Only 477 of Model 1875 Officer Sporting rifles were manufactured in 1875-1885 for private purchase by U.S. military officers for sporting use. Custer is known to have used a similar Model 1866 Officer's Sporting Rifle. This is a Third Type Model 1875 Officer's Sporting Rifle; only 100 were manufactured in 1885. It features a deep scroll and floral engraving on the barrel band, forend cap, breech, lock, trigger guard, and heel. The engraving matches that on other known examples but is deeper. It also has a Beach style combination front sight, standard "sky jump" rifle rear sight, standard inspection marks near the breech, "U.S./MODEL/1875" on the breechblock, standard eagle motif and "U S/SPRINGFIELD" on the lock, a sporting tang sight on the top of the wrist, "SWP/1885" cartouche on the left, circled script "P" on the bottom of the butt behind the point of the checkering, "US" on the buttplate behind the tang screw, a nickel plated forend cap with ornate finial, and a screw affixed pistol grip extension.

Very good as refinished, most of the custom gunsmith blue finish torch heated case and straw colors and silver tones on the other components, some light pitting, and minor marks and scratches. The original stock is fine and has fairly crisp checkering, slight surface chips/flakes at the nose of the lock, a section of scrapes and dings between the upper tang and peep sight base, and general minor scrapes, small dents, and bruises. Mechanically excellent. This is nonetheless a real representative example of the very scarce third variation Springfield Armory Model 1875 Officer's Trapdoor Sporting Rifles.