The James Reid “My Friend” Knuckleduster revolver,Made in a small factory in the

The James Reid “My Friend” Knuckleduster revolver,Made in a small factory in the Catskills of New York, these small revolvers were the invention of James Reid, a gunsmith and Irish immigrant.  Back then small revolvers and knuckledusters were popular weapons among both good and bad alike.  James Reid had the idea of creating a weapon that combined both knuckleduster and revolver. Knicknamed “my friend” it was a seven shot .22 revolver that also had a large ring shaped handle that could be used as a good bludgeoning instrument.  Small and compact, the first models of the revolver lacked a barrel but instead just had a pepperbox style cylinder.  Will certainly compact, it was a bit two small.  Because it was a single action many complaints revolved around the stubby hammer, which was often very difficult to work.  As a result James Reid modified his design.  Called the “new model”, Reid added a larger spur hammer and a barrel.  Around 15,000 were produced between 1865 and 1883. -- source link

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