I had a problem with the film's contention that the Springfield rifle was such an effective and awesome weapon. Eleven years after the end of the Civil War, a later-model Springfield was issued to Custer's 7th Cavalry, a weapon that, when fired continually, overheated, causing the soft copper cartridges of that era to expand, thus jamming the ejection mechanism. As may be imagined, this manifestation was not a desirable one. Having to claw and dig out jammed cartridge cases from hot rifle breeches in the face of overwhelming hordes of hostile Lakota and Cheyenne tribesmen, armed with better and more reliable rifles, was a major contributing reason that Custer's command was wiped out.
Review of Springfield Rifle
