FN BROWNING, MODEL 1906, Cal. 6,35

The FN Model 1906 is a semi-automatic pocket pistol designed by John Moses Browning and manufactured by Fabrique Nationale d’Armes de Guerre of Herstal, Belgium. The design was patented in 1905 and series production began in 1906. For this reason the pistol is found under the names FN Model 1905, FN Model 1906 or Vest Pocket – all referring to the same model. It is chambered in 6.35 mm Browning/.25 ACP, is blowback-operated and striker-fired, and has a six-round magazine. It is fitted with an automatic Schwartz-type grip safety at the rear of the grip, released by squeezing the grip. After roughly the first 100,000 examples, the design was improved by adding a manual safety and a magazine safety, and this version became known as the “Triple Safety Model”. The FN 1906 was an extraordinary commercial success. By 1931 production had reached around one million examples, and it continued in smaller numbers into the 1940s. Special batches are said to have been assembled until around 1959. The model served as the basis for the American Colt Model 1908 Vest Pocket and later influenced the development of the more compact FN Baby Browning.

The pistol pictured appears original and complete, but shows:

• worn, dulled bluing;
• very faint markings on the slide;
• normal signs of age and handling;
• well-preserved FN grips;
• complete magazine and external controls.

Its cosmetic condition can be rated approximately as good