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Manufacturers: Manufacture Nationale d’Armes de Saint Ettienne (MAS), Saint Ettienne. Societe Alsacienne de Constructions Mecaniques (SACM), Cholet. Manufacture National d’Armes de Chatelleraut, (MAC), Chatelleraut. Manufacture National d’Armes de Tulle (MAT), Tulle. The Model 1892 Revolver (sometimes called the Lebel Revolver, in spite of the fact that Nicolas Lebel had already retired in 1890 and had died from heart failure in 1891. It was a French service revolver produced by Manufacture d'Armes de Saint-Étienne as a replacement for the MAS 1873 revolver. Over 350,000 Mle 1892 revolvers were manufactured between 1892 and 1924, and they were used mainly as officer's sidearms in the French Army, Navy, and National Gendarmerie among others. In later military service, the Mle 1892 revolver was replaced by semi-automatic pistols like the Modèle 1935 and MAC Mle 1950. However the Mle 1892 revolver was still used in some police and auxiliary service roles until the mid-1960s. Originally chambered for an 8mm black powder cartridge closely resembling the 32-20 WCF round, later models issued during World War I and thereafter fired the same 8mm cartridge but loaded with smokeless powder. The Mle 1892 revolver was a double-action solid-frame design, with the cylinder swinging out to the right. Then fired cases could be pushed out of the cylinder. After reloading the cylinder it was swung back into the frame and locked into place with the case-hardened loading gate located on the right side of the frame. Furthermore, the left sideplate of the frame can be opened on a hinge to give access to the gun's lock-work for cleaning purposes. All parts are individually numbered to indicate the order in which they are to be disassembled. The year of manufacture of each revolver is engraved on the right side of the barrel, for instance " S 1895 ". The inscription " Mle 1892 " is hand engraved on top of the barrel. The Mle 1892 is a mechanically tight, accurate and very well finished revolver . It can be fired single action by cocking the hammer first or else double action by a full trigger pull. It was carried in a closed leather holster of large size which held an additional 12 rounds of ammunition hidden below the flap. The Mle 1892 revolver was originally designed to serve as a commissioned officer's personal sidearm. After 1892, non-commissioned officers continued to carry the older Mle 1873 service revolver but were also issued large numbers of .32 ACP automatic pistols (the Ruby pistol) during World War I. The downside of the French Mle 1892 revolver was the relative weakness of its 8mm ammunition which barely falls in the same class as the .32 ACP. The 1892,”Model d Ordinance”, has a development of the Schmidt /Galant mechanism. Different to other revolvers, the roll swing out to the right hand side of the frame. This is because it was supposed to be fired left handed by the French soldiers, as the right hand was the sword hand. The roll mechanism was modified by Abadie. It is classified as an antique in the USA. (Ref. ‘Firearms past and present’ by Luggs, ‘Pistols and revolvers’ by JE Smith, ‘Pistols of the world’ by Hogg and Weeks p108)

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