[superpuma1]

All,

I am researching information about a little 32ACP pocket pistol, supposedly French, I recently found.
Lenght is 12.5mm.
No marking save a "D" on the left side of the slide.
It comes with a puse-like holster

thanks

Patrick

 

[Gun_Shy]

Hmm -- odd looking slide, and the lack of markings is odd.

Obviously derived from the Browning 1906, like so many.

The holster is a pretty standard pre-WWII purse holster, used with a lot of vestpocket pistols. I have an early MAB A that came with one, and have seen them with early Unique pistols and a lot of others.

Do you know the basis for supposing this to be French?

The pistol this reminds me most of is an Eibar/Spanish "Fiel" vestpocket, made by Erquiaga, Muguruzu y Cia, which would date it to (probably) the 1920s. But once you start looking at Eibar vestpocket pistols there is no end to it.

Bill

 

[oldpaul]

In my copy of Pistols of the World, Ivan Hogg and John Weeks, 1978 shows a picture of the "Fiel" that Bill suggests. In the text it says, " It was followed, probably at the end of the war, by a 6.35mm model based on the Browning 1906, but without grip safety, and with the rear of the slide rounded off. This was marked 'Automatic Pistol 6.35 Fiel No. 1': it carried no maker's name, and the black plastic grips had a plain oval thumb grip at the top." The configuration of the pistol in the books picture is exactly like yours save that it has a few more gripping slots in the slide. It also has the small D in the same place on the left side of the slide. In the back of this same book they have an Index/Data Table that gives a Fiel #1 in 7.65mm that is 148mm long that weighs 597 gm with an 84mm barrel and has a seven round magazine. I think Bill nailed it. Regards Tom

 

[LVSteve]

Hmm -- odd looking slide, and the lack of markings is odd.

I have seen another 6.35 auto that is similarly anonymous. It is a different pattern for the one here as the safety is forward of the grip. The only mark is a four digit serial. The machining marks inside the slide were very evident. It was in a leather holster with a slot on the outside for a spare mag in case the fight got ugly.

 

[Bob In St. Louis]

Franco put an end to pistol production by any firms but Astra, Llama, and Star in 1939, however, I have seen numerous examples of these generic non-labled pistols that date from the 1940s. One of them even had Eibar proof codes and date of 1944.

 

[graybeard]

Since no one else has mentioned it, want to point out what seems to me to be an unusual feature: the slots in the
bottom of the slide for the safety catch (presume the front one is for holding the slide in position for disassembly)
do not go all the way through the frame metal. Not an expert, but have never seen this before.

 

[superpuma1]

Thanks a lot for your information.
As supposed by Bill , must be Spanish, not French (no real basis to suppose it to be French). Effectively, I can see in my documentation that it looks like the FIEL N°1 in 6.35mm. But it is very short for a .32 and the fact it has no marking is surprising, certainly one of the various Eibar production.
Concerning the slots in the slide: the front one is for holding the slide in order to unscrew the barrel. seems to be a standard feature.
Regards
Patrick

 

[graybeard]

The point I was making is that the slot doesn't go all the way through.

 

[Gun_Shy]

A surprising number of these vestpocket pistols were made in 7.65mm/.32 as well as 6.35mm/.25. Even larger calibers were available with more recent vestpocket pistols, up to .45 (examples are the AMT Backup, Downsizer WSP, and Heizer Doubletap). Hard to imagine (the pain from) firing one.

These were mostly intended for pointblank personal defense use, so concealability trumps accuracy.

Bill