Original Item: Only One Available. Here we have a lovely late Victorian era German target pistol in the very popular .22 rimfire chambering, though we do not know if it is long or short. The style is somewhat reminiscent of the Remington rolling block pistol, but much more refined. At the time target and match shooting were very popular, both indoors and out, and this pistol would have definitely been an upmarket example. It is very well made, and has some lovely floral engravings on the frame, which was most likely originally case hardened.

The pistol measures 16 inches in overall length, with a barrel just shy of 11 inches long, and does not have any maker markings that we can find, just the patent information on the left side of the frame, D.R. Pat. / 73855. Perhaps someone with access to the old patent records may be able to perform some further research. We have found other similar guns with this same number, and they seem to have been made in a variety of configurations.

This example is a top break design, where the trigger guard doubles as the operating lever, which breaks open the action and cocks the internal hammer at the same time. The ejector presents when the barrel tilts forward, and as designed the trigger guard / lever should snap back into place when the action is closed. However, the leaf spring on the underside of he action in front of the lever has broken, so it no longer moves the guard back, so it must be moved by hand.

The bottom of the barrel is marked with serial number 2933, and as is typical of German guns, we can see shortened number 33 on some components, such as the trigger guard lever. Above this are several German proof marks, which are the type used on guns intended for the export market. These include the CROWN / U proof mark, the CROWN / G Zeichen für Kugelläufe (Proof for rifle barrels), and CROWN / B Zeichen für Waffen, die nur einmaligem Beschuß unterworfen sind - ausländische Waffen (Proof for guns which are only tested once - foreign arms).

The left side of the barrel has the loading specifications, which were required to be stamped on all German guns after 1871. They are faded but originally read:

0,2gr N.G.P. M/71
1,8gr Bl.

These give the loading specifications for both the Model 1871 "Neues Gewehr Pulver" and the standard Black powder in use before.

Condition of the pistol is very good, showing much of the original blued finish on the barrel, while the frame shows gray patina, faded from the original case hardened finish. There is no real peppering or rust we can see, just wears from use, age, and cleaning. The grips look to be walnut or something similar, and were originally smooth, but had some grooves cut in the bottom to aid in gripping the handle. The action works well, and dry fires correctly, though as noted previously the loading lever / trigger guard does not snap back into place correctly due to a broken spring. We checked the bore, and it is quite worn, displaying faint rifling with some oxidation spots. This is definitely a pistol that saw extensive use.

A lovely German .22cal. target pistol for the Export market, ready to research and display!

Specifications:

Year of Manufacture: circa 1890
Caliber: .22cal
Ammunition Type: rimfire cartridge
Overall Length: 16 inches
Barrel Length: 10 7/8 inches
Action: Top break internal hammer
Feed System: Single Shot

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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 most US States and most U.S. territories.

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