dating a 1887 nagant revolver

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hi there, im getting mixed info on what year this gun was made because of missing info and some shops saying its pre 1898 while others not. here is a stock pic of the marking i cant identify, serial in the 6000's does anyone know what it is? thanks
Nagant #5820 7.jpgpix564321124.jpgpix479559303.jpg
 

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Back face on the cylinder...is there letters ELG in a circle anywhere? Brevet should be Belgian...the (ELG) mark is the main indication I believe
 
tokguy said:
Back face on the cylinder...is there letters ELG in a circle anywhere? Brevet should be Belgian...the (ELG) mark is the main indication I believe
Click to expand...

It's an 1887 - didn't they all have the crowned ELG when produced in Belgium? Is it an 1887 though? Can we see full pictures? (I rechecked and looks like first 2000 were ELG no crown, then later with crown)

For Belgian made 1887s they are all antique - see FRN 132924

The confusion comes from the 1887 that were also manufactured in Sweden and only the first 350 of those are considered antique.
 
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Most likely right on KKTF. I've had a Belgian or two, but commercial for the most part. I like a bigger bore caliber...seems like often the Nagants are closer to ceremonial calibers.
 
tokguy said:
Back face on the cylinder...is there letters ELG in a circle anywhere? Brevet should be Belgian...the (ELG) mark is the main indication I believe
Click to expand...

Cylinder has elg with a crown above the oval, the thing is that there is no way of knowing if the cylinder is original to that gun or not. Basically will I be able to import this or is it a post 1897?
 
questionnaire said:
Cylinder has elg with a crown above the oval, the thing is that there is no way of knowing if the cylinder is original to that gun or not. Basically will I be able to import this or is it a post 1897?
Click to expand...

That is the definitive mark I believe. The gun is rare enough...I doubt anyone else will question long. It not a Colt SAA where you can get whatever you wish.
What is the caliber, BTW?
 
ELG crown just means it's post 1892. In the absence of other information it's used to signify that there's no proof the gun is antique. This is how we have so many Belgian bulldogs that we can't prove antiqueness on even if they are made in 1893.

The R crown means post 1894.

But none of that is relevant because all Belgian made 1887 revolvers are antique - the FRT entry is quite clear so you don't have to argue with the lab about it. They follow the rationale that the deliveries from Belgium were all done by the time production at Husqvarna started in 1897. Quoting from the FRT entry:

"this Nagant designed revolver was adopted by the Swedish Army in 1887 as the M1887; original revolvers were produced by the Belgian firm of Nagant until 1897 when production was moved to the Swedish firm of Husqvarna Vapenfabrik; Husqvarna produced these handguns until 1905."

So congratulations - you have an antique. If you want help submitting a report for an antique letter from the RCMP, pm me, I'm a verifier. But, to be honest, this is one gun you can carry with just a FRT printout since it's so unambiguous - if you are having trouble with Armalytics, pm me your email and I'll send you a pdf copy to print. Best estimate on year I can give for now is 1894 to 1897.

If you are interested, here's some history https://www.gunboards.com/threads/the-m-1887-revolver-by-arne-thell.1205036/
 
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