The purpose of a Saddle Ring ?

brummiejim

Hi, experts. There are a zillion varieties of saddle ring carbine out there. My question is what is or was the purpose of the saddle ring? I'll bet there's more than one explanation. Thanks Jim

Werwolf

Here is some info:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddle_ring

BigLoop22

Jim,
The saddle ring was put on rifles, so that Winchester could charge its customer $11.50 for a piece of leather to put through it.[:0][:p]

Actually, the saddle ring was meant to keep the horse soldier tied to his rifle. ...or, the other way around.[;)] Everywhere that the soldier went, his rifle went, too.

The saddle ring can, indeed, serve a useful, modern purpose. As referenced in the wikipedia article, Junior Doughty has resurrected the carbine sling:

http://www.castbullet.com/srsling.htm



The other pictures on his site show how he added a modern type of ring to several of his own guns, in order to have his hands free, while walking through the woods. It only makes sense.[;)]

shooter10

According to Wikipedia:
A saddle ring is a metal ring attached to the receiver of a rifle or carbine allowing it to be tied to a saddle or used with a special sling.[1][2] Saddle rings could be attached directly to the firearm, or in some cases to a saddle ring bar, which allowed the saddle ring to slide along the action, such as on the British Enfield P1856, a short cavalry version of the Pattern 1853 Enfield used in the American Civil War.[3][4] Saddle rings are most commonly found on lever action rifles and other firearms of the late 1800s and early 1900s that were suitable for use on horseback. The muzzle of the rifle was placed in a carbine socket. The idea behind using the saddle ring, and its carbine sling, is to allow the mounted soldier to never be sepperated from his weapon.[1]

dirtyharry331

Guess it's not much different then the single point sling on an AR15 Carbine as a modern day example.[:D][:D][:D]

tsr1965

Basically it has the same purpose as the fighting handguns of that era had. A lot of them had lanyard loops, to keep the soldier/fighter and his weapon together. The carbine ring has the same purpose, but it does come in handy for other purposes too with a one point sling.

Best