Revolver many European gun-makers, in numerous designs and configurations. However, these weapons were difficult to use, complicated and prohibitively expensive to make, and as such they were not widely distributed. In 1836, an American, Samuel Colt patented the mechanism which led to the widespread use of the revolver, the mechanically indexing cylinder. According to Samuel Colt, he came up with the idea for the revolver while at sea, inspired by the capstan, which had a ratchet and pawl mechanism on it, a version of which was used in his guns to rotate the cylinder by cocking the hammer. This provided a
Revolver powerful revolvers, utilizing the .500 S&W Magnum cartridge. Because the rounds in a revolver are headspaced on the rim, some revolvers are capable of chambering more than one type of ammunition. The .44 Magnum round will chamber the shorter .44 Special and shorter .44 Colt, likewise the .357 Magnum will safely chamber .38 Special and .38 Short Colt. In 1996 a revolver known as the Medusa M47 was made that could chamber 25 different cartridges with bullet diameters between .355" and .357". Revolver technology lives on in other weapons used by the military. Some autocannons and grenade launchers use mechanisms