Original item. One of a Kind. This is a magnificent ornate Belgian Pinfire revolver, made very much in the French style, unlike any other we have seen before. It looks to be in 9mm Lefaucheux pinfire chambering, double / single action with a 6 round cylinder, and the entire gun shows an extremely high level of craftsmanship. The grip and frame have a lovely smooth tapered shape that is very comfortable to hold, representing a massive amount of time to make when compared with more simple designs. It also has superb floral engraving over much of the revolver frame, with deeper engraving on the cylinder and the breech end of the barrel. Even the ebony grip scales show some fantastic floral engraving! This is a real peach!

The right side of the barrel on this magnificent piece has the original patent markings, indicating it is made under the Chamelot-Delvigne design:

CHAMELOT
N'ON  &  B'TE
DELVIGNE

The cylinder bears a clear E / L G / * in an Oval marking, indicating manufacture in Liège, Belgium. There are also CROWN / G proof mark next to this, for the inspector who viewed it. There are several other small markings on the revolver, and what we assume is the serial number 6701 on the bottom of the barrel.

The top of the barrel is marked with a presentation inscription from the 1868 "Normal Shooting School" competition:

Ecole normale de tir. Année 1868. 2'me prixe d'adresse dans le tir
donné par L'Ecole à M'r F. Michel 4'me B'lon de Chasse'rs

This essentially translates to: "Normal shooting school. Year 1868. 2nd prize for shooting skill given by the School to Mr. F. Michel Quatrième bataillon de Chasseurs" (4th Battalion of Chasseurs). If this was the second prize, we'd love to know what the first prize was! We did some cursory research, but were unable to find any further information, however with this inscription the revolver is ripe for further research!

This example follows the standard French style, with a 4 7/8 inch long barrel, and overall length of approximately 8 5/8 inches. The frame and grip are still bright steel, while the barrel and cylinder have a lovely heavy blued finish. The hammer is on the right side of the frame, which makes room for the loading gate, which actually has the entire left side of the recoil shield fold back with a spring loaded hinge. Truly a well crafted example of a Chamelot-Delvigne pinfire revolver.

The Pinfire system was the earliest form of "Cartridge" developed with a pin projecting out at 90 degrees to the cartridge case. When depressed by the falling hammer the cartridge discharged. At the time up against muzzle loading Revolvers these were revolutionary. Like most things by the end of the Civil War technology had moved on and in the late 1860's regular type cartridges as we know them today had been introduced.

Overall condition is splendid, showing some light staining on the bright steel portions, while the blued portions show just a bit of wear. The carved ebony grips are in great shape, showing no major damage, just some light flaking at the very edges. Like most revolvers of this style we see, there is a lanyard ring on the bottom of the grip, which is still fully intact and functional.

Functionally, the revolver cycles well, in both single and double action, with the only issue being that the trigger spring is missing or broken, so the trigger must be returned to the forward position by hand. The bore is in excellent condition, showing a bright finish with crisp lands and grooves. As a presentation revolver, we would assume that it was never really used, just dry fired and handled for years. The ejector rod on the left side of the barrel still works well, however the spring that was on the center pin to keep it in the forward position is missing. The loading gate works great as well.

A magnificent Chamelot-Delvigne Pinfire Revolver, presented to a member of the 4th Battalion of Chasseurs. A fantastic display piece with great research potential!

Specifications:

Year of Manufacture: circa 1868
Caliber: 9mm Lefaucheux
Ammunition Type: Pinfire Cartridge
Overall Length: 8 5/8 inches
Barrel Length: 4 7/8 inches
Action: Double Action Only
Feed System: 6 Shot Revolver

NOTE: International orders of antique firearms MUST be shipped using UPS WW Services (courier). USPS Priority Mail international will not accept these. International customers should always consult their country's antique gun laws prior to ordering.