This rifle is lot #1414 at Morphy’s April 2019 auction:
https://www.forgottenweapons.com/the-last-dreyse-needlefire-1874-border-guard
The Dreyse needle fire rifle was invented by Niclaus von Dreyse in 1836, adopted by Prussia in 1841, and would serve as their standard military rifle for 30 years, undergoing constant tweaking and improvements. By 1871, however, the days of the needle fire were coming to a rapid end, as it was rendered obsolete by the development and perfection of the metallic self-contained cartridge.
After the death of Nicolaus von Dreyse in 1867, his son Franz took over the company. Franz was also a talented designer, and devised a modification of the basic Dreyse system to allow for automatic cocking upon opening the bolt (as we would associate with any “normal” bolt action design today) instead of the more complex manual of arms required before. This was patented in 1874 and put into production in 1875 in an effort to keep the needle fire Dreyse relevant in a world of new bolt action rifles. The system was used for a variety of commercial sporting rifles until about 1900, but the only government purchase was a batch of guns for the Baden border guards and customs police. Those rifles have serial numbers in the 13,000 and 14,000 range, and today’s rifle is an example of one of them.
http://www.patreon.com/ForgottenWeapons
Cool Forgotten Weapons merch! http://shop.bbtv.com/collections/forgotten-weapons
Contact:
Forgotten Weapons
PO Box 87647
Tucson, AZ 85754
At Forgotten Weapons I think the most interesting guns out there are the most obscure ones. I try to search out experimental and prototype weapons and show you how they work, in addition to more conventional guns that you may not have heard of before. You’re much more likely to find a video on the Cei Rigotti or Webley-Fosbery here than an AR or Glock. So, do you want to learn about something new today? Then stick around!
Items you may have missed...
M20A1B1 Super Bazooka – It’s a Super Bazooka. Need I Say More?
Carl Gustav m/42: A 20mm Recoilless Antitank Rifle
Minute of Mae: Carabina de Caçadores 1886
10 Small Arms of the Great War: Firing segments 071 – 080 from our Primer history series
Bilharz Hall & Co : A Crude Confederate Cavalry Carbine Copy
Polytech AKS – The First Wave of Semiauto Chinese AK Rifles