The Teat-fire cartridge was a

.32 caliber .32 caliber is a size of ammunition, fitted to firearms with a bore diameter of . .32 in caliber variations include: * .32 ACP (Automatic Colt Pistol), a pistol cartridge * .32-40 Ballard, an American rifle cartridge * .32 H&R Magnum, a rimmed ...

pistol cartridge designed by Daniel Moore and manufactured by Moore and his partner David Williamson for their Pocket Revolver and was produced under both the Moore and National Arms marques by the

National Arms Company The National Arms Company was a Brooklyn, New York-based manufacturer of firearms that flourished for a decade in the mid-19th century, around the time of the American Civil War. Among the weapons it manufactured were a derringer that fired the . ...

Brooklyn, New York Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

in the mid-19th century. The Moore Caliber .32 Teat-fire, which used a unique cartridge to get around the

Rollin White Rollin White (June 6, 1817 – March 22, 1892) was an American gunsmith who invented a single shot bored-through revolver cylinder that allowed paper cartridges to be loaded from the rear of a revolver's cylinder. Because the open breeches were ...

patent owned by Horace Smith and Daniel Wesson, proved very popular during the Civil War, with both soldiers and civilians. The "Teat-fire" cartridges did not have a rim at the back like conventional cartridges, but were rounded at the rear, with a small "teat" that would protrude through a tiny opening in the rear of the cylinder. The priming mixture was contained in the "teat" and when the hammer struck it, the cartridge would fire. Thus, it was akin to a rimfire cartridge, but instead of having priming all the way around the edge of the rim, it is centrally located in the teat. There were 2 variations of the "teat"; a round teat and a flat teat. The flat version seems to be the one most commonly encountered by collectors. Moore's Caliber .32 Teat-fire Pocket

Revolver A revolver (also called a wheel gun) is a repeating handgun that has at least one barrel and uses a revolving cylinder containing multiple chambers (each holding a single cartridge) for firing. Because most revolver models hold up to six roun ...

proved very popular during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

, with both soldiers and civilians. National Arms produced about 30,000 of the revolvers from 1864 to 1870, when it was acquired by

Colt's Manufacturing Company Colt's Manufacturing Company, LLC (CMC, formerly Colt's Patent Firearms Manufacturing Company) is an American firearms manufacturer, founded in 1855 by Samuel Colt and is now a subsidiary of Czech holding company Colt CZ Group. It is the succ ...

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* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Teat-Fire Cartridge American Civil War weapons Pistol and rifle cartridges