The 10 barrelled, bolt-action, self-defence pistol with firearms and weapon expert Jonathan Ferguson

[@carami6442]

It always a good episode when Jonathan says "it's quite unique. I haven't seen anything like that"

[@R09793]

Sorry for the Bad English. I'm from Germany... My idea in this regard: it's about reusing .22 cartridges that have already been fired. With the holes in it, you can finally do without the initiative ignition from the Rim.

[@jacktheaviator4938]

That is a very interesting idea, do you have a source or is it your own theory? I think it was built as a display of the gunsmith's talent but there seems to be very little info.

[@wolffang-vz2ty]

to me this would be the most logical thing to do especially if rimfire are seen as not worth reusing then one might be able to get spent rounds from friends, one's other guns, or a local range or something

[@sharonrigs7999]

Sweden-Norway reloaded their 12.17x42 rimfire cases for their excellent Rolling Block rifles. After their first shot, they were only used for training .

[@zakk143]

Stunning piece! I feel this is the thought of "a shotgun is basically just a bunch of pistol rounds firing at once, right?" taken to its inevitable extreme. I love it :D

[@zakk143]

On second thought - this is really just a very over-complicated sawn-off shotgun, isn't it? I mean, better range because I *assume* the barrels are rifled, but this seems to function almost the same as a sawn-off double barrel.

[@surfinoperator]

THXs for showing us this special & interesting pistol.... Would be nice to see this one at the range🙃😉

[@chemistrykrang8065]

@@zakk143 yes, and it's spectacularly silly... but we'd all love to have a few shots with it just to find out what it was like.

[@Bacteriophagebs]

Under American law, that's a machinegun. It fires more than one shot with a single pull of the trigger, and that's the definition of a machinegun under the National Firearms Act. Because gun laws are ridiculous.

[@chemistrykrang8065]

@@Bacteriophagebs nope, that doesn't apply to "volley fire" i.e. multiple shots simultaneously. The S333 Thunderstruck revolver is an example of this (albeit a terrible firearm) - it fires two shots simultaneously with one pull of the trigger and isn't legally a machine gun.

[@Kev-N42000]

The Percussion cap shortage and shortage of the rimfire percussive compounds of 1915-1918 caused Gunsmiths to build guns that would chainfire off one percussion cap to save on Priming compound

[@chemistryofquestionablequa6252]

That's kinda weird, you can easily make chlorates for corrosive primers from just salt and electricity in a chlorate cell at home.

[@goateecusbilly1823]

​@Chemistry of Questionable Quality did they know that in 1915?

[@chemistryofquestionablequa6252]

@@goateecusbilly1823 yep, chlorates were discovered in the 1800s. Potassium chlorate was used in corrosive military and civilian primers at the time.

[@censusgary]

Really? That’s amazing.

[@hdog9046]

​@@chemistryofquestionablequa6252 The Explosives Act of 1917 and Espionage Act of 1917 would have made that rather difficult to accomplish legally.

[@aeloswindrunner]

How has this not shown up more in pop culture? Such an interesting design

[@CBadger]

Got to love late Victorian/Edwardian era way of thinking. Finding solutions to problems no one had, then building it anyway.

[@ZeeMid]

strange and beautiful piece, early 20th/late 19th century firearms are very interesting. Also love the shelf behind him being completely filled with various EM2s

[@dark2023-1lovesoni]

Yeah, even the best collections rarely have an EM-2 (due to it being a prototype and all). Yet, Jonathan has 13 just casually in the background, along with some L-85s on the lower shelf.

[@CloudedPeach]

Jonathan's equivalent of a "comfort zone"

[@thebigpig4632]

I went to the RAM yesterday, great experience

[@capt.bart.roberts4975]

British Army, "Can we stick something pointy and sticky on it?"

[@jon9021]

It’s a “mini” for Sergeant Harper! To go along with his 7 barrel rifle!

[@salian1531]

Now that's soldiering.

[@TheLoxxxton]

I absolutely love this channel! A British take on firearms is so refreshing. I would love to see better and vloser camera work to show off these stunning and unique pieces.

[@kbjerke]

Wow! An ingenious solution in search of a problem. But very interesting nonetheless! Thank you for showing and explaining this beautiful piece of workmanship, Jonathan!

[@josephkardatzke2962]

it's not really a solution in search of a problem, there was shortage of rim-fire components and percussion caps, so guns like this were made to maximize the shots per cap used.

[@clothar23]

​@@josephkardatzke2962 The main ingredient in primer can be made with salt , water , and a slight disregard for electrical safety by anyone at home. Try again.

[@bobskool]

Maximum respect for box care as well as firearm care.

[@SirGreyIIII]

Yo Mr. Ferguson, i can listen to you talking about weapons for hours and thanks for that. Greetings from Switzerland

[@morriganmhor5078]

Excellent piece, though for the steampunk gentleman role, I would prefer a quad-barrelled Lancaster Howdah pistol in .577 Bland-Pryse or .45 LC.

[@FelixstoweFoamForge]

Oh me too. I'm in firearm-love with those monsters.....

[@gregthehutt8053]

Hi Johnathan, just been to the royal armouries in Leeds and I just have to say what an amazing experience it was, I loved the different areas.overall a great time 10/10

[@derekp2674]

Thanks very much Jonathan and team. That was indeed an amazing and unusual firearm. The video quality was just good enough for me to make out the Winchester rimfire "H" (for Henry) headstamp on the cartridges. I would certainly not recommend anyone to drill touch-holes into primed (or even live) rimfire ammunition. Hence I wonder if the inventor was able to commission batches of cases or loaded rounds from Winchester?

[@negative6442]

This just seems like a novelty weapon more than anything practical. It's so overcomplicated that I can't imagine it was used for anything more than some collectors showing off their weird new blaster off to some friends

[@Darthdoodoo]

We have those around today! some guns are just made just to look really cool 😂

[@Jalex125]

I can't wait for the new series what is this wooden box to start. Sounds fascinating!

[@leofredette19]

Brilliant, if it came out in 1718. But during WWI, it's a curiosity.

[@bentrieschmann]

I would argue even in the late 1800s.

[@BHuang92]

It might well be a space gun in 1718!

[@brittakriep2938]

In 1920s in USA rather short shotguns only with pistol hrip had some popularity, like Ithaca Auto & Buglar. Also in 1916/ 1922 Ireland some remaining Lancaster two/ four barrel pistols in .450 had been reused with .410 shotcartridges to fight ambushes when driving a car.

[@johnstevenson1709]

I'm not saying it's practical but if you imagine jumping in a trench in 1917 2 short pistol sized shotguns seems more useful?

[@gullreefclub]

@@johnstevenson1709 why when you could of been carrying a 1897 “Trench Gun” that after you fired your last shot and if you didn’t have time to reload you could of defended yourself with a rather long bayonet and or by but stroking your enemy until you could reload your shotgun. That said most of the short barrel shotgun pistol’s of that era had extractors and not ejectors making reloads much slower than a pump gun

[@williamromine5715]

For those that think a .22lr isn't deadly, I knew a man who fed his family of 6 kids with deer he killed during the summer.( and, yes, I know it was poaching. It was back in the 1950s in Wyoming. I'm 81 and in point of fact, it was my rifle he used.).

[@thiago4santos]

I really don't care about weapons, I really just like to see Jonathan explaining stuff.

[@Scaevola9449]

This gun has incredibly powerful Main Character Energy.

[@mycosys]

Certainly gives new meaning to a game of volley-ball

[@rudimentaryganglia]

Absolutely gorgeous

[@TheVirtuoso883]

Giuseppe making the "Parry this you filthy casual 3000"

[@jjforcebreaker]

- so, how many barrels are we gonna need here in this model? - SÌ.

[@dalemeyer8207]

What a Jolly device.

[@Skeppo1]

Hi Jonathan...Some 20-years ago I bought in Kopenhagen a Webley Mk V-revolver in caliber 297/230 Morris. The gun lookd just like plain ordinary Mk V, but it was chambered in this caliber and the caliber was stamped in frame as like all other MK V-revolvers. Do you happen to have such gun in your collection? Any idea how rare these guns are?

[@moelikhond7651]

Jonathan Ferguson can have a little Perdition to Conspirators. As a treat.

[@FelixstoweFoamForge]

WOW! That is one beautiful bit of firearm. If you'd told me it was dated, say about 1880, i'd have been blown away. As it is, as a self-defence arm, this thing is clearly a labour of love, by a man who didn't give a monkey's if it sold or not. I mean, in 1917 you can get excellent pocket revolvers, semi-autos etc. In fact, I'd personally rather take a Lancaster Howdah Pistol with 4 barrels in a more significant cartridge. (or the two-barreled hand artillery version!). but still, it's beautiful. Now, how do I write the rules for this for use in a Vicxtorian-eara Steampunk Role-Playing game?

[@GunsmithSid]

Have you a Jones Patent 10-shot percussion pistol in the collection? I took one apart for a client and it remains a favorite design!

[@AmaraTheBarbarian]

Have you considered that with this type of ammunition it would make the rimfire cartridges effectively reloadable, and probably best done after they've been spent? Since the weapon isn't using the primers and is working with flash holes drilled in to the cartridge it wouldn't be necessary to replace the primer, just replace powder and bullet. That seems more reasonable than drilling live cartridges.

[@unclebrat]

Jonathan, I would suggest that the spur on the trigger guard was to provide greater moment arm for the thumb in reaching the hammers.

[@ZGryphon]

It makes me think of Mark Twain's description of his "dismally formidable" traveling companion Mr. George Bemis in _Roughing It._ Bemis had an Allen & Thurber pepperbox revolver, which Twain celebrated for its inaccuracy, then noted, "Sometimes all its six barrels would go off at once, and then there was no safe place in all the region round about, but behind it." This thing is basically a pepperbox _designed_ to chainfire, and that's pretty cool. :)

[@strydyrhellzrydyr1345]

This thing is freaking amazing... I'm in love with it..

[@connormatthews522]

One of the strangest weapons you've covered in a while, exactly the sort of thing I look forward to. Cheers JF

[@LoneEagle2061]

Presumably, the percussion cap obviates the need for the rimfire primer - the propellant is ignited directly from the flame channels. Perhaps, had the MkII sold well enough, there may have been the option to roll out a .22TV (Testa Volley); but perhaps the guy had a rifle and therefore a lot of spent .22WRF cartridges to play with.

[@historyandpoliticsexplaine4876]

This was being worked on around the same time browning was making the model 1903 frame lock pistol

[@Arides2010]

Would you ever consider making a „odd guns from the 19th/20th century exhibit“ in Leeds? And please don‘t tell me it on 5th floor, I was short on time during my visit. Great video as always.

[@tophercaesar5375]

This is a stunning weapon. Looks very Star Wars to me.

[@Shirocco7]

Amazing. Had seen photos of this, never understood how it was supposed to work - until now. Cheers.

[@Iscannon]

I love the way "Fig" is written in the diagrams

[@robnunya572]

Yes, the penmanship is amazing on that document.

[@DavidThomas-sv1tk]

Sig Sauer could use that style/font.

[@massimilianoalberti7510]

As an Italian I noticed that the engraving on the barrel is GUIseppe Testa, while in the Patent it is GIUseppe Testa. Giuseppe is a very common Italian name.

[@POTUSJimmyCarter]

Imagine getting first run of your weapon in from the factory you contracted with and they MISSPELLED YOUR NAME ON IT. And given it's still misspelled a hundred years later, I'm assuming they didn't ever fix it.

[@PropagandalfderWeiße]

My first thought was that the copper plate had little notches that worked as hammers for the rimfire cartridges and that it woud simply slam the backplate against it. Thats a quite more complicated system, but that's what I love about guns

[@TheNetsrac]

Very interesting oddity, thank you very much for the video

[@stho93]

The width and shape of the barrel cluster reminds me of the Mozambique

[@allanburt5250]

Interesting and informative as always 👍 cheers Jonathan Must have been a pride and joy back in its time

[@chooseyouhandle]

Wild stuff

[@chodeoriki4113]

God I love Jonathan. Also I know exactly where I’m going if a purge/apocalypse ever happens.

[@erroneous6947]

To a museum full of deactivated firearms? Lol. You would be better off with a cricket bat.

[@strydyrhellzrydyr1345]

I absolutely love it.. more than anything.. I'd definitely try and use it

[@ZATennisFan]

I suspect Ian from Forgotten Weapons would be fascinated by this....

[@chocolatechipwookiee6472]

'This is not - what is the wooden box' got me right away. 😅

[@daniellambert1217]

looks to me to be a good last line of defence on safari , lovely piece with so much character

[@generallymexican8978]

Wouldn't the rounds firing help ignite the unfired rounds?

[@kahn04]

That thing is beautiful but bloody terrifying at the same time

[@oldesertguy9616]

What a beautiful gun. It reminds me of the old Howdah pistols.

[@CatsT.M]

This series has reminded me of a weapon I saw years back in The Chicago Art Institute, it was the...walking stick-hammer-sword-wheellock pistol. I do not remember much about it besides the fact that it was a weird mix of weapons.

[@KanuckStreams]

What a clever and overly complicated gun! I love your videos!

[@internetperson14]

Just saw you on Cunk on Earth. Fantastic work as always !

[@rootbeerpoptart]

No one will believe this but I dug up that patent and set this video in motion a couple months ago.

[@TheSundayShooter]

_I W A N T T O B E L I E V E_

[@derekp2674]

Thanks indeed then.

[@johnpruittpruitt4677]

I love this! I always Dreamed about a .22 break down Rifle/ Long distance Shot gun

[@bruceabbott3941]

Love the oddballs!

[@grahambrown1980]

Amazing for an old gun that has since faced antiquation.

[@tommeakin1732]

I found myself watching this like I'd just walked into their shop and was listening to the sales pitch/technical explanation from the man behind the counter. At the end, my one 1917 customer question was, "...But y tho...?", as I eyed quite literally everything else in the shop ; - ;

[@Kevin-mx1vi]

Likewise. If Mr Testa had tried to sell me one of these I'd have become both confused and bored as he explained how to load it, and just bought a semi auto instead.

[@cosmo9882]

Very unusual. You did answer a question that I thought of as you were speaking, I actually wondered if all the barrels where slightly offset to cover a larger spread. Thank you 👍

[@buggerlugz6753]

Would like to see more firing of these sorts of firearms Jonathan!

[@dudestyle01]

I love this pistol 👍

[@spencermeredith6506]

With the complexity of that cartridge and plate system it seems like it would be cheaper and easier for the manufacturer to leave a larger gap at the breach and use loading blocks that could be reloaded by cap and ball by the end user. Suppose you'd be limited to black powder rather than smokeless but if you're building an anachronism already, why not?

[@entropy11]

It's like a little shotgun pistol but many many times more complicated! Good times.

[@jmjedi923]

Holy crap...I want one!

[@PLAYINGAROUND]

Such an archaic design, in part at least, for 1917 to 1920, but absolutely beautiful! You do have to question why, when you consider the choice of pistols, revolver and semi auto, were around at the time, with far better calibers of ammunition.

[@lawrencemartin1113]

What a delightful, wonderful, over engineered piece of total folly. Where can I purchase one!?

[@Yandarval]

The two hole in the cartridges. Could the second hole be to help with sympathetic ignition of the other rounds. If just one cartridge is correctly aligned. The gases and flames could leave the holes and ignite the other rounds via their own holes?

[@gullreefclub]

This interesting firearm is a classic case of gun being built to answer a question that nobody is asking. I say this because 22 rimfire was first introduced and in production since 1867

[@TheHorzabora]

That’s a very beautiful gun. I’m not quite sure why everyone seems to be looking for a purpose for this gun - there are enough firearms today made without a real purpose. I’m just glad amazing items like this survive ‘need’ and ‘utility’ as well as the ravages of time.

[@MorwenWhyte]

Love the art nouveau-ish typography they used every time they wrote "Fig." in the patent's pictures.

[@masonsykes2240]

"Its a Nock Gun!" "No, it's just Guiseppe Testa."

[@colbunkmust]

seems like trying to modify the ammo to work with a funky propriety ignition system was a bad idea. Conceptually a multi-barrel .22 volley pistol sounds like a ton of fun to shoot though.

[@johnfisk811]

Fascinating to see this. It reminds me of similar period Belgian .22lr multi barrelled volley goose guns. I do wonder if he intended the heat and shock of the primers to set off the rims of the WLR but found it unreliable and experimented with the drilled holes to get around that? Making it to take over the counter ammunition might have enabled it to have some sales but reloading your own for volley fire ammunition rates of consumption was not on. Had it worked with standard 22 WLR he just might have made a go of it.

[@Spike-hl2mw]

This is a perfect gun for a character in some steampunk story.

[@G.A.N.]

Usually such prototypes from centuries ago looks weird, but this one Have it's Charm in it. Very pretty piece of history.

[@negative6442]

Centuries?

[@Chiller01]

@@negative6442 I love your nom de KZbin.

[@negative6442]

@@Chiller01 ?

[@deaks25]

That piece is so damn cool in a weird "what the heck is *that*" kind of way. I'd love to see this in a period computer game!

[@asintonic]

Awesome thanks for sharing your videos are brighter and better to look at items.

[@freedomwagonfilms7233]

I would expect that he reloaded used casings. Since you are using an initiating primer anyways it would make the primer in the base redundant. I would also suspect he had some wax on the holes to prevent powder falling out and moisture getting in.

[@texas66]

I'm not sure what contraption you would use to check but are the barrels a true parallel or are they set to converge at some distance?

[@davidjernigan7576]

Interesting firearm, but it seems like the answer to a question no one asked. I can imagine a Savage 1907 was much cheaper, and Ithaca had their auto-burgler shotgun pistol.

[@Torque_Mk1]

Where does the name mismatch come from? It's Giuseppe on patent and Guiseppe on the gun. I'm fairly certain Giuseppe is the correct one, but I'm no expert on Italian names. Could it be a replica with messed up spelling? Replaced barrel?

[@JonathanFergusonRoyalArmouries]

Good catch on the name - a fake or replacement barrel seems unlikely - Testa's name would have carried no brand recognition at the time, nor would any collector be looking for one of these. The worksmanship and finish is entirely consistent with the rest of the gun. Much more likely that the engraver was an Anglophone. It's not the first misspelling I've seen on a gun. I assume Giuseppe was not best pleased!

[@-Benedict]

Any idea where this particular example came from? Is it the gunmaker's proof of concept, or a production piece that was actually sold to a customer?

[@ironanvil1]

The barrel cluster is reminiscent of the Thomas Thornton 14 barrel flintlock that's in Liege.

[@jtreinen762]

I wonder if ignition could be achieved by simply using the blast of the percussion cap directly on the rims of the cartridges. Perhaps the arrangement of the barrels might have been different to achieve reliable ignition that way as well.

[@jp-um2fr]

Having made a few holes in coins with a 303 to .22 rifle many moons ago, although .22 is tiny, I am sure it's lethal in quite a few places on the human torso.

[@roadsweeper1]

Don't know about the Winchester 22, but a .22lr will go through an unprotected human skull at 10m. I'd imagine these Winchester rounds are even more powerful, the cases look longer, especially if you filled them with modern powder. .... and then you've got 5, or 10, rounds going off at once. This would certainly be lethal at short ranges, and even if you missed center mass and somehow managed to miss all the vital organs, I doubt anyone would think about retaliating after being filled with 10 rounds, even at only .22 calibre.

[@Chiller01]

@@roadsweeper1 I used to think it was just lore but .22lr usually penetrates the near cortex of the skull but because of projectile yaw and deformation it rarely penetrates the far cortex but may ricochet inside the skull and travers the brain in multiple paths. (Robert P Granacher; Traumatic Brain Injury,……… pg 9.)

[@roadsweeper1]

@@Chiller01 yeah, 22 is quite lethal at short range. It doesn't have the power to go through the skull and out the other side, so it penetrates and then just ricochets around in there doing all kinds of damage...

[@redsnappa7837]

Thanks for another fascinating video. I always wonder with these peculiar firearms: is there any provenance information?

[@colinw732]

Are there any records showing how many of these were made ? I would love to have that unique handgun. Practical ? no but lovely.

[@phileas007]

Sandwich of Death, lol, I always thought that would be the big Mac. but the pistol is gorgeous, very useful when you want to have a sawed off shotgun with many extra steps.

[@bruce502]

15:20 Early speed loader?

[@snowflakemelter1172]

Once one cartridge ignites it may back pressure to the others via the holes in the cartridges and so all of them always fire off ?

[@dem0nchild610]

I could understand the bolt lock that's a massive amount of force going off at once when I first saw it I thought the hammers on top controlled each set of barrels

[@CorduroyB34r]

I'd watch "What is this wooden box?"

[@TangBengYong]

How does one drill holes near the rim of a rimfire cartridge without setting it off?