Dueling Pistol Identity Help.

Beretta-Skeet

Beretta-Skeet

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Helping out a friend who's a reporter for the Ottawa Citizen. Since I have no knowledge of firearms from this era I was hoping someone here could give me a hand.

The email he sent to me was the following:

"I was wondering if you can help me out with a story I'm doing for the Citizen about the Last Duel in Perth.

We would like to possibly recreate the event using the type of pistols they used, of which the originals are in a museum. The museum doesn't have any ID about the type of gun they are, so I wondered if you, or your colleagues could help ID them.

I have attached a pic and I think they are American Saw Handled Dueling Pistols. Are they are .60 caliber, smooth bore with single set triggers? Percussion, they are from 1833.

They are similar to British TJ Mortimer ones of that era, but seem closer to the American ones.

Secondly, does anyone in Ottawa have working versions of this type of gun who we could film firing them?

Any help would be appreciated."

IMG_2747v2_zps3sbwxfys.jpg
 
they do appear to have a single set trigger; you can see the adjustment screw just ahead of the trigger guard. We would have to see any proof marks and maker's name to go any further plus some way of measuring the bore or at least seeing how much of the barrel was drilled out at the muzzle to make a guess at caliber

cheers mooncoon
 
mooncoon said:
they do appear to have a single set trigger; you can see the adjustment screw just ahead of the trigger guard. We would have to see any proof marks and maker's name to go any further plus some way of measuring the bore or at least seeing how much of the barrel was drilled out at the muzzle to make a guess at caliber

cheers mooncoon
Click to expand...

Thanks for the insight, unfortunately I wasn't there when this photo was taken otherwise I would have noted the markings on it.
 
What are the odds that the guns were made the same year the individual dueled with them? Under similar circumstances I would want guns I knew worked, not brand new only potentially test fired ones. A duel is for ALL the marbles in the bag, someone's gonna die...I can only imagine both of those "someone's" would want equal treatment in dependable firearms.
 
The last post got me thinking; percussion caps took a while to catch on and percussion caps as we know them today and the guns to shoot them did not become particularly accepted until somewhere around 1830 or so. The first percussion military rifles in Britain and the US were around 1839 to put some perspective on the time line. For a duel fought in 1833, the guns could not have been very old at the time of the duel

cheers mooncoon
 
There should be a better record/documentation of what they are/were, as they were stolen a few years back (did not know they were found). Somewhere I have the whole story of the Last Duel, but it may take a while to find.
Last time I saw them was over 50 years ago.
 
Good luck. If it were up to me, I would go with a Pedersoli reproduction of a Mortimer pistol. It is not an exact match, but it may be the closest you could find. You could always ask the museum to loan them to you!

Kevin
 
Problem is that everybody and his brother made dueling pistols. Wasn't an American thing either. Researching the participants(Robert Lyon and John Wilson) of the Perth duel might help narrow it down. Dueling pistols would have been specially ordered.
You really need to see 'em up close and look for proof marks.
You could send the guy here too. .mysteriesofcanada.com/ontario/last_duel/
 
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