Original Item: Only One Available. Here is a very nice .31 caliber percussion revolver with a fluted five shot cylinder, sold by the B.J. Hart & Brother Company of New York. There were only an estimated 600 of these revolvers produced, and all were made by the Bacon Manufacturing Company, who manufactured many arms under contract during the Civil War Period.

Thomas K. Bacon had been a gunsmith working with the Manhattan Firearms Manufacturing, and then left to found his own company Company and established the Bacon Manufacturing Company in Norwich, Connecticut. The first pistol that they marketed was the fully engraved .31cal "Excelsior" model pistol, with a round cylinder and barrel. Shortly after that model came Bacon's "2nd Model", which is the only version to have the fluted cylinder. They were available in 4, 6, and 8 inch barrel lengths.

The B.J. Hart & Bro. revolvers are more or less identical to the revolvers that the Bacon company sold under their own brand name, except they had some different options, such as the 5 inch long barrel on this example. This example is identical to a Bacon 2nd model, and is marked B. J. HART & BRO. N. Y. on the top of the barrel, and is 10 inches in overall length. There is some lovely foliate engraving on the frame, as sometimes seen on other special order examples. The revolver bears matching serial number 32 on the Grip frame, Cylinder rear, Loading Rammer, Barrel, Barrel wedge, and is even written in pencil on the inside of both grip scales. This is a very desirable "ALL MATCHING" example, with no parts swapped out over the years!

These revolvers were great favorites with Union Officers, who purchased these as a backup personal second revolver to take into battle. They were easily concealed and most effective, giving the officer an additional 5 shots when needed.

The action works quite nicely, with a good cylinder lock up and a crisp dry fire. As with any revolver of this age however, it can be finicky at times. The hand spring on this example is weak, so the hand has trouble engaging the cylinder ratchet at times, which can cause it to jam slightly. The barrel shows crisp rifling with a mostly bright finish, still showing the original machining marks in areas. There are some spots of light oxidation, now cleaned away, but very little powder or lead fouling, so we do not expect that this revolver saw a large amount of actual firing. The cap nipples are present and clear, though they do show some oxidation on the exterior. as well as some mushrooming on the top from dry firing the pistol.

Nice old finish, the blue now oxidized to a lovely gray worn patina.. The original grips are quite nice, and still retain almost all of the original factory varnished finish.

A great Civil War Private Purchase revolver, ready to display!

Specifications:

Year of Manufacture: circa 1860
Caliber: .31cal
Ammunition Type: Cap and Ball
Barrel Length: 5 inches
Overall Length: 10 inches
Action: Single Only
Feed System: 5 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.