Note to visitors linked from Forgotten Weapons, and everyone else too:
Much of the information in Ian’s video came from this book, but its central argument that Pauly only produced fire piston type guns is incorrect. Pauly absolutely created and patented a percussion-firing system. I have recently acquired the complete set of French military reports and memos from his 1812 to 1814 trials, and they make this beyond dispute. The book also relies on faulty translations and misinterprets evidence. For example, the firearms shown on pages 24 and 25 are cited as fire piston examples, but I have examined images of their internal mechanisms and can confirm they are percussion arms.

After Pauly moved to the UK in 1814, he did patent and produce fire piston versions of his design, likely as a way to work around Forsyth’s overly broad patent on percussion ignition systems in Britain.

For those asking about access to the book, PDF copies are available in two places:

1. In the Jean Samuel Pauly archives at the Lefaucheux Museum (Pauly’s company was later acquired by Lefaucheux), available to supporting members.
2. In the International Ammunition Association’s Resource Center, also accessible to members.

For the most accurate and updated research on Pauly, follow this blog (sign up with your email to the right) and the Lefaucheux Museum. I will also be publishing a detailed monograph to accompany a forthcoming ASAC presentation and display.

This book is an important source examining the company of Jean Samuel Pauly and his successors. It collects and analyzes many of the earliest documents and patents surrounding this revolutionary step in firearms design, making it one of the few substantial modern works devoted to the subject.

However, readers should be aware that while the book is deeply detailed, many of its conclusions are now known to be incorrect. Chief among these is the author’s claim that Pauly only produced fire piston–type arms. Extensive archival material from Pauly’s 1811–1813 French military trials demonstrates that he in fact created and patented a percussion-firing system, and even some of the firearms illustrated in the book (such as those on pp. 24–25) are percussion rather than fire piston examples. The book also suffers from mistranslations and other interpretive errors, though it nonetheless remains valuable for the breadth of contemporary documentation it reproduces and its attempt to synthesize earlier scattered sources.