An update will only take place on the German side!
What is the Project?
Howdy…
and a cordial welcome to our internet homepage “Santa-Barbara-1858.org.”
What’s this about and what do we want to achieve or accomplish? Project 1858!
To understand the topic, we must travel back in time a little to meet the designer Samuel Remington, who received in 1853 the patent for his “New Army Model” revolver. Adopted by the U. S. Army in 1863, this percussion model enjoyed much popularity there. The Civil War was in progress and firearms were needed in large numbers. Some 112 years later, in 1970, this exact same model returned anew as a replica from the Spanish firm “E. N. Santa Barbara.” This model also enjoyed immense popularity, even though it cost considerably more then than its Italian competitor. But the 79,95 $ asking price seems fully justified today, considering the firearm’s superior quality. For example: At the time of the replica entered the collector market, a craftsman in the USA earned about 515,50 $ per month. A liter of diesel fuel there cost 11 cents and a VW beetle 1600 $ then. Now one might ask, what’s all that have to do with the New Model Army from Spain? We are now in the middle of the project!
No Research without a Team
Michael “Macgloy” Gloystein got the idea for researching this Spanish percussion revolver from the successful author and fellow “1960 New Model Army” researcher Mr. Wolf Niederastroth. During a conversation with him, Michael mentioned in passing that Spanish “Remy” production numbers probably fall far under the Belgian Centaure /Centennial figures, a research category well-suited to record and process for posterity. This was “Project 1858” born. Soon Michael, the project leader, received muchl support from his shooting association friend Mr. Andreas Heisig, who set up the website and conducted important research. Then too, THE READER belongs to the team as well. His experience and knowledge will help advance our shared project, getting the good ship “Santa Barbara” underway and holding it steady on course. Inspired by the FROCS (Friends of the Centaure Society) homepage www.1960nma.org, we want to record here various results and collected data, and to share this information with interested owners and future enthusiasts of the New Model Army.
The results, information, and soforth will be used for display on this page, as well as for publication in technical journals, such as DWJ (Deutsches Waffenjournal) and in books. We’re a non-profit site, and pursue no financial interests here. Your enrolment on the page was free of charge and is not longer possible!
Subsidary Points of Project 1858
Record production numbers
-Distinguish model variations
- Determine export destinations
- Identify dealers and importers
- Is it a Remington 1858 or an 1863?
- Who were the producers of the New Model Army in Spain?
- Which serial number series were delivered abroad?
- What happened to the company? Does it make anything now?
- Which serial number blocks correspond to which production year?
- What are owners’ general experiences with their “Remy”?
All this and much more is to be answered here. I’m looking forward to receiving your data, experiences, and assistance.
Your Michael “Macgloy” Gloystein
