The Power From The Olden Days Bang! The trigger was pulled and birds scattered. The fifteen-year-old boy shot a .44 WCF, 73-model rifle for the first time. He had been waiting for this day to come, after years of watching his father shoot guns. You could see the excitement in his face after his finger came off the trigger and he looked at his father. His eyes were big and he had a grin on his face from ear to ear. Firearms that were used in the Old West are the Winchester Rifle, the Kentucky Rifle, and the Colt Model.
The first main type of firearm used in the Old West was the series of Winchester Rifles. Winchester rifles were well known in all parts of the west. Many different models of Winchester rifles were created over one hundred years.
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There were a variety of barrel types that different people wanted. In “Firearms of The American West” Louis A. Garavaglia and Charles G. Worman stated: “A horseman might want a barrel of 30 in. or less
for easy handling in the saddle; a tall, strong man might prefer a barrel as long as 50 in. “ (5). Kentucky Rifles were found just about anywhere. Most Kentucky style rifles were considered long rifles. They were very closely made to Tennessee Rifles. In “Firearms of the American West, 1803-1865” Louis A. Garavaglia and Charles G. Worman stated: “In general the southern or “Tennessee” rifle differed from its Kentucky cousin in that it was a little heavier…” (33).
Another firearm used in the Old West was the Colt Models. 50,000 model 1878s were sold from the Colt’s. Outlaws in the Old West mainly carried Colt’s. In “Double-Action Revolvers & The Old West” Dennis Adler stated: “The Colt Thunderer was also among the handguns of choice carried by John Wesley Hardin, and it was very likely the gun he was carrying when captured by Texas Rangers in 1877.” Some law enforcement also carried these revolvers. It made a huge impact on the firearm market in the late 1900s. Many types of firearms were used in the Old West; some just made bigger impacts on the world than
One weapon used in the Civil War is a Sharps Carbine. It was developed primarily for Calvary, because of the shorter barrel. They were much easier to handle on horse back than their longer brother the Breech-Loader. Sharps were preferred because they could be loaded on a moving horse, something virtually impossible with a Muzzle-Loader. Also, Breech-Loaders carbine which fired moisture proof metallic cartridges, where more reliable than rifles that fired paper cartridges. As I said be fore it is easier to load a Sharps than a Muzzle-Loader. A Muzzle-Loader took 9 long hard steps just to fire one shot. Even the most skilled solder could only get three rounds off in a minute on the old Civil War Muzzle-Loader. And No wonder. After each shot you have to (1) steady the gun on the ground take out a new cartridge out of a belt pouch. (2) Tear open a piece of paper with your teeth. (3) Empty the powder in the barrel and insert a bullet in to the muzzle. (4) Draw the long “rummer” out of its carrying groove under the barrel. (5) ram the bullet all the way down. (6) Return the rod back to its groove. (7) Lift the weapon half-cocked the hammer. (8) Fully cock the hammer, aim, and finally,(9) fire.
Ellsworth was mean, and it was ugly. The stench of the its streets fell second to the odor of the unbathed saddle tramps who had just delivered 150,000 cattle from San Antonio to its freight yards. Adding to these smells were the blends of whisky, tanning leather, kerosene and carved carcasses, a revolting combination. Gunfights were spontaneous, either over a woman or a card game. When Wyatt crossed the Smoky Hill River into Ellsworth in 1873, he may have remembered the "rules of the gunman," but had no intention of employing them. The two main “rules of a gunman” were to take his time and always be armed. Although many people had warned him that it would be naive to go westward without being properly armed, Wyatt didn’t own a gun. All he hoped for was to find a peaceable job. But, only hours after hitching his horse in town he began to wonder if perhaps everyone was right. The most boisterous spot in town was Brennan’s Saloon, off Ellsworth Square; its faro and poker tables buzzed 24 hours, bartenders tapped beer and ...
Handguns played a major role in the Civil War as far as weaponry was concerned. For instance, the most popular sidearm in the Union army was the Colt Army model 1860, which was a .36 caliber. The Army model 1860 was remodeled after the 1848 Dragoon, which was used in the Mexican War. The Colt model 1860 was a .44 caliber six shot weapon weighing two pounds eleven ounces. During the Civil War, more than 146,800 Colt revolvers were purchased. This made up more than 40 percent of all the handguns bought by the government at that time. In 1851, the .36 caliber revolver was produced by Colt. Colt then sold approximately 215,000 navy models, as they were called. The Star Revolver was a .44 caliber, six shot, double action weapon, which weighed approximately three pounds. 25,000 revolvers were then sold to the government for twelve dollars each. The Figure Eight Revolver was built especially for Civil War use. More than 12,000 of these revolvers were sold to the United States Government in the early war from Great Britain. The most popular pistol was the Le Mat Revo...
was an important piece of equipment. Samuel Colt played an important part in the Wild West
Each shot couldn’t be more than inches from the center of the bull’s eye. At the end of these contests, 1,000 winners were enlisted in the 1st United States sharper shooters. The next generation of breechloaders, called magazine rifles, would prove ever more deadly to confederate opponents. “Guns such as Spencer and Henry repeating rifles were designed to carry preloaded magazine of seven to fifteen bullets which could be inserted into the rear of the gun. ”3
A popular weapon used by both sides was the rifle. Rifles were invented before the Civil War and were greatly used in the War of 1812. However, more types were built and a larger amount was used during the Civil War. Rifles added a spin to bullets for a greater accuracy at longer ranges. Using this weapon, soldiers could fire 400 yards away, as opposed to the average 80 yards (Robertson 50). Rifles were the fastest and hardest weapon of the time. Rifles allowed their bullets to be shot harder and faster towards its target. New inventions, used by the Union more than the Confederate, included Parrott rifles. They were composed of iron. Robert Parker Parrott, an American soldier and inventor, created these weapons, hence the name Parrott rifles. Despite its name, the Parrott rifle was actually a cannon. Its size ranged from 10 to 300 pounders. It was not favored by most because it was considered unsafe (“Civil War Artillery”). Because of its bulkiness and heaviness, it seldom led soldiers to inaccuratel...
The Taming of the West: Age of the Gunfighter: Men and Weapons of the Frontier 1840-1900.
National Missile Defense (NMD) is an extremely complex land-based ballistic missile system with the sole purpose of defending the United States against a ballistic missile attack from a foreign country. The NMD architecture consists of five main components.
"A Loaded Gun," is a piece by Patrick Radden Keefe, which published on February 11 and 18, 2013 on The New Yorker weekly magazine. This piece revolves around Amy Bishop, a neuroscientist working at the University of Alabama, Huntsville city. On the day of February 12, 2012, at the conference room of the Shelby Center for Science and Technology, Bishop used a 9-mm rifle killed three colleagues and wounded three others. The question is how does a person with a Doctor of Philosophy (Ph. D) from prestigious university of Harvard, with a cozy family-a husband and four children, with no criminal record turn into such a cold-blooded killer? Does Bishop's tenure ended is the main reason that leads to the crime, or because of her "gun accidents" that
The M1 Carbine was a unique weapon that was very helpful in World War II to American soldiers that had them. This was a .30 caliber weapon that had two types of cartridges. There was one that held fifteen rounds and another that held thirty rounds. It was very lightweight and gas operated and air cooled. M1 Carbines were first issued in 1941 for so...
All guns serve different purposes. Guns have been a part of American history for many years. Many different kinds of guns have been used for many different types of jobs. In like manner hunters have different guns for different game. Just as police use guns for law enforcement, hunters use guns to harvest game. The two most commonly used firearms of hunters, are the rifle and the shotgun. Both the rifle and the shotgun are used for hunting, but the two have some major differences. The main differences between the two firearms are cost, range and the type of ammunition that each firearm uses. Most gun manufactures sell shotguns much cheaper than they sell rifles. Shotguns are not as complex internally, and have fewer parts than rifles. The simplicity of a shotgun also makes them easier to clean and maintain, which cuts down on cost. Being that shotguns have fewer parts than rifles, this helps with expense also. No matter how well a hunter takes care of his gun, over time internal parts will either brake or need to be replaced. If there are fewer parts, there is less to replace and less money to spend. Rifles on the other hand, seem to cost much more than shotguns. Rifles are much more complex internally than shotguns and therefore cost more to produce. Also when hunting with rifles some type of vision enhancement is require...
The next real step in the evolution of the gun came during the Civil War. Rifles were invented that ...
These purposes may include self-defense, hunting, and target shooting. Self-defense is the main use for guns. Pistols are usually carried concealed, with the appropriate license. A concealed carried pistol can make one feel safer when walking around a dangerous area of town. In other cases, a shotgun or rifle will be purchased to keep in one’s home to protect against burglars and thieves. In other use, most people buy firearms for hunting purposes. Hunting has been a tradition for many years. Hunting keeps the amount of wild game from being overpopulated. Furthermore, target shooting is a way to relieve stress and have some fun. Target shooting is a safe, controlled way to use a firearm. Whether it is rifles or shotguns, target shooting is good way to sharpen one’s shooting
“Volley Guns” (Chivers, 2010, p.26) or also known as “Organ Guns” (Ellis, 1975, p.10) were first attempts at increasing firepower by adding several barrels at the firing itself, rather than simply attempting to increase the rate of fire. “Gunsmiths had long ago learned to place barrels side by side on frames to create firearms capable of discharging projectiles in rapid succession. These unwieldy devices, or volley guns, were capable in theory of blasting a hole in a line of advancing soldiers” (Chivers, 2010, p.26). An example of such weapons can be seen on July 28, 1835 when Giuseppe Fieshi unleashed terror on King Louis-Phillipe in Paris, France. He fired his 25 barrel “volley gun”, killing 18 of the king's entourage and grazing the King's skull. The weapon was ineffective however. Four of the barrels failed and another four ruptured. Two other barrels had exploded inside, grievously wounding Giuseppe. (Chivers, 2010, p. 27)