Historic Fact: LeMat Accurate to 100 Yards...

not only that, but jeb stuart carried two of them, firing both while on horseback, and more.

This Guy *Knows* History and Ballistics

though i take issue with the claim that the lower barrel is .62/12gauge.... in fact, it is .645" which is closer to 17 1/2 gauge and the stated weight is 3.8 lbs (not 3 lbs) - but why worry about trivia like that, right..... and, even though i worked as a mortician's apprentice, i never saw any undertakers carrying these for reasons that escape me at the present.

yet more proof that only the brightest of the bright choose the lemat.

"hello, cabelas, can i get a refund on this ? no ? how about if i settle for $650... in store credit...." :youcrazy:

~[strike]daniel[/strike]~zonei~

I played with the idea of getting a Pietta Lemat, but the price is way more than the Colt or Remingtons. I figure maybe because there's way more parts and mechanics involved?

Also, I think cleaning and maintenance is tougher with these. I still love the look and history of this revolver....

I had a LeMat, but ultimately traded it because I found it too tough on my wrist. Odd, because I'm a weight-lifter and routinely sling 65 - 70 Lb dumbbells with that same hand. For whatever reason, the LeMat just killed me. Gorgeous, historical, and damned cool, but wasn't for me.

hi,

according to the owners manual that i have a pietta '58 nma has 53 parts (p 44 diagram) and the lemat has 55 (p 50 diagram).

personally i do not consider cleaning a 'chore', that is, it's part of the whole experience. simply soak the parts, then run the brushes, then the patches, rinse, dry and lubricate.... pretty standard stuff for every bp rifle or pistol only there are 9 individual chambers and two barrels.... ahhh, but the satisfaction of a job well done is a reward in and of itself.

~daniel~

Read Percussion Pistols and Revolvers, History, Performance and Practical Use by Cumpston and Bates, Chapter 24, pages 138-146.

They make the center barrel to be .635, which is an improved modified 16 gauge. But, as you said, why quibble over trivia.

personally i do not consider cleaning a 'chore'

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No. Reloading was the chore.

"Stop the battle, I need 15 minutes to reload!"

:thumbsup: YOU GOT THAT RIGHT !!!

here's how my day at the range goes:
15 minutes unpacking, then "cease fire"
05 post my target
10 then sit down while everyone else checks targets
15 finish unpacking, start sorting things out
15 sitdown while everyone else checks targets
15 start loading.... get everything but caps on
15 sitdown while eveyone else checks targets
05 firing off all 10 rounds
10 start reloading... "cease fire"
15 sitdown while .......

this goes on for 4-5 hours, but, what's a mother to do...?

the good news is that today the richmond range said "you can come on up anytime (with a muzzleloader)" so now i have 2 ranges within reasonable distance to sew my evil distruction.

and, mykeal, both books are on the way from amazon.... got the 2005 lyman book (used) for $10 and the cumpston/bates for $8.23 - brand new.

as to the inside diameter of this lower barrel, i think we should just agree to disagree.

my pair-of-compasses measures the bore as .625, cabela says it's .645, and now cumpston says .635... will the real i/d please stand up...!

i take issue with the claim that the lower barrel is .62/12gauge....

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Shouldn't .62 be a 20 gauge?

gmww said:

i take issue with the claim that the lower barrel is .62/12gauge....

Click to expand...

Shouldn't .62 be a 20 gauge?

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http://www.muzzleloadingforum.com/fusionbb/showtopic.php?tid/197045/

that's what makes his "historical facts" so amuzing.

the bore is marketed as "20 gauge" - he said 12g.

then he addds that it's ".62 caliber" - it is closer to .635"-645" which is another "historical" error.

the difficulty is that pietta, the mfg, does not bother to include this anywhere in the owners manual which makes buying overshot/overpowder cards a real challange.

my first bag of cards were literally "20g" which were only .626" and actually fell right into the barrel because they were made to be used 'inside' 20g plastic shotgun shells..... then i did some measureing of my own and eventually bought *16g* size cards that are .672" diameter so now things don't fall out while shooting.... it is a real challange trying to find the right supplies for this pistol.

this week i bought a jag for the '20g' based on just the seller's lable.... fortunately a jag is always one or two sizes smaller than the stated bore size, so it worked out ok - this time.

when all is said and done, it's still worth the headaches to have and use this piece of "advanced" 1800's technology. there's nothing like it for drawing a crowd when i'm at the range.

~daniel~

Has anyone found a 62 caliber round ball for the LeMat? Also do you use 451 or 454 rb? I hope to have mine the end of next week. Was it more common to use shot or rb in the center barrel?

I think the shot barrel is Supposed to be 16ga or was in the old days. It was also ment to shoot buck shot. I believe it is in the Time Books about the civil war Confed. section on guns and La Matt is shown along with a paper ctg. of buskshot for the lower barrel. Very long shot collum and what looks like not quite enough powder. So very close range use.

P.

I have two references for the Peitta LeMat center barrel diameter, one at 0.635 and the other 0.645. Both would make it 16 ga, the former being improved modified and the latter a modified choke.

mykeal said:

I have two references for the Peitta LeMat center barrel diameter, one at 0.635 and the other 0.645. Both would make it 16 ga, the former being improved modified and the latter a modified choke.

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Those are the numbers I see most. I have three printed articles on the Peitta LeMat. The write up in "Percussion Pistols and Revolvers" reports .635 and recommends .451 rb for the cylinder.
Gun Digest "Black Powder Loading manual" has two write ups. In one they are shooting a .595 rb with a .020 patch, the other is a 65 caliber .649 rb with .015 patch. I question them stuffing a .649 rb plus .015 patch in a .635 or .645 barrel.
I hope to have mine delivered by the end of this week. I well mic it and post the readings.
I would like to find some info on a shot load. I want to try 00 buck and #4 buckshot in it.
I have also read that they made small numbers in 36cal and .410 size center barrel. Anyway it's a very interesting revolver.

madcratebuilder,

the pietta manual *does* actually have something about this... on page 22, they say "use .454" (mm 11.55) (part 8).

unfortunately they don't say what 'part 8' actually is so i started and continue to use just .454 hornady rb's for the upper barrel.

for the "20g" they recommend: "round grapeshot balls .27 cal. (mm 6.85) approx 3/4 ounce to 1 ounce - (part no. 14).

again, there is no definition of part 14.

that's actually the easy part... getting the right overshot and overpowder cards is a little more difficult.

and to answer you other question, no one i know of is using a solid round in the lower barrel... i am looking into finding conicals that would work because i don't want to get into all that patch stuff... not for a low power shot barrel like this.

After some searching I have found reference to several models of the LeMat.
This is from civilwarhandgun.com

"Originally, all LeMat revolvers came in one model --.40 caliber above a .60 barrel. Later on in the war a lighter .35-caliber pistol equipped with a 28-gauge .50 caliber shotgun barrel was produced. Again this .35 caliber was a non standard size bore.
A further very problematic issue was that the guns were designed in a non standard ammunition size. .36 or .44 caliber being standard sizes for both the Union and Confederate troops. The LeMat being in .40, .42 or .35 size was a problem until the final models which were developed in standard gauge sizes. A soldier in the field, would be limited to what the arsenals could provide, or he would be forced to make his own bullets. Modern reproductions of this revolver are designed with a .44 caliber bore."

Mine showed up today. I need to get all that petroleum oil off of it and see if I can take a few pounds off the trigger pull and I'll be ready for a range trip. Fit and finish is really good other than some sanding marks on the main frame that didn't get polished off before bluing. The roll engraving on the cylinder is very nice. Trigger has no creep and breaks crisp, but is heavy.