Remington Rider Single Shot Parlor Pistol

E. Remington & Sons · Pistol · Out Of Production · 1860

Also known as: Remington-Rider Parlor Pistol, Remington-Rider All Brass Parlor Pistol Derringer, Remington Rider Single Shot Derringer Parlor Pistol

Overview

The Remington Rider Single Shot Parlor Pistol is a diminutive all-brass single-shot cap pistol made by E. Remington & Sons between 1860 and 1863. Designed by Joseph Rider, whose September 1859 patent (No. 25,470) covered the design, it is the smallest handgun Remington ever produced. Rather than a defensive arm, it was a parlor pistol intended for indoor target practice: it fires a roughly 4.3 mm (.17 caliber) lead ball propelled by a percussion cap alone, with no gunpowder charge. Fewer than a couple hundred were made, and it bears no serial numbers or barrel markings.

Specifications

Barrel Length	76 mm (2.99")
Action Type	Break Action
Firing Mechanism	Percussion
Trigger Type	Single Action
Magazine Capacity	1 rounds
Effective Range	5 m (5 yd)
Barrel Rifling	None
Frame Material	Brass
Barrel Material	Brass
Stock Material	Brass
Finish	Silver Plated

Calibers

17 Caliber (Percussion Cap) · primary — also known as 4.3mm ball, .17 caliber ball

Features

Firing modes: Manual
Feed systems: Single Shot
Features: All Brass Construction, Two Piece Breech, No Powder Charge, Spur Trigger

Production

Estimated total produced: 200 · Production years: 1860-1863

Roughly 200 produced over about three years; fewer than 40 originals are known to survive today.

Origin

Country of origin: United States

Designer: Joseph Rider

Discontinued: 1863

Notes

A percussion-cap-only parlor pistol, not a cartridge or defensive firearm. Extremely rare today, with fewer than about 40 original examples known to survive, including two prototypes. Overall dimensions and weight are not well documented; the three-inch (approx. 76 mm) brass barrel is the most commonly cited measurement.

Background

Parlor pistols like the Remington Rider were a genteel 19th-century amusement, letting owners plink at targets inside the home using only the mild report of a percussion cap. Its patentee, Joseph Rider, went on to co-design far more consequential Remington arms, including the Remington-Rider magazine pistol and mechanisms behind the rolling-block action.