Brainwashed by the Movies

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ZVP

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I like many others are brainwashed into loving the looks of a 4 5/8" BL on a S/a Old Western styled revolver!
I blame the Movies because most old Colts had the long barrels for making power and having a good sight radius. The movies and "Fast Draws" made us think the other way.
Besides, the revolvers DO look good like that! Even Remingtons and the old BP C&B revolvers take on a new life with short barrels!

I bought my Stainless Vaquero in 4 5/8" because I wanted the smaller, easier to hide/Holster revolver. It handles GREAT too! If I bought a .45 Vaquero, it'd be a 7 1/2" just for nostalgias sake plus sights and max power.
The Colt and S&W DA revolvers in4" were common on Police belts nd to most buyers so naturally we went for the shorter S/A, it was a "familiar"...
Good or bad thing, it's a fact and I am pretty sure things won't change so ammo makers need to make ammo around this barrel length for preformance's sake.
We got influenced pretty easily but it wasn't necessarily a bad thing as a great many shooters choose one!
Kinda like that "Gangster" pointing a gun sideways, How DUMB!
JMHO,
ZVP
 
ZVP

I don't know for sure but the western movies and TV series of my misspent youth notwithstanding, I just have always liked the looks of the 4 5/8" barrel on a SAA. To me it makes the whole gun appear well balanced and aesthetically pleasing to the eye. Which is strange in relation to my collection of single action revolvers in that most of my more traditional single actions (Ruger Vaquero, Ruger Single Six, and Beretta Stampede) sport 5 1/2" barrels, while my less traditional single actions (Ruger Blackhawks), have my preferred 4 5/8" set-up.

I think to me it's all great and I enjoy all of my single action revolvers no matter what their barrel length is.
 
Howdy

The most popular barrel length for the SAA by sales was the 5 1/2" barrel. That is what I see most often in the old Westerns. Frankly, I think a 5 1/2" barrel looks boring. I do have a soft spot for the 4 3/4" length though (Ruger makes it 4 5/8). This 2nd Gen was made in 1968.

colts_05.jpg


This Bisley was made in 1906 or 1909, I forget exactly when right now.

bisley04_zps9adefab5.jpg
 
WOW! I have an exact twin to your Bisley-same barrel length, same 'finish', etc. Mine is lettered and shipped in 1907-caliber 32-20.
 
Not really an area where I'm knowledgeable, but it is my understanding that the Army wanted the longer 7 1/2 barrel for cavalry use. It was intended as their primary weapon and the longer barrel was fine on horseback. They used it at some pretty long ranges as I understand and why they wanted the long barrel.

The shorter barrels seems more popular with civilian use.

If I'm wrong wouldn't mind someone correcting me.
 
Frankly, I think a 5 1/2" barrel looks boring.
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I agree. I like the 4 3/4" myself. There's just something about the barrel that ends at the ejector rod housing that looks perfect to me.

And seriously, what does 3/4" extra really do in real world terms?
 
I can't blame tv or movies since I was born after most of that went off the air/died as a movie genre. But I do generally like the shorter barrels on single actions.

I actually have a nuanced preference. I think the shorter the distance between trigger and top, the longer the barrel should be to look good.

In other words, a gun with no top strap (e.g. 1860 c&b), or with a compact frame (many of the American top breaks), looks great with a longer barrel but seeme odd when shortened. A taller gun (1873, blackhawk, etc) looks unbalanced and odd with the long barrel, but looks great with 3-?/? to 4-?/? barrel.

People are strange...
 
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More firearms are sold because a guy saw it in a movie than you can shake a stick at. I have an M1 Rifle and Carbine because of 'Combat'. And desperately need a pair of consecutively numbered Vaqueros because of Roy Rogers. Saw 'em at a Canadian shop last year. $2500 Cdn. Need both kidneys. snicker.
It's not brainwashing. It's training.
"...intended as their primary weapon..." No cavalryman would ever consider a revolver as his primary weapon. That'd be his sabre. Geez.
"...This Bisley was..." Made for target shooting. That was the idea behind 'em.
 
The SAA, with a 5.5" barrel was referred to as the "Artillery Model". It was usually issued to infantry and artillery members who needed side arms.
 
Many of us are likely swayed by things we've seen and liked. I tend to gravitate towards easy to carry. I've had various longer barreled SA revolvers, but they've ended up being traded off or cut down to 4 5/8". I had a 5 1/2" cut also, as I had plenty of good leather for that size, and none for 5 1/2" guns. The 4 5/8" guns are about perfect for all day carry and not getting in the way, or pushing up on chairs or vehicle seats or the ground when sitting. Same with 4" DA guns. The longer ones are a little nicer for shooting, but for carry, the shorter ones mentioned are my favorites.


IMG_5854_zps61c2ca05.gif
 
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I like cowboy movies and even if they are historically incorrect, I think the firearms in them are pretty neat. The real cowboys and outlaws and lawmen would have loved to own and use the guns we see on TV.
 
Howdy Again

The original barrel length of the Colt SAA was 7 1/2". We can talk about sight radius and long range shooting and all that, but personally I have always felt that the long barrel was a holdover from percussion days. With a C&B revolver you needed a loading lever long enough to get enough leverage to shove a ball into the chambers. You needed enough leverage to deform the ball as it went into the chamber mouth. Most large frame C&B revolvers had barrels 7 or 8 inches long just so a reasonably long loading lever could be housed underneath. When cartridge revolvers came along, it was natural to make them with long barrels too, since that is what Colt and Remington were used to making. My take on it anyway.

The original 7 1/2" Colts had gotten pretty worn by the 1890s, so most were sent back to Colt or Army armorers to be refreshed. Many of the barrels were cut down to 5 1/2" at that time. That is the origin of the 5 1/2" barrel. Many were issued to artillery units, hence the name Artillery Model. This is a collector's term only, there never was an Artillery Model listed in the Colt catalog.

I agree. I like the 4 3/4" myself. There's just something about the barrel that ends at the ejector rod housing that looks perfect to me.

And seriously, what does 3/4" extra really do in real world terms?
Click to expand...

The 4 3/4" barrel was the shortest standard length barrel with Colt because that is the length of the ejector housing. The ejector housing and its associated parts were the same with all three standard barrel lengths; 7 1/2", 5 1/2", 4 3/4". A shorter barrel than 4 3/4" would require a different ejector rod assembly. Notice that the really short Storekeeper's Models usually do not have an ejector.
 
Thys why I always liked Clint Eastwood movies, more realism with firearms.

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"And seriously, what does 3/4" extra really do in real world terms? "

Shooting looking OVER the sights and gun the extra 3/4 inch seems to give a better sense of just where the barrel is pointing. And sight radius...more, muzzle rise...less.
 
I don't know about y'all, but we didn't watch "Gunsmoke"...we watched "Marshall Dillon" when I was a kid! :)
 
I remember spending the night at my grandparents house in the late '50's and watching "Have Gun Will Travel at 8:30, then Marshall Dillon at 9. Grandma did not like Paladin pointing his revolver at us! LOL
 
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