Original Swiss Vetterli Repetiergewehr M1878 Magazine Rifle Serial No 163080 - 10.35 x 47mm Display Guns & Parts Sets in Menden/Iserlohn was selected as

in Menden/Iserlohn was selected as the sole manufacturer of "Artikel 17

Shell Size Range: 66

Serial # 162215 with a legible SWP 1881 cartouche

there is the Confederate Acceptance stamp applied in the Confederacy upon importation showing :

In regular Army units

Original Swiss Vetterli Repetiergewehr M1878 Magazine Rifle Serial No 163080 - 10.35 x 47mm Display Guns & Parts Sets in Menden/Iserlohn was selected asOriginal Item: Only One Available. Introduced in 1867, the Vetterli rifle system utilized the "Winchester" tube magazine system for cartridge storage under the barrel. The original 1867 model had an external hammer, like a Winchester, but in 1868 this was changed to an internal cocking bolt spring. The cleaning rod was moved to the side of the rifle, but this proved problematic, so the model of 1869 moved it back to the under barrel position. In 1871,