Civil War–era Starr Percussion Cavalry Carbine, serial #12363, .54 caliber, 21" barrel with a fair, pitted bore. The barrel, frame, and action of this carbine have an overall dark plum-brown patina, with areas of pitting at the muzzle, as well as on and around the breechblock. Some gray metal is present on the frame with dark freckling, but no traces of the original color case-hardening remain. The brass barrel band and buttplate have a matching dark brown-ochre patina while the lightly sanded walnut forend and stock having numerous small handling marks and minor blemishes throughout the added varnish finish. No inspector cartouche is visible on the left side of the wrist, and a previous owner has installed a German silver American Eagle insert into the right side of the buttstock. The lock of the carbine is fully functional, however the breechblock is no longer connected to the lever and has to be rotated manually.
Starr carbines are known to have been issued to the 1st Arkansas, 5th Kansas, 11th Missouri, and 24th New York cavalry regiments, however a search through the Springfield Research Archives yields no results for this serial number. This is a fair example of a Civil War Starr with a post-war civilian embellishment.
This is an antique firearm and transfers with no federal restriction.
