Here's a neat old revolver! French St. Etienne Model 1892 made in 1912.

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Zaydok Allen

Zaydok Allen

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Just sharing. I picked up this great old gun on Gunbroker.com. The title more or less tells you what it is. It's in great shape and IMO is a real looker considering it was made 102 years ago. It only has some minor imperfections in the finish and minor wear in some of the high spots. Chambers and barrel appear rust and pitting free. Oiling it only indicated a bit of fouling from long ago.

As I understand it, these guns were the standard issue side arm of French military officers and were also used by police officers. They were produced from 1892 until 1924 in St. Etienne, France.

Interestingly enough, the latch at the rear of the cylinder that looks like a loading gate is actually the cylinder release. And, the cylinder swings out to the right side of the gun rather than the left. It's a cool little piece of history,hey?

If anyone else has more info, please share.
 

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Sorry, iPhone only wants to upload one pic per post.
 

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It is chambered for the 8mm French Ordnance cartridge. Ballistically it is close to the power level of the the .32 ACP and can be loaded with trimmed 32-20 cases. In my online research I've also heard it refered to as the 8x27. Most commonly it is refered to as 8mm Lebel it seems and the revolver is commonly called the 8mm Lebel Revolver. Colonel Nicholas Lebel is accredited with designing the gun by many, but I've read that in reality, he had no influence on the design at all.

I need to do some more digging. I find it curious that an L frame sized revolver with a full size grip is chambered in such a relatively weak chambering. It is probably a good reason that despite its age, the gun locks up MUCH tighter than modern day mass produced guns. I mean it is rock solid when in full lockup. No wiggle at all. This one clearly wasn't shot much, but having a weaker round probably kept them tight fort a longer service life. They were meant as a replacement for the 1873 model which fired a 11mm projectile, but very slow. It only generated the energy of a 25 acp. Then later with improved powders, a 32 acp. So with further improvements they were able to generate the same impact energy with the newer 8mm cartridge, and I'm sure that helped save on materials and therefore cost of ammo manufacturing.
 
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Now you need some ammunition,,,

Might I ask what you paid for her?

Now you need some ammunition,,,
Gads Custom Cartridges will sell you 50 reloads,,,
They are made using 32-20 cartridges for $35.00 per 50 rounds.

They are pretty punk loads,,,
But they will allow you to shoot your gun.

Fiocchi also makes new ammo for this gun,,,
Apparently there are quite a few of these old gals still in use.

Unfortunately they only make one run every few years,,,
I was lucky in that I accidentally stumbled onto that last release.

I contacted Fiocchi in Missouri and asked them about the ammo,,,
They sent me a list of retailers they had shipped to,,,
I was able to score 550 rounds for mine.

Fiocchi of America Corporate Headquarters
6930 N. Fremont Road
Ozark, Missouri 65721

[email protected]
http://www.fiocchiusa.com

If you score some of the new ammo,,,
Gads will reload the empty cases for you.

Meet Margaux,,,
07-margeaux.jpg

Margaux was made in 1903,,,
That makes her eleventy-one years old,,,
And she will still shoot a 3" group at 25 yards.

I'm 62 and I've had this revolver since I was a boy,,,
I bought it at a farm auction for $12.00,,,
She came with a bag of loose rounds.

Get some ammo for your French Lady,,,
Take the old gal out dancing.

Aarond

.
 
aarondhgrahm, I sent you a PM. Thanks for the link to Gads Custom. I found them a few months ago when I was debating buying a Schmidt 1892 Swiss revolver, and I was trying to find 7.5mm Swiss ammo. Gads is gonna come in handy.
 
The old Modele 1892 is a pretty good revolver, very rugged and reliable. Given my choice between one of those and a Colt model of the same year, I would have a problem choosing. The cartridge is pretty much in line with other European revolver cartridges of the era, like the Swiss, Swedish and Russian, and the U.S. .38 Long Colt is not a real powerhouse, either.

The cylinder that swings to the right makes perfect sense when it is considered that the gun was intended to be held in the left hand for loading while the right handled the cartridges.

I hate to hear "jokes" about the supposed cowardice of the French. French casualties in WWI were horrendous, as were those of the British, and their troops fought as well as any and better than some. The blame fell on blind and stupid leaders who could not think of any tactics except ordering their men to charge headlong into machine gun fire. Troops of all nations broke under such conditions. The U.S. was fortunate; coming into the war late, with both sides exhausted and demoralized, the Americans were able to achieve victories at relatively small cost.

In WWII, the French, surprised by the speed and power of the German "lightning war" did surrender in large numbers. But many units fought bravely until their political leaders, some of them secret admirers of Hitler, surrendered the army and the nation.

Jim
 
I'd feel a little under-gunned if that's all I had when these four bad boys jumped in my trench! I wonder if that round would even dent that trench armor?

Cool piece of history.
 

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Cautionary tale: my M1892 , built in 1922, waited 90 years in near-pristine condition for me to come along and ruin her. House of the Rising Sun, indeed.

I should have known better when the report from the box of 111gr. Fiocchi varied wildy; from strong .32 ACP equivalent, to barely anything at all. Yep, I got a squib and bulged her barrel.

Freebored the last inch or so of her barrel by drilling it out. Fires okay now, but my heart is broken. I trust my own Graf & Son 100gr. reloads a lot more now than any factory ammo.
 
How many french members do you think THR has?

How funny do you think your joke was to them?
Click to expand...

You know after I last checked in I was kind of thinking about that joke and while it takes a lot to offend me, I realized it's really inappropriate. The French fought like hell and a lot of soldiers died in both world wars. So we need to show respect to anyone who died fighting for freedom, regardless of nationality. And sure enough someone else thought the same thing. So shame on me for laughing at that. Not cool.

I'd feel a little under-gunned if that's all I had when these four bad boys jumped in my trench! I wonder if that round would even dent that trench armor?
Click to expand...

That is an interesting picture John C. I bet you're correct to. I doubt a cartridge with the poor power of the 8mm FO would penetrate that stuff. Glad it was only an officer sidearm and not a primary weapon.

I often wonder what soldiers from that era would say if they saw what revolvers can do now. I bet they'd be amazed. Still sidearms and not primaries, but boy revolvers have progressed.
 
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