The Röhm RG-14 is a double-action, six-shot revolver chambered in .22, formerly manufactured and sold by Röhm Gesellschaft of Sontheim/Brenz, Germany. It is notable for being the model of firearm used by John Hinckley Jr. to shoot Ronald Reagan on 30 March 1981. ^[1] Until 1968, the guns were manufactured in Germany. The Gun Control Act of 1968 prevented their import unto the US, so subsequently the were manufactured at a Röhm factory in Miami. ^[2] Manufacture ceased in 1986. ^[3]

The RG-14 is known colloquially as a Saturday night special, a general category of cheap, low quality handguns. The frame is made from zinc alloy, with a steel barrel cylinder, hammer and trigger. It was intended to use .22 Short, Long, or Long Rifle cartridges, but can not fire higher-powered versions of this ammunition, such as CCI Stinger rounds. ^[3]

The RG-14 had a swing-out cylinder that was secured to the frame by a pin that passed through its length, rather than a latch under the barrel as commonly found in double-action revolvers. ^[4] In order to load the weapon, the user had to unscrew and remove the pin, swing the cylinder open and insert a round into each chamber, then snap it shut and screw the pin back into place. The RG-14 also did not have an ejector, meaning that each spent casing or unfired round had to be manually pushed out of the cylinder with the pin or a similar tool during unloading/reloading.

The RG-14 was available in a snubnose configuration with a 1.5-inch (3.8 cm) barrel as well as a more typical configuration with a 3-inch (7.6 cm) barrel.

References

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