Safety and Target Shooting with Old Black Powder Revolvers

**IamOzzy** · November 5th, 2014, 09:12 AM

I am a fan of the old 1890's black powder top break revolvers and, if I bought one, I would like to target shoot the model at the range. Auctions on these sites mention a gun smith has to check them out for safety. A dealer told me even a minor imperfection could create a major safety risk and that someone who know antiques could pick up on that minor imperfection at first glance but the average person would never notice it.

What exactly is checked? Is it the condition of the metal in the cylinder and bore? How can they tell whether or not the old antique is safe to shoot?

**Steve_NEPhila** · November 5th, 2014, 09:30 AM

Your best bet is to buy a modern adaptation of a classic black powder revolver and shoot the heck out of it. Metallurgy was not very advanced during the black powder times and catastrophic failures were more common than today.

A gunsmith can only look for obvious problems like cracking, erosion, pitting and other outwardly physical manifestations of faults. An inspected device can still fail due to faults that are not visible to the eye (in both modern and aged designs). If it is a shooter that you seek, you can buy the modern versions of the old classics through the mail as they are not "firearms" as per our law.

**bob308** · November 5th, 2014, 12:12 PM

if you are talking about the old pocket top breaks in .32 and .38 s&w. they were made by everybody of cheap steel. they wore fast do not lock up tight and most of the time they are out of time.
to me and I don't care how good you look at them. the best place for them is in a shadow box hanging on the wall.

**IamOzzy** · November 5th, 2014, 01:03 PM

What about the later smokeless powder versions? How is their steel and safety? Again, these guns would only be intended for firing a 10 or so rounds at the range now and then in between my normal target shooting .22's. If they are not safe then there is no way I would take the risk though.

**Ecclectic Collector** · November 5th, 2014, 07:23 PM

As said by others a gun designed 120 years ago in the black powder era by third rate makers isn't a good bet for much except as a display piece.

On the other hand, some quality makers also made top break guns. If you revolver is made by Smith & Wesson, or even second tier companies like Iver Johnson and Harrington & Richardson you are getting a quality made gun. Keep in mind that those top breaks were made well into the 20th century and those later guns were proofed for smokeless powder. I think H & R made one of its top breaks right into the 1970s so it wouldn't be wrong to get one for casual plinking once in a while. The .22 LR, H & R model 999 is a specific model that is actually avidly collected as a shooter for instance.

**IamOzzy** · November 5th, 2014, 08:19 PM

Thanks, Iver Johnson and Harrington & Richardson were the two I was interested in. I saw a Spanish made S&W .38 at a gun show that looked like a work of art. Upon doing a little research online, the reviewer said these old Spanish guns were known for their horrible, unsafe construction.

How did the manufacturers cut corners when making these guns? Did they just use really cheap steel?

**Ecclectic Collector** · November 6th, 2014, 09:08 PM

Ozzy,

I can't answer your question about what made the cheap foreign copies of top break revolvers so bad from a metallurgical standpoint since I am not trained in that field. I do know that there are tremendous differences in the steel types that could be produced between the latter 19th century and those that began to be used after the start of the 20th century.

Keep in mind that a revolver made to sell for $2.50 in 1890 was made by cheap craftsmen working to a price, not a quality. Designs were simply plagiarized from existing designs of major makers. Fitting of parts was not to spec: it simply was made to work when new. A particular weakness of the top break guns was the hinge latch. These can wear to the point where they simply aren't secure anymore and can spring open when fired (never seen it happen, only read about it). Add a century plus of use with smokeless ammo loaded to what was likely past the proofing load of a black powder cartridge and you can easily see why these guns are so untrustworthy now.

Buy quality and buy condition.