Original Item. Only One Available. This is a fantastic and interesting find! Here we have a very good condition Civil War Star Arms Model 1858 Double Action Army revolver, bearing the serial number of 346, indicating production in 1862. This revolver was made towards very early as part of a production run of around 21,500 revolvers, delivered to the U.S. Army 1862-1863. After this, starting at serial number 23,000, they moved to the requested Single Action Model of 1863, which cost HALF of what the earlier model did. This model also replaced the 6 inch barrel with a longer 8 inch barrel.

After Civil War service, this revolver was converted to take brass cartridges, as with many percussion revolvers. However what is amazing is WHERE and HOW it was converted! The barrel, upper frame, lower frame, and cylinder are all marked with CROWN / CROWN / U, a gun proof used by GERMANY starting in the 1890s, and not used by any other country. There is even a partial German IMPERIAL EAGLE PROOF on the left side of the frame by the hinge. The answer as to how this revolver ended up in Europe, and Germany specifically is that many surplus Starr Percussion revolvers were imported for use in the Franco-Prussian war of 1870-1871.

The majority of these were part of a massive shipment of Starr revolvers to the French Republic in 1870 for use in the war. Some 20,000 surplus Starr Army revolvers, along with 20,000 Remington revolvers, were part of that transaction. The U.S. government sold them to Austin Baldwin & Co., acting as a straw buyer for E. Remington & Sons, per Peter Schiffers' book Civil War Revolvers: Myth vs. Reality. Most of these were apparently the Single Action .44 type, but there were some double actions. However, there were also ‘Many hundreds’ of additional Starr revolvers sent to Germany, per Martin Pegler's book Firearms in the American West, 1700-1900.

France was very soundly defeated during the Franco-Prussian war, and many French firearms were captured by Germany, and then taken home and put into service. There is unfortunately no way to now whether this revolver was originally sent to France or to Germany. The conversion however is unmistakably German in engineering and execution, and we have never seen another like it. We unfortunately do not know the exact chambering, however testing the cylinder an barrel with cartridges showed the best fit was .45 "Long" Colt. The bore has definitely been enlarged slightly, so it is no longer .44.

While most percussion to cartridge conversions would do the minimum work necessary, this conversion went over and beyond, and many parts of the action were completely redesigned, particularly related to cylinder rotation and suspension. The cylinder was completely replaced with a bored-through example, and it also is bored through the center as well. A cylinder arbor pin was installed on the rear frame, and a more modern "hand" design was installed in the rear of the frame to rotate the cylinder.

Even more amazing is the modification to install a floating firing pin in the rear of the frame for using centerfire cartridges. Most percussion revolvers would be converted to rimfire, as it required the lead modification to the hammer, and many revolvers, such as the Starr, were really not considered good candidates for a center fire conversion. That however did not stop whoever converted this example, and additional metal was added to the back of the frame so that the firing pin could be installed. There is even a set screw installed to hold it in place.

The other parts of the revolver were left pretty much as is, such as the loading rammer, which now served no purpose. One other improvement was the installation of a large aluminum course knurled end on the pin that holds the action closed, which is much easier to grip than the original fine knurling it originally had. The entire revolver looks to have been refinished when it was converted as well, which is why the finish on the replaced cylinder matches the rest of the gun. The grip was refinished and had some material removed, however this may have been after the original conversion, as there was also a horse figure engraved on both sides.

This really is a truly interesting revolver, the only one in this configuration that we have ever seen. Our example has the serial number 346 on the trigger guard under the grip, the rear grip support, the barrel frame, on the top of the frame under the cylinder, the barrel under the rammer, and even on the end of the grip. There is also number 25 stamped on the back of the cylinder, on the underside of the barrel, and on the top of the frame under the cylinder, numbers stamped when it was converted. It does not look like any parts were swapped out except for the cylinder, a necessary part of the conversion.

The original Starr manufacturer markings are still present, though they are a bit faint, and include:

- STARR ARMS, Co. NEW. YORK. found on left side of frame.
- STARR'S PATENT JAN 16. 1856. found on right side of frame.

Condition of the revolver is very good, showing some wear from service, but most of the original finish from the conversion is still intact. The front sight has been adjusted, with the original blade machined out, and a new thinner nickel alloy blade installed into the base. The bore is in very good condition, with clear lands and grooves and a partly bright finish. There are some areas of wear and oxidation, but it looks to only have seen light use. We do not know if it was re-bored during conversion, or whether this is still the original rifling.

This is a truly unique piece, and we will almost certainly never see one again. We have not been able to find much at all about this type of conversion, making it a fantastic research opportunity, as well as a great example of a well-engineered centerfire conversion. In very good condition, this converted Starr revolver is more than ready to display!

Specifications:

Year of Manufacture: 1862
Caliber: .45cal
Ammunition Type: Centerfire Cartridge
Barrel Length: 6 inches
Overall Length: 12 inches
Action: Double Action Only
Feed System: 6 Shot Revolver

More on the Starr Percussion Revolver:

Generally there are three models of Starr revolvers:

1863 Single Action .44 Caliber Percussion Army Revolver (produced 1863-1864) [23000 produced]

1858 Double Action .36 Caliber Percussion Navy Revolver (produced 1859-1860) [3000 produced]

1858 Double Action .44 Caliber Percussion Army Revolver (produced 1862-1863) [~21454 produced]

History of the STARR ARMS COMPANY Revolver-

About 23,000 double-action Starr revolvers were manufactured in the late 1850s and early 1860s. Of these, most were purchased by the U.S. Army. Starr revolvers, in both single-and double-action models, represented over 12 percent of the side arms issued to Union cavalry troops. Only Colt and Remington revolvers were more frequently encountered in the hands of Northern soldiers.

Starr revolvers were invented by Eben Townsend Starr of New York City, grandson of Nathan Starr and son of Nathan Starr, Jr., famous U. S. swordmakers and riflemakers of Middletown, Connecticut. This model is marked on the right side of its frame "STARR'S PATENT JAN. 15, 1856.", and on the left side, "STARR. ARMS. Co. NEW YORK." The patent date refers to E. T. Starr's U. S. Patent 14,118 for a self-cocking percussion pepperbox. His U.S. Patent 30,843, December 4, 1860, was for his double-action revolver.

Starr firearms were made at Yonkers, Binghamton, and Morrisania, New York, from 1858 to 1867. The New York City address referred to the Starr Arms Company store and office at 267 Broadway. Starr double-action .44 caliber revolvers, with serial numbers from 1 to about 23,000, were manufactured first, and Starr single-action .44 caliber revolvers, with serial numbers from about 23,000 to about 54,000, last.