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Evans repeating rifle
The Evans repeating rifle was a lever-action repeating rifle designed by Warren R. Evans as a high capacity repeater.
The Evans repeating rifle is often considered to be one of the oddest rifles to ever be produced in the United States. The Evans was invented by Warren R. Evans, a dentist from Thomaston, Maine. With the help of his brother George, they perfected the rifle and started the "Evans Rifle Manufacturing Company" of Mechanic Falls, Maine in 1873. Their rifles were marketed by Merwin & Hulbert, who also invested into the company. The hope was that the rifle would be issued by the United States Army, but the rifle failed the standard dust test.
It was then offered as a sporting rifle. The rifle has a radial block receiver similar to the Spencer, but the rounds were fed from an Archimedean-screw magazine which formed the spine of the rifle stock and could hold up to 28 rounds. The fluted cartridge carrier made a quarter turn each time the lever was operated, feeding a new cartridge into the breech.
The round was unique to the rifle and hard to find. The mechanism of the rifle was not very sturdy and did not do well with such things as dust. The Evans Rifle Manufacturing Company went bankrupt in December 1879, a victim of the post war arms glut and keen competition.
A total of almost 15,000 Evans repeating rifles were produced between 1873 and 1879. A good portion of these survive, and a number are advertised in various antique arms publications. The rifle was the only firearm mass-produced in the state of Maine in the 19th century. The Evans rifle also had the greatest magazine capacity of any rifle mass-produced in the 19th century.
In terms of basic design, the Evans repeating rifle is similar to the Spencer repeating rifle. However, the Evans has a rotary helical magazine in the buttstock, and cartridges are fed into the breech by cycling the cocking lever/trigger guard. The magazine of the Evans also has a much higher capacity than that of the Spencer, up to 28 rounds. The Evans holds four rows of cartridges which are loaded through a trapdoor in the buttplate. Each time the action is cycled, the magazine feeds the next cartridge to the breech in a helical pattern.
The first model of the rifle, commonly called the old model, was in production from 1873 to 1876. This model differs from later models mainly in that it has no lower buttstock, only an upper one. This means that the magazine tube is exposed along the bottom of the stock. In addition, the ejection port has no dust cover. Approximately 500 old models were produced. The first 200 of these have no cocking lever retaining stud on the underside of the magazine tube. Old models made after the first 200 have a stud or locking nut to hold the cocking lever in place. The barrels of the old models are marked "Evans Repeating Rifle/Pat. Dec 8, 1868 & Sept. 16, 1871".
Old model Evans rifles were made in the following configurations:
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Evans repeating rifle
The Evans repeating rifle was a lever-action repeating rifle designed by Warren R. Evans as a high capacity repeater.
The Evans repeating rifle is often considered to be one of the oddest rifles to ever be produced in the United States. The Evans was invented by Warren R. Evans, a dentist from Thomaston, Maine. With the help of his brother George, they perfected the rifle and started the "Evans Rifle Manufacturing Company" of Mechanic Falls, Maine in 1873. Their rifles were marketed by Merwin & Hulbert, who also invested into the company. The hope was that the rifle would be issued by the United States Army, but the rifle failed the standard dust test.
It was then offered as a sporting rifle. The rifle has a radial block receiver similar to the Spencer, but the rounds were fed from an Archimedean-screw magazine which formed the spine of the rifle stock and could hold up to 28 rounds. The fluted cartridge carrier made a quarter turn each time the lever was operated, feeding a new cartridge into the breech.
The round was unique to the rifle and hard to find. The mechanism of the rifle was not very sturdy and did not do well with such things as dust. The Evans Rifle Manufacturing Company went bankrupt in December 1879, a victim of the post war arms glut and keen competition.
A total of almost 15,000 Evans repeating rifles were produced between 1873 and 1879. A good portion of these survive, and a number are advertised in various antique arms publications. The rifle was the only firearm mass-produced in the state of Maine in the 19th century. The Evans rifle also had the greatest magazine capacity of any rifle mass-produced in the 19th century.
In terms of basic design, the Evans repeating rifle is similar to the Spencer repeating rifle. However, the Evans has a rotary helical magazine in the buttstock, and cartridges are fed into the breech by cycling the cocking lever/trigger guard. The magazine of the Evans also has a much higher capacity than that of the Spencer, up to 28 rounds. The Evans holds four rows of cartridges which are loaded through a trapdoor in the buttplate. Each time the action is cycled, the magazine feeds the next cartridge to the breech in a helical pattern.
The first model of the rifle, commonly called the old model, was in production from 1873 to 1876. This model differs from later models mainly in that it has no lower buttstock, only an upper one. This means that the magazine tube is exposed along the bottom of the stock. In addition, the ejection port has no dust cover. Approximately 500 old models were produced. The first 200 of these have no cocking lever retaining stud on the underside of the magazine tube. Old models made after the first 200 have a stud or locking nut to hold the cocking lever in place. The barrels of the old models are marked "Evans Repeating Rifle/Pat. Dec 8, 1868 & Sept. 16, 1871".
Old model Evans rifles were made in the following configurations: