Anybody guess what this is?

[TFoley]

 

[TFoley]

Yup, you guessed - Deane, Adams & Deane percussion revolver from your recent Civil War.

Unfortunately, it's a terrible shooter due to being almost worn out internally, but when it DOES go off, VERY exciting!

 

[hawkeye2]

A revolver with an astronomical price! Deane, Adams & Deane. Model 1851?

 

[kje54]

Yup, you guessed - Deane, Adams & Deane percussion revolver from your recent Civil War.
View attachment 46640
View attachment 46642

Unfortunately, it's a terrible shooter due to being almost worn out internally, but when it DOES go off, VERY exciting!

That runs between $2500 to $3500 depending on condition.

 

[ZUG]

Very nice but how do you load it without a loading lever?

 

[kje54]

Very nice but how do you load it without a loading lever?

His appears to be missing the loading lever. The lever rests along side the left barrel flat, attached to the bottom strap and is raised to press the ball in. You can see the cutout on the left side view.

 

[Auldjin]

No rammer on the early ones, use your thumb! Later models had rammers.

Can we believe the "CSA"? It is a wonderful bonus if OK.

Besides the number with the R suffix, there should be a second number stamped at various points this is the assembly number which will be of interest to people who research such things

 

[toot]

a great piece! thanks' for sharing it with us!!

 

[GREENSWLDE]

1851 Deane Adams and Dean, King William Street, London. 1st pattern had NO rammer. You pushed in the cartridge in with your thumb. The ball was sealed with a felt wad on a tange on the back of the ball. 2nd had normal Colt type rammer. There was also a rammer designed by John Rigby which was pivoted at the LHS of the frame with a lever that followed the shape of the frame back and was Recessed into the side of the butt. No twiddely bit to fall apart. I sold mine about 1980/5 for £275.00p. Too difficult to shoot accurately as a self cocker. Only ever meant as a last resort in a tight situation when you just kept pulling the trigger. I do miss it as it was a Fabulous piece of London Gun Making and well engraved. Used to use it to shoot Crows with about 3/8th oz of shot in the allotments.. OLD DOG..

 

[TFoley]

Croolty to crows, my totem bird.

 

[TFoley]

No rammer on the early ones, use your thumb! Later models had rammers.

Can we believe the "CSA"? It is a wonderful bonus if OK.

Besides the number with the R suffix, there should be a second number stamped at various points this is the assembly number which will be of interest to people who research such things
View attachment 46764

Believe it or don't is a no never mind to me, it's not my pistol. But the owner bought it many years ago and when he asked about the CSA was told the they were 'somebody's initials' - no claim to any 'confederacy' connection to bump up the price which was, even back then, somewhat eye-watering - around £800 or so.

 

[Zonie]

It's quite possible the CSA are the initials of someone but, the Confederacy was looking to buy any firearm they could find in England during the war so it is possible that this gun was used by the South during that conflict.

On the other hand, I think it is unlikely that a pistol used by the CSA would have found it's way back to the UK. They are far too valuable to American collectors and IMO, most of the UK collectors would not pay the prices a American would pay for such a gun.

 

[kje54]

His appears to be missing the loading lever. The lever rests along side the left barrel flat, attached to the bottom strap and is raised to press the ball in. You can see the cutout on the left side view.

Looks like I stand corrected. That early model had no loading lever. Mia culpa.

 

[Auldjin]

I wonder when the collector's market really took off both sides of the Atlantic. An American firearm sold in the UK needed to be subjected to proof so "contemporary" imports should be proved, however I have mid 19th C US revolvers that were never proved so I suspect that they were already curios when brought over, unfortunately there is no paper trail. The revolver in question probably never left these shores but who knows? Interesting the dealer did not try to exploit the "CSA" marking.

 

[nhmoose]

Very nice but how do you load it without a loading lever?

You load the cylinder off the gun like many others do.

 

[GREENSWLDE]

Quite a lot of Adams 1861 pattern pistol have the safety slide broken. Do we presume that they were made so light that they needn't be slid off if you were in a tight corner. You just pulled the trigger hard and it broke? (Fortunately I've never been in a corner tight enough to ever to find out).. OLD DOG..

 

[nkbj]

Don't know if it matters but those characters definitely do appear to have been applied with a single stamp that said "CSA".

 

[TFoley]

I wonder when the collector's market really took off both sides of the Atlantic. An American firearm sold in the UK needed to be subjected to proof so "contemporary" imports should be proved, however I have mid 19th C US revolvers that were never proved so I suspect that they were already curios when brought over, unfortunately there is no paper trail. The revolver in question probably never left these shores but who knows? Interesting the dealer did not try to exploit the "CSA" marking.

Not zackly so. A MODERN-made American firearm has to be subjected to proof because the USA is not in the CIP. A muzzleloading antique, such as a Remington, Starr, spiller & Burr, Griswold and Gunnison, Colt, Root, Bacon etc only has to be proofed if it enter the UK, or any other CIP signaturee nation, with the intention of being fired. The importer cannot sell it as a shooter unless it is proofed. If he sells it to a collector who later decides that he wants to shoot it, then it would be prudent to have it proofed and a certificate provided that accompanies the firearm to save actually marking it with unsightly stamps. A number of my older guns have been treated in this manner.

Surprising, no doubt, to some of you over there, but here in UK is is rare to find a dealer more intent on making a fast buck by 'puffing' a firearm without genuine provenance. The 'good name' is extremely important over here, as happened when a friend of mine with an interest in Japanese edged weapons bought a tanto - the shortest of the three blade set carried by a Samurai. This tanto was sold as the product of a well-known swordsmith from around 1600 or so, and cost a good deal of money - I misremember exactly, but it was around £3000-4000. Some years later, at a showing, a Japanese adjudicator and assessor of great renown pronounced it to be genuinely Japanese, but nevertheless just an excellent copy of an original, which he was able to show in his book on the subject. The original dealer was actually at the showing, and instantly wrote out a check for the original cost, and handed it to the owner. Having then effectively 'bought it back', he then destroyed the fake in front of everybody.

 

[Auldjin]

I don't think we are in disagreement. My point was if they were imported new, they should have been subject to proof, for example I have a Colt 1862 and a US 1851 Navy both bearing London Marks but other revolvers are not proved which indicates they were already obsolete when imported if regulations were being observed.

 

[TFoley]

I don't think we are in disagreement. My point was if they were imported new, they should have been subject to proof, for example I have a Colt 1862 and a US 1851 Navy both bearing London Marks but other revolvers are not proved which indicates they were already obsolete when imported if regulations were being observed.

If they were imported in recent times as antiques then there is no necessity for them to be proofed. Especially if they are muzzleloaders or of obsolete cartridge-firing calibres.

Only if they are to be sold to be shot is there a need for proofing - selling an antique muzzleloading firearm to a person whom you know intends to shoot it without having it proofed first is a criminal offence.