This is one of the rarest Civil War era revolver bullet molds, the one for use with the scare Walch “Navy” Revolver. The Walch Revolver was the brainchild of inventor John Walch of New York City.

On 8 February 1859 John Walch of New York City received US Patent #22,905 for a somewhat unique revolver that fired superimposed loads from its cylinder, thus doubling the number of times the revolver could be fired before it was reloaded. Walch’s patent application, describing his “Improvement in Revolving Firearms”, read in part:

“The nature of my said invention consists in constructing a revolving chamber with two ranges of nipples connecting to the middle and rear part of the breeches, in combination with double hammers so fitted and acting that upon pulling the trigger the hammers fall, the one before the other, and explode caps on the aforesaid nipples that fire in succession charges contained in the forward and rear parts of each breech, so that two charges are fired out of one breech and the breech revolved each time the two hammers are cocked.”

As mid-19^th century percussion revolvers were prone to chain fires, the simultaneous detonation of chambers other than the one being fired as a result of the firing of the gun, it would seem that Walch’s double loaded chambers would raise few eyebrows and cause concern among potential users. However, Walch explained clearly in his patent application that there was nothing to fear, as his revolvers would also use a new type of projectile. He notes that this new type of bullet was “made either by attaching a tin plate to a half ball by means of a very thin piece, or by connecting two half-round balls by means of a very small piece, in such a manner as to have a recess all round. This recess is filled with a composition consisting of three-fourths part of soap and one-quarter of oil.” While the description may not really bring to mind what the inventor intended, the patent drawings that he references can best be described as miniature “bar shot” which essentially was a lead ball cut in half and joined by a thin piece of lead between the flat sides that resulted in an incredibly deep groove. This also gave the projectile a more oval than round silhouette. The purpose of this deep groove was to contain the grease like composition described, which would ooze out of the groove when the ball was compressed during loading and the space between the two halves suitably squeezed. This grease would then, in the words of the Walch, have the effect that “…every danger is likewise prevented by which the after-charge might be ignited when the forward charge is fired off….” Walch further noted that this rather slippery arrangement with the heavily greased balls would have the effect that “the chamber will be well greased and the barrel by each discharge will be there by cleaned.”  He goes on to further state the advantages of the arrangement being that “as this forms a perfect air-tight packing for the ball the powder will have more force (and) be able to send the ball a greater distance.”  It is interesting to note that while Walch appears to have, at least in his mind, removed the possibility of the rear charge firing as a result of the front charge being fired, he does not address the possibility that the front charge might misfire, and when the rear charge was fired into the blocked chamber, a catastrophic failure would almost certainly occur.

Walch knew that the concept of a superimposed positioning of two or more loads in a single chamber was not a new idea and did not claim that design in his patent. In fact, the US military had experimented with the concept circa 1829 with the Ellis-Jennings repeating rifle, which was produced in both four-shot and ten-shot variants. Rather his claim ran specifically to the arrangement of two rows of nipples on the rear face of a revolving cylinder allowing double loads to be fired from each cylinder chamber. His other claim referred to his trigger, which as he notes, “is on its upper end made in two parts.” Thus, based upon his description, a single conventional trigger would be in the triggerguard, which had two operating parts in the frame. This would allow the release of the right and then the left hammer with two distinct pulls. However, it was two individual triggers that were used in Walch’s initial production revolvers.

John Parker Lindsay received a similar patent, #30,332 on 9 October 1860 that covered a single trigger mechanism that could release two or more hammers in sequence. This was a more elegant solution to the single trigger and double hammer firing mechanism. Eventually the two men would design a refined version of the Walch revolver together. The revolver conceived by these two New Yorkers would eventually be brought to Oliver Winchester and the New Haven Arms Company to manufacture, and the Walch Pocket revolver almost prevented the Winchester Firearms Company from existing; but we are getting slightly ahead of our story.

Like many designers and patent holders during the 19^th century, Walch had plenty of ideas but no manufacturing facilities. To that end he entered into an agreement with the Union Knife Company of Naugatuck, CT to manufacture the first of his double-load revolver designs, the Walch “Navy” Revolver. This was a .36 caliber, six chambered revolver that was capable of firing twelve shots out of the double loaded cylinder chambers. The revolver was roughly 12 ¼” in overall length with a nominally 6” octagonal barrel. The frame and barrel were separate pieces, secured by a Colt style wedge through the barrel web and the arbor pin and a screw in the base of the frame. The revolver also has a removable sideplate on the left side of the frame to allow access to the mechanism. The production design utilized two triggers rather than the convoluted single trigger with two upper sections, as shown and described in Walch’s patent application. The production of the Walch Navy revolver at the Union Knife Company was supervised by John Parker Lindsay, who would become famous (or infamous) for his Lindsay Model 1863 Rifle Musket that used a double loaded chamber incorporated into a US M1863 pattern musket with double hammers and a single trigger. While Flayderman’s Guide To Antique American Arms suggests that Lindsay was already producing his Young America pistols based upon the single trigger, double-hammer, double-loaded concept at the Union Knife Company before Walch came to the company, it seems more likely that the former Springfield Armory employee was initially engaged to produce the Walch “Navy” contract revolvers at the Union Knife Company, more than a year and half prior to starting to produce his own Young America pattern pistols at the same facility. The Walch patent pre-dates Lindsay’s by some nineteen months, so it seems unlikely that Lindsay was already producing his firearms prior to meeting Walch. In fact, the pocket version of the Lindsay Young America pistol bears the 8 February 1859 patent date of Walch’s bifurcated bullet design, along with the 9 October 1860 date of Lindsay’s design under its barrel.

Despite producing a small number of the .36 caliber Walch Navy revolvers being produced at Union Knife Company circa 1860, they met with little commercial success. While exact production figures are not known, most references suggest that between 200 and 300 of the 12-Shot Walch Double Hamer Navy revolvers were produced. Most of these guns were blued with smooth walnut grips, but a small number were lightly engraved and featured checkered grips. It would not be unreasonable to think that some might have had higher grade finishes as well, possibly silver or tin plating or even early nickel plating, which was being experimented with by some New York retailers circa 1860. During the same basic period, JP Lindsay produced nearly double the number, possibly as many as 400-500, of his Young America pocket pistols and approximately 100 of his larger sized Belt model pistols; both of which also appear to have been commercial failures. By early 1861, the Union Knife Company seems to have separated themselves from both Walch and Lindsay and returned their attention to producing the knives that were the heart and soul of their business, rather than speculating in the production of odd ball handguns.

However, Walch was not to be deterred. He proceeded to design a new pocket version of the revolver, almost certainly in a collaboration with Lindsay. The new revolver was .31 caliber and was initially produced with a brass, rather than an iron frame. The first 1,500 to 2,000 guns were produced with a brass frame, but the balance of production were made with an iron frame. The open top design used both a wedge and a screw in the bottom of the frame to secure the barrel to the frame. The revolver had a 3 ¼” octagonal barrel and a five chambered cylinder that allowed ten rounds to be fired from the gun. Like its predecessor it retained the double hammer arrangement, but the double triggers and triggerguard were abandoned for a single spur trigger mechanism that resembled that used on the Lindsay pistols and was likely of his design. The ten percussion nipples on the rear of the cylinder alternated ignition of the two rounds in the chamber. The first nipple sent its flame into an extended flash channel that traveled along a small hump, much like an inverted cylinder flute, towards the chamber mouth, where it fired the front or first charge. The second nipple fired directly into the rear of the cylinder to detonate the rearmost second charge. As before, Walch had no capability to manufacture the new design, so he approached the New Haven Arms Company of New Haven, CT. to manufacture the guns.

The New Haven Arms Company was in a state of flux at this time, in dire financial straits and was on the verge of collapse. The company had been formed in 1857 from the remains of the Volcanic Repeating Arms Company, which itself evolved from the first incarnation of the Smith & Wesson firm. In all cases, the companies were trying to produce and market innovative repeating arms that were inherently hobbled by their low powered Rocket Ball cartridge. The primary shareholder of the New Haven Arms Company was Oliver Winchester. Eventually the New Haven Arms Company would come up with a successful design in the Henry Rifle and by 1866 the company would be reorganized as the Winchester Repeating Arms Company. However, at the time that Walch approached the company to produce his pocket revolver, the company was not particularly successful. The poor results of the Walch revolver project nearly bankrupted the firm and almost kept Oliver Winchester from becoming one of the most famous American firearms entrepreneurs, second only to Samuel Colt in worldwide fame and acclaim in the American firearms industry.

Today the Walch Navy revolver remains one of the “Holy Grails” of US percussion revolvers on the collector market. Surviving examples are very scarce and are often the centerpiece of an advanced collection of “large frame” or “military sized” American percussion revolvers. In fact, despite the lack of evidence that any of these guns were ever acquired for military use, they are considered a “Secondary Martial Revolver” due to their size and caliber. These scarce guns rarely appear on the market for sale and are always coveted additions to advanced collections.

The mold offered here is clearly the one designed to fire Walch’s specially designed bullet, which he described in the patent application as “made either by attaching a tin plate to a half ball by means of a very thin piece, or by connecting two half-round balls by means of a very small piece, in such a manner as to have a recess all round. This recess is filled with a composition consisting of three-fourths part of soap and one-quarter of oil.” The mold is dual cavity and casts two of these unique bifurcated projectiles.

The blued steel mold measures nominally 4” in overall length with a 1.65” mold block and 2.35” curved arms. The mold block is .62” wide and .55” tall. The block contains two slightly oblong cavities with the obvious small, grooved separation between the two hemispheres of the slightly oval balls its casts. The mold cavities measure nominally .34” in diameter and .42” in overall length. The deep groove nominally .05” in width. The slightly under sized caliber for a .36” bore is due to the expansion created by the special lubricant that Walch describes in his patent application, which was squeezed out of the groove when the two halves of the bullet was squeezed together by the loading and ramming process. The cavities are clearly too large for the bullets cast by this mold to load into the smaller Walch Pocket Revolvers, which were nominally .31 caliber. 

The mold is unmarked, other than the number 226 which is somewhat crudely engraved in bottom of the left mold arm where it meets the mold block. As Walch Navy Revolver production is estimated at about 300 guns, this is likely the serial number of the revolver that the mold was delivered with. Due to the very specialized nature of the bullets needed for a Walch revolver, every one of them must have been sold with its own proprietary bullet mold.

The Walch Navy Bullet Mold offered here is in about VERY GOOD+ condition. The iron mold has a mostly lightly oxidized plum brown patina, with some tiny traces of bright blue in the protected recesses and some small areas of thinned and faded blue that has turned mostly plum, blending with the brown patina. The metal is mostly smooth with no real pitting to speak of, but like so many 19^th century bullet molds, it does show a number of lightly scattered bumps, dings and impact marks on its exterior. The cavities of the mold are in FINE condition and remain very crisp and sharp. They would no doubt cast wonderful, bifurcated bullets for use in the Walch Navy Revolver. The mold remains solid with excellent alignment between the sides, a nice tight hinge and smooth operation. 

Overall, this is a really nice condition example of an extremely rare Civil War era revolver bullet mold that is very rarely seen for sale, and which would be a wonderful addition to the display of your equally rare Walch Navy Revolver. In some thirty years in this business this is only the second Walch Navy Bullet Mold that I have had the pleasure to offer for sale. The last one was more than a decade ago, which suggests it could well be at least that long before you or I see another one of these on the market.