Chaineux Pinfire Revolver
- Category
- Revolver
- Barrel
- 110 mm
- Weight, empty
- 900 g
- Introduced
- 1864
About
What it is, and why it matters
The Chaineux Pinfire Revolver is a 19th-century Belgian high-capacity revolver built around the Lefaucheux pinfire cartridge. Designed by the Liège gunmaker Joseph-Lambert Chaineux, it is distinguished by a hollowed-out cylinder whose centre retains only a tube for the cylinder pin, leaving an annular space that allowed unusually large numbers of chambers to be packed into a single cylinder. Specimens are documented with 10 and 12 chambers, with rare 20- and 30-shot examples also known. A single-action design fired by a hammer striking the protruding pin of each cartridge, it was typically chambered in 7mm, 9mm and 11mm pinfire and finished with intricate engraving on the action, cylinder and barrel.
Chaineux's signature trick was to hollow out the centre of the cylinder so that only a thin tube remained for the axis pin, freeing an annular ring of metal for extra chambers. This let him crowd ten, twelve, twenty and even thirty pinfire rounds into a single cylinder at a time when most revolvers held six, making his guns curiosities of mid-19th-century firepower.
Two gunmakers carried the Chaineux name; this entry covers Joseph-Lambert Chaineux of Liège, registered at the proof house from 1864 to 1884. Dimensions and chamber counts varied widely; the 9mm 10-shot configuration is taken as representative. Early models used a hanging extractor that fouled in holsters, later replaced by a guided extractor. Surviving examples are very rare.
Specification
Everything measured
IdentityWhat it is, who built it and when.
- Manufacturer
- Joseph-Lambert Chaineux
- Category
- Revolver
- Country
- Belgium
- Status
- Out of production
- Produced
- 1864 to 1884
DimensionsAs issued, without a magazine or an optic.
- Barrel
- 110 mm
- Overall length
- 270 mm
- Weight, empty
- 900 g
ActionHow it cycles, what trips it, and what feeds it.
- Action
- Revolving
- Firing mechanism
- Single action
- Trigger
- Single action
- Capacity
- 10
- Magazine
- Revolving cylinder
MaterialsEach swatch is the material itself, not a colour chosen to stand for it.
- Frame
- Steel
- Barrel
- Steel
- Stock
- Wood
- Finish
- Blued
BallisticsFrom the service cartridge, not a handload.
- Effective range
- 25 m
Trajectory
What the round does downrange
Solved from the muzzle figures and the bullet. The dashed rule is the effective range on the record, and the crosses are the steps the solver returned.
No load solved for this record yetThe flight path is computed from a cartridge and a bullet. This record has no ammunition filed against its chambering, so there is nothing to solve.
Features
What it has
What the record lists as fitted, drawn from the catalogue.
Pinfire cartridge ignition
High capacity cylinder- Hollowed cylinder core
Loading gate
Guided extractor rod
Folding trigger
Engraved action
Standing
How it compares
Each figure against the firearms of the same type and cartridge that record it, or of the same type where that cartridge has too few. Positions are read to the nearest tenth.
| Measurement | This firearm | Median | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| Empty weightAmong 404 revolvers | 900 g | 1.05 kg | Lighter than about 60% |
| Overall lengthAmong 415 revolvers | 270 mm | 260 mm | Longer than about 60% |
| Barrel lengthAmong 431 revolvers | 110 mm | 127 mm | Shorter than about 60% |
| Magazine capacityAmong 434 revolvers | 10 | 6 | Holds more rounds than about 90% |
Its place in the rankings
Answers
Questions about the Chaineux Pinfire Revolver
How much does the Chaineux Pinfire Revolver weigh?
The Chaineux Pinfire Revolver weighs 900 g (1.98 lb) empty.
What caliber is the Chaineux Pinfire Revolver?
The Chaineux Pinfire Revolver is chambered in 9mm Pinfire.
How many rounds does the Chaineux Pinfire Revolver hold?
The Chaineux Pinfire Revolver holds 10 rounds, fed from a revolving cylinder.
How long is the Chaineux Pinfire Revolver?
The Chaineux Pinfire Revolver is 270 mm (10.63 in) long overall, with a 110 mm (4.33 in) barrel.
Who makes the Chaineux Pinfire Revolver?
The Chaineux Pinfire Revolver is made by Joseph-Lambert Chaineux (Belgium). It was designed by Joseph-Lambert Chaineux.
When was the Chaineux Pinfire Revolver introduced?
The Chaineux Pinfire Revolver was introduced in 1864 and discontinued in 1884.
How does the Chaineux Pinfire Revolver operate?
The Chaineux Pinfire Revolver uses a revolving action, and its firing mechanism is single action.
Compatibility
Which parts fit this firearm
Studio
Every part that mounts on this, resolved
Not a list the maker typed out: the answer comes from the mounts this firearm exposes and the interface each part needs, so it stays right when either one changes.
- Every part that mounts on any firearm in the catalogue
- Interface standards, platforms and fit overrides
- The same answers through the API and the MCP server
Requires a signed-in GunSpec account on the Studio plan. The answer is computed per part, so it is not part of the public record.
Provenance
What the record holds
Every figure above was taken from one of these pages. The confidence reflects how much of the record came from a page a claim can be checked against.
Provenance
Confidence in this record
55%
Stockists
Where to buy
Offers link straight to the shop. GunSpec never takes the order.
No shop has listed this firearm yet
Stock and prices come from the shops themselves. If you sell this firearm, you can list it and it appears here.
List a firearmMCP
Ask an assistant about it
The same record, reached the way a person asks for it rather than the way a program does.
Ask GunSpec
Works with
Point an MCP client at GunSpec and it answers from the catalogue rather than from memory. A free key covers the read tools.
API
The call that returns this record
The same fields, in the same units, from the same endpoint the page reads.
curl --request GET \ --url 'https://api.gunspec.io/v1/firearms/chaineux-pinfire' \ --header 'X-API-Key: your_key'{ "id": "chaineux-pinfire", "name": "Chaineux Pinfire Revolver", "manufacturer": { "id": "chaineux", "name": "Joseph-Lambert Chaineux", "countryCode": "BE", "foundedYear": 1864, "website": null, "logoUrl": null, "description": null, "status": null, "defunctYear": null, "stateOwned": null, "makesFirearms": null, "parentId": null, "predecessorId": null, "createdAt": "2026-06-21 23:00:46", "updatedAt": "2026-06-21 23:00:46", "version": "14781a16d6640ba1154e7e25bb1b8493a0f9bd6f2b55f35908a4987913a60d7f" }, "category": { "id": "revolver", "name": "Revolver", "description": "Handguns with a revolving cylinder containing multiple chambers" }, "country_of_origin": "BE", "year_introduced": 1864, "barrel_length_mm": 110, "weight_empty_g": 900, "action_type": "revolving"}