Dating EMF 1858 Remington revolver

Getting back into shooting black powder after about a 20 year hiatus and picked up a couple of Pietta brassers, neither of which is historically accurate (1858 Remington and 1851 Colt Sheriffs model, both .44), just because I like their looks and don't plan to shoot them a lot. I still have a cased 1858 steel Remington I bought new, I think in the 1980s. Now wondering when it was made and what the quality of these pistols was in the 1980s. Serial number is 5013 on base of the grip and under the loading lever. Also an "R" with radiating lines under the loading lever. "EMF Co. Cal." on the top of the barrel and "Made in Italy" left side of the barrel. Two proof marks and "Black Powder Only" on right side of barrel. Three proof marks on right side of frame and two on the cylinder. Is that enough information to date it, or is it even possible to date these revolvers?

Jim Watson said:

An Italian gun will normally have a date code, a Roman numeral 1945-1974, two letters in a box 1975 to date.
http://www.shotgunworld.com/bbs/viewtopic.php?t=73492

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Thanks for your reply. No Roman numerals, just what is mentioned above. The proofs on the barrel, frame and cylinder are a star over a shield and a star over a "PN". There is also an "A" in a box with the two other stamps on the frame. Would that be the date code? 1975?

I always wondered about the quality, as there is a "ripple" in the metal in the bore about a third of the way between the chamber and the end of the barrel. It shoots pretty tight groups at 25 yards, despite this, though, as I recall.

Crawdad1 said:

Here you go.

http://www.shotguns.se/html/italy.html

The date codes used in the Italian proof house are listed at the bottom of the page.

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Thanks!

Looks like 1982, which sounds about right. The box is three sided and I mistook the "I" for the fourth side of the box. If it is supposed to be in a four sided box, then it must be a light strike that didn't make the whole box.

Thanks for the fast responses!

Malachi Leviticus Blue said:

EMF would be the importer. The "R" with radiating lines under the loading lever you mentioned sounds like it might be the manufactures logo, but doesn't ring a bell of the top of my head. If you post an image someone here might recognize it.

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Best I could do on the images:

See above for images...

Looks like "AI" or 1981, shown above. image of frame not too good....

@Fingers McGee. I was born in Hannibal. My mother's family got Spanish land grants around O'Fallon, MO. They came up from Kentucky with Daniel Boone in the mid-1790s and stayed while he went back to bring his family up. Over a few years they were Spanish, French and American citizens without moving an inch. Those folks shot a lot of black powder.

Haven't been able to find anything on this manufacturing mark. Sent an email to EMF to see if they can identify it.