Retolaza Gallia

Retolaza Hermanos · Pistol · Discontinued · 1915

Also known as: Gallia

Overview

The Retolaza Gallia is a Spanish .25 ACP semi-automatic vest pocket pistol built by Retolaza Hermanos of Eibar. A typical Spanish blowback copy of the FN/Browning Model 1906 that omits the original's grip safety, it was one of numerous inexpensive pocket automatics the firm marketed under colorful trade names for the early 20th-century civilian self-defense market. Produced from around 1915 into the early 1930s, it measures roughly 108 mm overall and feeds from a six-round detachable magazine.

Specifications

Weight (empty)340 g (12.0 oz)
Overall Length108 mm (4.25")
Barrel Length54 mm (2.13")
Action TypeBlowback
Firing MechanismStriker Fired
Trigger TypeSingle Action
Magazine Capacity6 rounds
Magazine TypeDetachable Box
Muzzle Velocity230 m/s (755 fps)
Muzzle Energy86 J (63 ft·lbf)
Effective Range25 m (27 yd)
Barrel RiflingRight Hand
Number of Grooves6
Frame MaterialSteel
Slide MaterialSteel
Barrel MaterialSteel
FinishBlued

Calibers

Features

Production

Production years: 1915-1933

Produced for the civilian market; exact totals unrecorded among the many small Eibar makers.

Origin

Country of origin: Spain

Discontinued: 1933

Notes

One of fewer than a dozen .25 ACP pocket models sold by Retolaza Hermanos under assorted brand names (Gallus, Liberty, Military, Paramount, Titan, Titanic and others); a classic 'Eibar' blowback automatic of early 20th-century Spain.

Background

Retolaza Hermanos entered the Eibar gun trade around 1890 making Velo-Dog pocket revolvers before becoming among the earliest Spanish makers of automatic pistols, selling near-identical Browning-pattern pockets under a shifting roster of names until the Spanish Civil War ended production.