The fit and finish of the First Model Francotte is of very high quality. The magazine release is of unusual design, curving around to the back of the grip strap the shooter presses up on the rear portion of the release and the magazine falls out of the grip. The slot is, however, perfectly shaped to fit the front portion of the magazine release, so I have little doubt this is what it The loading of single cartridges difficult. It also has a slot on the rear that appears to beĭesigned to hold the magazine about one-half inch below the base of the grip, as if for single-shot shooting, but there is no mechanism for holding the slide open, making It has five witness holes for viewing cartridges. The magazine is of the conventional box type, and holds six rounds.
#AUGUSTE FRANCOTTE NUMBER 15529 MANUAL#
The manual safety lever locks the sear securely. Released, hence preventing multiple shots if the trigger is held. The sear rotates, releasing the striker, and the release mechanism on the end of the transfer bar passes behind the beak of the sear, and cannot re-engage with the sear until the trigger has been Release mechanism at its rear that presses directly upward on the front beak of the sear when the trigger is pulled. The external transfer bar, which is fixed to the trigger, has a spring-loaded The rear arm of the sear is tensioned upward by a small coil spring. The sear is a lever that rotates on an axis pin. An external slot in the right side of the barrel fits over a pin in the side of the frame to The barrel is press fit into the frame and held in place by a threaded bushing at the front. The magazine and recoil-spring/guide rod form two additional minorĬomponents. When fieldstripped, the gun breaks down into two main components, a breech-block/slide and a frame with attached barrel. The inventors make claims only for the design of the lockwork and the removable barrel. The First Model Francotte design is similar to many that proliferated in the first decade of the 20th century: a striker-fired, unlocked breech gun in 6.35mm (.25 ACP) with the recoil springĪbove the barrel. I have been unable to locate any advertisement for the First Model. Production gun, so it seems likely the drawings were made from a functional prototype. The patent drawing shows the exact contours of the I do not know when manufacture actually began. Has a fake patent date is unknown, though this was sometimes done when a gun was manufactured before it had been patented. The true patent number for this gun is 257794, filed in Belgium by Emile Herman and Charles Parent on 19 June 1913 and granted on 30 June 1913. The gun is marked with patent number 19141, but I am informed that It might also be called the Model 1913, after the patent date. Please write to me if you can provide additional information regarding either Francotte automatic pistol.*ĭesignate this gun the “First Model” for lack of a better term.
Production of the Second Model certainly began sometime after World War I. The Francotte catalogįor 1912 does not list the gun, and I have been unable to locate a catalog for 1913 or 1914. Perhaps the tools for making the First Model were looted or destroyed during the war. Production may have ceased or been curtailed soon after the beginning of the first world war inĪugust of 1914, which would account for the scarcity of the First Model Francotte.
The First Model was patented in 1913, and manufacture probably began at least by that year. Pawlas does not offer dates for either gun. The only book, that I am aware of, that mentions the First Model Francotte is the Pistolen Atlas: Archiv für Militär- und Waffenwesen by Karl R. Zhuk gives 1912-1914 many on-line sources have repeated these incorrect dates. Hogg and Walter state that the Second Model was made in 1912, and Hogg & Walter, and Zhuk, show only what I am calling the Second Model. Only a few books mention that the Auguste Francotte company manufactured an automatic pistol, sometimes referred to by the initials AFC, after the monogram on the grip plates. The company was taken over by a Dutch firm in 1998. In their final years they were famous for expensive handmade shotguns. According to Gadisseur, the company held 72 patents that were TheirĬatalog for the year 1900 lists no less than 100 different revolvers and 44 different rifles and shotguns available for sale. In 1889, the Francotte Company was one of thirteen founders of Fabrique Nationale. Francotte was one of the largest gun manufacturers in Belgium in the 19th century. In 1825 it became Auguste Francotte et fils, and 1848 it became Augusteįrancotte et Cie. The business was taken over in 1811 by his son, Auguste Francotte, and the company took his name.
The House of Francotte was founded in 1805 by P. With essential contributions from Vaclav Vriesen