Merwin Hulbert Baby Merwin
Hopkins & Allen · Revolver · Discontinued · 1880
Also known as: Baby Merwin, Merwin & Hulbert .22 Tip-Up
Overview
The Merwin Hulbert Baby Merwin is a small American single-action revolver marketed by Merwin Hulbert & Co. of New York and manufactured by Hopkins & Allen of Norwich, Connecticut. Unlike the company's famous large-frame revolvers, the Baby Merwin shared none of their distinctive twist-open extraction features. Instead it was a seven-shot .22 Short rimfire pocket revolver with a spur trigger and a tip-up barrel, closely copying the Smith & Wesson Model 1, Third Issue. The design copy led to a successful patent-infringement action by Smith & Wesson, after which Merwin and Hulbert paid a royalty on revolvers already sold. Typically finished in bright nickel with pearl or wood grips and a roughly 3-inch barrel, the Baby Merwin was a compact, concealable parlor and pocket arm of the 1880s.
Specifications
| Weight (empty) | 230 g (8.1 oz) |
| Weight (loaded) | 245 g (8.6 oz) |
| Overall Length | 165 mm (6.50") |
| Barrel Length | 76 mm (2.99") |
| Height | 95 mm (3.74") |
| Width | 28 mm (1.10") |
| Action Type | Revolving |
| Firing Mechanism | Hammer Fired |
| Trigger Type | Single Action |
| Magazine Capacity | 7 rounds |
| Magazine Type | Revolving Cylinder |
| Muzzle Velocity | 200 m/s (656 fps) |
| Muzzle Energy | 38 J (28 ft·lbf) |
| Effective Range | 10 m (11 yd) |
| Maximum Range | 50 m (55 yd) |
| Barrel Rifling | Right Hand |
| Frame Material | Steel |
| Barrel Material | Steel |
| Stock Material | Pearl |
| Finish | Nickel |
Calibers
- .22 Short · primary — also known as .22 Short, .22 Rimfire
Features
- Firing modes: Repeating
- Feed systems: Cylinder
- Safety mechanisms: Half Cock Notch
- Features: Spur Trigger, Tip Up Barrel, Single Action Only, Pearl Grips
Service history
Operators
- American civilian pocket pistol owners · adopted 1880
Production
Production years: 1880-1890
Marketed by Merwin Hulbert & Co. of New York; manufactured by subsidiary Hopkins & Allen of Norwich, Connecticut. Production curtailed by a Smith & Wesson patent-infringement settlement.
Origin
Country of origin: United States
Designer: Joseph Merwin and the Hulbert Brothers
Discontinued: 1890
Notes
Barrels are marked 'MERWIN HULBERT & CO.' Now a scarce collector's item; it is an outlier in the Merwin Hulbert catalogue, lacking the rotating barrel and simultaneous-ejection system of the firm's larger revolvers.
Background
The Baby Merwin is the odd one out in the Merwin Hulbert family: a near-direct copy of the Smith & Wesson Model 1 tip-up rather than a showcase of the firm's signature twist-open frame. A Smith & Wesson lawsuit forced Merwin and Hulbert to pay royalties on the little .22, making surviving examples scarce today.