Allen & Wheelock With Tooled Decoration. Sn 21283 None Revolver

C1840’s Allen & Wheelock 1845 Patent 5 Shot 120 Bore Bar Hammer Percussion Pepperbox Revolver With Tooled Decoration. Sn 21283 - 21283

The firm of Allen & Wheelock was a true powerhouse of American arms manufacturing during the middle of the 19th century. Unlike the major American arms producers of the era like Colt and Remington, Allen & Wheelock concentrated upon manufacturing arms for civilian sale rather than focusing on trying to obtain government military contracts. The company was founded in 1831 when Ethan Allen started to make cutlery in Milford, MA. Allen’s primary line was the knives and tools needed for cobblers. Allen then moved his small facility to North Grafton MA where he added a cane gun to his line of shoemaker’s tools. In 1836 Allen introduced his “Pocket Rifle”, a single action, under hammer, long barrelled rifled pistol in .31 calibre. With the initial success of this product, Allen pursued the design and patent of a double action pocket pistol and eventually the pepperboxes that would be his mainstay product line for the next 20 years. An Allen & Wheelock Pepperbox revolver similar to ours is illustrated on page 53 Figure 28 of the book ‘Pepperbox Firearms’ by Dunlap. This 5 shot double action Allen & Wheelock percussion pepperbox revolver is in very good condition. The revolver measures 6 ½” overall and has a rounded steel barrel cluster length of 2 ½”. The cluster is numbered ‘172’. The revolver's barrels have clean smooth bores and are small calibre approx. 120 bore. Its double action only firing action works crisply. The pistol has excellent undamaged 2 part walnut grip. The action & grip frame have tooled foliate decoration. The barrel cluster is signed by the maker ‘Allen & Wheelock’ and the hammer ‘Patented April 16 1845’. The price includes UK delivery. NB As an antique percussion pistol no licence is required to own this item in the UK if retained as part of a collection or display. Sn 21283 (drawers office)

£795.00