Howdy Again
Talking about creative use of being locked inside, I decided to take a few photos. This is a Smith and Wesson 44 Double Action. This is the only Top Break Double Acton revolver S&W built on the large #3 frame. This one happens to be a target model with a windage adjustable rear sight. The latch to break it open is the knurled piece right above the hammer.
Here it is partially broken open. If I opened it more, the extractor star would rise up to eject the empty shells. In order to open a revolver like this, it definitely takes two hands. The way I usually do it is to grasp the barrel with my left hand like in this photo. While still holding the grip with my right hand I reach up with my thumb and shove the latch up. This frees the barrel to rotate down. Fooling around I was also able to open it by holding the grip with my right hand and grasping the cylinder and top strap with my left hand. Then I could flick the latch up with my left thumb. Still a two handed operation. Of course, ejection was automatic with these revolvers, and they were speed demons compared to the Colt Single Action Army. With the SAA you had to put the hammer at half cock, open the loading gate, and empty each chamber one at a time using the ejector rod under the barrel. Then to reload you had to reload one chamber at a time.
The S&W Schofield was an answer to the two handed operation. Colonel Schofield patented a different system. With this one you could reach up and pull the serpentine latch backwards with the thumb of the right hand, and brush the barrel against your leg to pop it open. Schofield was a cavalry officer, and apparently a good rider could operate the revolver with one hand, emptying it and reloading, while still holding the horse's reins in the other hand. I don't know one end of a horse from the other, but I can do pretty much the same sitting in a chair. But it is much simpler to do it with two hands. As an aside, old Daniel Wesson set his designers to work trying to find a way around Schofield's patent, but they never did. The Schofield model was only produced from 1875 until 1877, after that S&W went back to the same type of latch as seen on my 44 Double Action.
But the all time champion S&W revolver for being awkward to open for loading was the 38 Double Action Perfected Model. I don't know why S&W gave it that name, because it was anything but Perfect. The legend is that Daniel Wesson got a letter from somebody, perhaps a police officer, stating that it was possible for a miscreant being held at gunpoint to reach over the top of a conventional S&W Top Break and pull the latch up, disabling the revolver. So the design team went to work and came up with this 'belt and suspenders' solution. Notice that there is a thumbpiece, AND a barrel latch above the hammer. In order to open one of these up one has to push the thumbpiece forward and at the same time lift the barrel latch up. Do one and forget to do the other and it will not open. I usually have to remind myself of that every time I grab one.
Most definitely a two hand operation. I had to push the shutter button with one hand, or I would show the two handed operation in all its glory. The weird thing is, S&W had already 'perfected' the idea of opening a swing out cylinder revolver the conventional way in 1899. The Perfected did not debut until 1909. It continued to be produced until 1920, the last Top Break revolver S&W manufactured.
Shall we talk about Merwin Hulberts? Most definitely a two handed operation.