Step back in time to the Civil War era with the Gatling gun—one of the best-known early rapid-fire weapons and forerunner of the modern machine gun.

Invented by Richard Gatling, it’s known for its use by the Union forces during the American Civil War in the 1860’s—the first time it was employed in combat. Later it was used in the Bushing War, the Anglo-Zulu War and still later in the assault on San Juan Hill during the Spanish-American War.

Crank the handle to fire 20 rounds at exploding targets from this genuine piece of iconic American history. The Gatling gun’s operation centered on a cyclic multi-barrel design, which facilitated cooling and synchronized the firing/reloading sequence. Each barrel fired a single shot when it reached a certain point in the cycle, after which it ejected the spent cartridge, loaded a new round, and in the process, somewhat cooled the barrel. This configuration allowed higher rates of fire to be achieved without overheating.