Léonard SOLEIL – Modification REDUCTA
It is the arms manufacturer of Liège Gustave PREVOST, manufacturer of weapons street of the Gold Pot, 27 in Liege which is in the beginning the purchaser of the patents of Ismaël Isaac ABADIE.
It would have then resold its patents with Léonard SOLEIL, arms manufacturer of Liège also and there remaining street St Léonard, 477.
June 13, 1889, Léonard SOLEIL with the day before to withdraw itself, reassigns his property of patents ABADIE to his son Leon who will continue the exploitation until 1897 of it.
TAYLERSON presents system ABADIE like a simple modification while specifying:
“Modification ABADIE was simplification even, because it was only limited to involve the placement of a suitable cam on the internal part of the axis of door of loading. When this door was lowered, the axis swivelled and the cam which was built-in there pushed back backwards the cam, thus breaking the connection between the hammer and the trigger. The trigger did nothing but raise the pawl in order to cause the rotation of the cylinder without for that arming the hammer.
When the door of loading was opened, and the hammer was put at rest, the trigger could be in a hurry with blows repeated without it having there a setting with armed with the hammer!
For this reason it was not possible to make fire with the weapon while it was charged or discharged.
The rooms were aligned quickly and automatically, without stopping no, during unloading or when it was necessary to be useful of the stem to remove the casings contained in the cylinder.
After 1887, one put an additional system of safety into practice. If the door of loading were in position of opening, the revolver could not be put at the notch of armed. Another case of figure, the hammer was before armed, if one actuated then the door, it could fall down but without arriving in race end to strike.
This type of safety was not an extraordinary innovation in the construction of the cylinder weapons; a similar idea of Michael KAUFMANN also of origin of Liège, having already preceded it, and the English revolver with automatic extraction lawful Enfield also for its part included a safety of door.
In addition this revolver was adopted about 1875 by the army Portuguese and produced by Leon SOLEIL in Liege. In this case the weapon carried the hallmark and reception F crowned (Fabrica de Armas) of the Portuguese authorities.
This specimen is thus an ex arms lawful Portuguese as the mark F crowned attests some struck this one.
The weapon also carries the punches of the proofhouse of Liege, that is to say:
ELG on star in a vertical oval: final acceptance, of use of 1846 to 1893.
E spangled: countermark of the controller post 1877.
This weapon was thus manufactured between 1877 and 1893.
The manufacturer is SOLEIL, Léonard, street St Léonard, 477 in Liege. He is known for three patents Belgian arms manufacturers.
The inventor of the system of door of loading is ABADIE Ismaël French engineer.
The mark HF is unknown for me but should probably belong to a subcontractor.
System REDUCTA
After its military career, the weapon was transformed into a weapon with air of the German system patented REDUCTA probably by firm FRANCONIA.
This system of cartridge with air (see sketch in appendix) is gauged in mm, that is to say 5,7mm.
Following markings were added on the weapon, namely:
Letter F in a square with pointed roof: mark German announcing that the weapon is on sale free with + 18 years.
W/W: in fact FWW marks FRANKONIA WAFFEN in Würzburg, always existing firm.
5,7 LEP: gauge air gun.
Appendices: diagrams of system REDUCTA
GG
