Feb 09 Blue Press Section 2 12/12/08 12:02 PM Page 40

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By John Marshall LASSIC for self-defenseAND use.G In U1871-1872,NS they produced w Peacemaker. Frontier Six-Shooter.C Thumb-buster. aHlarger in .44 Rimfire caliber: Tquiteh similare Cb olt Single Army Hogleg. Equalizer. Model of 1873. Model P Colt. It to the Model 1851 “Navy.” In all respects except s was and is known by many names. Officially, one, it was a dead ringer for the later Single Action t though, it’s the revolver, Army. This one had no frame topstrap over the and it’s one of the most legendary ever . The open-top revolver was limited in o made. Few handguns of any ilk can equal either its strength, and so it was further re-designed to t longevity or its simple, graceful and effective become the Model 1873, complete with topstrap. . design. It was prolifically on the hips and in the Bingo. It was a natural. Inherently stronger, the c hands of late 19th Century soldiers, outlaws, law- new revolver was geared to take more powerful i men, cowboys and ordinary citizens. It was the cartridges. It retained the action of the “Navy” E official of the U.S. Army and it was there revolver, and kept its excellent grip shape. It was . at the Little Big Horn with Custer’s troops. Wyatt made of iron and steel, and was held together M Earp used one at the OK Corral gunfight. It was mostly with machine screws. A flip-open loading brought out of mothballs during the Philippine gate appeared on the right recoil shield. Ejection o Insurrection because no other handgun could top was by a sliding ejector rod in a housing attached b its stopping power against the fanatical Moro tribesmen. The silver screen has always been awash with the smoke from this famed Colt revolver. It’s still being made today, has spawned scores of clones and inspired similarly configured of more modern design. It still can be fastest for the first shot of any gun on the to the right planet, and the sport of Action Shooting side of the bar- cannot do without it today. Most who have han- rel. A new car- dled one will admit that no other handgun feels as tridge was good in the hand as the Single Action Army. Its designed for Hogleg. mystique lives on and refuses to die. This one, for the gun. This sure, richly deserves to be called a classic. was the center- To trace the origins of the Single Action Army, fire .45 Colt. It Equalizer. we have to go back to the Colt Navy revolver of was originally 1851. This percussion revolver was to see wide a black pow- action during the Civil War on both sides of that der Peacemaker. conflict. It was a single-action revolver that launching a required cocking before a squeeze could 255-grain flat- fire the gun. It was ideally configured for that pur- nosed bullet of pose, and it fit the hand well. Its big hammer spur .454 diameter Thumb-buster. fell naturally under the thumb for cocking, and at over 900 when it rolled in the hand under recoil, it was in feet per second. It was designed as a man-stopper, S perfect position for a downward twist in the hand and quickly achievedFr thato reputationntie inr the Sbig ix-St hooter. to cock it again. It was to be the grandfather of Colt revolver. While just 200 SAAs were sold in the t the Single Action Army. U.S. in the first year of production, Colt records o A little later, in 1855, a significant event indicate that between 3,500 and 4,000 SAAs were g occurred. A man named Rollin White had patented sold worldwide in 1873, with many going to Eng- i the idea for a bored-through revolver cylinder, in land, Germany and Russia in diverse calibers. s which the chambers had holes at both ends. Smith The Colt company approached the U.S. Gov- h & Wesson purchased the rights to this patent and ernment with the gun, and provided samples for c developed a series of small cartridge revolvers testing. Colt was quickly awarded a military con- using it. The Colt company yearned to produce a tract. The first Army revolvers were chambered in i cartridge handgun utilizing the bored-through prin- .45 Colt and featured 7-1/2” barrels. These found n ciple, but had to be content to wait until the enthusiastic reception with the Cavalry service in f White/Smith & Wesson patent expired in 1869. particular. Although somewhat slow to reload, the h Colt immediately went to work and started produc- guns offered the horse soldier five or six shots “ ing cartridge handguns, most of them small caliber quickly. It was common practice to load the gun w