advertising]

[Colt Fanning]

Howdy,
When I was in high school in the 1950's, I went into a local gun shop and saw an old carbine for sale for $60.  I used it for decoration until the 1990's when I saw another one for sale for $2500.  When I got interested in cas about 2000 I replaced the barrel and started shooting it.
Regards
Colt

[matt45]

     Back when I was very small, I saw a re-print of the "Believe It Or Not" w/ Lincoln and Chris Spencer.  Fast forward to High School, where there was a gun shop w/ a huge inventory of old weapons, one of which was a Spencer.  The old man who owned the place (Phil Judd) showed me how it worked.  From there, I'll confess I was much more interested in the Henry (as they were just starting to make reproductions, and I've always wanted shooters).  As better histories were published, it became apparent to me that the Spencer was the seminal repeater of The Civil War.
     Once the Armi- Sport came onto the market, I got one as soon as I could afford one. 

[Major 2]

Like the good Sgt.,  I too was cavalry reenactor it was just after the Bicentennial (19776) My first carbine was a Garrett Sharps.
I attended a gun show about 1980 and there was Spencer Carbine, I had to have it.
I also owned a Navy Arms Henry .
Blanks were the issue, but I did fashion my own rounds from 50 cal. Bell brass and live fired it , as single shot.
And for the Henry, 444 Marlin cut/necked down to feed as blanks, so I didn't use the Spencer in Reenactments.
Fast forward to 1982, I'm hired to coordinate cavalry for an Andrew McLaglen (Victor's son ) film
the Blue & the Gray. Short story was I was asked to provide Spencer's for production.
The Guns you see Gregory Peck & Stacy Keach use were provided by me... One was mine, the other was my friends both converted to CF with S&S blocks.
I had also ordered two Fletcher Bidwell guns , with promised delivery before production started , needless to say that did not happen !
I was to fight that refund battle well after we wrapped the shoot...
Photo from the internet

I acquired an Armi Sport in 45 Schofield about 2002 but by then I had hung my saber on the wall ....

 

[Blair]

I bought my first Spencer in 1974.
It came by way of a phone call from a friend I had been stationed with while I was still on active duty in the Navy.
He asked me if I knew what a Spencer Repeating Arms Co. was?
I said yes I did.
He then asked me if it was worth $100.00?
I then asked him if it was a Carbine or a Rifle?
He wasn't sure he knew just what the difference was, and did have the gun in hand to take measurements.
I told him it didn't make much difference, I would be happy to pay him $125.00 "sight unseen" for it.
The next weekend he had off he brought the Spencer to me, it was a Navy Model Rifle, SS# 667.
It was well used but complete and fully functional.
I have been on the down-that-road hill ever since.
My best,
 Blair

[Ibgreen]

It was the summer of 1990.  A high school friend of mine showed me a bunch of antique guns that his uncle (french National) left the family.  There was a snider conversion enfield, a rolling block rifle, a couple of Swiss target rifles and an odd looking unmarked rifle.  This unmarked rifle I would learn was an 1868 spencer New Model rifle.  No pitting and missing nothing.  He jokingly said that when I get married, he will gift it to me.  Apparently his uncle would have appreciated it belonging to someone that valued it.

Fast forward 13 years, guess who showed up to my "Gettin Hitched" ceremony with a long box! 

[daveemrick]

In 1989, I inherited this old Spencer.  Forgive me for not knowing the year right now, but that could come later.  I've spent some time emailing the Navy Archives, and visiting gun shops, looking for info.  This search hasn't been very committed to this point.  For a while, I tried to find "fireable" ammo to no avail.  At this point, I put the gun in the safe, where it has stood for several years.  Now, I have an interest in finding the history for this gun.  I don't even know how it got in my family, and anyone who can help me with that has passed.

At some point, I want to get a replica, and do some shooting.  I have a newer Henry 44 Mag.  It would be nice if I could find a Spencer that shoots the same round.

[Trailrider]

Have been interested in the military history of the Old West for years, especially the Battle of Beecher Island and the Rosebud (Little Big Horn, not so much). Of course Forsyth's Scouts used Spencers at Beecher Island. Had a chance to pick up a "shooter" M1860 Carbine, and did. Shot it for a number of years, but not so much lately.  One thing that has always intrigued me, as an engineer, is the innovation and manufacturing capability of those early breechloaders. We owe a lot to those mechanical geniuses like Christopher Spencer (inventor of the automatic screw machine, which is almost more important than the firearms he designed), John Moses Browning (almost every gun Winchester made between 1885 and the 1950's, plus the M2 .50BMG,M1911 pistol, etc., and Sam Colt.

[KEN S]

It's a Gun and I want one!......and I want it NOW!

  that's about it....Ken

[Walksfire]

About a year ago, while at my favorite machine shop, a old vietnam veteran (that is a welder by trade), comes in and shows off his 1860 Spencer, and says he is trying to sell it, if anyone is interested. He shows up occassionally to weld oil pick tubes together. So he leaves the Spencer at the shop, so that if any customers take an interest in it, they can see it and buy it. So, I handle it, look it over, when he is gone. I wipe down the pitted external surfaces with a rag and WD-40. I examine the working parts, and see that they are sticky, dirty and could use a good cleaning. So I take another shop towel with WD-40 and get the dirt off, preserving the Patina. I resist the temptation to wire brush and polish the carbine with shop tools that polish crankshafts. Later I bring my rifle cleaning rod, brushes, cleaning patches, bore cleaning fluids and oil to the shop. I do a thorough cleaning internal to the gun and see that it still has 6 decent grooves, but alot of dirt, rust and black powder came out in the process.

I did research online on the various gun auction sites and learned the history of this 150 year old gun. I asked the old guy how much he wanted. He wanted top dollar ($3,300). I notice it had long crack in the butt stock runnin parallel to where the bullets are loaded. I took pictures of the gun and showed them to a dealer at a gun show, who was selling a couple Spencers. I asked what the gun was worth. He said I should pass, at that price, because of the damage to the stock. He said there were alot of Spencers still sold at gun shows in the $2000- 2,500 range in alot better shape.

I took the verbal estimate back to the old guy and offered him $2000 cash in hand. He said NO way Jose. I learned from the owner of the machine shop that he had bought Spencer back in 1976 for $50. Over 6 months the carbine sat in a safe at the machine shop. I would pull it out every so often and work the action. I bought the Marcot book and surfed the web for anything on Spencers. I was hooked. But the old guy would not come off his now reduced price of $3000.

I attended a civil war shows in Richmond VA and in Timonium Maryland. I got a good idea of the going price of Spencers and condition is everything. I found one for $1900 from a Texas Dealer at the Maryland show. I have cleaned it, converted it over to centerfire with a S&S Block. I have learned how to make bullets (currently have 93 in inventory). I also have 80 blanks left. That Black powder sure does leave a mess in barrel.

Thanks to all here who have shared how to take care of the historic guns. 

[matt45]

please forgive a slight hijack.  I think Trailrider is spot on w/ proper credit due to our great firearms engineers.  Of course, Browning is a recognized genius, but I really think Chris Spencer deserves much more than is given him.

[General Lee]

As a youth in the 50's my Uncle, a Civil War buff, bought a Spencer carbine.  He showed it to my Dad and I and I thought it was the coolest looking rifle I ever saw.  For years I confused it with Sharps rifles, of course to later find out there was cross-pollination between Spencer and Sharps at the conception.  50 years later when my Uncle died my cousin told me he had asked them to let me have the choice of his antique gun collection.  Although I looked at the others there was never any question, I wanted the Spencer.  Probably were more around in the 50's when my Uncle bought it.  It is a good one.  Put a Buffalo Arms center fire breech block, 56-.50.  It is a great shooter, functions flawlessly, very accurate and fun to shoot.  I threaten to take it deer hunting every year.
General Lee 

[treebeard]

By the time I was in 1st grade I was interested in history and old guns. My first  experience with Spencer's  was
As a gun shop helper and a customer came in with one.  It immediately got my Attention and the gun shop owner came
Over said what it was and pointed out the replaced rear sight. He put a value of $85 and this was 1965.

[Pay Dirt Norvelle]

I don't have one yet, but probably will be ordering a reproduction next week.  My interest came about due to the fact I do Civil War reenacting and one of the members of the unit I belong to sets up a display of the type of firearms used in the Civil War.  Just this last time he added an original Spencer and it really caught my eye so I have to get one now.