Revolving Rifles

I mentioned in an earlier post that I'd like to someday own a Colt revolving rifle. I also mentioned a bad habit of chainfiring that they had, which means that all of the chambers would ignite at once, which could lead to anything from embarrassment to dismemberment. In spite of this, they were used by several Union regiments with great effectiveness during the war, most notably the 21st Ohio at Chickamauga.

I failed to mention at the time, that several years ago I did own a revolving rifle, but it was a Remington rather than a Colt. It was a cartridge weapon, so there was no danger of a chainfire, but it did have a nasty habit of it's own.

Which I discovered one day shooting while wearing a short sleeved shirt.

It would shave lead off the bullet as it left the chamber and entered the forcing cone on the barrel.

That stung just a little bit.

If I wore a jacket or long-sleeved shirt, it wasn't noticable, but bare skin was a different story.

I still have a couple of tiny pieces of lead in my wrist, sixteen years later.

As for the rifle, I traded it off for something many years ago. I sort of wish I still had it, but the sad thing is, I can't even remember what I traded it for.