Early 1875 Revolver 45 cal L on cyl. grip marked

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blueliner
Posts: 11
Joined: Thu Apr 14, 2016 8:44 pm

Early 1875 Revolver 45 cal L on cyl. grip marked

Post by blueliner »

I bought an Early 1875 Revolver 45 cal., 7 1/2" barrel, L and s/n 16 on cyl. ,grip marked 45, E Remington and Sons frame to muzzle address, serial #16 on barrel bottom and inside metal handle bottom ( also 11 453 ), flat top hammer with triangle pin, small front sight, no other outside markings on barrel, frame and metal outside handle. An early Colt 45 cartridge with crimp near bottom fits perfectly in cylinder.
I am new to Remington collecting, and am finding limited records compared to Colt and Winchesters. I'm told this is an rare gun and very few made early 1875 production. Possibly a gun used to compete against Colt for a government contract.
Any input on rarity, date of manufacture, reference source to seek out, history information is appreciated. In other words, what do I have ?
Going to first Remington Society Meeting tomorrow Saturday ) morning as a guest in Irvine, Ca.
Tried posting before,but not on Forum. Will attach 3 photos, which I think is the maximum. More available.
Hope this gets posted !

Bill
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blueliner
Posts: 11
Joined: Thu Apr 14, 2016 8:44 pm

Re: Early 1875 Revolver 45 cal L on cyl. grip marked

Post by blueliner »

blueliner wrote:I bought an Early 1875 Revolver 45 cal., 7 1/2" barrel, L and s/n 16 on cyl. ,grip marked 45, E Remington and Sons frame to muzzle address, serial #16 on barrel bottom and inside metal handle bottom ( also 11 453 ), flat top hammer with triangle pin, small front sight, no other outside markings on barrel, frame and metal outside handle. An early Colt 45 cartridge with crimp near bottom fits perfectly in cylinder.
I am new to Remington collecting, and am finding limited records compared to Colt and Winchesters. I'm told this is an rare gun and very few made early 1875 production. Possibly a gun used to compete against Colt for a government contract.
Any input on rarity, date of manufacture, reference source to seek out, history information is appreciated. In other words, what do I have ?
Going to first Remington Society Meeting tomorrow Saturday ) morning as a guest in Irvine, Ca.
Tried posting before,but not on Forum. Will attach 3 photos, which I think is the maximum. More available.
Hope this gets posted !

Bill
Any help or opinion out there ?

Bill
billt
Posts: 258
Joined: Tue Apr 22, 2003 6:42 pm

Re: Early 1875 Revolver 45 cal L on cyl. grip marked

Post by billt »

Hi Bill,
The Model 1875 revolver was manufactured from 1875 to 1889 with approximately 30,000 produced. The first revolvers produced were in the now obsolete 44 Remington Cartridge and later due to slow sales in 44 WCF and 45 Government. The initial 44 caliber Remington revolvers were serial numbered from 1 to approximately 16000. Thereafter the 44 WCF and 45 caliber revolvers were made in batches and the serial numbers were repeated.
The serial numbers were stamped in three places on the 1875: on the left grip strap, on the tab of the loading gate and on the tab of the trigger guard. There are also assembly numbers stamped in various places: on the under side of the barrel, on the ejector housing, on the cylinder and on the right grip frame.
There were no caliber markings on the 44 Remington Revolvers. The 44 WCF and 45 caliber revolvers were first marked on the left grip like yours then later on the left frame in front of the cylinder and finally on the trigger guard bow.
I believe the serial number of your revolver is 453 and the number 16 is the assembly number. You can pull the trigger guard off and check the tab to see if it is 453 or 16. According to Flayderman’s the revolver in 45 caliber is scarcer than the other two and worth a 20 percent premium.
Unfortunately there are no records of where these revolvers were shipped like the Colts and Winchesters.

I hope this information helps,

Bill
blueliner
Posts: 11
Joined: Thu Apr 14, 2016 8:44 pm

Re: Early 1875 Revolver 45 cal L on cyl. grip marked

Post by blueliner »

I think you nailed it Bill:
left grip strap: 11 453
tab of loading gate: 145
tab of trigger guard: 1453
underside of barrel: 16
ejector housing: ?53 ( I may be seeing things not there )
cylinder: L and 16
right grip frame: 11 453 and 16
left wood grip: 45
left frame in front of cylinder: nothing
trigger guard bow: nothing

Please let me know your final conclusion and when it might have been made.

Thanks,
Bill C
billt
Posts: 258
Joined: Tue Apr 22, 2003 6:42 pm

Re: Early 1875 Revolver 45 cal L on cyl. grip marked

Post by billt »

Since your revolver has the 45 on the grip there should be no caliber markings on the frame or the trigger guard bow. The number 16 is probably the assembly number. The number 11453 seems like it is too high for a 45 caliber revolver. Could you post a picture of the serial number stamped on the right grip frame? As far as when it was made, an article in the Remington Society Journal (Q1, 2004) shows a broadside in an 1880 E. Remington & Sons catalog showing the 1875 Revolver available in 45 Gov. and 44 Winchester C.F. so your revolver was probably made between 1880 and 1888 when Remington went into receivership.

Bill
blueliner
Posts: 11
Joined: Thu Apr 14, 2016 8:44 pm

Re: Early 1875 Revolver 45 cal L on cyl. grip marked

Post by blueliner »

billt wrote:Since your revolver has the 45 on the grip there should be no caliber markings on the frame or the trigger guard bow. The number 16 is probably the assembly number. The number 11453 seems like it is too high for a 45 caliber revolver. Could you post a picture of the serial number stamped on the right grip frame? As far as when it was made, an article in the Remington Society Journal (Q1, 2004) shows a broadside in an 1880 E. Remington & Sons catalog showing the 1875 Revolver available in 45 Gov. and 44 Winchester C.F. so your revolver was probably made between 1880 and 1888 when Remington went into receivership.

Bill
BILL,

There are no markings whatsoever on the right frame grip.

Bill C
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billt
Posts: 258
Joined: Tue Apr 22, 2003 6:42 pm

Re: Early 1875 Revolver 45 cal L on cyl. grip marked

Post by billt »

Sorry, you said in your April 20th post that the right grip frame had 11 453 and 16 on it. I asked to see a picture because I never saw a serial number on the right frame before. I think the serial number of your revolver is probably 1453 because 11 453 is too high.

Bill
admin
Site Admin
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Re: Early 1875 Revolver 45 cal L on cyl. grip marked

Post by admin »

Can you post a picture of whole firearm/front sight?
blueliner
Posts: 11
Joined: Thu Apr 14, 2016 8:44 pm

Re: Early 1875 Revolver 45 cal L on cyl. grip marked

Post by blueliner »

admin wrote:Can you post a picture of whole firearm/front sight?
This is what I have and should give the view:
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blueliner
Posts: 11
Joined: Thu Apr 14, 2016 8:44 pm

Re: Early 1875 Revolver 45 cal L on cyl. grip marked

Post by blueliner »

final 2 pictures. Hope these can add to analysis
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blueliner
Posts: 11
Joined: Thu Apr 14, 2016 8:44 pm

Re: Early 1875 Revolver 45 cal L on cyl. grip marked

Post by blueliner »

Bill t and Gentleman,

The 1875 Revolver in 45 Cal. is presumed to be serial # 11453 or #453 as interpreted by Bill T 10 months ago. Detailed pictures of the revolver are below, with all markings, inside and out, as requested. The speculation was a manufacture date of 1880 to 1888, but possibly earlier due to the rarity of the " 45 " on the left grip, and nowhere else. Cylinder markings are unique also.

The points above and pictures and post following are complete regarding the revolver as to identification.
I did bring this gun to a Society meeting this past year ( at Carol Watson's ).

The point here is I want to sell this gun and felt it best to post on this Forum location first, given the detail of analysis and pictures.

I'll wait a bit before posting on the For Sale location.
For convenience , please contact me at blueliner15@yahoo.com if interested. I will check back on this Forum also for posts and messages.

Thank you for allowing me to share this historic and rare revolver.

Bill
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