Does anyone know what this old Revolver is?

[deerslayer303]

It has 1892 stamped on the barrel.

 

[deerslayer303]

 

[deerslayer303]

 

[Jim Watson]

It is as marked, a Modele 1892 service revolver made in St Etienne, France for the French military from 1892 til 1935. Often miscalled the Lebel revolver.

Calibre is 8mm 1892, which can be a challenge to buy or load.
Fiocchi lists it but Buffalo Arms is out.

Design and build quality are very good. Jan Stevenson wrote that all that would be required was a filler grip, a bull barrel, and heat treated cylinder to shoot serious ammunition, and it would be as modern as any revolver.

 

[deerslayer303]

Ok thanks Jim, I've never seen one before

 

[Jim Watson]

They used to be pretty common, along with the 1935 French autos, and not very expensive because of their proprietary ammo.
I guess most are on the back shelves of gun cases these days, without much to do.

 

[aarondhgraham]

Fiocchi makes new ammo for it,,,

I recently bought 550 rounds of new stuff.

Fiocchi only makes a run of this every few years,,,
I snail-mailed their office in Missouri,,,
They sent me a list of dealers.

Then I just hit the websites and bought until I had enough.

Margaux is as accurate as any of my other revolvers,,,
And it's pure fun to shoot this old gal.

Here is some load data you might find useful,,,

Also Gads Custom Cartridges will reload powder-puff rounds for not too much money.

Aarond

.

 

[g.willikers]

"Does anyone know what this old revolver is?"
That's a better answer than what I had in mind.
Mine was "Ugly."

 

[deerslayer303]

Lol

 

[James K]

Ugly, but as Jim Watson says, a darned good revolver, though the cartridge is underpowered. It is unusual in that the cylinder swings to the right for reloading, not the left, but the drill for a right-handed shooter was to transfer the gun to the left hand, then get fresh ammunition and reload with the right hand.

Jim

 

[Gaucho Gringo]

Almost has Nagant look to it.

 

[noelf2]

Almost has Nagant look to it.

Yes, has many similarities. Was designed in the same part of the world (Nagant was Belgian I think), and at about the same time.

 

[James K]

Around 1888-1895, most nations recognized that with the greater efficiency of smokeless powder, they could get the required lethality from smaller caliber bullets. That resulted in the various 6.5-8mm rifles and also in the reduction of handgun calibers from the older 10-12mm to 7-9mm. The Swedes and Swiss adopted 7.5 mm revolvers, the Russians a 7.62mm, the French an 8mm, and the Americans a .38 caliber. The Germans later adopted a 9mm auto pistol. Only the British held onto their large bore .455 for almost a half century, and the Americans returned to .45 caliber for about the same length of time.

Jim

 

[bedbugbilly]

Hey . . . I don't think it's ugly . . it's kind of cute - certainly different!

I'm not familiar with the cartridge so am just curious - is there any cartridge brass that could be "converted" - re-formed for these revolvers?

I know it's not the profile of a Colt or a Smith but I'd be happy to find one of those to display just because it is "different". Did you purchase it deerslayer?

 

[deerslayer303]

Billy, I think folks use 32-20 WCF for reloading for it. And no sir I didn't buy it.

 

[Model12Win]

That is a Mosin Nagant revolver... I believe shoots a .32 Russian round with a deep seated bullet. My uncle has one and it had a very heavy trigger.

 

[James K]

No, it is not a Russian Nagant; it is just what Jim Watson says it is in post #4.

Jim

 

[Mike Irwin]

Not even close to being a Nagant revolver.