Savage Very nice 1907 pistol of the year

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Weapon and firms. So, Arthur Savage made a name and capital for himself on a rifle with a rotary store, which the military did not like, but liked the Indians and hunters, and then he was drawn to create a gun. And I must say that he really managed to make a self-loading pistol, which made a significant contribution to history short-barreled firearms. Some even say that he began a new era. That the Browning pistol of the 1900 model of the year was, of course, also an epoch-making thing, but the “savage” (as it was, by the way, was called in France), was nevertheless more significant in this regard. It was fast-firing, accurate and compact at the same time, very convenient for hidden carrying, and had the highest rate of fire among all the compact self-loading pistols that appeared at that time, and there was nothing to say about revolvers. He exceeded them in this indicator four times no less. It was also a beautiful weapon and looked good in the hand of the shooter. Of course, the main thing in a pistol, as in any weapon, is its lethality and other "deadly properties", but at the same time it matters when all this is combined with the completeness of its forms. In the "luxury version" this gun had an excellent engraving, and the cheeks of the handle in this case were made of mother of pearl. Women were asked to pay special attention to this, since “savage” was offered to ladies as a weapon of self-defense when hiddenly worn. By the way, Savage's advertising slogans paid particular attention to the fairer sex: "This weapon gives her courage," He fights for her as a friend, "and even a very short word -" Safety "hit her eyebrow , because among the people there are definitely those who are commonly called “security guards” today and they certainly couldn’t get past the weapons, which seemed to be specially created specifically for them.


Gun "Savage" M1907




Yes, Arthur Savage, having created a rifle with a unique rotating rotary magazine and a cartridge counter that visually showed their number, showed everyone a very high creative potential. And if his Model 99 became a model of advanced weapons culture at the turn of the century, then the gun he made became the real weapon of the twentieth century. Although, it was precisely him that Savage himself did not personally create. He simply bought the patents obtained by Albert Hamilton Searn in the 1905 year, and embodied his ideas in metal. However, it was first necessary to understand Searle's design and evaluate it, not to mention getting the new gun to work, and to work flawlessly. To begin with, this design was distinguished by an original and very unusual system for slowing down the backward shutter-casing that occurred after the shot. At that moment when the bullet began to move along the barrel and crashed into its rifling, the barrel, trying to turn in the direction opposite to the rotation of the bullet, was pressed with a special protrusion to the edge of the longitudinal and somewhat curved cut on the shutter cover, which slowed down its rollback. As soon as the bullet left the barrel, this protrusion no longer pressed on the cutout in the shutter-casing, and he freely retreated to its extreme rear position.

Savage Very nice 1907 pistol of the year

“Ten quick shots like lightning: you can shoot like this from the new Savage.” Savage M1907 pistol ad in the USA


Searle did not begin to create his pistol himself, but simply sold all the rights to it to Savage Arms Co. Therefore, when he finally came into the world, he was called Savage 1907. It was immediately mass-produced, and already in 1908, he appeared on the American arms market. Moreover, he had many original features.


Disassembled gun



The scheme of the device Savage pistol sample 1905, USA804985 patent


The main feature of the pistol was the placement of a return spring around the barrel, which significantly reduced the dimensions of its front end. John Browning subsequently used this circuit in his Browning 1910 pistol. The trigger of the gun had the following feature: the trigger did not hit the drummer, but was connected to it by a rod fixed on it on the axis. That is, he simply moved them back and forth. The shutter consisted of two parts: front and back, which was also somewhat unusual. As protection against accidental shots, a safety lock is used located on the left of the frame. The trigger pull on the hook for the self-defense pistol can be considered optimal. At a distance of 9 meters when using Remington cartridges with shell bullets weighing 4,6 g., The range of hits is approximately 50 mm, which is an excellent indicator for a short-barrel pistol with a barrel length of only 89 mm. The total length of the pistol, by the way, is also small - only 165 mm, that is, at the time of its appearance it was the most compact and powerful pistol among its kind. Small was the mass of the pistol without cartridges - 539 g.


An article about a pistol and a diagram of its structure in the American Rifleman magazine


The next and very important feature of the pistol was its box magazine, which had a two-row arrangement of cartridges. This design of the store in a serial gun of the time was used for the first time. The pistol magazine housed 10 rounds. In addition, another cartridge could be inserted into the chamber manually. Meanwhile, most of the then pistols had a magazine capacity of only 7-8 rounds. So, having appeared on the market, Savage 1907 raised the bar for the quality level of such pistols so high that then for a long time not one of the manufacturers risked to mass-produce a self-loading pistol similar to the 1907 model. Of course, the Mauser C-96, also had a two-row magazine, but it was located in front of the trigger guard, which was significantly reflected in the length and its total weight. Users noted that the Savage sat perfectly in the hand, that is, holding it while firing did not cause the shooter any difficulty. The weight of a pistol with an equipped magazine was 656 g, that is, it was also small, as was the empty weight. In 1913, production of the pistol was launched under the cartridge .380 ACP, with a total length of 180 mm. But models with a 9 mm cartridge were just as popular as pistols with a 7,65 mm Browning cartridge. So until 1920, only 9800 of them were made.


Savage and to it are two stores, on which slots are visible, allowing you to monitor their filling



Savage with mother-of-pearl cheeks on the handle



The main competitors of Savage M1907 are the Colt M1903 and ...



... "Colt" M1908. Pictured in a box with accessories


When the U.S. Army announced a contest in 1910 for a pistol that was supposed to replace revolvers in it, Savage presented the gun under the cartridge .45 ACP. He had to compete with John Browning and Colt. Won "Colt" with the M1911 model. But a number of circumstances need to be clarified. Firstly, these companies have produced pistols designed by Browning for many years, improving them from sample to sample, and under the cartridge .45 ACP since 1905 year. And secondly, the Savage 45 caliber pistol was just an experienced model.


Cartridge 7,65x17 mm 32 ACP left. On the right is his military model with nickel-plated bullets


Be that as it may, but the Savage pistol of the 7,65 mm caliber did get into service. But not in the USA, but in France, where he received the name "le Pistolet Militaire Savage". And they were purchased quite a lot - about 27000 copies. Then the gun was liked by the Portuguese Navy, which supplied the 1200 pistols "Pistola Savage da Marinha portuguesa M / 914", caliber 7,65 mm.


Advertising "Savage" (in Russia it was called "Savadzh") in one of the Russian publications of the early twentieth century


"Savage" became widespread in other European countries, and enjoyed popularity in the Russian Empire. In addition to the high fighting qualities of our compatriots, the price was also attractive - 25 rubles, while the similar "Colt Pocket Pocketless" M1903 cost 34. Interestingly, in tsarist Russia of the beginning of the century, American pistols were valued more than European ones, and browning, Mausers, and Draze were sold on average at 16-25 rubles, and Savage, although it was an “American,” cost almost the same. To officers he was allowed to wear out of order.


.380 ACP 9 × 17 mm Browning cartridge


But the largest M1907 pistol achieved in the civilian weapons market in the United States. Why not buy them, including shooting at picnics. When the release of this model was discontinued in 1920, it turned out that the total number of pistols produced was something around 235000 units. Eight years later, the production of pistols was completely stopped, and Savage Arms Co completely switched to rifles. However, in the story with her M1907 pistol, she will remain forever.


Savage under the cartridge .45ACP.


PS It is interesting that Elbert Hamilton Searl continued to engage in inventions all this time, and in 1916-1917. created an original lever-operated pistol that allows the trigger of the trigger and the ejection of the magazine with just one shooting hand.


Searle's pistol "for one-armed"



Sirla pistol with the handle removed


To be continued ...
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40 comments
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  1. +4
    19 October 2019 18: 17
    Savage Arms is a fairly well-known arms company. Traditionally, good "trunks" are made.
  2. +9
    19 October 2019 18: 41
    Yes, the gun is excellent, but for its time just brilliant!
    On the one hand, it seems that the recoil retardation system is complicated for a pistol with a rather weak cartridge, and on the other hand, this made it easy to scale the pistol for more powerful ammunition.
    After this, it’s even a pity that Sevidge stopped working with pistols.
  3. +8
    19 October 2019 18: 55
    Here is a Saturday gift from Vyacheslav Olegovich and, as always, interesting. Thank you for that! hi
    Savage introduced a pistol under the cartridge .45 ACP. He had to compete with John Browning and Colt. Won "Colt" with the model M1911.

    Yes, of course, in those days it was difficult to compete with such a weapon "whale" as the "Colt", in my opinion only "Smith and Wesson" once won in his revolvers.
    By the way, is the page in Russian not from the Kuznetsov catalog? It was funny to look at him when he first fell into his hands. But "Savage" I never came across, which I regretted all my life, a very elegant machine. drinks
    1. +7
      19 October 2019 21: 14
      and the page in Russian is not the case from the Kuznetsovsky catalog?
      No, from the catalog of the Warsaw Hunting Association for 1913. I can throw off the electronic.
      1. +2
        19 October 2019 21: 32
        Thank. You seem to have my mail. It will be interesting to look, I have Kuznetsovsky earlier release.
      2. +1
        19 October 2019 22: 39
        Everything has come, thank you very much, I’ll go to compare prices (not with ours). smile
      3. 0
        19 October 2019 23: 10
        Interestingly, in Moscow the price of the same gun is much higher.
        Bitkov store catalog for 1913. 216 pages.
  4. +3
    19 October 2019 19: 08
    Quote: Sea Cat
    By the way, and the page in Russian is not a case from the Kuznetsovsky catalog?

    Unfortunately, i do not know. Found in the "wilds of the Internet".
  5. +7
    19 October 2019 19: 53
    At 7 greetings from Argentina!
    Today saw in one store Savage 650 $ 32 caliber ACP
    Well, if anyone needs it, of course.
  6. +5
    19 October 2019 20: 21
    "officers were allowed to wear it out of order." I read from Fedoseyev, Zhuk that officers in RIA were allowed as a second weapon to carry out of order: Browning, Colt. Some officers bought German pistols: Walter, Sauer.
    Interestingly, did Albert Searle not regret having sold a patent for his gun to Savage?
    1. +1
      19 October 2019 21: 00
      Interestingly, Albert Searle did not regret that he had sold a patent

      Hi Svyatoslav hi Now you don’t know anymore, the question is how much Savage paid him for the patent and where he put the money, maybe there was nothing to regret. smile drinks
      1. +4
        19 October 2019 21: 16
        How to say, after all, Searle knew how his pistol was for sale, and author’s vanity? It could well be sorry: Savage, but there could be Searle.
        No matter how much Savage he paid, he did not stay in the loser
        1. +3
          19 October 2019 21: 37
          This is, of course, yes. But people are very different. John Moses didn’t give a damn about how his weapon would be called, if only it would go into series. And there, at least "Colt", at least "FN", if only it was, he himself spoke about it.
          1. +2
            20 October 2019 09: 12
            Perhaps he was a fan and therefore he was purple as the name of his pistol: "Colt" or "FN". Or it may be so: he, as a leading designer, had a percentage of the sales of a pistol and then he didn't care what the pistol was called.
            1. 0
              20 October 2019 09: 56
              Whoever he was, but he was a brilliant designer, and the rest is unimportant.
  7. +6
    19 October 2019 20: 35
    Interesting and even fun to say! :) I definitely thank the author!

    The pistol is very interesting, although with a variety of calibers, the Americans went too far. A pistol of 0.32 or 7.65 mm caliber still did not go anywhere, but a 0.45 caliber pistol with a weight of only 535 grams. This is definitely a perversion. There probably need clarification about the weight of each version of the gun. Maybe 0.45 three times as much weighed of course.

    It would be very interesting to listen to those who actually shot from such weapons.
  8. +10
    19 October 2019 20: 42
    However, it was first necessary to understand Searle's design and evaluate it, not to mention getting the new gun to work, and to work flawlessly. To begin with, this design was distinguished by an original and very unusual system for slowing down the backward shutter-casing that occurred after the shot. At that moment when the bullet began to move along the barrel and crashed into its rifling, the barrel, trying to turn in the direction opposite to the rotation of the bullet, was pressed with a special protrusion to the edge of the longitudinal and somewhat curved cut on the shutter cover, which slowed down its rollback. As soon as the bullet left the barrel, this protrusion no longer pressed on the cutout in the shutter-casing, and he freely retreated to its extreme rear position.
    Let me clarify something. Key phrase - "it was required first to understand the construction of Searle". The comrade who wrote the article on zonwar did not understand the design and, with the light hand of this unknown hero, another stupidity went for a walk on the Internet that "when the bullet began to move along the barrel and hit its rifling, the barrel, trying to turn in the direction opposite to the rotation of the bullet ". Anyone who is even a little familiar with the technique understands that under the barrel, due to the presence of friction forces, it will tend to turn in the same direction in which the bullet rotates.
    A competent description of the automation system is available at https://www.ootingtimes.com/editorial/handgun_reviews_st_savagemodel1907_200901/100157
    In fact, in the Searle scheme, the barrel is rotated five degrees through a system of protrusions on the barrel itself and curly grooves on the bolt frame and pistol frame.
    In order to further slow down the opening of the shutter, in the Savage Model 1907 pistol, the direction of the rifling was performed in the direction opposite to the rotation of the barrel. That is, the barrel under the influence of curly grooves turned counterclockwise, and the bullet rotated clockwise, which slowed down the rotation of the barrel.
    1. +5
      19 October 2019 21: 07
      You, Vic Nikolaitch, are like the safety catch on the pistol that keeps the mess out of the way. What I mean is that you will never let your readers be misled by "incorrect information". For example, I slipped past without paying almost any attention, though a little bit "rotation of the barrel in the opposite direction", but while I read to the end, everything flew out of my head.
      It’s nice and useful to talk with you, it’s nice, but probably not for everyone. smile drinks
    2. +5
      19 October 2019 21: 19
      Thank you V.N. for clarification
    3. 0
      21 October 2019 03: 43
      Quote: Undecim
      The comrade who wrote the article on the zonwar construction did not understand


      Most likely, "the comrade who wrote the article on zonwar" borrowed this description from the book by A.B. Beetle "Small arms" 1992 edition. And most likely, Comrade The beetle, in turn, borrowed or somehow misinterpreted someone's description. Moreover, under the drawing of the pistol in the Beetle's book, there is an automatic scheme with a semi-free shutter.

      Quote: Undecim
      Anyone who is even a little familiar with the technique understands that under the barrel, due to the presence of friction forces, it will tend to turn in the same direction in which the bullet rotates.


      And anyone who is even a little familiar with physics understands that the abolition of the law of conservation of angular momentum is not yet in sight. This also applies to rifled weapons, and is checked very easily if there is one.

      But in general, all this is not important. The only thing that matters is that in a scheme with a short barrel exit and locking when the barrel rotates, the shutter exit speed will to some extent depend on the direction of the barrel rifling.
      1. 0
        21 October 2019 10: 04
        And most likely, Comrade The beetle, in turn, borrowed or somehow misinterpreted someone's description.
        This is Beetle's own description. He even has a patent for the scheme of automation with rotating in the direction opposite to the bullet according to the law of conservation of angular momentum by the barrel. (https://findpatent.ru/patent/229/2295101.html).
        And anyone who is even a little familiar with physics understands that the abolition of the law of conservation of angular momentum is not yet in sight. This also applies to rifled weapons, and is checked very easily if there is one.
        Can you describe an experiment to check the effect of the law of conservation of angular momentum using rifled weapons?
  9. +6
    19 October 2019 21: 01
    Savage's pistol was involved in the murder of Rasputin. I read somewhere that it was from Savage's pistol that the text read: "Savage", Puryshkevich shot at Rasputin, probably it was a 380 ASP cartridge. True, Rasputin died or not.
    1. +4
      19 October 2019 21: 10
      At Pikul you read it. But Pikul is as hard to believe as Fedoseyev. request
      1. +4
        19 October 2019 22: 28
        ,,, Konstantin, and you noticed a sling swivel on this gun what ? And she is winked
        1. +1
          19 October 2019 22: 36
          Well, at .45, she is rushing into the eyes, and at .32 - below, on the front of the handle?
          1. +7
            19 October 2019 22: 42
            Savage did not develop a rigid attachment of the swivel, when unnecessary, it folded into the handle Yes
            ,, I just found out belay like this winked you read articles, then try to find some other material drinks
            1. +1
              19 October 2019 23: 10
              Well, he brought something to the design, with Searle, in the figure in the patent, such a detail is not observed. laughing drinks
      2. +1
        20 October 2019 08: 53
        Dear cat, there are many comments on this topic. Including the story of Puryshkevich himself. I read a lot about this in magazines: Man and Law, Soviet Warrior, somewhere else. Now I don't remember exactly, a lot of time has passed, I got stuck in my memory: "savage" 9mm.
        In fact, Fedoseev is the author of a serious reference book: "All the pistols of the world" ... I don't have my own Fedoseev, but Zhuk is
        1. +2
          20 October 2019 09: 42
          Dear Svyatoslav, I don't question your knowledge, I just wanted to say that you shouldn't trust everyone without looking back. I remembered Pikul because he was the first to "come to mind", but I was just familiar with Fedoseev, they collaborated with the same magazine. Syoma at that time did not hold a living barrel in his hands and did not smell the army service, so you do not have it, well, thank God. But you can trust the Beetle, I was not lucky when he looked at our storeroom, I, unfortunately, was on vacation, but my boss was simply fascinated by the Beetle. I mean his knowledge and the highest professionalism of the draftsman.
          1. +1
            20 October 2019 13: 12
            Perhaps you are right. V. S. did a lot to popularize domestic history. But he is not a historian.
            The beetle is a wonderful draftsman. That's right. I compare his drawings and oriental guns, thanks to the Internet, and I admire: how exactly
  10. +1
    20 October 2019 01: 29
    excellent gun, seen more than once in
  11. +4
    20 October 2019 03: 38
    I will say this. We're all a little "gunfighters" here. Personally, I did not use this "volynu". Judging by the photo, it won't fit in my hand.
    1. +2
      20 October 2019 13: 48
      Anton, 2/3 of us did not use such a "volynu" and did not see it "live".
      Curious, where did the expression "Volyna" come from? Jargonism is known to everyone, but why exactly: "Volyna"?
      1. 0
        20 October 2019 13: 54
        Interesting question, Svyatoslav! To be honest, knowing the "thug fenya" well enough, and in retrospect, over the last century, somehow I did not think about the etymology. I'll have to dig deeper. Intrigued!
        1. +1
          20 October 2019 14: 42
          In fact, etymology is a very interesting thing for history buffs
      2. 0
        20 October 2019 21: 05
        Quote: vladcub
        Curious, where did the expression "Volyna" come from? Jargonism is known to everyone, but why exactly: "Volyna"?

        Barrel - pipe; tube - pipe; pipe - bagpipe; the bagpipe is a bagpipe. Also, until the 30's, a revolver, a pistol - whip, for the sound of a shot similar to the clicking of a whip, whip. I heard so, maybe someone else will tell.
        1. 0
          21 October 2019 23: 10
          Until the 30s, a revolver was called a speyer (Trachtenberg dictionary, 1907), a speer, trellis, speck (Potapov's dictionary 1923). Bagpipe was called free time.
          1. +1
            22 October 2019 08: 50
            V. N. I was hoping for your addition.
            If the bagpipe is free time, then the gun is probably a wave of black humor?
  12. 0
    22 October 2019 17: 34
    Quote: Sea Cat
    John Moses didn’t give a damn about how his weapon would be called, if only it would go into series. And there, at least "Colt", at least "FN", if only it was, he himself spoke about it.


    Yes, I was determined.

    "After unsuccessful tests of a 1910 Colt pistol, John Moses Browning was determined to prove the superiority of his pistol. He began work on improving weapons again.".
    "The U.S. Department of Artillery scheduled another test on March 3, 1911. A 1911 Colt pistol competitor was the 1907 Savage pistol (Savage Model 1907). The tests consisted in the fact that each model of weapons had to make 6000 shots. After every hundred shots, the gun was allowed to cool for 5 minutes, after every 1000 shots, the gun was cleaned and greased. After firing 6000 rounds of ammunition, the weapon was fired by deformed cartridges. Then the gun was placed in acid to form surface corrosion, immersed in sand and dirt, and then several dozen shots were fired from it."
    "Browning Pistols - Colt 1911 passed the entire series of tests with amazing results, significantly surpassing the characteristics of Savage."
    "In a report of the selection committee published on March 20, 1911, it was noted: “Of the two pistols presented for testing, Colt excels in performance because it is more reliable, more durable, easier to disassemble if parts need to be replaced in case of breakage, and is more accurate.” On March 29, 1911, a Colt pistol was officially adopted by the U.S. Army under the designation Model 1911 (US Auto Pistol cal. 45 Model of 1911). In 1917, the pistol received the name Model 1911 (Model 1911), and in the 20s M1911 (M1911). Another name for the pistol is “Goverment Model” (Government Model) or “Colt Goverment"".

    Source: http://historypistols.ru/blog/pistolety-pod-unitarnyj-patron-avtomaticheskie/pistolet-kolt-model-1911-goda-colt-model-1911/
  13. 0
    28 December 2019 05: 43
    Colt in guns understood less than Sevage, if Browning hadn’t helped Colt, he would have been unable to do anything worthwhile

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