Bilharz Hall Carbine
Bilharz, Hall & Co. · Carbine · Discontinued · 1862
Also known as: Bilharz, Hall & Co. Rising Breech Carbine, Bilharz Hall Confederate Carbine, Rising Breech Carbine
Overview
The Bilharz Hall Carbine is a single-shot, breech-loading percussion carbine produced by the Confederate firm Bilharz, Hall & Co. of Pittsylvania Court House, Virginia. Its distinctive feature is a rising-breech mechanism: lowering the curved bow that serves as both loading lever and trigger guard causes a box-like breechblock at the rear of the barrel to rise vertically, exposing the chamber so a .54 caliber paper cartridge can be inserted. Closing the lever returns the breechblock into alignment with the bore. The barrel was rifled with three broad, shallow lands and grooves. Roughly 100 were delivered to the Confederate Ordnance Department in 1862, making it one of the rarest American Civil War cavalry arms.
Specifications
| Weight (empty) | 3200 g (112.9 oz) |
| Overall Length | 1016 mm (40.00") |
| Barrel Length | 533 mm (20.98") |
| Action Type | Breech Loading |
| Firing Mechanism | Percussion |
| Trigger Type | Single Action |
| Magazine Capacity | 1 rounds |
| Effective Range | 100 m (109 yd) |
| Barrel Rifling | Right Hand |
| Number of Grooves | 3 |
| Frame Material | Steel |
| Barrel Material | Steel |
| Stock Material | Walnut |
| Finish | Blued |
Calibers
- .54 Caliber Ball · primary — also known as 54 cal round ball, 13.7mm ball, .54 caliber paper cartridge
Features
- Firing modes: Manual
- Feed systems: Single Shot Breech Loaded
- Features: Rising Breech Block, Combined Loading Lever And Trigger Guard, Single Shot Breechloader, Paper Cartridge, Saddle Ring, Broad Shallow Rifling
Service history
Operators
- Confederate States Army · adopted 1862
Conflicts
- American Civil War (1861-1865)
Production
Estimated total produced: 100 · Production years: 1862-1863
About 100 rising breech carbines were sold to the Confederate Ordnance Department at $45.00 each by September 1862; approximately 16 are known to survive.
Origin
Country of origin: United States
Discontinued: 1863
Notes
Marked with a 'P' or 'P/CS' inspection stamp on the upper left side of the barrel and the top of the rising breech. Weight is an estimate based on comparable .54 caliber cavalry carbines of the period; period records do not list an exact figure. Only about 16 examples are known to survive.
Background
Built in the small Virginia town of Pittsylvania Court House (modern Chatham), the Bilharz, Hall & Co. rising breech carbine was an ambitious attempt by a Confederacy starved of industrial capacity to field an innovative breech-loading cavalry arm. Its rarity and the ingenuity of its rising-breech action make surviving examples among the most prized of all Confederate firearms.