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Engraved & Other Exotic Pistols # Custom Engraved Centaures # Factory Engraved Centaures # De Luxe # Super de Luxe # Presentation # FAUL Sampler? # Cut-Away |
Custom
Engraved Centaures: “Many more
Centaure percussion revolvers were engraved outside the Belgian factory by me
and other engravers than there are
known and confirmed factory engraved pistols” muses
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#2538 engraved in
Colt-style. Note rampant Centaure logo & cylinder with Centaure
proprietary naval engagement scene… |
…possibly
done by US engraver. Note rare & 2nd MADE IN BELGIUM on
barrel lug forward left of wedge screw. |
long-time German master engraver J. Hensel
of Rothenburger Waffeneck www.rothenburger-waffeneck.de.
Adds Mitch Shore, son of Sigmund Shore who together with William B. Edwards
started the Centaure hype:
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#ENG No 2: Civilian in partitioned case, Ormsby type
cylinder engraving, gold inlays, original powder flask stamped DIXON & SONS, Italian bullet mold |
Back in 1960: “During
the early 1960s my dad and Bill had a number of Centaures
engraved by famous US restorer and noted gunsmith Tommy Haas for their personal
collection…” see exquisitely engraved specimens
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Note gold inlaid barrel
marking & DIXON&SONS stamp on flask… |
…and MADE IN BELGIUM on
toe |
with display cases of English fit Civilian (above: green
interior) and Cavalry (below: red interior) from this collection.
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#F946 Cavalry Model in
English fit display case with accessories. Bullet mold
is steel variety provided by FAUL, flask is Italian |
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Barrel
marking “1960 NEW MODEL ARMY“ CENTENNIAL
TRADE MARK CHICAGO U.S.A. |
Unusual case hardened
cylinder! |
Below RNMA #7205 in the whithe
is from Austria. Note intact barrel marking and centaure
logo on forward left side of frame.
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#7205 engraved by Austrian master J. Widmann from Ferlach in FAUL’s “de Luxe” style |
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left side of frame. Custom engraved Belgians typically kept barrel marking
and/or centaur logo applied by
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#8654
custom engraved, found at a German gun show 2007 |
Close
up of the hammer area of #8654 |
FAUL. Proof marks and markings were usually an integrated
element of the engraving. Factory engraved
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#13096 custom engraved with gold inlays & carved
grips, sold at Egun 2007 |
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Centaures are only known with proof marks and MADE IN BELGIUM but without barrel marking and logo.
Factory Engraved Centaures:
confides Lesley Field, formerly Mars Equipment, the company of Shore Galleries
of Lakewood, IL, USA, who imported the Centaures from
Belgium: “FAUL hired the same engravers
for their factory engraved Centaures who also worked
for well-known FN of Herstal…”
In German dealer catalogs of
the period 1972 to 73 Fabriques d’Armes
Unies de Liège and their
dealers offered the Regular New Model Army with the plain rebated cylinder
factory engraved in the de Luxe, Super
de Luxe and Presentation style. The factory was prepared to have pistols engraved in the
style requested by the individual customer. No factory engraved pistols
have been discovered produced before 1972.
The de
Luxe came “in the white” finish with Colt-style floral hand engraving.
Pistols were selected quality but taken from regular production after proof
testing, which implies that barrel markings and the logos were stamped on the
regular production guns after proof testing as well. De Luxe-style
(below) engraved guns could
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Close-upf of #11851 |
Another view of #11851 |
be had in RNMA and Marshal configuration. Most factory engraved Centaures
recorded in the survey are in de Luxe style.
The factory engraved Marshals had the rebated cylinder
like their long barrelled brother, not the fluted one
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of the regular Marshal models of 1st or 2nd
variation. Currently only pictorial proof from ads exists (see right
close-up) plus some oral reports of shooters who know a pard
who used to have one… S/Ns documented for the de Luxe
engraved RNMAs are between 11818 and 13839. For
details browse to below table. Oiled grips were standard with or without inlaid centaure logo medallion. |
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De Luxe style engraved & consecutively numbered RNMAs #13140 (top) and 13139 (bottom) found in France… |
…differences
are in the tiny details |
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In 1972 and 1973 a de Luxe
engraved RNMA or Marshal with oiled grips and medallions would set you back
DM 658,00 at your friendly gun dealer in Germany (see page 5 Stanglmeier ad).
During the period 2007 and 2009 less than a handful of these de Luxe engraved Centaures were
offered over at Egun online auction house. They achieved
prices between € 600,00 and 870,00! |
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Unusual de Luxe (left)
factory engraved RNMA with medallions inlaid in one piece ivory grips. Guess what your dealer charged for this one with
ivory grips back in 1973? |
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The Super
de Luxe (below) had a deep blue finish and silver or gold inlaid engraving.
They were made at FAULs to order only with specially
tuned and polished action. Your German gun dealer would ask DM 1698,00 for this
specimen in 1973. No real life specimen has been reported yet. All we currently
have is pictures in catalogs and from ads.
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Super de Luxe |
There is this story that FAUL had
every 1000th NMA enhanced with months and months of work profusely
engraved and gold inlaid in a quality even surpassing the Super
de Luxe version. These very rare
revolvers
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Presentation Model #14000 |
dubbed Presentation
Model are known with ivory grips only!.
They could be purchased directly from the
factory in Belgium but in Germany also from dealers like Stanglmeier
in Munich. Price then was DM 2198,00 for such a gem. One such specimen is above
#14000.
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2 further views of
Presentation #14000 |
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As suggested somewhere else be
prepared for surprises when you deal with Centaures…no
matter if they are of the plain Jane or the engraved kind. In August 25, 2009 2
stylishly engraved Belgians were brought to my attention by a German
shooter-collector. #12439 was undoubtedly a RNMA of the factory engraved de Luxe
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2 views of Presentation
Model #11842 |
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variety whereas
pistol #11842 (above) required further detailed inspection. She seemed to
exhibit all the
characteristics of
another Presentation Model. This includes the horse that seems to gallop when
the cylinder is spun. But there were all indication that this is a factory
engraved specimen in Presentation style…
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Left side view of
Presentation Model S/N 11842 |
Which indicates that above story of
“every 1000th pistol being made into a Presentation Model” is just that…another
nice story for the campfire that does not hold water, I am afraid!
Currently 3 Presentation style RNMAs are included in the survey: #11842, #12422 and #14000.
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De Luxe factory engraved RNMAs in
the survey are from France and Germany, the Presentation RNMAs
from Germany only. |
MYTHBUSTER
# Every 1000th
Centaure was factory engraved as a Presentation
Model? MYTH BUSTED!
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FAUL Sampler? |
FAUL Sampler? In German DWJ magazine from 1971 is a picture of what looks like a 4th
variation Cavarly Model with rebated cylinder (!)
engraved in de Luxe style. Fitting shoulder stock
with similarly engraved yoke and butt plate matching the gun, see picture at
left. Where is it now, where did this
beautiful stocked pistol find a new home? |
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Only
pictured cut-away Centaure known |
Cut-Away
specimen of the 8” barrel, rebated/plain cylinder, 3-screw frame cut for
stock in the regular blue/case colored finish
configuration are documented. At this stage we do not know if they were made
by FAUL’s. |
WDN/March 11, 2010
© 2007 Wolf D. Niederastroth