Double action NAA?

[Great Scot]

I have a couple NAAs, and I really like them for casual carry. I was handling my Pug (no snarky jokes), and I wondered why they’ve never made one in double action. It wouldn’t have to be as small as a typical NAA to be a great concealed carry option. Has anyone else wondered why North American Arms hasn’t made the ultimate pocket revolver?

 

[Haywood]

People have been suggesting a 32 auto chambering. Nothing happened. It took them forever to get a top break. I think there must be a lot more to the engineering than we realize.

 

[Heir Kommt Die Sonne]

Single action is the safest and most stable way to engineer in such a small design. Double action would require all the moving parts to be bigger and studier with current materials unless we do more engineering. At the current point, the price point would be too high for most to be willing to purchase.
It could be done considering all that which goes into swiss watches. Though again, price point would be too high.

 

[Jim Watson]

There were a lot of teeny double actions around the turn of the century.
No reason not to return the type with better materials... if you thought they would sell.

 

[ontarget]

You would probably need to quadruple the size of an NAA just to get enough room for trigger travel in DA. That would be an I or J frame. That market is pretty well covered.
Look at the problems the folks whine about with the trigger weight on the smallish 22LR DAs. Too light= inconsistent ignition. Too heavy= good ignition= cry about a bad trigger.

 

[balin]

I am thinking the trigger pull in double action in something that small to be very stiff i would think.

 

[herrwalther]

The most critical aspect of the NAA mini revolvers is the small size. Part of that formula is the single action trigger. If you add in a DA, even double action only, you will get a much bigger pistol.

 

[chicharrones]

If I remember my NAA lore, they did develop a prototype double action revolver years ago.

Someone around here probably has a web photo of it.

 

[RevolvingGarbage]

We’ve had more than a few threads, even fairly recently about the H&R Young America, but I’ll go ahead and mention it here as well. If what you want is a gun roughly the size of the .22WMR NAA revolver but with a double action trigger, you really can’t do better than this turn of the last century “suicide special”.

H&R also made a very similar gun with a minuscule stub of a 1” barrel called the vest pocket, which would be more like the length of the .22lr NAA revolvers, however that version is much less common. You could probably find a functional example of the Y.A. on gunbroker for <$200 even these days.

I believe with modern materials this gun could be remade with a few improvements and would at least make a better defensive weapon than the NAA guns which have themselves been used successfully by people as defensive tools.

 

[Great Scot]

Even a new version of the Rossi Princess in .22 mag would be interesting. I’m sure with modern technology and materials, you could make a six shot .22 magnum at least as small as the Princess. With a bobbed hammer and decent front sight, it would make an excellent pocket revolver.

 

[wcwhitey]

it’s been done this is a Casul

 

[Jim Watson]

Neat.
Belgian and other European gunmakers turned out a tremendous variety of folding trigger pocket revolvers for the long skinny .22 Velo Dog up through .25 and .32 Auto.

 

[defjon]

I love a thread with old tiny revolver pictures.

They did make the swing out cylinder and top break cylinder.

Double action would be possible (as evidenced by some of these older designs).

 

[wcwhitey]

Jim Watson I did read where back on 2005 that Casull announced a .32 Auto version but I have never seen one only the .22. There would be a huge market for a modern day Velodog Revolver.

 

[TTv2]

People have been suggesting a 32 auto chambering. Nothing happened. It took them forever to get a top break. I think there must be a lot more to the engineering than we realize.

I think that had more to do with finding a design that worked and how to make everything fast and cheap enough to meet a price point. Even at almost $500, I do not see the top break Ranger as a gun worth the money.

Going from single action to double is not rocket science, it's not going to take as much R&D and process engineering as a top break, but the issue with a small company like NAA is they'd need more machines than what they currently have to be set up as the frames would have to be larger than what the current frames used are and people to operate them. That's at least 500 grand right there alone and is there a market for smaller than an I frame 5 shot .22 or .32? IDK,

 

[TTv2]

We’ve had more than a few threads, even fairly recently about the H&R Young America, but I’ll go ahead and mention it here as well. If what you want is a gun roughly the size of the .22WMR NAA revolver but with a double action trigger, you really can’t do better than this turn of the last century “suicide special”.

H&R also made a very similar gun with a minuscule stub of a 1” barrel called the vest pocket, which would be more like the length of the .22lr NAA revolvers, however that version is much less common. You could probably find a functional example of the Y.A. on gunbroker for <$200 even these days.

I believe with modern materials this gun could be remade with a few improvements and would at least make a better defensive weapon than the NAA guns which have themselves been used successfully by people as defensive tools.

And I'm the guy that recently got one in .32 and lemme tell you, the DA trigger on it is fantastic for a gun as small as it is. If companies today were to make a clone of the Young America I'd keep the pull pin design as it adds strength and a better barrel/chamber alignment. Add a cover for the loading gate because if the gun is pointed upwards at enough of an angle the rounds can fall out the gate enough to stop the cylinder from indexing. Then, put an actual rear sight on them.

Beyond that, make the frame, trigger guard, and trigger out of Aluminum and it will reduce the weight even more and chamber it for .32 S&W Long wadcutters, but instruct in the manual that it is also safe to shoot .32 ACP, that way people have the option to shoot .32 S&W, .32 wadcutter, or .32 ACP.

I'd pay $300 for one.

 

[herrwalther]

Even a new version of the Rossi Princess in .22 mag would be interesting. I’m sure with modern technology and materials, you could make a six shot .22 magnum at least as small as the Princess. With a bobbed hammer and decent

Already been done. Ruger makes their LCR in 22Mag in 2 and 3 inch barrels. From the ones I have handled it is a very pocketable revolver.

 

[TTv2]

Already been done. Ruger makes their LCR in 22Mag in 2 and 3 inch barrels. From the ones I have handled it is a very pocketable revolver.

It's nowhere near as small as the Rossi Princess. If someone really wanted a small, light double action .22, they'd be smart to look at H&R and Iver Johnson trapper type revolvers that are 80-100+ years old. They may not have swing out cylinders, but they would be DA's and all steel.

Which is more than the Rossi Princess is made out of apparently.