Original British Victorian Zulu War Era Model 1872 Mk.III Adams .450 Revolver dated Jan. 1879 – Serial 13228 Original Items

Original Item: Only One Available. These are VERY rare, especially in this condition, with a January 1879 date! This is the Model 1872 MkIII. ADAMS .450 Revolver, officially termed the “Pistol, Adams’ Central Fire, B.L. (Mark III)”. This is exactly like those issued to British Officers at the time of the ZULU WARS in 1879. Company director Christian Cranmer was given two of these by his father when he was 14, however at the time only percussion revolvers caught his fancy, and they were traded away. Now, decades later, he finally has found more.

This revolver design, the model of 1872, started out as a conversion from the Adams Revolver of 1858 in Percussion, known as the Beaumont Adams. This modification took the Double-Action only Adams 1854, and gave it the ability to shoot in the more accurate single action. Further modifications resulted in the Adams model of 1866, the last percussion Model produced.

In 1867, Robert Adams’ brother John Adams patented a breech-loading revolver which was adopted by the British government in place of the Beaumont–Adams. It was a solid frame pistol with six chambers, in .450 caliber. After official acceptance of his pistol, Adams left the London Armory Company and established his own factory, the Adams Patent Small Arms Company. His pistol was manufactured in three distinct variations (differences related mainly to methods of spent cartridge ejection) between 1867 and about 1880. The models were tested and adopted by the British Army and Navy, with the last, the M1872 Mark III, seeing the widest use.

The .450 Adams was the first official centerfire cartridge service revolver adopted by the British War Department . However, the “Mark I” Adams was actually a breech loading conversion of the primary percussion service revolver, as indicated by its official designation in the W.D. “List of Changes” entry 1738 of 26 Nov 1868 – “Deane & Adams’ Revolver Pistol Converted to a Breech-Loader by Mr. J. Adams” . This indicated that The Adams Patent Small Arms company was converting the 1866 models to breech loading cartridges. This was accomplished by adding a loading gate and bored-through replacement cylinder, with a fixed case-extraction rod.

In February of 1872, the Mk.II was introduced, and it was not a conversion from previous designs, but one purpose made as a breech loader, with a two piece frame. It was accepted in List of Changes No. 2227 of 22 Feb 1872 as “Pistol, Adams’ Central Fire, B.L. (Mark II)”. It still had the same fixed side-mounted ejector, which was replaced with a patented swivel ejector on the Mk.III version, adopted afterwards in August 1872. The very brief List of Changes entry for this pattern simply states: “It differs from the previous pattern, Mark II (L.o.C. 2227) in having a more efficient extractor.” This model was the most widely produced, however to find them in this nice condition is extremely rare.

By 1880 however, the Enfield Mk.I revolver was introduced, and it replaced the Adams in service, though it was itself then replaced shortly afterwards by the Webley Mk.I.

We all know and love the Movie ZULU and most everyone knows that Michael Caine in the final redoubt scene is seen to be carrying a MARK VI WEBLEY Revolver circa 1916. No authentic Adams Revolvers could be found at that time from the prop house suppliers in London. This is only the fifth example of a Mk.III that IMA has had, and is definitely the best example we have had, in excellent condition with a clear Zulu War Era Date.

This Revolver is marked ADAMS’S PATENT on the frame along with the Adams’s trademark symbol. The right side of the frame is marked with BROAD ARROW / W.D. / III, the War Department acceptance mark, and indication that it is a Mk III revolver. The frame and cylinder bear various other proof and acceptance markings, including the CROWN / GP “Gunmakers Proof and CROWN /V “Viewed” marks from the London proofhouse. The revolver is also marked with serial number 13228 on the frame and on the side of the cylinder. The inside of the trigger guard, rear of the cylinder, cylinder arbor pin, and barrel frame underneath the hammer are marked with shortened number 228. This number is also stamped onto the end of the grip and the grip securing tab, but the grip must be removed to see these. From all the we can see, this is an “ALL MATCHING” example, and it’s a great one!

The best marking however is right over the trigger guard by the grip: 1 . 79. This is when the revolver was issued and accepted into British military service, so it was almost certainly produced in 1878. A date of January 1879 puts it right in the beginning of the Zulu War period, so it is definitely a possibility that it saw service during that conflict in Africa.

This revolver is complete, with no missing parts that we can find. The wood grips, still fully and fairly crisply checkered, are in fine condition. The revolver metalwork is still shows a lot of the original finish, and there is even still case hardening and “niter bluing” visible in areas. The bore shows clear rifling, and has a nice mostly bright finish, so this revolver most likely did not see much use in service.

The revolver cycles perfectly in single action, though it does have a minor of an issue in double action due to a weak trigger return spring. The trigger doesn’t always move forward after firing with enough force to engage the linkage to the hammer, so sometimes it needs a bit of “help” by being pressed forward until it clicks. As long as the finger is removed from the trigger quickly, it rarely happens.

Ready to Display. Very rare in this fine condition, with lots of original finish! Easily the best that we have ever seen!

Specifications: 

Year of Manufacture: 1878
Caliber: .450 Boxer
Ammunition Type: Centerfire Cartridge
Barrel Length: 6 inches
Overall Length: 11 1/2 inches
Action: External Hammer Double/Single Action
Feed System: 6 Shot Revolver