LeMat Revolver - anybody ever shot one?

[bedbugbilly]

Just curious if anyone has had any experience in shooting one and what the results were.  Anyone ever experimented in shooting the shot barrel of one?  I don't have one but have had the opportunity to handle a couple of the reproductions - they are impressive for sure - quite a hunk of iron.  Thanks!

[coyotejoe]

I've never owned one but I've heard they tend to be troublesome mechanisms. I think they're just another of those oddities that seem kinda neat but don't really have much to offer in a practical sense, more a thing to show off than to shoot.

[ol smokey]

i have one. its a lot of fun. heavy but fun.

[madcratebuilder]

The nine round .44 cylinder works fine.  The loading lever is not the most robust one made, that your time and it's fine.  The center shot barrel is slow to load, and the hammer has a very short drop to the cap.  You need very sensitive caps. I carefully file mine thinner for reliable ignition.

Nine rounds of .44 and a shot barrel with eight .31 cal round ball made it the EBR of it's day.

[coyotejoe]

When the smoothbore is loaded with #1 buck, wads and a powder charge that won't break your wrist the load has only about 4" of barrel ahead of it. Velocity is about like a "wrist rocket" style slingshot and the pellets scatter so wildly as to make hits beyond twenty feet a matter of pure luck. More of a gimmick than a gun.