Original item. Only One Available. This is a beautiful highly decorated Belgian Pinfire revolver, made very much in the French style. It features fantastic high relief engraving on the frame, cylinder, and trigger guard, as well as some great silver and gold inlays on the barrel and cylinder. It even has fantastic highly caved ebony wood grips, making this a real showpiece. There were many pinfire revolvers made in this era exported to the United States for use in the Civil War, however this definitely looks to be made for domestic use, sold to some well-heeled customer.

The revolver looks to be in 9mm Lefaucheux pinfire chambering, double / single action with a 6 round cylinder. Like most we see, there are no maker markings, However it bears a CROWN / EL marking on the left side of the barrel, for manufacture in the Belgian Gunmaking city of Liège. There are also several single letter proofs under crowns, typical of Belgian production. The lower left front of the frame is marked with serial number 232662, and this is the typical location for Belgian serial numbers.

The Pinfire system was the earliest form of "Cartridge" developed with a pin projecting out at 90 degrees to the cartridge case. When depressed by the falling hammer the cartridge discharged. At the time up against muzzle loading Revolvers these were revolutionary. Like most things by the end of the Civil War technology had moved on and in the late 1860's regular type cartridges as we know them today had been introduced.

This example follows the standard French style, just a bit bigger than "pocket" size, with a 4 1/4 inch long barrel, and overall length of 9 inches. It features a standard trigger guard and trigger, most likely intended for use in a holster, not a pocket. Along with the lovely engraving and inlays, it still retains much of the original blued finish on the barrel and cylinder, while the frame is faded more to a gray color, most likely originally having been case-colored. The ebony wood grips are lovely, with "bank note" style engraving on both sides. The left side does have a crack, but it does not extend all the way through the wood. As with many of these revolvers, it has a lanyard loop attached to the bottom of the grip frame, which is intact and moves freely.

Functionally, the revolver cycles well and functions in both double and single action. It indexes well, and the cylinder lockup is strong in single action. It does however sometimes not properly fire in double action mode if the trigger is pulled slowly. A fast trigger pull ensures that the hammer move forward. The bore is in excellent condition, with a bright finish and crisp lands and grooves. The four groove rifling has a relatively slow rate of twist, and shows little sign of having been fired through. The ejector is present and functional, locking back into place in the forward position. The loading gate is present with a functional locking spring.

A lovely upmarket Belgian Pinfire revolver, ready to research and display!

Specifications:

Year of Manufacture: circa 1860
Caliber: 9mm Lefaucheux
Ammunition Type: Pinfire Cartridge
Overall Length: 9 inches
Barrel Length: 4 1/4 inches
Action: Double / Single Action
Feed System: 6 Shot Revolver

NOTE: International orders of antique firearms MUST be shipped using UPS WW Services (courier). USPS Priority Mail international will not accept these. International customers should always consult their country's antique gun laws prior to ordering.

IMA considers all of our antique guns as non-firing, inoperable and/or inert. Title 18, U.S. Code, Section 921(a)(16) defines antique firearms as all guns made prior to 1899. This law exempts antique firearms from any form of gun control or special engineering because they are not legally considered firearms. No FFL, C&R or any license is required to possess, transport, sell or trade Antique guns. All rifles and muskets sold by IMA that were manufactured prior to 1899 are considered Antiques by the US BATF (United States Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco & Firearms). Therefore, all of IMA's Antique guns may be shipped to all US States and most nations around the world.

These antique guns are not sold in "live" condition, and are not tested for the the ability to feed or load any type of cartridge. They are sold as collector's items or as "wall hangers" not for use, and we make no guarantees regarding functionality aside from what is stated in the description. Any attempt at restoring an antique gun to be operational is strongly discouraged and is done so at the risk of the customer. By purchasing an antique gun from IMA you thereby release IMA, its employees and corporate officers from any and all liability associated with use of our Antique guns.

Pre-1899 Manufacture, no licenses required, allowed to ship to almost any deliverable address across the globe. Please note that for international shipping, these MUST be shipped using UPS WW Services. International customers should always consult their country's antique gun laws prior to ordering.