Show off your Bicycle Guns

[goatsnguns]

I have posted these before. A .32 1.5", shipped 2/4/1928 to Hudson-Pillar Hardware Co., Ironton, OH, and a .38, 1.5" shipped 11/30/1928 to Logan Hardware Co., Logan, WV. Both of these are lettered, the .32 lettered with factory pearl grips, the .38 with checkered hard rubber grips.

 

[Oyeboteb]

Books,
You mean they were actually shooting wild dogs in San Francisco in 1923? Yes, they were! I was chased by a few on my old Schwinn bicycle by the Great Highway as a kid.... Packs of dogs roaming the streets were a common problem due to the "dumps" being what it was back then....Within the city limits. I remember it clearly. There are Malls built over the old "Dumps" site...We would always call the theater built in that Mall years later as "The Dump". It's still there but it's sinking.

Once they moved the Dump, the wild dog issue also went away....but I think that was the cause back in the day.... The Great Highway (by the beach) was also a location of a small city dump that was close to "Playland" by the beach. You didn't want to be out alone walking the beach at night in that area! NOT without your bicycle gun!

Murph

I used to just carry a little kit of two Back Cat Firecrackers taped to a Kitchen Match, taped together, so when I struck the Match I had about two seconds before the "Bang! Bang!"...and this worked well to discourage the Dog Packs from worrying me as I rode my Bike.

I'd carry five or six of these in my Shirt Pocket.

This was in Tulsa, Oklahoma, 1964...

From there we soon moved to San Bruno California, and I became quite familiar with The Great Highway stretch, and mostly steered clear of Playland and the old Sutro Baths, that old Cave at Land's end, or whatever it was called...etc...Lol...

Late '60s, there were homeless people living inside of the fake Stucco "Rock Cliff" embankment there at the bend where Great Highway turned to become Geary Street...

Fun times! Lots of wacky stuff..!

There were still some old Horse drawn Street Cars in back Yards of the Sunset district then...no idea about now...

Moved the heck out of there in 1977...

Had I known about Bicycle Guns as a kid, I'd have sure wanted one!

 

[glowe]

Do these count? Are they bicycle guns for people with longer legs? Both have factory 2 1/2" barrels . . .

The barrel would count, but the hammer would not. That is one of the criteria that separates the Bicycle Gun from just a short barrel pocket gun.

I have some short barreled examples, but the only one I call a Bicycle Gun is the 2" S&W 32 Safety Hammerless.

 

[Kinman]

From somewhere else I believe I have read that the 2" barrelled revolvers were also highly appreciated by railroad Dicks, often carried in the vest pocket. I have some of those older vintage wool vests that could easily accomidate a very short barrelled revolver. I would not be a bit suprised to learn via letters that more were probably sold to individuals in search of an easily hidden piece rather than velocipede operators. My granddad once told me that in the early days of driving Model T autos that large dogs would charge out from places of hiding and could come close to threatening you with a bite, their chosen remedy to "cure a cur" was to tie a heavy rag to the spokes of the rear wheel, the dog would attempt to grab the rag and get flipped end over end, high sport for teenage boys in the early years of driving.

 

[Oyeboteb]

And there was the "Velodog" also, in Europe and imported in to the US -

Oddly enough, "Velodog" was/is a family of 5.5 mm Cartridges, and any make Revolver taking them was thus a "Velodog" in it's own right.

http://www.velodogs.com/

 

[Mbrgr1]

Not S&W,,,,,,,,,,,

Hopkins & Allen "Hammerless # 1 1/2 7 shot 22 long.


I carry it quite often just for something to go BANG!

 

[glowe]

The shortest barrel pocket revolver I ever owned was a 1" H&R Vest Pocket revolver. I shot it a few times and accuracy was awful. Sold it a couple years ago.

 

[Mbrgr1]

The shortest barrel pocket revolver I ever owned was a 1" H&R Vest Pocket revolver. I shot it a few times and accuracy was awful. Sold it a couple years ago.

Wow! might as well use a slingshot with fishing weights!


I like it!

 

[Mr. Wonderful]

Here's a Safety Hammerless from August 1909.

Hello folks,

I got this pistol in one auction lot of five guns, a couple of years ago. It wasn't the one that I REALLY wanted, but I've come to love it.

By the way, one of the OTHER guns (a .38 Safety Hammerless) in the same lot lettered to Mr. Frank H. Wesson, Treasurer of Smith & Wesson in 1924. What a pleasant surprise.

Sometimes you get lucky!

Best wishes eveyone,

Roger AKA Mr. Wonderful

 

[duckhunter28432]

My contribution to the thread. The stocks on the revolver were not numbered to the gun so I replaced them with medallion mother of pearl stocks.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[OLDSTER]

Very interesting thread and great photos. Excuse my ignorance ( since I know nothing about those neat little revolvers ); why are these guns referred to a "Bicycle Revolvers " ??

 

[glowe]

Study the advertisements on Post #16. My observations on the naming of the Bicycle Gun was simply that S&W came up with an ad campaign touting the advantages of a small hammerless revolver that was safe to use on a bicycle. The 32 Safety with a short barrel was very easy and safe to carry. while riding and it was made in the time of highway robbers, hobos, and ne'er-do-wells that made bike travel dangerous.

Remember as well that autos had not yet been invented and the bicycle was a very popular means of transportation. It was either pedaling down the road or horse and/or buggy back then.

 

[BMur]

Period Newspaper clippings

If you have any doubt that they were needed? Here are some newspaper clippings from that period that clearly show why the bicycle gun became very popular around the turn of the century.

Murph

 

[Wiregrassguy]

And to think that is every day now in Chicago, New York, LA...

 

[J. R. WEEMS]

BICUCLE OR NOT

If .38 S&W chambering counts as a Bicycle Gun, here's mine -

Hosted on Fotki

Well it would sure work for me. I would LOVE to have one of those in shootable shape. Very nice indeed.

 

[J. R. WEEMS]

PELSON CASES

This is my one and only. It was shipped 5/9/32. It has no original finish left but I really like the look. It came with a fitted case that appears to be marked Pelson, Cerritos CA. I bought it off GB years ago just for the cool factor. It sits proudly in an old cabinet with some other goodies.

Very nice!! I have a few of those cases. guns are gone but the cases are nice.

 

[CMudrock]

As a young aspiring bicycle racer - I rode many miles training every day. I noticed that the only times I was chased by dogs was while struggling slowly up a hill. We all had 20" long tire pumps clipped to the bikes - for our presto valves. The DOGS were afraid of them. Now days - many riders carry the small aerosol air horns that also work well.
I would never shoot at a Dog - as they have been some of my best friends.
Thought some might be interested in seeing MY H&R TOP BREAK Pocket Revolvers. The 22LR holds 9 rounds, The other "Defender" 5 rounds of .38 s&w.
I threw in an off subject picture of my 1941 H&R model 999 Sportsman. My only strictly target pistol, holds 9 rounds of 22LR & is capable of putting them all in the same hole (on a good day).Even the 22 snub nose is quite accurate. I will probably never refuse to give a top break revolver a home.

 

[BMur]

Historically accurate?

I think it's near impossible for most of us today to imagine what people were going through back in the day? I mean we are talking about 130 years ago when the Bicycle guns were very popular.

Nobody wants to shoot lassie? but what was it actually like 130 years ago out on a dirt road in the middle of nowhere being attacked by a dog? or perhaps a pack of dogs?

Lets try to put it into perspective? NO 911, NO ambulance, NO cell phone to call for help, medicine amounted to a shot of whiskey or perhaps pouring it on the gaping wound or wounds? No stitching? You would be perhaps miles away from town or any kind of help whatsoever?

You would not be the same person that you are today. Food was scarce, jobs were scarce, luxury did not exist for the most part. I could go on and on....So, I for one am not quick to judge what people were doing or carrying on them for personal protection 130 years ago out beyond the City limits.

I read about Annie Oakley's father dying on his way back home from a simple trip to town on a horse drawn buckboard because he got caught in a Winter rain Storm and died from exposure....Basically he froze from wind chill and caught pneumonia and died...

That doesn't happen to us today...We hide in our warm cars or pull off the road into a nice dry warm coffee shop and wait for the storm to pass. Back in the day they died from it.

Getting bit by a dog 130 years ago could easily have killed you! That was the reason the guns were so popular as related to bicycle riding 130 years ago. It saved your life!

Murph

 

[BMur]

Cartridge Bicycle gun timeline

I just completed some very interesting research on the Cartridge Bicycle Gun" timeline".... Trying to focus on only Cartridge guns and not the earliest cap & ball oddities that you can find on very early bicycles.

It turns out that the European "Velo-Dog" that has been often claimed to be the earliest bicycle gun was actually not. Invented by Galand from Paris and manufactured at his plant in Belgium starting in 1894.

There were several U.S. made bicycle guns that actually pre-date the Velo-Dog.

I was amazed to find out that Hopkins & Allen actually manufactured 75,000 bicycles begining in 1889 and also made one of the earliest bicycle guns. A hammerless 32 caliber. (See photo of early bicycle)

Iver Johnson also made over 700,000 bicycles and also produced a very early "Bicycle Gun" with their model 1 top-break 32 cf.

Forehand and Wadsworth also manufactured a very early Bicycle gun beginning just before Wadsworth retired in 1890. (See photo.)

Several listings in my early 1890 catalogs from Harrington & Richardson and Iver Johnson beginning in about 1894 but likely earlier with the safety hammer short barrel type bulldogs.

Also, according to Mr. Jinks, Smith & Wesson did not produce a 2" barrel for the 32 Hammerless until 1898 ( found on page 142 of his book "History of Smith & Wesson). So they were actually a late player regarding the "Bicycle Gun".

Murph

 

[gmborkovic]

Murph, thanks for post. Lot of memories from shows with Dad
back in the 50s. best