Historical Guns

As I was writing the most recent Shooting History review on the Winchester 1873 I got to thinking about how that one lever action is called “The Gun That Won The West”. If nothing else that is some very clever marketing for sure. Not to belittle the ’73, it is a very fine rifle. But saying it single handedly “won” the west is a bit of a stretch. Then there is the whole issue of if The West was won, stolen, liberated or invaded. But that is a discussion for a different time and place. Let’s talk about guns!

1873 was a big year in the firearms world. Colt’s new single action was adopted by the Army and Winchester came out with their best lever action to date. Originally chambered in .44 W.C.F., aka 44-40, the 1873 Winchester was the most powerful of the lever guns when it was introduced. This was a huge step forward from the rimfire .44 caliber used in the Henry and earlier Winchester rifles.

If you are a competitive shooter and have not checked out the SASS, or Cowboy Action, matches you owe it to yourself to do so. Think of it as 3 gun with revolvers, lever actions and double barreled shotguns. I have shot a number of “friendly” cowboy matches and will attest to how much fun can be had while testing your skills. All of the shooters in this sport I have met have been friendly and more than willing to share knowledge and tips to improve your shooting. But you will need a revolver. Here are 5 that will do the trick.

The final design of the 1911 really came about from a series of trials that the US Government put it and other pistols through. These tests let Colt and John Browning see how the pistol held up. There were also requirements that the design had to meet. A lot of the credit for how the 1911 came out can be attributed to the trials and specifications required for the new pistol.

When we, and I mean we as I include myself in this statement, think of US Military small arms it does not usually include a shotgun. When we think of the great American fighting arms of the past we have visions of the 1911, M1 Garand, M-16, 1903 Springfield and probably even a Bazooka before we picture the lowly scatter gun. So lets take a quick look through history and into the present at the shotguns that have served our men and women in uniform.

Legend has it that John Moses made the first prototype of the Vest Pocket to carry in his, you guested it, vest pocket while walking around on this land in Utah. He supposedly wanted a tiny pistol for defense against coyotes. True or not, Browning did design a great little pistol that will fit in a vest pocket.

Rock Island Auction Company’s February Regional Firearms Auction is going to be our BIGGEST sale yet and our first ever 4-day auction event! To be held February 19 – 22, the action on Friday, Saturday & Sunday will remain the same, but we’re opening earlier at 8:00 a.m. CST on Thursday and the action will commence at 2:00 p.m. as we begin to sell all the collectible firearms, edged weapons, ammunition, military artifacts & uniforms, book, accessories, bronzes, & parts that buyers have come to expect from these auctions.

Shooting History. This is the name of a new series that we will be running here at Guns America. We will take some historic guns, shoot them and review them not too much unlike our new gun reviews. It was seeing the new production Colt 1903 Pocket Hammerless at SHOT Show this year that got me to thinking, so, it makes sense to kick it off with an antique 1903.

Colt has teamed with U.S. Armament Corp., the guys that made the Gatling gun a few years back, to remake the old John Browning classis. Now they are making the 1903 in the General Officers Pistol version. Could this be the start of a whole new line of Retro-Classic-Colts?