HOME-MADE PISTOLS

"THESE pistols are the work of a youth of ten years, made with the simplest of tools, and the commonest of materials. The barrels of the pistols were either empty cartridges, as in I and II, or empty cartridges with short pieces of brass pipe soldered in them. The different models illustrate the evolution of the modern pistol, although no attempt was made to follow the actual evolution of such arms.

The pistol shown in I was simply a wooden stock, whittled out of pine, with a cartridge barrel, having a touch hole and a tin shield at the rear to keep the hands from being burned by the ignited fuse. The pistol shown in II, instead of having fuse ignition, was fired by putting a match head in the primer cup and having a sliding firing pin to give the required blow. Pistols III, IV, and V have spring-actuated firing" pins and are fired by triggers." Link