Nagant 1895 (gun of the day)

johnwill · August 2, 2001, 06:47 PM

No collection is complete without it's "Ugly Duckling", and surely this revolver is in the running.

James K · August 3, 2001, 10:51 PM

A MUCH under-rated revolver. They are rugged, reliable and fairly powerful, well in line with the other military revolvers of the period. They are often described as "fragile", apparently by people who have never seen one, but they lasted a long time and the Russians were not given to such long use of fragile guns.

Not a great DA trigger pull, but good enough for close combat.

Jim

johnwill · August 4, 2001, 09:09 AM

I don't dispute that in 1895 they were a pretty decent pick, though the ammo will make you look twice to see if it's already been shot.

I love guns that are a bit "unusual", and the Nagant certainly qualifies. The one thing I thought was pretty interesting was that it was a 7 shot revolver 100 years ago. Many people thing that's a recent trend...

Harley Nolden · August 5, 2001, 11:51 AM

Russian M1895:
The Nagants were popular with the Russion Army, as they had so-operated in the development of the M1891 (Mosin-Nagant service rifle) The Russians adopted the 7 shot solid framed Nagant gas-seal revolver in 1895. The earliest double-action guns wre purchased from the L. Nagan & Cie, Liege. The first guns seem to have been issued to officers and senior NCos. Production began in the Tula Factory in 1899, whereupon assembly in Belgium ceased.

Guns made in Russia prior to the 1917 revolution were almost all single-action, and these were issued much more widely than the original Belgian made batches, and have come to be known as "the Troopers Model." Production continued in the USSR until 1945.

As Jim mentioned they were strong, reliable and easily maintained. This is expressed by an ex-Tsarist soldier who once replied: "if anything went wrong with it you could mend it with a hammer."

The 7.62mm caliber of the M1895 allowed Russian barrel making machinery to be adapted for service for rifles or revolvers with releative ease. The stopping power of the bullet was not great, though a slight improvement was obtained by flattening its tip.

HJN

August 2, 2001, 06:47 PM	#1
johnwill Senior Member Join Date: April 6, 2000 Location: PA Posts: 3,451	Nagant 1895 (gun of the day) No collection is complete without it's "Ugly Duckling", and surely this revolver is in the running.

August 3, 2001, 10:51 PM	#2
James K Member In Memoriam Join Date: March 17, 1999 Posts: 24,383	A MUCH under-rated revolver. They are rugged, reliable and fairly powerful, well in line with the other military revolvers of the period. They are often described as "fragile", apparently by people who have never seen one, but they lasted a long time and the Russians were not given to such long use of fragile guns. Not a great DA trigger pull, but good enough for close combat. Jim

August 4, 2001, 09:09 AM	#3
johnwill Senior Member Join Date: April 6, 2000 Location: PA Posts: 3,451	I don't dispute that in 1895 they were a pretty decent pick, though the ammo will make you look twice to see if it's already been shot. I love guns that are a bit "unusual", and the Nagant certainly qualifies. The one thing I thought was pretty interesting was that it was a 7 shot revolver 100 years ago. Many people thing that's a recent trend...

August 5, 2001, 11:51 AM	#4
Harley Nolden Staff In Memoriam Join Date: January 8, 1999 Location: Brunswick,GA USA Posts: 1,884	Russian M1895: The Nagants were popular with the Russion Army, as they had so-operated in the development of the M1891 (Mosin-Nagant service rifle) The Russians adopted the 7 shot solid framed Nagant gas-seal revolver in 1895. The earliest double-action guns wre purchased from the L. Nagan & Cie, Liege. The first guns seem to have been issued to officers and senior NCos. Production began in the Tula Factory in 1899, whereupon assembly in Belgium ceased. Guns made in Russia prior to the 1917 revolution were almost all single-action, and these were issued much more widely than the original Belgian made batches, and have come to be known as "the Troopers Model." Production continued in the USSR until 1945. As Jim mentioned they were strong, reliable and easily maintained. This is expressed by an ex-Tsarist soldier who once replied: "if anything went wrong with it you could mend it with a hammer." The 7.62mm caliber of the M1895 allowed Russian barrel making machinery to be adapted for service for rifles or revolvers with releative ease. The stopping power of the bullet was not great, though a slight improvement was obtained by flattening its tip. HJN