Blunt & Syms Pepperbox
Blunt & Syms · Pistol · Discontinued · 1837
Also known as: Blunt & Syms Underhammer Pepperbox, Blunt & Syms New York Pepperbox
Overview
The Blunt & Syms Pepperbox is a six-shot, double-action percussion pepperbox pistol sold by the New York firm of Orison Blunt and John G. Syms between roughly 1837 and the 1850s. Built around a rotating cluster of .31 caliber smoothbore barrels rather than a single bored cylinder, it uses an underhammer mechanism in which the hammer strikes a percussion cap on the bottom barrel, and a ring trigger that both rotates the barrel group and cocks the action with each pull. The streamlined underhammer layout, with a small shield to protect the shooter's hand from cap fragments, made it a popular concealable self-defense arm before the rise of the cartridge revolver.
Specifications
| Weight (empty) | 450 g (15.9 oz) |
| Overall Length | 190 mm (7.48") |
| Barrel Length | 89 mm (3.50") |
| Action Type | Double Action |
| Firing Mechanism | Percussion |
| Trigger Type | Double Action |
| Magazine Capacity | 6 rounds |
| Magazine Type | Rotary |
| Muzzle Velocity | 200 m/s (656 fps) |
| Effective Range | 9 m (10 yd) |
| Maximum Range | 50 m (55 yd) |
| Barrel Rifling | None |
| Frame Material | Steel |
| Barrel Material | Steel |
| Stock Material | Wood |
| Finish | Blued |
Calibers
- .31 Caliber Percussion (Cap and Ball) · primary — also known as .31 cal, .31 percussion, 7.9mm
Features
- Firing modes: Repeating
- Feed systems: Rotating Barrel Cluster
- Features: Rotating Barrel Cluster, Underhammer Action, Ring Trigger, Engraved Frame
Service history
Operators
- American civilian market
Production
Production years: 1837-1855
Estimated only a few thousand produced across all frame sizes and configurations; the firm went out of business in 1855.
Origin
Country of origin: United States
Designer: Orison Blunt
Discontinued: 1855
Notes
Made in small, medium, and large frame sizes; many examples are unmarked, while marked guns carry 'BLUNT & SYMS / NEW YORK' on the frame. Orison Blunt received U.S. patent 6,966 (25 December 1849) covering an underhammer pepperbox design.
Background
Pepperboxes like the Blunt & Syms were the everyday concealed-carry pistols of the 1840s and 1850s, valued for delivering multiple shots before the single-barrel cap-and-ball revolver and metallic cartridge displaced them.