Again this thread will disappoint some.
Fixed up another Bacon revolver from years past and tried a new trick that I learned from some CAS boards. Instead of cutting, shaping and heat treating flat springs I used Wolff spring wire. The only issue I had was needing to polish up the gritty 160 year old cast of the spring's bearing surface as it was more sensitive to pits and roughness. 25 foot distance with 10 grains of FFG, 32 caliber ball and a felt wad produced good offhand accuracy for first time out. I confess to being a little nervous every time I shoot one of these really old guns for the first time but take precautions with gloves and safety glasses. So far I've never experienced a problem.
Bacon revolvers were direct competitors of the popular Colt 1849, but Thomas Bacon designed his revolver with longer and more elegant lines, often adding factory engraving. His first partners wanted the gun to look more like the 1849 and after they went different directions the partners formed Manhattan arms in New Jersey. Thomas Bacon continued on his own in Norwich Conn. after taking in new partners.
Assembly is interesting as you put all the pieces in the frame, then you have to tension the strange shaped main spring and this holds everything together. You can check the function of the guns parts with the main cover plate off.
Sadly Mr. bacon was a better designer than business man and sold out to partners that would eventually form Hopkins and Allen.
Fixed up another Bacon revolver from years past and tried a new trick that I learned from some CAS boards. Instead of cutting, shaping and heat treating flat springs I used Wolff spring wire. The only issue I had was needing to polish up the gritty 160 year old cast of the spring's bearing surface as it was more sensitive to pits and roughness. 25 foot distance with 10 grains of FFG, 32 caliber ball and a felt wad produced good offhand accuracy for first time out. I confess to being a little nervous every time I shoot one of these really old guns for the first time but take precautions with gloves and safety glasses. So far I've never experienced a problem.
Bacon revolvers were direct competitors of the popular Colt 1849, but Thomas Bacon designed his revolver with longer and more elegant lines, often adding factory engraving. His first partners wanted the gun to look more like the 1849 and after they went different directions the partners formed Manhattan arms in New Jersey. Thomas Bacon continued on his own in Norwich Conn. after taking in new partners.
Assembly is interesting as you put all the pieces in the frame, then you have to tension the strange shaped main spring and this holds everything together. You can check the function of the guns parts with the main cover plate off.
Sadly Mr. bacon was a better designer than business man and sold out to partners that would eventually form Hopkins and Allen.
