Farmingdale 50/140 business rifle?

[NDuckhunter2]

I recently picked up a NY made Shiloh sharps rifle. I love everything about the rifle minus the caliber which ended up being a .50 3 1/4”. When I bought it the guy didn’t know the length of the chamber only that it was a .50 caliber bore and I gambled that it would be a .50/70 or .50/90. It was pretty cheap so don’t feel too bad about it. I have a couple of questions about changing the caliber. First this gun will never shoot in a competition but I want it to be accurate obviously. Should I consider relining the barrel? I assume it cannot be shortened and re-chambered due to the barrel profile and the extremely long chamber it currently has. Do y’all think the money saved would ultimately come out in the wash since it will lower the value of the gun vs a re-barrel by Shiloh? As to caliber, I would love to have it chambered In .44/77 due to its historical significance. I load .43 Spanish for my excellent Remington rolling block that actually has a .446 bore and have been told that makes it a .44/77. I made a special expander to expand the neck to .445 so I can load .446 bullets. Is the bore diameter really the only difference between the cartridges? What about rim thickness? I’m having trouble finding chamber measurements for these two calibers. If I’m going to have to retool and find .44/77 brass and not be able to use my current.43 Spanish brass I think I should probably just stick with .45/70 chambering as I’m flush with moulds and casings. I load for .50/70 too but I’m down to 40 casings and not hopeful starline will start making them anytime soon. What say yall? Also is this a business rifle?

[Ray Newman]

I would rebarrel to either a .40-65 Winchester or a .45-70 Gov't. Form the .40-65 Winchester from .45-70 brass. Over the years, I have had both calibers and both are easy to reload and shoot.

But no matter what other calibre you may consider first check the availability of brass, dies, and moulds.

[bobw]

Over time a lot of 50-140's have been rebarreled to lesser cartridges. I left mine as is because they are getting harder to find. They kill deer ,antelope and buffalo right now. The recoil is rough for target shooting. I guess I'd shoot it some before screwing it up by rebarreling from your pics it looks like a nice looking unit. I'd guess #3 sporter. Bobw

[NDuckhunter2]

I guess I just don’t have an interest in the .50/140 mainly due to it not being a historical sharps round. Not too worried about the recoil. Then there is the lack of brass of course.

[Luke]

SEnd it to Shiloh to be rebarreled to the caliber of your choice, they can duplicate the barrel profile to reuse the forearm. Personally I'd have it done in 50 1 3/4" (50-70) to maximize the amount of parts that can be reused. Whatever caliber you decide on, get on Starlines backorder list.

[NDuckhunter2]

I thought about that, I know a .50/70 would only require a barrel replacement. When I spoke to them on the phone they said it would be no big deal to convert it to .45/70. I am on starline’s list, I wonder when they will make the next batch of casings? I think I’m really leaning towards just going with the .45/70 since I already have a couple .50/70’s and there’s just a lot more availability of loading components. As for the old barrel I was thinking of having the breach end cut off and fitted to a trapdoor Springfield action, chambered to .50/70 and build a gemmer style sporter. I used to build muzzle loaders so wouldn’t be that much different to stock it. I’d have to take some measurements to see if that’s feasible.

[Luke]

FWIW a documented rebarrel by Shiloh will certainly enhance the value of the rifle vs its current chambering, or having a reline done. .45-70 is never a mistake.

[Luke]

Oh, and that's a #3 Sporting Rifle. Buisiness rifle would have a 28" round barrel. Nice wood too.

[NDuckhunter2]

Awesome, thanks for all the info guys!