French m1873 revolver

[6_gunner]

I'm kinda interested in getting one of those French m1873 .44 revolvers, but I don't really want a gun I can't shoot.
I know appropriate ammo is nearly impossible to find and I don't reload. Does anybody know if they can shoot .44 Russian cartridges? Anybody know of any other ammo alternatives? Anybody ever shot one?
I'd appreciate any info I can get.

 

[dao]

This gun is not a .44, but a .45 !

The real caliber is .451.
Concerning the cartridges, they are indeed complex to do, having an oversized bullet. The cases are easy to recreate from .44 russian ( or .44 spl of course ), but you need to have adapted bullets.
44-40 are possible, too.

The gun is good, but this cartridge has relly a bad design ( a french tradition... ).

Another solution would be to slighty modified the cylinder, to be able to use .45 Webley cartridges.

Look at this site before all choice :
http://www.gunsworld.com/french/18xx/1873_us.html

 

[6_gunner]

Interesting...
So, did the original cartridge use a heeled bullet?

 

[dao]

Yes ! A bad design, in my opinion.

This is the reason you need a special mold for the bullet.

Accuracy is good when you are making good cartridges ( some french shooters are reporting score about 93/100 ).

Another trick too make cartridges : use round bullets ! ( the same ones than for cap-and-ball ). It's easy too done and accuracy is good.

Another link for the revolver : http://armesfrancaises.free.fr/revolver Mle 1873.html


Another link about reloading ( but in French ) : here

 

[Roadrunner NV]

This gun is not a .44, but a .45 !

Just a little correction to avoid any trouble, the caliber 45 is 11,43mm

On the link http://armesfrancaises.free.fr/revolver Mle 1873.html they are talking about 11mm not 11,43mm (45)

By the way, a nice french brand is Manurhin modern revolver ;-)

 

[dao]

11mm is only the name, but not the real caliber, Roadrunner NV.

Verify your bore, 6_Gunner, but this gun are in the .451 range .