Miniature Arms

[Jim McDougall]

In recent discussions, the question on what got you started in the fascination with arms and their history comes up.
In the mid 50s I was about 10 when in a visit to cousins, we went to a neighbors house. Right away there was an air of mystery as there was a REAL cannon in the yard! As young boys, my brother and I were stunned. Then going into a basement, there were tables of weapons, and we were speechless as we were shown some of them.
What caught our eye was several miniature guns, TINY! Then, out of the realm of possibility, this tiny gun barely 2"....actually FIRED!

I never forgot that tiny pistol, and in years to follow, all I could find was a small, but notably larger replica of the derringer pistol, which did however fire caps. Again, there was the fascination of weapons as seen in movies and TV series, and there were small replicas of pewter offered in cereal box coupons.

I had a number of these, interesting but none fired, just toy models. Still they were fun to have, and my powerful curiosity in weapons was seriously piqued.
In the TV westerns, it seemed like EVERY gun was the ubiquitous Colt peacemaker, and gave me no particular intrigue. However, in the imagery of the Army on the frontier, the soldiers had an unusual looking pistol, usually in a holster with fastened down flap.
This was UNIQUE, so there my imagination went. Those were my favorite, if only to be different.


Are they ethnographic? yes many are, and those are often even more remarkable.
Time frame: One of first patent was with Franz Pfannl in 1899, but these were foreign made often by jewelers in much earlier years.

I had one of these in my 'stuff' which years later was given to me by one of my brothers, a long lost treasure. I could not believe anything of my kid years still existed!
The tiny pistol carried a huge message from the past, and I decided, I would FIND one of these pistols, which turned out to be Remington rolling block breech load single shot .50 cal.
I FOUND ONE! Though it was a Navy 1867, it was the same.
70 years later..............I found the gun that captured my imagination

In an antique shop several days ago, I found one of the tiny pistols that launched my lifelong obsession. People around me at the shop were baffled by my excitement. The dealer and I joked about filling out paperwork, and the three day waiting period....then I asked about a holster

Many of us 'old timers' could tell stories for days on the weapons and adventures in our lifelong passions. But this one had been long forgotten, until that tiny pistol sitting obscurely in a curio crammed cabinet, called to me. Just wanted to share it here, and maybe some of you guys might have seen or had interest in these miniature arms. I have some swords etc too.
Lets see some LITTLE weapons with BIG stories!

[corrado26]

For many years I have owned a miniature Colt SAA revolver that I found and purchased in an antique store more than 50 years ago. I was fascinated not only by the piece itself, but also by the 10 cm wide case in which it was stored. Unfortunately, I don't know who made this working miniature or how old it is. However, I assume that it was created in the hobby workshop of a talented hobbyist and enthusiast.