Remington New Model Army 1863

Besides perhaps the Colt Army and Navy revolvers, there was no more prominent Civil War sidearm than the Remington New Model 1863 Army. Over 125,000 were manufactured by Remington from 1863 to 1875 and of that number over 100,000 were purchased by the US Military.

Remington was in business long prior to the Civil War, and they manufactured several different revolver variants including the Model 1861 Army and Navy. The New Model 1863 was heavily based on these models but was produced in far greater numbers to meet the wartime demands of the US Army.

The 1863 was a 6 shot, .44 caliber revolver with an 8 inch barrel. Unlike its main competitors of the era such as the Colt Army, the Remington had a solid metal top strap over the cylinder. Many Civil War era users of the Remington cited this top strap as the reason they preferred the pistol. The argument was that this made the Remington more solid or durable.

Both Colt and Remington revolvers performed well during the Civil War and they were purchased in similarly large numbers by the Union government. By the end of the war however, Remington began to gain the edge in purchasing numbers. This was thanks to a fire at the Colt factory which delayed production and a cheaper overall price than Colt.

This particular Remington obviously saw some hard use as a sidearm. Nearly all of its original finish is gone, replaced by patina and some light putting. There are some typical bumps and dings on the wood grips, but the action still works very well. If you are looking for a moderately priced example of one of the Civil War’s most popular sidearms, look no further.