During management of the gun, the operated need only to release a catch assembly located at the front of the trigger (found within the diameter trigger loop). The receiver was hinged so that the barrel end could be pivoted downward to expose the breech for loading / reloading. The cartridges relied on a rubber casing so as to help seal the expanding gasses during firing though this had the side effect of making cartridge extraction somewhat difficult and slow under combat conditions.
Production of this carbine spanned from 1861 to 1865 and amounted to 30,062 units. Manufacture was out of three locations: American Machine Works of Springfield, Massachusetts, the American Arms Company and the Massachusetts Arms Company, the latter two located in Chicopee Falls, Massachusetts.
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