Chinese Warlord Era Revolver

The Chinese Warlord Era of the early 20th century is a fascinating time in history, made even more interesting by the wide variety of Chinese copies of pistols and revolvers that were in use during this time.

Some are fairly well made and are pretty decent, 1:1 copies of the original guns. Others ... not so much.

This copy of a Smith & Wesson revolver fits into both categories, and here's why:

The above photo shows the gun with the grips and the side plate removed, exposing the internal mechanisms of the gun. In this regard, it's a spot-on copy. Everything is the same size, construction, etc. Sure, it's more crudely done, but it's a 1:1 copy.

But now we go off the rails...

This photo shows the left side of the frame, where a real gun from this era would say, "MADE IN THE U.S.A." Instead, it's a weird bastardization of Wesson - backwards no less - giving us "HSSEMO" or, upside down, "OWESSH."

The trademark marking on the left side of the frame is decent. I mean, at least they got the letters right in the circle, but instead of saying "TRADE/MARK," it reads "TAEE/MAIK."

The left side of the barrel should say, "SMITH & WESSON," but instead we have "MASSOHND."

The right side of the barrel should have a caliber designation. Instead, it's just a jumble of characters and shapes that don't spell or mean anything.

The top of the barrel should have all of the patent information, as well as an address. But again, it's just a bunch of random shapes and letters.

To go more in depth about the similarities and differences in this gun (of which there are many), watch my video here:

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