Allen & Wheelock .31

[pohill]

I recently bought this Allen & Wheelock .31, sidehammer 5-shot percussion revolver. The trigger guard doubles as the loading lever. The cylinder has a game and forest scene engraved. The gun is pretty rare but not too valuable.
The backstrap has the name of a previous (original?) owner but I cannot make it out. Any suggestions on how to highlight and read the lettering?
Has anyone ever worked on one of these guns?

 

[72coupe]

Very interesting pistol.

 

[wap41]

lettering

Put a piece of paper over the letters.Sharpen a pencil so there is at least i/4" of lead showing,use the side of the lead ,not the point and rub over the letters on top of the paper.

 

[pohill]

Good idea. I just tried it but I think I need tracing paper. It might be too faded to read.
It really is an interesting gun. The cylinder pin unscrews from the rear. Just about every piece is numbered (906). The action is tight, the cylinder locks up perfectly. The bore has sharp rifling. The cylinder is engraved with trees, dogs and deer (pretty deep engraving).
Check out the belt revolver in this photo:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/piedmont_fossil/2798384506/sizes/l/in/photostream/

 

[BADUNAME30]

Real cool little pistola Pohil.
Try rubbin a piece o' chalk over the lettering and then very lightly rub and blow away the excess. Baby powder will work also.

Looks like "R. L. Heillson" to me.


There is also a product called " Nick o Date" used for bring the worn date of a coin back to the surface. Look into it and it's warnings on other non coin metals.if it's safe to us e on Bbl steel it will definately enable you to read yours.

 

[arcticap]

Here's a little bit of background info.:

Some Civil War Era Allen & Wheelock Percussion Revolvers

http://armscollectors.com/mgs/two_pair_four_kind.htm


Ethan Allen (armsmaker)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethan_Allen_(armsmaker)

 

[Cosmoline]

That's a really cool design. Would make a good companion for an underhammer.

 

[pohill]

R. L. Heillson

That's pretty close to what I thought it might be. I did try the baby powder but it still wasn't clear. I'll look for the Nick o Date.

 

[mykeal]

Change the angle so that the bright light hits it at a low angle, kind of like a setting sun. Rotate it slowly so that the angle changes slightly. You might also consider changing the color of the light - an incandescent rather than florescent for instance. That will enable you to see impressions rather than etchings in the metal. Impressions are places where the edges of the etchings are worn away so that the cross section is a gentle wave instead of a sharp cliff.

 

[kBob]

pohill,

Thanks for shareing another neat C&B revolver. I knew nothing about them but a few pictures and had assumed it odd that the loading leaver was "missing" from all of them.

Now I am curious if there is any relationship in this gun's designer and the design team for the Colt Root revolvers.

Wonder why the numbers were so low compared to the Colt Clones of various make and whether parts are actually interchangable.

DO you think you may try to shoot this one?

BTW I checked Dixie GW old fact section in the catalog and they had two figures under "Allen" one under pistols and the other under revolvers (and pistol's did have revolvers in addition to brands of single shots)

536 "pistols"
198 "revolvers"

I assume these would be .36 either the side hammer or central hammer and .44 pistols of the center hammer type but who knows?

I have to wonder how many volunteers and state units bought these guns besides the federal purchases.

With the small guns like yours I understand the .28 caliber in addition to the .31 but have to wonder if the .34 was an attempt to build something on the lines of what COlt would later do with the .36 pocket pistols. I also wonder if the .34 designation is actually an error.

From th elooks of your gun I wonder if it feels more front heavy than the small Colts and later small remington, could you comment on that?

My wife is so glad I do not have money pooring from my ears because the house would be knee deep in "old guns" thanks to folks like you.

-kBob

 

[BADUNAME30]

Now I am curious if there is any relationship in this gun's designer and the design team for the Colt Root revolvers.

I was kind o' thinkin the same thing Bob but i initialy had the Savage Navy in mind.

 

[pohill]

It reminds me alot of the Savage & North .36, which to me is an overbuilt revolver (it should have been a .44). The internals of the Allen & Wheelock drove me nuts yesterday until a light went on in my head and I "got it." It was the same with the Savage & North.

The Roots seem smaller than the Allen & Wheelock. I almost bought a Root a few months ago but I checked with the owner of this shop, explained the condition of the Root, and he basically told me to stay away from that one (they are complicated).
Good people to deal with:
http://www.partsforantiqueguns.com/
My Allen and Wheelock measures about .31. I need more accurate calipers.
The patent dates on the barrel are Jan 13, Dec, 15, Sept. 15, 1857, not too long after the Root.
http://www.google.com/patents?id=hb...ted_pages&cad=1#v=onepage&q=Allen 1857&f=true
I'd like to shoot it but I have to replace the nipples. I did pop some caps on it. It balances well.
As far as cost, this gun was on Gunbroker, and it didn't sell. I contacted the seller and he sold it to me for the reserve, about the same as a Walker repro.
I'm still trying to decipher the engraving.