Historic & Heritage Handguns 2013

Fabrique d'armes Emile et Léon Nagant

The "Fabrique d'armes Emile et Léon Nagant" was founded in 1859 by two brothers : Emile (born in 1830) and Léon (born in 1833). They built a plant in Liège, , where they started production in the mechanical field. By 1860, they turned their activity to the production of firearms. Liège was a major centre in the world for the development and production of firearms.

By 1877, a very special - in terms of shape - double-barrelled handgun, including a "rolling block" lock was produced. This weapon was to become the very first metallic handgun to be accepted by the Belgian Government to equip its Gendarmerie. This quite rare weapon (no more than some 2,000 were built) was kept in service until 1901 when it was replaced by the FN Browning 1900 auto pistol. The pistol was sold on the commercial market until 1910. The cartridge, of 9.4 mm calibre, was created by Bachmann, a Belgian manufacturer. This cartridge is known under the names : 9 mm Belgian or 9.4 mm Nagant. The lead bullet of 185 gn weight was paper patched and inserted into a 22 mm rimmed case with a slight taper. The charge was of 15.4 gn of very fine black powder (hunting quality) that allowed for a 646 fps muzzle velocity.

Emile Nagant

Nagant 1877 model

The first steps of the Nagant firm in the field were closely aligned with the Dutch revolver model 1873. This handgun, produced by the Dutch Hembrug arsenal and the firm Beaumont of Maastricht, was partially conceived (the lock system) by the Nagant's even if it is usually known as a Chamelot-Delvigne design. Two models are known to exist. An "Oud Model - old model" equipped with an octagonal barrel. Produced until 1912 before Henri-Léon Nagant

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being replaced by a "Nieuw Model - new model" fitted with a round barrel and with a slightly shorter overall length (11” versus 13”).

The 1878 Nagant revolver was the first of a family which met success through its adoption by several European countries and particularly Belgium. Its was available with a single or double mechanism and was adapted following the specific recommendations of the countries that bought it to equip their Army.

The next model 1883 had an improved single action lock, and the external surface was plain, without flutes. It was set with a double 9.4mm Dutch showing both sizes action lock for Norway and Denmark. By 1886, The Nagant influence is clear to see. appeared an improved version of the 1878 model with a simplified lock stemming from the 1883 model. The models 78, 78/86 and 83 were all adopted by the Belgian Army in 9.4 mm calibre. They remained in use until 1940. In 1887, a specific model was adapted in calibre 7.5 mm for .

In 1887, the Nagant firm produced a Mannlicher in calibre 8 mm and 7.65 mm. Due to the

Nagant M.1878 - Belgian Military contract - cal. 9.4 mm

complexity of the model, it was replaced by a Mauser system in 1888.

The advent of the repeating rifle led the Russian Imperial government to start a search for a replacement for their antiquated Berdans. A commission was established to find a design that would compete with the Mauser, Lebel, Lee-Metford, Mannlicher, Schmidt-Rubin and the Krag-Jorgensen. They could have never imagined that the result of their efforts would see service in battle for the next 80 years while Swedish Nagant - 7.5mm cal the other became museum pieces. A

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Russian army Captain, Sergei Ivanovich Mosin would eventually produce the winner of the competition for a new design.

Mosin's rifle wasn't an overnight success. He began work on the design in 1883. His primary focus was on the development of a magazine fed infantry rifle. He submitted several designs for internal fed magazine rifles to the commission in 1884 and 1885. His initial designs were in 10.6 mm. Between 1887 and 1889, working with the smaller calibre then coming into general use among European armies, Mosin developed a 5-shot, straight-line magazine prototype in 7.62 mm; employing the antediluvian Russian measurements of the era it was designated 3-line calibre. The liniya, or line is equivalent to 0. 10 in or 2.54 mm; therefore, 3 linii equals 7.62 mm or .30 in. (Lapin, "The Mosin Nagant Rifle")

All of his efforts were rejected until October 1889. The Belgian weapons designer Leon Nagant submitted his 3.5 line (8.89 mm) rifle and 500 rounds of ammunition for testing by the Russian Captain, Sergei Ivanovich Mosin government. Both designers' weapons were tested from 1890 through 1891 by units of the Russian Army. Initially, the home team headed by Mosin lost as the army favoured Nagant's design. However, being Russia, the votes were overturned in favour of Mosin. The reason behind this move was most likely political. Typical of Russian ingenuity and political deftness, both designs were incorporated into a rifle that featured the Mosin model with the Nagant designed feed system. This rifle was designated the Pekhotniya vintovka obr. 1891g. or Three-Line Rifle of the year 1891.

Following the success of the Mosin-Nagant rifle, the firm became very well known and accepted by the Russians. As such, it was called upon when the time had come to think about the replacement of the bulky, large calibre, Smith & Wesson revolvers in use in the Russian Army.

The new revolver had to keep the same 7.62 mm calibre used in the Mosin-Nagant rifle. The firm proposed a new model whose innovative technical characteristics stopped Ï the usual gas escape between the cylinder Smith & Wesson .44 “Russian” Break Top Revolver and the barrel. This model was eventually S&W .44 Barrel Showing Cryllic Script adopted by the Russians in 1895 Ð

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By April 1896, Emile Nagant had become sick, and the two brothers dissolved the company. Immediately, Léon recreated a new company under his own name : "Fabrique d'Armes Léon Nagant". By 1896, Léon and his two sons entered into a new industrial activity : the making of motor cars. Léon died on February 23, 1900, and the company was then managed by his two sons : Charles (born in 1863) and Maurice (born in 1866). The company's name was changed to : "Fabrique d'Armes et Automobiles Nagant Frères". On December 23, 1902, Emile Nagant died. Even if Russian Nagant Model 1895 "gas seal" by 1910, some significant improvements were made revolver in to the famous model 1895 revolver, no new inventions in the firearm were developed until all the tools and licenses to produce the model 1895 were bought by the Polish Radom arsenal in 1928.

Nagant Handguns That Should Qualify For Section 7.3

The Nagant revolvers of the Belgian Army

By 1878, the Belgian Army adopted for the first time a revolver to be issued to its officers. It was the first "pure" Nagant revolver that was wholly designed - and produced - by the firm. This weapon, later adopted with variations by many other countries, gave birth to a handgun family among which the most famous member was and still is the model 1895 that was adopted - and produced in vast quantities - by Russia. The Belgian Army Nagant revolvers bore specific markings. Among those was a crowned intertwined double "L" inside a circle, standing for King Leopold II. This Royal marking was struck on the left side of the frame above the handle. Another military marking, a crowned "LH", was applied on the narrow front panel of the frame by a military inspector. Also present was a specific military proof marking represented by the EGB logo over a star inside an oval.

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Bearing a classical ejector rod hanging under the barrel by means of a sleeve rotating around the barrel base, the model 1878 that is shown below was of solid frame type . When unused the rod was slid and bolted in a rest position inside the cylinder axis. An easy access to the whole lock mechanism was provided by a removable plate on the left side of the weapon. This plate was retained by a large screw visible at the top edge of the right wood stock. A letter "A" near this screw indicates the start of the takedown procedure. Each part of the lock mechanism was marked with a letter to tell the user how to dismount it in an ordered way. An ingenious system allows the user to release the main spring tension by merely turning down the guard. Such practical thinking and design is typical of efforts to gain the favour of military customers who are inclined to choose weapons readily stripped without the help of tools that could be lost in the field.

Above Left: Nagant Model 1878 - cal. 9.4 mm.

Above: Right: Nagant Model 1878 Strip Down Screw.

Right: Nagant Model 1878 Patent Drawing Showing Trigger Guard Spring Release

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Internal mechanism of the Nagant Model 1878

The lock mechanism was of double-action (trigger cocking). As most revolvers of the same period it included a lot of parts and springs. The sear for example was a separate part with its own return spring (coloured in red on the patent drawing on the previous page).

The Nagant 9.4mm Cartridge 9.4 mm Nagant cartridges from left to right: - Société anonyme de Bruxelles In 1883, a new cheaper Nagant model was used by the Belgian - SA (Sté d'Anderlecht) Army. The cylinder periphery was plain, without the usual - SFM Sté française de Munition lengthwise flutes, and the lock was of single-action type as shown in the two pictures here (the hammer must be thumb-cocked for each shot) This was probably to encourage preserving ammunition. Also, the hammer was of rebounding type. In 1886, a new model known as the 1878/86 appeared on the scene with the same simplified action as in the model 1883 but with a double-action lock. If we compare this new model with the patent's drawing of the model 1878 (page 5), one can see that all the coloured parts on the drawing -

Í Nagant Model 1883 - cal. 9.4 mm

Written for interest only 6 Historic & Heritage Handguns 2013 five parts - were suppressed (sear, sear spring, forward trigger spring, pawl spring and hammer stirrup). The lower limb of the main spring was used to action both the trigger and the pawl. The pawl's axis was machined in such a way that when the main spring lower limb tip bore on it, the pawl was forced forward.

Nagant cylinders : Mod. 1878 - Mod. 1878/86 - Mod. 1883

Simplified double-action lock of the model 1886

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Swedish Nagant 1897 “Husqvarna” 7.5mm

From 1885 on, a Swedish Army commission began an investigation to find a new revolver to replace their model 1871 Lefaucheux-Francotte. After technical tests were made with revolvers such as the Austrian Gasser-Kropatschek model 1878, the Swiss Schmidt model 1882, the Belgian Nagant model 1878 and another Belgian revolver proposed by the firm Warnant, the commission retained the Belgian Nagant and the Swiss Schmidt for further tests. The Belgian Nagant was the winner of these complementary tests. The first purchase orders went to the Belgian firm but by 1897, the Swedish firm Husqvarna started the national production. The first 350 Husqvarna revolvers were sent to Norway which was united with Sweden at that time. From 1898 to 1905, the firm Husqvarna turned out just 13,732 Nagant revolvers for the Swedish Army. Each was delivered with a holster, a spare cylinder, a cleaning rod and a screw-driver. A small quantity was also offered on the Swedish Nagant 1897 “Husqvarna” 7.5mm commercial market.

Nagant revolvers of the Grand-duché of Luxembourg

Being equipped with Remmington-Nagant Rifles supplied by Nagant during the 1880's, it was quite natural that the authorities of Luxembourg turned toward the same firm when the need arose for new handguns. At this time the armed forces of Luxembourg were composed of just 500 men, split equally between the Army and the Gendarmerie so this was not going to be the largest order Nagant had received. By 1884, and based upon the request of some officers of the Luxembourg Army, the Nagant firm made up some small 7.5 mm calibre revolvers. That calibre was already in use by the Swiss army which was equipped with the Mod. 1884 - cal. 7.5 mm Schmidt mod. 1882 revolver. The new Nagant revolver was externally similar to the 1887 model but it included the simplified action that would be found some years latter in the Swedish 1887 model. On this new model the ejector rod had a lengthier, slimmer, chequered head, and the front sight was of rectangular shape instead of the usual half-moon.

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The Army and Gendarmerie of Luxembourg used three different models of Nagant revolvers : The first one, named "Model 1884 for officers" is shown below. It was identical to the one latter adopted by Sweden. In 1893, Norway was also equipped with the same model but with a notched front sight

The second model, named "Model 1884 for officers with safety" was fitted with a safety device which locked the cylinder when applied. The same model was adopted by the Belgian Ministry of Justice to equip prison guards. Following the rule which obliged guards to Model 1884 with safety - cal. 7.5 mm shoot two times with cartridges before using live ammunition, this safety system was devised to allow the cylinder to be locked in a position so that the two blank cartridges were the first to be struck after the safety was released. As seen in the two pictures below, it is just a lever whose front arm engages a cylinder chamber when the safety is on.

The third model was named "gendarme revolver or Model 1884 for gendarme". It was a 1886 model fitted with a double-action simplified lock but the cylinder was plain (not fluted) as on the Belgian 1883 model. The calibre for this model was the 9.4 mm Nagant. A special feature of this model was the barrel length which was 20 mm longer. The front sight shape also was different but the rod ejector remained the same as those on the other small calibre models (The Belgian Army 9.4 mm models were equipped with a different ejector rod).

Another special feature of this model was the possibility to add to it a removable bayonet, slid in

Written for interest only 9 Historic & Heritage Handguns 2013 a sleeve, and retained by a spring blade bearing a lock stud. The sleeve was attached at the end of the barrel and held in place by a screw behind the front sight. It could remain permanently attached. The bayonet blade, of 10.5 cm long, had a cross section. It could be removed by lifting the spring blade retainer. The reason for the unusual barrel length was to allow the ejector rod to be pulled out fully with the bayonet holder attached. The revolver was put on the commercial market around 1890 and met with fairly good success among target shooters who appreciated the precision that could be obtained with the longer barrel. The whole kit included a leather holster that could hold the revolver with the bayonet holder installed on the gun. A long cylindrical pocket stitched near the ammunition pouch was also provided to store the bayonet. Bayonet Mount for Nagant Model 1884 for gendarme

This ability to fix a bayonet to a handgun was not unique. Many early single shot percussion and flintlock pistols had bayonets fitted to swing out at the side or underneath the barrel for use after the shot had been fired. However it was not common with revolvers and it was probably this model Nagant that inspired Captain Arthur Pritchard to patent a bayonet from a cut down Gras bayonet for fitting to a Webley MKVI and persuade WW Greener of Birmingham to manufacture them.

Characteristics of Mod. 1884-87 officer Mod. 1884-87 safety Mod. 1884-87 Nagant Revolvers Gendarme Supplied to Luxembourg

Total length 236mm 236mm 285mm

Barrel Length 92mm 92mm 131mm

Cylinder Type With Grooves With Grooves Un-Fluted

Capacity 6 6 6

Calibre 7.5mm 7.5mm 9.4mm

Type of Lock SA + DA SA + DA SA + DA

Features Cylinder Safety Removable Bayonet

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Serbia

In 1890, an official commission based in Belgrade was charged with examining the various revolvers produced by European and American firms. The recent decision by Sweden to purchase the Nagant model 1887 in calibre 7.5 mm drew the attention of the commission. After a series of tests at the shooting gallery of Banjica, the commission which was leaning towards the Nagant revolver of small calibre, chose it, but some modifications in the design were asked for by the Ministry of War. On July 8, 1891, the Nagant was adopted under the name of Model 1891.

A contract was signed for an order of 12,000 revolvers with accessories and ammunition. Those guns were to be issued to the troop, and reserve officers. Regular officers had to personally procure the same model at their own expense. The firm Nagant immediately started production and the first deliveries began the following year. The total delivery was completed by 1898. One regulation dated February 4, 1895, defined the holster's characteristics. They had to be made of leather with an ammunition pouch for 15 cartridges (7.5 mm). The Military plant of Kragujevac was first given the holster production and then was asked to produce the ammunition. By 1896, Kragujevac production had reached the figure of one million cartridges per year.

The Serbian Nagant M1891 was very similar to the Swedish M1887. It enclosed a double-action lock, screwed on octagonal barrel and the cylinder surface was grooved. It also had some special feature as an additional bolt notch (red circle) at the middle-length of the cylinder and the loading gate (arrow) which acted as a safety.

The cylinder locking on this model Nagant revolver works in the following manner : When the trigger is depressed pulled to its rearmost position, the trigger stud referenced as "a" on the drawing reaches the apex arc and engages one of the stop notches running on the periphery of the rear cylinder's ring. One chamber is then perfectly aligned with the barrel. When the trigger is fully released, its front referenced as "b" engages the stop notch on the median position (red arrow). So,

Written for interest only 11 Historic & Heritage Handguns 2013 in both positions trigger, fully depressed or released, the cylinder remains locked.

The loading gate safety is activated or released by the movement of the loading gate lever. The lever notched ring that passes through an opening machined in the frame wall (brown arrow on the drawing). When the gate lever is lowered to start the loading procedure, the lever ring notch engage rotation, a groove that is machined on the rear arm of the trigger (blue arrow) and immobilizes consequence. By the camming effect of the ring notch sliding inside the groove, the trigger is stop in such a position that the front stud (b) is disengaged from the cylinder middle stop notch who having the rear stud (a) reach its uppermost position and block the cylinder with one of its rear notches. As a result, the cylinder is free to rotate while the trigger is locked. The loading operation becomes safe with no possibility for the trigger to act upon the hammer.

ÏLoading Gate on Serbian Model 1891 Nagant Revolver Ï

ÐNagant Model 1891 Ð

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Model 1895 “Gas Seal” Revolver Cal. 7.62

Probably the most famous and certainly the most numerous Nagant handgun is the Model 1895 “Gas Seal” Revolver. A seven shot single or double action revolver with a unique “gas seal” system that potentially increased the power of the special 7.62 x 38R cartridge. Ordered by Tsar Nicholas II to replace the aging Smith & Wesson .44 revolvers it was chosen mainly because Nagant had already worked with Captain, Sergei Ivanovich Mosin to develop the Mosin-Nagant Service Rifle. It continued in Soviet production until 1945. It was a Nagant 1895 that was used to execute the Tsar and his family in 1918 and also to shoot, but fail to kill, Rasputin, who it is believed, had to be finished off with a trusty old Webley .455. The revolver was well liked by the OGPU, NKVD, KGB, and Vietcong as it could be effectively silenced with the Bramit Device.

When Nagants were issued to a unit, the first priority was to establish each weapon's point of impact. For revolvers that were to be issued to regular soldiers specially selected marksmen generally conducted the firing. In the case of Nagants issued to officers and NCOs, those to whom the particular gun was given did the firing. Four shots were fired in single action mode, either offhand or from a rest at a range of 25 meters. It was expected that the resulting group measure no more than six inches in diameter, and be no further than two inches from the point of aim in any direction. The firing range commands seemed designed to prepare the soldier for the worst eventualities he might face. "AT THE DESERTER, FIRE!" was typical. Thus zeroed, the bullet would strike dead on at 25 meters, 1.5" high at 10 meters and about 2" low at 50 meters. A contemporary Soviet manual issued with the Nagant advises that suitable targets included enemy soldiers at ranges of up to 50 meters who "suddenly appear out in the open." Preference should be given to the "closest and most vulnerable" targets and "for the most reliable destruction of the enemy," the aiming point should be a vital spot, "the stomach, chest or head." The manual states that the competent soldier should be able to get off seven aimed shots in no more than 20 seconds. Cavalrymen were instructed to train their horses to the sound of the shot and "in peacetime, to the appearance of targets at which firing will be conducted."

The “Gas Seal” feature was “borrowed” from another designer, Henri Pieper, without permission. In simple terms it works by moving the cylinder forward as the hammer is cocked and seals the gap normally found between the cylinder and forcing cone of a standard revolver. The complete the seal a special cartridge is used which is pushed into the gap when the The Pieper Cartridge (left & centre) is 41mm long compared to 38.8 cylinder is moved forward and for the Nagant the neck then expands when

Written for interest only 13 Historic & Heritage Handguns 2013 the charge is ignited and the bullet projected down the barrel. The cylinder remains forward until the trigger is released. The Pieper system had a superior loading system (swing out cylinder) but a slightly more complicated “gas seal” mechanism. Both systems relied on a unique 7.62 mm cartridge.

An unusual feature of the Nagant is a breech lock. To add such a device into a revolver presented a major challenge. First, the whole system had to function automatically, and also It had to play its function without notably modifying the weapon's shape or weight. Nagant managed these requirements perfectly and produced a truly magnificent feat of 19th century engineering. Commercial production 7.62×38R (right) in comparison with .32 Smith & Wesson Long and .32 H&R Magnum

1 : breechblock / 2 : bolt piece Two parts were designed to play the role of breechblock and breech bolt. The breechblock (1) rotates around a post and is pushed into position by the bolt piece (2) which slides in a vertical track machined in both sides of the frame.

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1. Barrel 16. Grip Set 16b Grip Set 31. Gate Spring 2. Cylinder Wood 32. Gate Spring Screw 3. Cylinder Pin 17. Grip Insert Screw 33. Main Spring 4. Cylinder Pin Sleeve 18. Grip Nut 34. Recoil Plate 5. Cylinder Pin Spring 6. Double Action Fly 21. Grip Panel Screw 36. Side Plate 7. Double Action Screw 22. Hammer 37. Side Plate Screw 8. Double Action Spring 23. Hammer Block 38. Front Sight 9. Ejector Rod 24. Hammer Pivot 39. Trigger 10. Ejector Rod Sleeve 25. Hand 40. Trigger Guard 11. Ejector Rod Spring Stop 26. Lanyard Ring 41. Guard Retaining Pin 12. Ejector Rod Screw 27. Lanyard Ring Stud 42. Guard Screw 13. Firing Pin 28. Lanyard Stud Pin 14. Firing Pin Pivot 29. Loading Gate 15. Frame 30. Gate Screw The Bramit Device

The original Nagant M1895 sound moderator was patented and manufactured by the Brothers Mitin and was called a Bramit Device and was a friction or bayonet twist type fit onto the muzzle. They went on to design patent and make sound moderators for both revolvers and rifles for the soviet armed forces. The name Bramit Device has been applied to all subsequent incarnations with the exception of modern screw-on types.

ÍOriginal push on and twist Bramit Device

Í Full length Bramit Device.

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In 1929 the brothers V.G. and I.G. Mitin (Ǻī. Ɇɢɬɢɧ and ɂȽ. Ɇɢɬɢɧ) applied for a further patent under the name “Revolver for soundless shooting utilizing the principle of directing the bullet through washers of increased diameter”. The revolver with the device required cartridges of special construction. In the case of a standard revolver cartridge was a bullet of smaller diameter (probably 5.6 or 6.35 mm) backed by a special washer (sabot). The additional muzzle cylinder mounted on the muzzle of the gun had an opening corresponding to Revised version of the Bramit Device the of the bullet small enough to catch washer. When shooting the bullet with the washer moves through the barrel, but was then caught in the supplemental cylinder. The washer plugged the exit through the supplemental cylinder and the gas was retained in the volume of the barrel. This hopefully blocked the exit of powder gasses.

During the return of the cylinder of the revolver to retracted position, the cooled powder gasses escape, making no noise. On the next shot, during the hammer cock both the revolver cylinder and the supplemental cylinder move through 1/7 revolution. After firing all seven cartridges in the revolver, the shooter had to empty the spent cartridges from the cylinder and the washers from the supplemental cylinder.

The patent was obtained for the soundless revolver on 28 February 1931.

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Modern screw on sound moderator. NOT a Bramit Device

“During World War II, a small number of Nagant revolvers used by Russian recon and scout troops were outfitted with a variety of sound suppressor known as the “Bramit device.” The , NKVD, and KGB were known to use the silenced Nagant for assassinations. Silenced Nagant revolvers, modified in clandestine metal shops, also turned up in the hands of Viet Cong guerrillas during the as assassination weapons. There is an example of a silenced Nagant M1895 in the CIA Museum in Langley, Virginia”. Marshal Voroshilov’s personal pistol, equipped with Bramit Device was on display in St Petersburg in October 2010

Because the Nagant 1895 has a unique “Gas Seal” these sound moderators can only be used with this firearm. They also have a very short life as they use rubber washers as baffles and last only about 20 shots before having to be refurbished.

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Comparison of the power of the Nagant 1895 and the 7.72x38R cartridge and their contemporaries Handguns S&W Russian Nagant 1895 St Etienne 1892 Browning 1900 Lock system Single-action SA and DA DA Semi-auto Tot. length 320 mm 234 mm 239 mm 163 mm Barrel length 178 mm 114.5 mm 117 mm 102 mm Weigth unloaded 1170 g 780 g 840 g 615 g Rifling 5 right 4 right 4 left 6 right Rifling step 508 mm 240 mm 240 mm 240 mm Capacity 6 7 6 7 Ammunition Name .44 S&W 7.62 Nagant 8 mm Mle 92 7.65 Browning Tot. length 35.6 à 36.2 mm 38.8 mm 36.5 mm 25 mm Case length 23.5 à 25.5 mm 38.8 mm 27.2 mm 17.2 mm Total weight 21.3 à 22.0 g 12.3 g 12.0 à 12.5 g 7.85 g Bullet weight 15.9 g 7.0 g 7.85 à 8.0 g 4.75 g Powder weight 1.49 PN 0.53 SF 0.75 PN / 0.30 Tbis 0.20 SF True caliber 10.7 à 11.2 mm 7.8 mm 8.2 mm 7.9 mm Ballistic Initial speed 230 m/s 300 m/s 225 m/s 270 m/s Energy 43 kgm 32 kgm 20 kgm 17.5 kgm Stopping Coeff. 40.4 Stp 15.5 Stp 11 Stp 8.4 StP Perfor. Coeff. 45.7 Perf 66 Perf 37 Perf 35.6 Perf

Nagant Revolvers Mod. 1884-87 Model 1883/86 (Bel) 1884 (Lux) Gendarme (Bel & 1887 (Swe) 1895 (Rus) Lux) Gate Loading Gate Loading Gate Loading Gate Loading Gate Loading Gas Type Revolver Revolver Revolver Revolver Seal Revolver

Calibre(s) 9.4 mm 7.5 mm 9.4 mm 7.5 mm 7.62 mm

Barrel Length 4” 4” 5.2” 4” 4.5”

Cylinder 6 6 6 6 7 Capacity

Historic 9 9 9 9 9 Importance

Aesthetic Quality

Technical 9 9 9 9 9 Interest

Particular 9 9 9 9 Rarity

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Examples held at Under Section 7.3

Model 1895 Gas Seal Revolver

This example of a Soviet built Nagant started life in the Tula factory (Tulsky Oruzheiny Zavod) 200 miles south of Moscow. However, as Operation Typhoon (German designation of the attempt to destroy the Russian capital) neared the area of Tula in Dec. 1941 the whole factory was “moved” east. This gun finished it’s production in 1943 in the Izhevsk Mechanical Plant.

Model 1895 Gas Seal Date of Manufacture 1943 Barrel Length 4.5” Capacity 7 Calibre 7.62 Length 9.25 “ Cartridge 7.62 x 38R Weight Unloaded 1.8 lb Manufacturer Izhevsk (Nagant) Serial Number B 469 Written for interest only 20 Historic & Heritage Handguns 2013

Swedish Nagant 1897 “Husqvarna” 7.5mm This fine example of a Swedish made Nagant Model 1897 is one of only 14,000 ever made

.

Model 1897 Date of Manufacture 1903 Barrel Length 4.5” Capacity 6 Calibre 7.5mm Length 9.25 “ Cartridge 7.5mm Nagant Weight Unloaded 1.8 lb Manufacturer Husqvarna Serial Number 10078

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