Original Item: Only One Available. To some this is one of the most beautiful Revolvers ever made. Wonderful design, great workmanship and so easy on the eye. Mervin & Hulbert started business in 1876 with this Open Frame cartridge revolver that took the .44 Merwin & Hulbert cartridge. This example was originally nickel plated, however that is now all but gone, replaced by a nice polished bright steel. It still retains it's original long 7 inch barrel and integral sight, which were often shortened for "gunfighter" use. It also has been fitted with beautiful Mother of Pearl grips, very possibly when New. Truly, this was a "pimped out" example for someone who wanted a revolver with BLING.

The grips on this example do show some wear and chipping, but have a lovely aged look. Removing them shows the assembly number 4713 marked on the side of the grip frame. This matches the number on the cylinder axis pin and on the back of the barrel assembly. The cylinder unfortunately is worn, and only the number "1" is still present. The serial number of M&H revolvers is marked on the bottom of the grip frame, and this example is marked 14605 next to the lanyard loop fitting, which is missing the lanyard and also broken internally.

The left side of the frame is marked CALIBER / WINCHESTER 1873, indicating the pistol is chambered for the popular .44-40 Winchester Center Fire (W.C.F) Cartridge. The revolvers chambered for .44 Russian were marked "Russian Model" and the ones chambered in .44 Merwin & Hulbert were unmarked. While some may question why Merwin & Hulbert, Colt, and others made guns chambered for a competitor's cartridge, having a repeating rifle and revolver that took the same ammunition was a big selling point on the Frontier.

The revolver functions and breaks down correctly, though as with any revolver of this age, it can be finicky. This is partly due to the complex internal workings, which includes a "safety" that prevents the revolver from being broken open unless the hammer is in the loading position. If the latch on the bottom of the frame is not in the fully forward position, these revolvers can have trouble cycling. We have tested this revolver, and it works great, with a strong lockup and nice indexing.

In single action only, it was hoped to be accepted by the U.S. Government, however by this date Colt had most all of the Government Contracts in its pocket. There was stiff competition from Remington, Smith & Wesson and Forehand & Wadsworth however Mervin and Hulbert did succeed in getting some Police Contracts. With an ingenious reloading system it became a favorite with many individuals and even more so with Collectors of today. Merwin died in 1888 whereupon the Company became Hulbert Bros Co., but that eventually was liquidated in 1896.

A lovely and rare large Single Action U.S. Revolver, with very nice mother of pearl grips. Ready to display!

Specifications: 

Years of Manufacture: 1878 to 1882
Caliber: .44-40 Winchester Center Fire
Ammunition Type: Centerfire Cartridge
Barrel Length: 7 inches
Overall Length: 12 1/2 inches
Action: Single Action
Feed System: 6 Shot Revolver

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. They are sold as collector's items or as "wall hangers". 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 in the US.