12 shot revolver

[Ben Towe]

I read a Louis Lamour book once that made reference to a 12 shot revolver carried by one of the characters. If I recall it was referred to as a Naval revolver of .32 or .36 caliber. Was there ever such a creature or is this a purely fictional weapon?

 

[simonkenton]

The LeMat is a 9 shot revolver, with a shotgun barrel. So it is a ten shot.

I never heard of a 12 shot.

 

[Hardcase]

That would be the Walch Navy 12 shot revolver. It had two triggers and two hammers. You'd load each chamber with two balls and charges, one atop the other for a total of 12 loads in six chambers. The nipples were staggered in two concentric rings, one ring per hammer/trigger. A channel in the cylinder would direct the outer cap's discharge to the forward charge. The idea was that the ball behind the forward charge would block the rear charge from igniting.

Front trigger for front charges, back trigger for back charges. Or, now and then, front trigger for both front and back charged...oops! They didn't make many of them...and I'd hate to think what a 12 round chain fire would look like!

Here are some pictures: http://www.collectorsfirearms.com/admin/product_details.php?itemID=32781

 

[Lavid2002]

wow....thats amazing. If you think about it it uses the same premise as the new firearms....Where one charge is infront of the other. The only major difference is the modern one uses electronic charges to ignite the rounds, and this used percussion caps....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9U-qjYiMU6I

 

[Hawg]

I saw one in a museum once that had twelve chambers in two rows. Big bulky thing. Don't remember who made it.

 

[RJay]

When Louis Lamour wrote about a area or item, it was there, he did his research very well. You can use his books as a travel guide.

 

[hickstick_10]

for the life of me i cant remember the book. But there was an english percussion revolver that had 2 cylinders mounted on a swivle inside the frame. You fired six shots, pushed a lever and swvled the next cylinder into battery

 

[Ben Towe]

RJay, I knew that that was usually the case. That's why I thought it must exist. Maybe I can figure out which book it was for a better description, but that could be a challenge (I read a lot of books).

 

[Frontier]

How about a 20-shot?

Nope, can't seem to get this pic up. Anyway, it's a 20-shot pinfire revolver.

Frontier

 

[Danielcan]

S&W makes a sharp looking 10 shot .22 revolver

 

[Charles Ellis]

I was at a firearms museum at Texas A&M and they had a French pin fire revolver that had at least 20 holes in the cylinder.A very strange looking gun.

 

[gelhard]

Ben Towe
I Know I'm bringing up a old thread but to answer witch book it was that Louis L'Amour used the Waltch navy in is how I came upon this older thread and to see if I could find a Picture.
I'm just rereading Lando and the lead hero (aka Lando) uses the Waltch Navy to foil the bad guy. I believe he used it in 1 other book also but haven't been able to recall it it could possibly be Heller with a Gun. I'm going to have to dig that one out of my paper back library to check it out.
George

 

[bedbugbilly]

gelhard - an old thread but it's still interesting! I always figured that most gunmakers made a 20 + shot revolver . . . . now that may sound like a stupid remark (and it probably is ) . . . . but let's face it . . . . watch an old western . . . . . . something like Gene Autry or one of those . . . . . . . in the chase scenes, did you ever see so many cowboys a shootin' it up and they never had to reload? Hmmmmm . . . often wonderred 'bout that . . . .

 

[ClemBert]

USFA 12 Shot Revolver

 

[gelhard]

ClemBert
Now that is ONE unique handgun. Imagen if Gene and Roy would have had one of those they would have REALLY bin able to have gotten of as many shots as they did in those old B grade flicks LOL

 

[nuage]

walch 12 shot navy pistol and Louis L'Amour

Actually L'Amour wrote about this gun first in his "magazine novels". The title was "Showdown o the Hogback" and the character who owned the gun was the hero, Captain Tom Kedrick.
He used a pair of these 36 caliber pistols.

The magazine novel was later expanded into a full novel by L'Amour and it was renamed "Showdown at the Yellow Butte".

It is a very rare weapon that was used during the Civil War.

 

[SIGSHR]

There is an excellent book, Firearms Curiosa by Lewis Winant, it has pictures and at least one set of patent drawings of a 12 shot revolver.

 

[freqlord]

Showdown on Yellow Butte is among my favorite books by him along with The Haunted Mesa, Sackett Series(I have the movie on right now actually), and of course, the Kilkenny series. I do remember reading the book with that 12 shot revolver though, but I can't remember the title for the life of me. Looks like it's time to read through all of his books for the fifth time.. oh darn!