Firearms date back to the 10th century in China, and you have to imagine some of those first users wished they could fire multiple times before reloading. Sure, you could carry multiple smaller guns or add on extra barrels, but wouldn’t it be nice if one could have five or six shots available at their immediate disposal? Enter revolving arms.

Early gunsmiths explored various options for creating multi-shot firearms, even as far back as revolving matchlocks, but many were cumbersome, unreliable, dangerous, or too complicated and expensive to be adopted on a large scale. That changed by the late 18th century when designs improved and multi-shot revolving arms became more practical.

A trio of Colt 1855 revolving long guns, a sporting rifle and two shotguns, one in 10 gauge and one in 20 gauge.

While revolving handguns, commonly known as revolving pistols in the 19th century, have remained the most iconic and popular form of revolving firearms, revolving long guns were also popular in the 19th century. Many revolving firearms designs were produced both in handgun and long gun forms though some designs barely made it past the prototype stage and are little known and rarely seen today.

Rock Island Auction Company features an impressive array of revolving long guns from the 18th and 19th centuries demonstrating the advancement of this arms technology in both Europe and the United States, including rare revolving flintlocks, percussion classics by Samuel Colt, and rare metallic cartridge revolving rifles.

A rare, engraved Whittier 6-shot revolving shotgun.

Swivel Breech Guns

One of the earliest relatively popular multi-shot “revolving” firearms in the 18th century was the swivel breech long gun known as a “wender” that translates to “turner” in German or as “turn-overs.” These are typically two-shot firearms like an over/under shotgun. However, the barrels can be manually rotated allowing the user to fire two or more shots using a single lock.

This 18th century engraved, gold inlaid, and relief carved flintlock swivel breech/"wender" combination gun by Schirmer of Bamberg sold for $26,438 in December 2024 at Rock Island Auction Company. Note that each barrel has flashpan, frizzen, and frizzen spring.

Swivel breech designs continued to be produced in Europe and America during the 19th century after the widespread adoption of the percussion system. Some examples had more than two barrels, and some were combination guns with the barrels in different calibers or a combination of rifled, straight rifled, and smoothbore.

Lots 240 and 243 feature two 19th century American swivel breech combination guns. Each features one rifled barrel and one smoothbore barrel. The upper example is marked as from the shop of Drial H. Gibbs and George W. Gibbs in Honesdale, Wayne County, Penn. The lower example is unsigned.

The swivel breeches were commonly sporting guns rather than military firearms, but some swivel breech pistols were likely used by military officers. A smaller number of similar guns often originating from Carlsbad, Bohemia, were made with single barrels and multiple rotating “chambers” foreshadowing some of the flintlock revolvers that followed.

A rare six-shot swivel breech/pepperbox percussion revolving rifle by Horace Fox of Frewsburg, New York.

Russian Revolving Arms

The Russian tsars appear to have taken a particular interest in revolving arms, and several models originated from the Tula Arms Factory in the latter part of the 18th century. The rare example below is very similar to examples in museum collections in Russia, including the Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg. A pair of revolvers from the Tula Arms Factory c. 1790 were also displayed as part of the Metropolitan Museum of Art's "Emperors, Artists & Inventors: Transformative Gifts of Fine Arms and Armor" exhibition in 2020-2022.

The Met notes that the royal factory at Tula "produced both plain military arms and deluxe hunting weapons for personal use by the imperial family and members of the court, as well as for diplomatic gifts,” and that fine firearms from Tula are exceptionally rare outside Russia.

While likely made in Russia, the revolving sporting gun in Rock Island Auction Company’s upcoming December Premier Firearms Auction is believed to have been owned by the dukes (later kings) of Wurttemberg up through Duke Carl Alexander (d. 1964). Norman R. Blank acquired the gun from a private collection in Europe via W. Keith Neal in June 1960. It may have originally been a gift from Catherine the Great.

This incredibly scarce six-shot flintlock revolving sporting gun from Lot 1248 dates to the late 18th century. Few examples of these early Russian revolvers exist outside of museum collections, and few still are in private hands in the United States.

The Colliers

Arguably the first commercially produced revolving firearms were the Collier revolvers. They were designed in the United States but manufactured in England. Elisha Haydon Collier (1788-1856) of Boston, Mass., patented an improvement of Capt. Artemus Wheeler's American patented design in England in 1818 and received UK patent no. 4315.

The Colliers were produced in a variety of handgun and long gun configurations. The First Model and Second Model variations are revolving flintlocks. The First Model had a delicate and complex clockwork-assisted rotation mechanism that revolved the cylinder automatically. The Second Model revolvers have manually rotated cylinders. Later variants, known as Third Models, using percussion ignition (the first known use of caps for a revolver) were also manufactured in limited numbers, including rare revolving shotguns.

It has been reported in many publications on Colt’s early history that he was influenced primarily by the capstan on a ship while he was a young sailor on the Corvo in 1830-31, but Colt later said the Collier design did influence his own. In fact, the Collier patents and testimony from Collier were also part of the 1851 court case brought by Colt against the Massachusetts Arms Co.

This is a rare E.H. Collier “Third Model” percussion revolving shotgun. Collier’s original design was flintlock, but it became even more practical once updated for use with percussion caps.

Miller Patent Revolving Rifles

Before we get to Samuel Colt, it is important to recognize that another American design predates Colt’s patent. James Millar (also spelled Miller) patented his own revolving firearms system on June 11, 1829, and manufactured them with his brother John Millar in Rochester, New York, in the 1830s. The early examples were pill primed, but later examples based on the design used percussion caps. As with many early revolving arms, the cylinder was manually rotated between shots. To make this easier, many Miller patent revolving rifles have serrated or otherwise textured cylinders.

An exhibition quality, panel scene engraved J. & J. Miller revolving pill lock rifle with gold fittings.

It is known that at minimum 15 different gunsmiths made revolving rifles based on the Miller patent. Of these, William Billinghurst is by far the best known. He was a former employee of the Millers and purchased the patent rights in 1841. Billinghurst produced a significant percentage of the total Miller patent revolving rifles. Given this, the Miller patent revolving rifles are often known as “Billinghurst revolving rifles.” Though fairly well known and generally a high quality design, it is estimated that only a few hundred were produced in total.

A rare gold mounted and panel scene engraved J. & J. Miller revolving pill lock rifle. In this close-up look at the lock and cylinder, the the small holes for the priming pills and the latch at the front of the cylinder are clearly visible.

Samuel Colt's Revolving Rifles and Shotguns

Samuel Colt received his first American firearm patent on Feb. 25, 1836, for an “improvement in fire-arms” which included a design that had clear similarities to the Collier design in the handgun version which included a bayonet and a really interesting lever-operated revolving rifle. He submitted his patent in England in 1835. Colt formed the Patent Arms Manufacturing Company based in Paterson, New Jersey, to produce and market his new revolving arms.

An outstanding "Albert Foster Model" Colt Paterson Model 1839 percussion revolving carbine.

The ring lever revolving rifles were actually the first to be manufactured. They utilize a lever with a loop to rotate the cylinder and cock the internal hammer. Only 200 of Colt’s First Models were manufactured c. 1837-1838. Unlike earlier revolving arms, the No. 1 “Ring Lever” rifles were actually adopted by the military, and the U.S. Ordnance Department purchased them for use in the Seminole Wars in Florida. Unfortunately for Colt, his business faltered and closed.

An exceptional Colt Paterson No. 1 ring lever percussion revolving rifle, a rare example of one of Colt’s first firearms.

Colt’s firearms business was revived thanks to renewed interest in his revolving arms during the Mexican-American War and the development of the Colt Walker. In addition to introducing shoulder-stocked revolving pistols in various models, Colt again began to manufacture revolving rifles and shotguns alongside his new “revolving pistols.”

A cased Patent Arms Manufacturing Company "Colt Baby Paterson" No.1 Pocket model percussion revolver with a full set of accessories.

The Model 1855 First Model and New Model 1855 series long guns were very similar to the “New Model Pocket Revolving Pistols” (Model 1855 “Root” revolvers) but on a significantly larger scale. Instead of being a .28 or .31 caliber pocket pistol, the New Model 1855 long guns could be had with chambers as large as 10 gauge and packed some serious firepower.

This is an outstanding Colt Model 1855 Percussion Half-Stock Sporting Rifle in .44 caliber, a scarce variation. It is one of only 250 .44 caliber sporting rifles with 24 inch barrels per the charts on page 182 of “The Book of Colt Firearms” by R.L. Wilson and one of 800 total .44 caliber sporting rifles. For rarity comparison, 12,075 .56 caliber revolving cylinder long arms were made by Colt in the same period.

Unlike most earlier revolving firearms, Colt’s firearms were particularly significant in that they were machine made and could be mass produced. The Colt 1855 revolving rifles were offered in several different variations and saw use in the Civil War with the Berdan Sharpshooters for a short time, Confederate cavalry, and others. They were also used by the famous Pony Express.

These are beautiful examples of the Colt Model 1855 shotgun in its two available gauges: 10 gauge at top and 20 gauge below. There were approximately 1,100 Model 1855 shotguns produced, 500 in 20 gauge and 600 in 10 gauge. The 10 gauge versions were built on a special enlarged frame and offered some serious firepower.

Rare and Short-Lived Percussion Revolving Rifle Designs

While Colt’s revolving rifles and shotguns were highly successful, there were many other attempts in the mid-19th century that barely got past the drawing board. Some interesting and functional designs such as the Warner were developed but were only produced in limited numbers due to Samuel Colt’s patent protections which were extended to 1857. Other designs were simply too complicated or delicate to be reliable.

Rufus Nichols and Edward Childs of Conway, Mass., were issued a U.S. patent on April 24, 1838, for their revolving rifle design which rotated the cylinder when the hammer was cocked using an external ratchet. This example is one of only around 100-150 that were made, and they are rarely seen.

After Colt’s patent expired in 1857, many companies began producing revolvers, but revolving rifles and shotguns remained far less common. In part, the firearms market seemed largely satisfied by single and double barrel rifles and shotguns which had been the standards for generations. Revolving designs, while offering advantages in the number of shots available, were more expensive, more complicated, and potentially fragile which did not make them particularly well-suited for hunting or combat.

The Springfield Arms Co. Warner patent revolving rifles were certainly high quality as shown by this beautifully engraved example, but only a very small number were made thanks in large part to Samuel Colt’s patent being extended.

An issue that plagued revolving rifles from the very beginning was the gas leak at the breech. When most revolvers are fired, some of the hot gas escapes between the face of the cylinder and the forcing cone/breech end of the barrel. This gas could burn the shooter’s supporting arm and small shavings of lead could cause injuries. Some early and later designs attempted to mitigate this by having the cylinder lock forward over the breech end of the barrel, but with revolving arms that automatically rotated, this is less common.

The North & Skinner revolving rifles manufactured by North & Savage of Middletown, Conn., were fairly successful. This example is one of between 600 and 700 believed to have been produced around 1856-1859.

Another serious risk for revolving arms were chain fires that occur when more than one chamber is ignited when a firearm is shot. Typically they will go off in a burst or “chained” sequence, but, in some cases, multiple shots can go off almost simultaneously. Chain fires can occur if the projectiles are not tightly fit and the hot gas from one chamber gets past the projectile in an adjacent chamber and ignites the powder charge. It can also occur from the rear end of the cylinder if hot gas gets into inadequately shielded vents or into the nipples due to loosely fitted caps. If a shooter had one of their hands ahead of the cylinder, they might be shot in the arm by one or more projectiles. A chainfire was even more potentially catastrophic with revolving “turret” designs that had some of the chambers facing towards the shooter and/or to the side.

Alexander Hall’s 15-shot percussion revolving rifle patented in 1856 is certainly a distinctive design as shown by this example. They are rarely seen, but they have been used in 2nd Amendment cases to demonstrate that there were “high capacity” civilian firearms in the 19th century.

This P.W. Porter patent “turret rifle” is made by G.P. Foster. Unlike many revolving arms designs, the chambers face outwards in different directions leaving a loaded chamber potentially pointed right at the shooter’s face. The Porter design is lever operated rather than revolved by hand or by working the hammer.

American Breech-Loading Revolving Rifles and Shotguns

During the American Civil War, revolvers saw widespread use, but revolving long guns, aside from the Colt Model 1855, were not a major part of the action. Instead, new repeating designs like the Henry and Spencer lever action repeaters became the latest and greatest in repeating rifle technology. With the war’s end, the firearms market entered a new stage. On one hand, the government’s orders for new arms ground to a halt leading many companies to go out of business. There were also large quantities of arms being sold off as surplus, and the military and public shifted towards rimfire and centerfire cartridge breechloaders. While revolvers like the famous Colt Single Action Army are arguably the most famous firearms of the American West, revolving rifles and shotguns were far less common.

Most Colt Single Action Army revolvers had barrels between 4 1/2 and 7 1/2 inches, but Colt also made a few with long barrels, often over-generalized as Buntline Specials, and shoulders stocks were available to convert Colt’s legendary six-shooters into revolving rifles.

At the end of the Civil War, Smith & Wesson still held the Rollin White patent which granted them rather dubious control of the breech-loading revolver market. This gave them a jump start on Colt and other companies in producing cartridge based revolving rifles.

The Smith & Wesson Model 320 revolving rifle was an excellent design, but production was limited to only 977 thanks to stiff competition from other repeating arms like the Winchester lever actions. This is one of 224 featuring a 20 inch barrel.

The Roper Sporting Arms Company's revolving rifles are already rare, but a heavy barrel target rifle variant is very rare. Roper revolving shotguns are more commonly seen, but they were also produced in fairly small numbers over the course of nine years.

By the time White’s patent expired in 1869, lever action rifles like the Henry, Winchester Model 1866, and Winchester Model 1873 were quite popular, but in 1879 Smith & Wesson attempted to compete in the repeating rifle market with their Model 320 revolving rifles. Other companies such as the Roper Sporting Arms Co. also attempted rather unsuccessfully to compete with the lever actions. Abroad, the LeMat was also produced in small numbers as a metallic cartridge arm, and Mauser even produced a small number of revolving carbines based on their “Zig-Zag”. However, as bolt actions and slide action designs were added to the mix, revolving rifles largely faded into obscurity.

This is a very scarce and very fine Mauser Model 1878 “Zig-Zag” revolving carbine. Like many revolving long guns, the design is similar to the rare Mauser “Zig-Zag” revolving handguns.

Revolving Arms at Rock Island Auction Company

Rock Island Auction Company is the number one source for antique and historic guns, and antique revolving firearms are certainly among our specialties. You’ll find a wide variety of revolvers in each of our Premier, Sporting & Collector, Arms & Accessories Day, and RIAC On Time auction catalogs.

A rare early production two-digit serial number 23 Squareback Colt "Texas Paterson" No. 5 holster nodel percussion revolver with a matching extra cylinder.

We sell thousands of revolving arms every year from the extremely rare and obscure early revolving flintlocks to the classic 19th century Colts, the six-shooters of the Old West, and modern classics. To find out more, subscribe to the Rock Island Auction newsletter for weekly gun blogs and gun videos that dive deeper into the story behind the most famous firearms. A wide array of these fascinating yet sometimes obscure firearms profiled here will be on offer in the Dec. 6-8 Premier Auction in Bedford, Texas.

A factory German silver banded Colt No. 3 belt model Paterson revolver with an original mold. The Paterson belt model demonstrates just how sleek and practical Colt’s revolver was compared to the cumbersome revolving arms that came before it.