Welcome to FreeMyCollection.com! The whole premise of this site is to share my collection of antique guns and ammunition with the world. What fun is having a collection if others do not also get to enjoy it? Take a look around, read an article or two, view a few images and learn something new!

Collath Horizontal Pinfire Shotshells

Wilhelm Collath invented a shotshell variation that had a small pin that rested in a percussion cap half an inch into the case. The wider centerfire hammer would hit the pin which knocked it into the cap to set it … Continue reading →

Nazi Pinfire cartridges during WWII

In March of 1938, the “Anschluss” took control of the company, Hirtenberger Patronen Zunhutchen & Metallwarenfabrik A.-G. of Hirtenberg, Austria and incorporated it into the Wilhelm Gustloff Foundation, which was a group owned by the Nazi Party. On April 29, 1939 … Continue reading →

Explosive Pinfire Cartridges

Here are some pinfire cartridges with explosive bullets. The two on the right are definitively made using Eugene Pertuiset’s patented formula by SFM. The rest are also thought to be. In the late 1860s a Frenchman names Eugene Pertuiset developed … Continue reading →

New Russian Cartridges

I was able to add some new Russian pinfire cartridges to my collection. These were excavated from the ground in Ukraine. Information about these can be found on their Manufacturer’s Page Русская Патронная Фабрика and Я. Зимин   I also … Continue reading →

The Pinfire Page, Issue 6 – Auxiliary Pinfire Percussion Adapters

In this issue of my Pinfire Page[1] in the IAA Journal I took look at some variations of auxiliary pinfire percussion adapters and a few reloadable pinfire cases. These first 2 were made for specific guns that could be easily modified … Continue reading →

Delvigne Breech Loading Underhammer Deringer in 9mm Pinfire

 This Delvigne Breech Loading Underhammer Deringer was Manufactured by Falisse & Trapmann in Liège, Belgium. It follows Delvigne’s French patent, 12683, which was issued on 22 January 1852. The patent image shows a percussion version, and this is the … Continue reading →

The Pinfire Page, Issue 5 – The Earliest Pinfire Shotshells

  In this issue of my Pinfire Page[1] in the IAA Journal I took a look at some of the earliest pinfire shotshells ever made. Here is the info about them:   24 Gauge Pinfire Cartridge by Casimir Lefaucheux 24 Gauge Pinfire … Continue reading →

4 Gauge Pinfire Shotshell Box

  This is one of the largest pinfire shotshells. There is also one, a 32mm shotshell, that is a little larger. These were used in large pinfire punt guns.

Eley 20g Pinfire Shotshell Box

  This is a box I picked up recently 20 gauge pinfire shotshells manufactured by Eley Bros Ld. They date to the early 1900’s.

11mm and 8mm Pidault & Cordier (Raphael) Cartridges

What is commonly known as the Raphael cartridge was initially patented by a Frenchman named Charles Carroll Tevis in 1856. He was associated with a man named Pidault Martial and together they improved the patent and released the first Pidault … Continue reading →