doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Does this count as a double gun? :3

What is it?

LeMat.

Pietta Le Mat "Navy Model" (An unfaithful reproduction of the 2nd model original Le Mat)

It's a 9-shot .44 caliber percussion revolver, with a 20ga percussion shotgun barrel as the arbor. The Savage-24-like selector on the hammer flips down to hit the cone for the shotgun barrel.

The originals were .41 caliber (I believe) with an ~18ga shotgun bore. The original selectors were slightly different, and the takedown lever/pin (depending on 1st/2nd model) were different.

The action is a little strange. At the time, Le Mat needed to get around some Colt patents, so it uses a pin under the hammer to lock the cylinder, instead of a bolt above the trigger. It's not as good a system, and the guns go out of time a lot easier than the Colts did.

It's also a really big and heavy gun. Moreso than the picture can communicate. I have huge pianist hands. The gun looks normal-sized in my hand.

Due to the short throw to the shotgun cone, the mainspring is really stiff. You have to be a professional thumb-wrestler to cock it one-handed.

These guns saw limited use in the Confederacy during the American civil war. They were only issued to officers. General Beauregard was good friends with Le Mat, and pulled some strings for him I opine. I seem to recall that 2000 of them were ordered, from France, but only about half got through the Union blockade.

There were also some pinfire and certerfire versions made later on, but they were even uglier than the percussion model. They never caught on, and AFAIK were only sold in Europe. I think there was also a carbine version, but they are about as rare as rare can get. Ian of Forgotten Weapons has an interesting video on the post-war iterations of the Le Mats.

But in spite of its impracticality, it's interesting, and much different than all the other combination guns in my collection.

Incidentally, the gun used by Ed Harris in "Westworld" is a Pietta Le Mat "Cavalry Model", that appears to have been cartridge-converted to .38 Short Colt. In reality, I expect this would be a pipe bomb (at least the shotgun barrel, which any real conversion would probably want to leave as percussion I expect), but I guess it's strong enough to shoot blanks.

Used by the Confederates. Hooray for Dixie!!
As I recall it had a 9-shot cylinder of around .42 caliber & the bottom barrel was an approximately 20 gauge shot barrel. A few were I believe also made in .36 caliber. I guess that would thus qualify it as a "Double Barrel".

I recall seeing in the past that when Lee surrendered at Appomattox that he surrendered a 10-shot revolver. Make was not given, but no one is aware of any other 10-shot revolver being used at that time, so likely was a LeMat.

I thought Gen. Grant allowed the Officers to keep their sidearms.
Mike

All CSA soldiers were allowed to keep their sidearms, and their horses so they could plant a crop when they got home. Sidearms included swords and knives. The only things they were required to surrender were things that were the property of the Confederacy, which included most longarms.

I've never read anything about Lee surrendering a sidearm to Grant. Lee was carrying a sidearm, but it was a very elaborate dress sword, which he retained. I would much appreciate a link to any account of his having a revolver at the surrender.

SRH

LeMat also made a carbine. One sold at RIA a few years ago.

https://www.rockislandauction.com/detail...rtridge-carbine

SRH

My aunt's husband's great (or maybe great-great, I dunno) grandfather served in the Confederate cavalry. After the war, he cut his sabre blade off and turned it into a corn cutter, and it was eventually worn out and thrown away. The story goes that he did this specifically to be emblematic about how much he hated the war.

The family only retains the scabbard now.

Elmer King (Indiana Pa.) told me long ago that his father (Chambers King) a fine Pa. long rifle gun smith, upon returning from the war, cut the blade off his saber and made gun springs from it. Eventually a great steel for springs. I have his 1863 Trenton, NJ .58 cal. rifle hanging on my office wall.

A 3rd cousin of mine has a rifle our G-Grandfather "Supposedly" carried through the War. It is however a half stocked, octagon barrel, percussion Hunting Rifle, not a military gun. I know that many Confederates did at least early in the war carry their own arms, perhaps this was the case here, or perhaps its just another old family tale. He served in the 45th TN infantry.
was present at the Battle of Franklin (TN) but was assigned the duty of tending to the horses so was not actually engaged in the battle. Had he of been I well might not exist at all.

Another of my G-Grandfathers served in the 4th TN Volunteer Cavalry (Starnes/McLemore). I have no idea what he was armed with. For a period of about a year the company he was in was assigned to N B Forrest. During that time he took a little ride across northern Miss & Ala which resulted in the surrender of one Abel Strait without a battle even being fought.

Stan;
Where I read about Lee having the 10-shot revolver when he surrendered was in an article about the LeMat. I have no idea if it was in anything which I still have or not. If so I have not the slightest idea where to look. It is possible I am mistaken about him "Surrendering" it, but that is how I recall it. There are of course exceptions to General Rules & if he did not surrender it, it is doubtful it would have been listed as him having it.

I'm not so sure about that, Miller. The reference to his dress sword that he carried to the surrender specifically states that Grant did not ask for it, and Lee did not surrender it.

I wonder what became of it.

SRH

Stan;
You may well be right on that. Since I don't recall the writer of this I fully realize it will have to be simply treated as Hearsay, Of this much though I am certain, the writer did say that on Lee's surrender it was recorded that he had a 10 shot revolver. Perhaps I was just assuming that he surrendered it.

I would dearly love to own that gun today.

I had a great-great grandfather who served on both sides in the Civil war. He was a recent immigrant from Wales and got caught up in the excitement after the decision of SC to succeed and enlisted either just before or just after Ft Sumter was shelled. His enlistment was for only 90 days. The State was unable to pay or for that matter properly house, equip or feed all the volunteers they had. Many were discharged, mostly the youngest from what I gathered and told they could rejoin later if the Damn Yankees caused trouble. Most of the enlistments were very short term at the start of the war.

Since there was no fighting for months after the start of he war he decided to go visit his sister who was living on the UP in Michigan. She had immigrated about five years earlier and was married with a growing family. About a year later they were raising volunteers for the war and he signed up, again but this time as a Yankee. Doubt he mentioned his previous military experience. Ended up getting elected to Sargent and rose up the ranks to Captain by the wars end.

He never spoke about the war with anyone after he returned. I guess he had a bad war. Always figured he had a pension coming from either side, depending on the outcome. He did get a minor pension from his service but only the Yankees side.

Stan,
RE Lee's dress sword is in the American Civil War museum at the Appomattox CH Military Park.
Correction - it was there three years ago, when I last visited.

The LeMat was the side arm carried by cavalryman J. E. B. Stuart.