Help identify this oldie

[camaro1st]

Can anyone help me I'd this pistol?

[Frank46]

Looks to be a pin fire revolver, make and date unknown. But usually civil war era could be french. Frank

[Der Gebirgsjager]

Any markings on it?

[Rustyleee]

I'd say French pinfire. I had one when I was a kid.

[corbinace]

I too have a very similar revolver. The best I can tell is that mine takes a 32 short rimfire cartridges. The trigger folds forward and the barrel is very thin. The whole thing looks very little stronger than a cap gun.

Someone one opined that they thought it was maybe called a bicycle gun.

[Mk42gunner]

Can you make out any of the proofmarks? One good thing about European small arms is that you can figure out the country of origin and approximate age if the proofmarks are readable.

What caliber is it?

It does look French or Belgian made to me.

Robert

[w5pv]

I had a S&W that looked similar,it was a 32 long colt.I think it was a model 31.It has been several year since I owned it.It was a double action.

[quail4jake]

Looking like a Lefaucheux, don't know what model...12mm?

[bedbugbilly]

Your pictures are dark and some clear close ups would be helpful. It appears to be a pin-fire - most likely French or Belgium. What about proof marks? Checkout all over - check the cylinder on the side facing the recoil shield. Any other markings? I don't see a trigger guard so am assuming it is a folding trigger? Wood or rubber composite grips? Any markings on the frame under the grips?

[camaro1st]

The only marking appears to be (ok) on left side frame. The guns home is in Holland. My wife's cousin aquired it.

[Ballistics in Scotland]

It is indeed a pinfire, of the type generally known as Lefaucheux, although the Lefaucheux company made relatively few of them. It is almost certainly French or Belgian, and in France proofmarks weren't mandatory, but in Belgium they were. If the latter it would probably have the perron of Liège (like a simple candlestick) and ELG in an oval, most likely without crown at this period although cheap pinfire revolvers were made long after centrefires were the norm. It isn't military issue, although in France many were bought by officers, almost all in the 12mm. size, while only single shot muzzle-loading pistols were army issue. There was a French naval 12mm. pinfire Lefaucheux, but it was quite different, with the frame joined near its bottom rear corner. It isn't quite as weak as it looks, since the barrel screws onto the front end of the axis pin.

The Lefaucheux patents had an interesting effect. They prevented Smith and Wesson from getting an equivalent of the Rollin White patent, so Europeans were free to develop revolvers with cylinders bored all the way to the rear.

Here is one of mine, a centrefire chambered for the 12mm. Perrin Thick Rim cartridge. This cartridge had a very thick rim to cover the pin slot in each chamber, after a pinfire was converted to centrefire. But mine was a centrefire from the start, retailed by Marazzi and Fusi of Lecco in Italy, and probably assembled by them from Belgian parts.

[camaro1st]

Thank you for your time

[victorfox]

There are some sites explaining how to load for these things, as the ammo is obsolete for about... 150years?

Check this might be of interest: http://hlebooks.com/pinfire/pin00.htm

PS I have no affiliation or interests in the site