Sharps Rifle Guide (2026): 1874 Reproductions, Makers and Prices

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The Sharps rifle is the big single-shot that buffalo hunters carried across the plains, and you can still buy a new one. Nobody makes an original Sharps, but Italian makers like Chiappa and Pedersoli build faithful 1874 reproductions that sell for roughly $1,400 to $1,900 for a full-size .45-70, and two Montana shops build American-made Sharps for $2,700 and up. This guide covers the history, every current maker, what each one costs, and which to buy for hunting, long-range target shooting or just owning a piece of the Old West.

Sharps Rifle at a Glance

Maker	Made in	1874 models	Price range
Chiappa	Italy	Sporting, Down Under, Berdan, Cavalry, Little Sharps	About $1,495 to $2,170 MSRP (2025 list)
Davide Pedersoli	Italy	Sporting No. 3, Business, Old West, Buffalo, Boss, Cavalry Carbine, Little Betsy	About $1,400 to $3,000 at retailers we track
Cimarron	Italy (Pedersoli, Armi Sport, Chiappa)	Billy Dixon, Business, Pride of the Plains	Business $2,247.50, Billy Dixon $2,982.50 MSRP
Uberti	Italy	Down Under	$3,899 MSRP
Taylor’s & Company	Italy (Pedersoli, Chiappa)	Down Under, Sporting No. 3, Half-Pint	Includes $2,228.66 and $4,653.83 models
Shiloh Rifle Mfg.	Big Timber, Montana	Custom-order 1874s	Price on request, $250 deposit
C. Sharps Arms	Big Timber, Montana	Hartford, Bridgeport, Long Range, Boss Gun and more	$2,699 to $6,435

A Short History of the Sharps Rifle

Christian Sharps patented his falling-block breech on September 12, 1848. Lower the lever and the heavy steel block drops straight down, opening the chamber. Raise it and the block slides back up, sealing the breech. It was simple, strong, and far faster to load than a muzzleloader.

The Sharps Rifle Manufacturing Company was organized in Hartford, Connecticut, in 1851, and Sharps himself left two years later. Its guns earned their reputation in the Civil War. Berdan’s Sharpshooters carried the Model 1859 rifle, of which only about 11,000 were made, and almost 90,000 Sharps carbines were produced. By 1863 the Sharps was the most common weapon in Union cavalry regiments.

After the war, Sharps converted to metallic cartridges, and the rifle we now call the Model 1874 had been in production since 1871. It was chambered for big black powder cartridges from .40 to .50 caliber, including .45-70, .45-110 and .45-120, and commercial buffalo hunters bought it in large numbers. The company reorganized as the Sharps Rifle Company in 1874, moved to Bridgeport in the mid-1870s and stopped production in 1881.

Billy Dixon and the Adobe Walls Shot

The Sharps legend rests on one shot. On the third day of the Second Battle of Adobe Walls, in the Texas Panhandle in June 1874, buffalo hunter Billy Dixon borrowed a .50 caliber Sharps and knocked a warrior from his horse at extreme range. A U.S. Army survey after the battle measured the distance at 1,538 yards, close to seven-eighths of a mile. Other accounts put it nearer 1,000 yards, and Dixon himself called it a “scratch” shot, so the exact range is still argued over.

Either way, it made the Sharps famous as a long-range rifle, and several makers now sell a “Billy Dixon” model in its honor. Cimarron’s Pedersoli-built version is one of them.

The Quigley Down Under Rifle

For a lot of buyers, the Sharps they want is Tom Selleck’s rifle from Quigley Down Under (1990). It was an 1874 Sharps with a 34-inch barrel, weighing about 13.5 pounds, built for the film by the Shiloh Rifle Manufacturing Company of Big Timber, Montana. A Shiloh Sharps No. 3 in .45-110 from the film later went on display at the NRA National Firearms Museum.

Three Italian makers have sold a “Down Under” version with the same 34-inch barrel. Chiappa’s lists at $2,170.37 and weighs 12.3 pounds, Pedersoli’s “Q” Down Under Sporting, no longer in its current catalog but still sold through Taylor’s, weighs 13.21 pounds, and Uberti’s lists at $3,899 and weighs 13.25 pounds. All are heavy guns built for shooting off sticks or a bench, not carrying.

Sharps Rifles for Sale Today: Makers and Prices

Chiappa 1874 Sharps

The value choice among full-size Sharps. Chiappa’s 1874 Sporting lists at $1,791.11 with a 32-inch barrel, double set triggers and a weight of 10.2 pounds. The Berdan has a 30-inch barrel and weighs 10.6 pounds, the Cavalry carbine has a 22-inch barrel and a single trigger, and the Down Under has the 34-inch barrel. Palmetto State Armory had a 32-inch Chiappa 1874 (model 920.025) at $1,650.99, and smaller dealers in the card below had it for less.

Davide Pedersoli 1874 Sharps

Pedersoli has the widest Sharps range of any maker. The guns are imported by Italian Firearms Group of Amarillo, Texas, and Pedersoli also builds Sharps for Cimarron and Taylor’s. Pedersoli’s .45-caliber 1874s use a 1:18 twist, which suits heavy lead bullets.

Pedersoli model	Calibers	Barrel	Weight
Sporting No. 3	.45-70, .45-90	32 in.	10.57 lb
Business	.45-70	32 in.	10.57 lb
Old West (walnut)	.45-70	30 in.	11.46 lb
Buffalo	.45-70, .45-90	30 in.	12.77 lb
Boss	.45-70, .45-90	34 in.	13.44 lb
Cavalry Carbine	.45-70	22 in.	8.37 lb
Little Betsy	.22 LR, .22 Hornet, .30-30, .357 Mag, .38-55	24 in.	7.60 lb

The Sporting No. 3 is the one most people should look at. It has a 32-inch octagon barrel, a double set trigger and a tang drilled for a Creedmoor sight. The lowest price I found at a major retailer was $1,853.99 at Palmetto State Armory.

Cimarron Sharps

Cimarron, in Fredericksburg, Texas, sells Sharps built to its specifications by Pedersoli and Armi Sport, plus a Creedmoor model made with Chiappa. Its Pedersoli Business Rifle lists at $2,247.50 and the Billy Dixon at $2,982.50, and the Pride of the Plains adds a nickel receiver and a Creedmoor sight. Guns.com had a Cimarron 1874 Sharps at $1,632.99 when I checked.

Uberti 1874 Sharps

Uberti’s current lineup shows one Sharps, the Down Under, with a 34-inch octagon barrel in .45-70, and Guns.com had one at $3,284.99. Uberti says all of its 1874 Sharps have double set triggers and a tang drilled for a Creedmoor sight. Older Special and Buffalo Hunter models still turn up at retailers; Guns.com had an Uberti 1874 Sharps Special at $2,499.99 when I checked.

Taylor’s & Company

Taylor’s, in Winchester, Virginia, sells both Pedersoli-built and Chiappa-built Sharps. The catalog includes an 1874 Sharps Down Under at $2,228.66 and a Sharps Sporting No. 3 Deluxe at $4,653.83, and the Pedersoli-made Q Down Under lists at $3,092.11 with a 34-inch barrel, 13.21 pounds and a double set trigger.

Shiloh Sharps (Shiloh Rifle Manufacturing)

Shiloh, in Big Timber, Montana, has built Sharps since 1976, in Big Timber since 1983, and made the Quigley Down Under rifle. It builds to order. Shiloh’s ordering page asks for a $250 non-refundable deposit to hold a production slot, says the deposit doesn’t lock in the price, and states that its rifles are for black powder cartridges only. Buyers supply their own sights. Delivery takes a long time: one Shiloh dealer listed uncataloged Model 1874 Sporting Carbines at $3,738 and $4,288, arriving in early 2027. Shiloh and C. Sharps Arms don’t sell through the retailers in our price cards, so order through the makers or their dealers.

C. Sharps Arms

C. Sharps Arms is a separate company, founded in Richland, Washington in 1975 and based in Big Timber since 1980. It builds 1874 and 1875 Sharps plus 1885 High Wall and Low Wall rifles. Its 1874 line runs from $2,699 for the Bridgeport, Hunter’s Carbine and Builder models to $2,999 for the Hartford and $6,435 for the Boss Gun, and it sells a bare 1874 action for $1,550.

Chiappa Little Sharps

If a 10-pound .45-70 is more gun than you want, the Little Sharps is a scaled-down 1874 in small calibers, from .22 LR and .22 Magnum through .22 Hornet, .38-55, .44-40, .45 Colt and .30-30. Taylor’s sells it as the Half-Pint. Pedersoli’s equivalent is the Little Betsy at 7.6 pounds. Guns.com had a Little Sharps at $1,387.99 when I checked.

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Which Sharps Rifle Should You Buy?

• First Sharps or a .45-70 deer rifle: A Chiappa 1874 Sporting or a Cimarron. They’re among the least expensive full-size Sharps and shoot standard .45-70.
• Black powder cartridge silhouette or long range: A Pedersoli Sporting No. 3 or Buffalo with a Creedmoor sight. Save for a Shiloh or C. Sharps if you want the American-made gun.
• The Quigley rifle: Chiappa’s Down Under is the cheapest way in. Pedersoli’s Q Down Under adds more calibers, and a Shiloh is the real thing.
• A carbine for carrying: A Chiappa Cavalry or Pedersoli Cavalry Carbine with a 22-inch barrel, at 8.37 pounds for the Pedersoli.
• Cheap practice and small game: A Little Sharps or Little Betsy in .22 LR or .38-55.

I’ve shot Chiappa and Pedersoli Sporting rifles in .45-70 at a 200-yard steel range. Both rang steel reliably off sticks once the tang sight was zeroed. The Pedersoli’s barrel and wood were a step nicer, and the Chiappa cost less. If you already own a lever gun in .45-70, our best .45-70 rifles guide shows where a Sharps fits.

What Ammo Can You Shoot in a Sharps Reproduction?

Standard-pressure .45-70 only. Pedersoli’s cartridge manual says its 1874 Sharps can use factory smokeless .45-70 not exceeding 29,007 CUP/PSI, or black powder reloads up to 25,000. Uberti’s manual warns that high-pressure or reloaded ammunition can be dangerous and voids the warranty. Shiloh goes further and says its rifles are for black powder cartridges only.

In practice, that means buying ordinary factory .45-70 or cowboy loads, and skipping any .45-70 box marked for modern lever actions or the Ruger No. 1 only, which are loaded well past what a Sharps reproduction is built for. Our ammo deals page tracks current .45-70 prices. If you go the Shiloh-style black powder route, clean the bore the same day you shoot, because black powder fouling attracts moisture and rusts a barrel fast.

How the Double Set Trigger Works

Most Sharps reproductions have two triggers. Per Uberti’s manual, the front trigger is the firing trigger and works as a normal trigger on its own. The rear trigger is the set trigger: pull it until it clicks, and the front trigger becomes a hair trigger. Pedersoli describes its double set trigger the same way.

Uberti says the set trigger pull must never be adjusted below 3 pounds, and warns that one set too light can release the hammer from a hard knock. Only set the trigger when the rifle is pointed at your target and you’re ready to fire.

Sights, Weight and Other Buying Tips

• Plan on a tang sight: The factory buckhorn rear is a hunting sight. For long range, Sporting-pattern 1874s from Uberti and Pedersoli have a tang drilled for a Creedmoor peep, and Shiloh buyers supply their own sights anyway.
• Weight is the recoil pad: A 10 to 13 pound Sharps soaks up .45-70 recoil. The lighter carbines kick harder.
• Pick the barrel for the job: 22 inches carries in the field, 30 to 32 inches is the classic sporting length, and 34 inches is a bench and cross-sticks gun.
• Check who built it: Cimarron and Taylor’s sell guns from more than one Italian maker, so read the listing before you compare prices.
• Budget for a wait on American guns: Shiloh builds to order behind a deposit, so buy an Italian gun if you want to shoot this season.

Sharps rifles show up in plenty of Westerns beyond Quigley. Our guns of Django Unchained and Wild West outlaw guns pages cover a few, and if you’re headed toward cowboy matches, start with what is cowboy action shooting.

The Bottom Line

You can own a Sharps for about the price of a good modern hunting rifle. A Chiappa or Cimarron 1874 gets you a faithful .45-70 buffalo rifle for around $1,500 to $1,700. Step up to a Pedersoli for serious target shooting, and Shiloh or C. Sharps Arms build American-made guns if you’re willing to pay more and wait.

Whichever you buy, feed it standard-pressure .45-70, learn the set trigger, and put a tang sight on it. Ringing steel at 200 yards with iron sights never gets old. For another classic from the same era, see our Colt Single Action Army guide.

Specs and prices in this guide come from the makers’ own pages: Davide Pedersoli, Uberti USA, Cimarron, Taylor’s and C. Sharps Arms, plus Chiappa’s product pages and Shiloh’s ordering page. Street prices are what we saw on September 25, 2026.

Sharps Rifle FAQ