The Model 1867 Werndl rifle is one of the most unique firearms to be developed for metallic cartridges. Josef Werndl and Karl Holub traveled to Hartford CT and visited Colt after our American Civil War that ended in 1865. They purchased a load of Pratt & Whitney machine tools and had them shipped back to Austria. The Prussians and Austrians were fighting in 1866. The Prussians had the bolt action breech loading Dryse Needle gun that could be operated and easily fired 10 rounds/minute. The Austrians fought with Lorenz muzzle loading muskets. The battle of Koniggratz was a disaster for the Austrians. A new rifle was needed. Werndl and Holub developed a rotating breech lock rifle to be designated the Werndl Rifle. By this time all the western europeans were scrambling to develop a breech loading metallic cartridge rifle. Most developments were bolt action designs. The Werndl is a complicated piece of machine work! Look close at the photos. The receiver required quite a few difficult machine operations. The rotary breech is basically a rotating drum that turns on a center axis. The face of the drum has a 9* helix machined into the face to operate the extractor. The rear of the rotating bolt has a 5* helical cut that advances it forward to engage the cartridge face. A 9* helical groove is cut into the side of the rotary bolt to move the extractor cam. A backplate keyed into the rear of the receiver has a matching 5* helix to cam the rotating drum-bolt forward. The firing pin moves at an angle through the drum similar to the Trapdoor Springfield. The cartridge is an 11.15 x 58mm round with a paper patched lead projectile. The rifle is about 9 1/2 lbs. The rifle is fun and accurate to shoot. I have fourteen 45-70 rifles, but this one is the odd one. Always gets the attention of other shooters at the range who always jump at the chance to shoot this strange piece.