Bob Wright

I've been a handgunner for over sixty-five years, and during that time I've tried just about every kind of handgun available. I've has Colts, Rugers, Smith & Wessons, and Ubertis. For my preferences, prefer the Colt New Frontier when I have the wherewithal, next a Ruger Blackhawk. I've had the Smith Model 28 and Model 29, Colt Python, etc. I have recently settled on the Ruger Blackhawk, not only for range/hunting use, but for protecting my hide. I carry a Ruger Blackhawk in .45 Colt almost daily. My everyday companion is a .45 in a Mike Barranti holster. Bob Wright

As we, my wife and I, were leaving church last night, a lady friend of ours said she had something to show me. She had one of those cell phones that makes pictures, and she showed me a photo of her son (from a previous marriage) holding a flintlock rifle. The man in the picture was wearing the uniform of a Tennessee State Parks employee, and was holding the rifle while he wore those white cotton gloves. The rifle, she told me, was Davy Crockett's "Old Betsy." Her son is curator/coordinator for East Tennessee State Museums. Apparently the rifle was scheduled for some special event display and he got to handle it long enough to have his photo made with the rifle. Apparently at my church I'm known as a gun buff. Bob Wright

Bear in mind that all Single Action Revolvers fitted with auto pistol cartridge cylinders do not require clips as the case headspaces on the case mouth and does not require a rim for this. And the rod ejector cares not a whit for rims! Bob Wright

Pardon me for asking, but if you don't like moon clips, why in the world did you buy the gun? Bob Wright

The Three Screw at top right still had a Super Blackhawk hammer. It is plain stock just as it came from the factory. For the life of me, I don't know why this should be.

Well, this was not the man you encountered. The last I heard from him he was living in Arizona. I had met him at my daughter's home in Ohio. He was employed in the steel mills there and doing gunsmithing on the side. He was doing some bluing some of J.D. Jones barrels at the time. It was he, and several others, that introduced me to the Thompson Contender. Started me on the smaller stuff, .30-30 on up through the .45-70.

Can you give me a dateline and description of the man? Sounds similar to the story I was told? Bob Wright

You might say I am well taken by the Super Blackhawk: The brass framed gun is one that I made my best field shot, taking a ground hog with a head shot at 110 yards. Bob Wright

I believe it was gun writer Frank Haas (or de Haas) who extolled the virtues of the .25 K-Hornet. It was a .22 K-Hornet case opened up to take .25 caliber bullets. It was a straight walled case. Bob Wright I just Googled and found the name listed as "Frank DeHaas." Old proponent of single shot rifles and handguns. One favorite was an old Remington Rolling Block pistol chambered for the .401 Special.

Thank y'all for the kind comments. Bob Wright

Yes, i change out the hammers of Super Blackhawks. The narrow spur affords a better purchase of my thumb. Bob Wright

Recent query concerning carrying on a charter boat reminded me of this story I heard years ago, maybe 1982 or so. This was told to me by friend of my son-in-law's. This friend, and his wife lived near my daughter and her family in Stuebenville, Ohio. He decided to go deep sea fishing, taking his wife and dad along. They chartered a boat at some Virginia seaport, and made the trip. Getting ready to go out, he started to place a cooler of beer aboard. The captain asked what it was, and when he told him beer, the captain told him he didn't allow beer on his boat. My friend, Jeff, shrugged it off and said they'd find another boat. But the captain relented and allowed the beer aboard. As they were underway and making their way through the coastal islands, the captain gave Jeff two dollars and told them they needed a loaf of bread, and he would stop at a nearby island where there was a convenience store and for him to go buy the bread. They stopped and Jeff went as directed. As he entered the store, he saw a man sitting at the bar, cleaning his fingernails with a switchblade stiletto. Jeff went back to get the bread, and the knife wielding man followed him, waving the knife threateningly. The man uttered something he could not understand, and Jeff reached into the waistband of his pants and drew his Colt Python, which he always carried. He threw down the two dollars and backed out of that store. Jeff told me the captain seemed surprised to see him return, but that was the end of that. Jeff told the story later to another fisherman, and was told the captain had set him up to be killed. That island was inhabited by a group of people who kept to themselves, spoke Elizabethan English, and were not friendly to outsiders. Jeff's wife was present when he told me this story, and she corroborated what she knew of the story. A couple of years later, Reader's Digest carried a story about that island, and told of many people who had disappeared going to that island. For whatever it's worth, Bob Wright

I'm an old sixgunner, Single Actions being my favorite. Especially the Ruger Super Blackhawk. Here are two of mine, a New Model and a Three Screw, both stocked in walnut, and worked over by Doug Turnbull: The Super Blackhawk is, in my opinion, the ultimate Single Action revolver. Bob Wright

I don't get to post too much here, being an old sixgunner. I bought my first handguns when, living in Tennessee, I had to go to Arkansas or Mississippi to buy a handgun. Or, I could order it my mail. Times change. Here is one of my favorites, a .45 Colt Ruger with elk stag grips by Patrick Grashorn: It has, at times, been my constant companion, along with this one: Bob Wright

A few years ago (well, many) a gun writer was extolling the virtue of the .25 K-Hornet, a blown out and resized .22 Hornet case. This, I believe, in the Ruger Single Six. Bob Wright

I have no experience with either the .22 Hornet in a handgun, nor the Taurus. My gut feeling for 100 yard shots a minimum caliber should be the .357 Magnum. The .22 Hornet is a fine cartridge in a rifle, but can't see that tiny pill having enough ummph! at 100 yards. I have heard of folks having good luck with the ,32-20 at distances, but no experience with that either. Bob Wright

As a matter of interest, the K-38 indicated a K-Framed .38 Special revolver with target sights. The original was the K-38 Masterpiece, a 6" barreled target grade revolver. There was then a K-22 and a K-32 Masterpiece, .22 and .32 caliber respectively. Then came the 4" K-38 Combat Masterpiece. In .357 Magnum it became the Combat Magnum, and in L-Framed .357 Magnum, the Distinguished Combat Magnum. This was the way they were designated prior to the recent Model Numbering system. The Model numbers originally consisted of frame and bore size, as N-430 for the .44 Hand Ejector, and N-430-T for the 1926 .44 Special target model. Bob Wright

'Way out of your specs as I see it, but mighty comforting tome is this .45 Ruger Blackhawk which is my daily companion: Bob Wright

As to the prices, they seemed within reason to me, though I didn't examine any very closely. As to the Diamondbacks, they were cased by themselves and did not take the time to look further. As to the S&W there were a couple of (just straining my memory) N-Framed, fixed sight 6" ~ 6 1/2" models. Wife was with me, did not want to strain her patience! Bob Wright

We took a drive today and ended up in Humboldt, TN, at W.H. McGuns shop. They have a very good selection of vintage Colt And S&W revolvers, though scant Single Action Army models. Did have some nice Diamondbacks, though. Bob Wright

Recent articles in The American Rifleman are of interest to me, don't remember the names of the articles or the issues, but of recent times there was an article on the pistols submitted to the Army Test Trials of 1900, then early auto pistols, and the March 2018 issue contains a photo story of early Mauser pistols. And the back page I Have This Old Gun... depicts an old Sauer auto pistol. Single Action man that I am, I find these early pistols and their development of interest. Bob Wright

Next time you're in Shelby County, give me a notice and maybe we can get together. Atoka is not too far from me, and the pastor of a Baptist church there is sort of a friend of mine, and is a gunnie, too. Welcome to this forum. Spent 18 months in California many, many years ago at Camp Roberts near Paso Robles. Bob Wright

As to the .30 Carbine Blackhawk I have practically no experience. Think I've only shot maybe ten rounds out of one. I just never warmed up to the .30 Carbine Blackhawk, preferring a .357 instead, especially when the .357 was on the medium frame. I had some correspondence with a man in Wyoming years ago who swore by his .30 carbine as an antelope gun. Bob Wright

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOoook! Here is my Vaquero: And, an old time Blackhawk: And a New Frontier: Do I qualify? Bob Wright

Unfortunately that colt was separated from me while it was in a gun shop. Thieves broke into the gunsmith's shop and stole a bunch of guns, including mine. I was given a new Ruger Blackhawk .357/9mm to replace it. Traded that off for a .41 Magnum Blackhawk. Bob Wright