Manufacturer: Manufacture d’Armes St.Areas in Polokwane with Farms For Sale. As such it would easily bring between $700 and $800. It is mechanically perfect, the bore is pristine and, in fact, I have fired it a number of times. The revolver seen here is in excellent condition, its bright finish having few nicks or blemishes and the hammer and trigger retaining a considerable degree of straw color. 44 Russian, but certainly enough to slow down rampaging Tauregs at reasonable ranges. This was slightly less than its contemporary, the much-vaunted. Etienne, the Terre (land) Model 1873 was chambered for a proprietary blackpowder 11 mm center-fire cartridge, which propelled its 180-grain bullet at 804 fps, resulting in a muzzle energy of 253 ft.-lbs. Too, unknown numbers of civilian 1873s (and 1874s) were sold by French and Belgian makers.īuilt at the government facility, Manufacture d’Armes St. As well, 13,888 “Marine” (Navy) models were made from 1877 to 1886.
Some 334,784 were eventually produced between 18. Date of manufacture was stamped on the right side of the barrel. Stocks were checkered walnut and the gripcap, finished off with a lanyard ring. Sights were rather basic and typical of the period, involving a simple notch rear cut into the topstrap and a non-adjustable blade front brazed just behind the muzzle of the 4.5-inch half-round, half-octagon barrel. Each component was meticulously stamped with the gun’s serial number. One great feature of the Model 1873 was a sideplate that could be easily removed to provide access to internal parts for servicing and repair. When not in use, the head of the rod tucked up out of the way beneath the barrel, held in place by a rear coil spring and stud on the front of the cylinder pin. Cartridges were loaded into the cylinder through a rearward rotating loading gate and empties were poked out by means of an ejector rod on the right side of the barrel. It had the advantages of being relatively simple, rugged and reliable, and could be used either single or double action.įinished in the bright, with straw-colored trigger and hammer, the 1873 had a solid frame. Its mechanism is a variant of the very sturdy Chamelot-Delvigne system that was also adopted by several other countries for their service revolvers. It could never be mistaken as a product from New Haven or London. Measuring 9.5 inches overall, with an unloaded weight of 38 ounces, the Model 1873 has a decidedly blocky European look about it. Until the last few years, the Model 1873 has been largely ignored by collectors on this side of the Atlantic, but when, in the film “The Mummy,” star Brendan Fraser brandished a brace of ’73s, Americans began to take notice of this much-neglected revolver, and prices and demand began to rise. The main differences between the Model 1874 and the Model 1873 were the former’s blued finish and fluted cylinder. Though perfectly serviceable in its original form, military rank distinctions being what they are, an officer’s model was introduced a year later. Also it was a substitute standard arm during the Great War, and even saw service in World War II.
This extremely robust six-shooter was the principal Gallic sidearm for non-commissioned officers, cavalry troopers and gendarmes throughout the colonial wars of the late 1800s. inventors were still trying to put together decent self-cockers, France came up with one of the best double-action revolvers of its time-the Model 1873. The French were among the first to adopt a cartridge handgun-the Model 1858 Lefaucheux pinfire-they perfected the Minié projectile and, at a time when U.S. While it is an uncomfortable fact to enthusiasts of German, British and American firearms, one of the most influential nations in the development of military arms and equipment in the 19th century was France.