Is This Pistol Real?

packerbacker

packerbacker

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May 11, 2005
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put a cap on it, pull the trigger and see if anything comes out the barrel

well, that's what I would do, but I take no responsibility for injury!
 

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I wouldn't know if real...But looks cool!!

Maybe even a kit thing....My dad would buy kits, then build his own from whatever kit it was....Sand and finish the wood, etc....Don't know enough to say that is what you have or not, but could be possible...
 

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If you pull the hammer back and blow into the barrel, air comes out where the hole is under the hammer. Appears to be operable although I'm not too familiar with cap and ball.
 

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I agree sawmill but there isn't anything in the barrel and there isn't a cap on it. The barrel diameter is about the size of a pencil.
 

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Im still packing alot of lead, somtimes i get nervous . if you know what i mean. but the gun looks real and very cool. congrats.
 

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Never seen one exactly like it. It's a muzzle-loading cap-lock pistol. Note the lack of a ramrod. Those type of guns were for gentlemen who needed something beside a sword or knife for self defense. Ladies had what were called "muff pistols," but they were smaller and carried inside the fur muffs that were used to keep the ladies hands warm. The lack of a ramrod on this gun tells me that they didn't go out and practice shooting, what they would do is every couple of weeks they would stop by the gunsmith or store where the pistol was purchased, and fire a shot out of the gun, then the gunsmith would clean and reload the pistol and the gentleman would again pack the gun with a fresh load. It certainly looks antique, does not look to be American made, I see a proof mark on the barrel, sometimes those can tell you where the gun was made. Other than that I can't give you much help except IMHO it's not a reproduction. Good find. Oh yes, check to see if it's loaded, you would be surprised how many old guns are. Take a rod that will fit in the barrel and push it all the way until it wont go any further. Mark the rod at that point. Then take the rod out of the barrel and lay it along the top, and if the gun is empty the rod would go in even or just past the nipple under the hammer. If it doesn't, be careful because it is probably loaded. It won't go off unless you put a cap on the nipple and drop the hammer on it, which wouldn't be a wise move on your part.
 

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Made for someone with teeny-tiny trigger fingers?
It does look like a 19th century smoothbore muzzleloader.
I don't see a ball starter attached to the gun, and this gem looks really difficult to shoot.

I'd see if you can sell it and buy a Glock. :laughing7:

But honestly, I can't tell whether it's real or not. "Probably". ?
 

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BosnMate said:
Never seen one exactly like it. It's a muzzle-loading cap-lock pistol. Note the lack of a ramrod. Those type of guns were for gentlemen who needed something beside a sword or knife for self defense. Ladies had what were called "muff pistols," but they were smaller and carried inside the fur muffs that were used to keep the ladies hands warm. The lack of a ramrod on this gun tells me that they didn't go out and practice shooting, what they would do is every couple of weeks they would stop by the gunsmith or store where the pistol was purchased, and fire a shot out of the gun, then the gunsmith would clean and reload the pistol and the gentleman would again pack the gun with a fresh load. It certainly looks antique, does not look to be American made, I see a proof mark on the barrel, sometimes those can tell you where the gun was made. Other than that I can't give you much help except IMHO it's not a reproduction. Good find. Oh yes, check to see if it's loaded, you would be surprised how many old guns are. Take a rod that will fit in the barrel and push it all the way until it wont go any further. Mark the rod at that point. Then take the rod out of the barrel and lay it along the top, and if the gun is empty the rod would go in even or just past the nipple under the hammer. If it doesn't, be careful because it is probably loaded. It won't go off unless you put a cap on the nipple and drop the hammer on it, which wouldn't be a wise move on your part.
Click to expand...

USE A BRASS ROD IF YOU ATTEMPT THIS!
You don't want any unnecessary sparks inside the barrel when checking to see if the gun is loaded.
Better yet, use a plastic drinking straw.
 

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Terry Soloman said:
I'm having trouble with the size of the trigger and the guard. Black Powder Percussion Cap Pistols | Collectors Firearms
Click to expand...

That kind of bothers me also. Made me think ladies gun, but then the grip is so large for a lady. I've seen very small trigger guards, but they were on smaller type muff pistols or small Derringers. The very large grip bothers me as much as the small trigger guard, and I've never seen a lock plate shaped like that one, and the STEE throws me off also. But the patina still makes me think antique. I also don't think it's English or Belgium, but beyond that anything is possible.
 

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Parlor pistol

From Wikipedia:

Parlor pistols came into fashion in the mid-19th century; they typically featured heavy barrels and were chambered in a small caliber. They were used for target shooting in homes with a dedicated parlor or gallery for this purpose.
Click to expand...
 

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The fact that there appears to be a rivet through the barrel where the breech plug is tells me it is not made to take a powder charge. a hole there is a BIG weak spot and it would very easily cause the breech to burst if it were loaded with powder an ball. No muzzle loading gun I have ever seen has a breech plug with a thru rivet. My first though is that it's intended to be a childs cap gun that uses a real percussion cap for the pop, possibly with a few grains of powder and a paper wad...but definitely not with the pressure of being loaded with a lead ball. It may well be made from some real gun parts, the lock plate looks like it nay have come from a long gun.

Another problem is the font of the letter stamps looks off to me, seems too modern looking for a genuine period pistol of that type
 

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NOLA_Ken said:
The fact that there appears to be a rivet through the barrel where the breech plug is tells me it is not made to take a powder charge. a hole there is a BIG weak spot and it would very easily cause the breech to burst if it were loaded with powder an ball. No muzzle loading gun I have ever seen has a breech plug with a thru rivet. My first though is that it's intended to be a childs cap gun that uses a real percussion cap for the pop, possibly with a few grains of powder and a paper wad...but definitely not with the pressure of being loaded with a lead ball. It may well be made from some real gun parts, the lock plate looks like it nay have come from a long gun.



Another problem is the font of the letter stamps looks off to me, seems too modern looking for a genuine period pistol of that type
Click to expand...

I've had a couple small cannons that do exactly what you describe above! They took percussion caps, or could be fired with a small amount of powder and a paper wad.They were small too...
 

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I'm was under the impression that "rivet" is a proof mark. One time I was able to handle a very poorly made, supposedly knock off, of a British sea service pistol. It was made in Japan, and the breech plug was not threaded, it was a press fit, and drilled with a rivet passing through the plug. I pulled the plug, threaded the barrel, and built a new threaded breech plug for the gun. Then I removed so much wood from the stock that the inlets for entry pipe etc. were completely removed. The gun turned out looking pretty good. So if you are right, and that is a rivet and not a proof mark, then everything I've said in the other posts I take back, and I have doubts on whether it's an antique. If it's a proof mark, then I kind of like the parlor gun theory. But there is also another problem, instead of the stock being pinned or keyed onto the barrel, it looks like it's attached with a screw, which to the best of my knowledge was never done. The more I look at it, the more it bothers me.
 

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B.jpg
Does look like a rivet doesn't it.

A.jpg
Don't see any pins holding the stock to the barrel, but I see a screw in the bottom.
 

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