Lefaucheux Model 1854

History

Frenchman Casimir Lefaucheux developed the "pen fire" metal cartridge from the late 1820s to the 1830s, then patented his creation in 1835. The pin-fire system revolves around the use of a metallic brass casing containing the priming substance, which is ignited by a firing pin mounted directly on the cartridge base itself - this pin is struck in the usual way by the weapon's hammer.

By 1840, the pinfire cartridge was in widespread use in Europe, adopted by several world powers including France, Italy and Spain, and was awarded a patent by Houllier of Paris in 1846.

Lefaucheux's son, Eugene Lefaucheux, joined the family business and rose to fame by developing several firearms to capitalize on his father's creations. One of these became the Model 1854 revolver, which took part in many historical conflicts, including the American Civil War (1861-1865), and joined various pistols to serve in the conflict. The Model 1854 was fairly traditional in design, including a well-curved wooden grip, a reverse crank foot under the trigger ring (allowing two fingers to rest on the trigger area), and a standard six-inch octagonal or round barrel.

The weapon uses a six-round rotating cylinder with an integral impactor located forward and below the barrel, offset to the right, for removing spent cases from its chamber. The overall finish of the cylinder is generally smooth. A lanyard loop has been added to the bottom of the handle. Aiming was carried out through the front iron column located behind the muzzle.

The gun is loaded with a 12mm needle fire cartridge.

In practice, the Model 1854 is considered by most to be an efficient, no-frills system - in the American Civil War the gun lost some power compared to competing Colts. Metal cartridges were a revolution at the time, appearing at a time when breech-loading firearms were in vogue, replacing the aging line of muzzle-loading firearms and their complicated, time-consuming reloading/reloading process.

Pinfire cartridges now allow operators to load their firearms quickly and safely, as not all required ammo components are conveniently contained in metal cartridges - no primer or separate powder supply is required.

Senior Lefauchaux died in 1852, and his son continued to sell the world using his father's pinfire system. As a result, more revolver designs followedeven some shotgun typesoften named after the Lefauchaux in honor of the family.

With the advent of "rimfire" and "centerfire" self-contained metal cartridges - these did not require the integral pin of the pinfire cartridge to initiate ignition - the days of the pinfire were quickly over.

Specification

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