Schofield + SAA (pics)

[Hatchett]

Sometimes they DO make them like they used to.





I've had this Colt for a while, but just picked up this nice "Performance Center Schofield Model of 2000." S&W apparently made a short run of these in 2000 in the original .45 S&W chambering. The Colt, chambered for .45 Colt, will feed the same ammo, but not visa-versa.

Both are absolutely perfect in the way they shoot and feel. The hammer-cocking action on the Schofield in particular is one of the softest I've ever felt. It's like squeezing a lump of raw bread dough.

The finish on both guns is amazing. When it comes to the case-coloring, however, Colt seems to be hands-down the superior.

Handling the two, you can tell why the Colt was more popular. It feels as simple and as sturdy as a weel-built hammer. The Schofield, on the other hand, feels like it was put together by a Swiss jeweler or a watchmaker. It's far superior, mechanically, but I think I can tell which I'd rather carry out in the old west.

Of course, only the Schofield can do this:

 

[Texfire]

Nice pair you've got there. I've wanted a Schofield for awhile. I'd settle for a clone, but even they are pretty pricey.

Tex

 

[ewb45acp]

OOOOHHH!

And the green eyed monster rears its head...
What a pair. I am envious.

 

[Lone_Gunman]

Handling the two, you can tell why the Colt was more popular. It feels as simple and as sturdy as a strudy hammer. The Schofield, on the other hand, feels like it was put together by a Swiss watchmaker. It's far superior, mechanically, but I think I can tell which I'd rather carry out in the old west.

You can reload a Schofield a heck of a lot faster than a SAA, though.

 

[Texfire]

I think the Schofield was superior for it's designed purpose for just that reason. The model 3 was redesigned with the input of Captain Schofield to make it more friendly to the cavalry soldier.

I think the loading sequence is much more friendly to a soldier on a moving horse than a SAA. Their main mistake was chambering it for the .45 Schofield, which with it's shorter cartridge length and lower pressure loading was designed for the existing cylinder and frame, rather than redesigning it to take the longer and hotter .45LC cartridge. This design choice ultimately doomed it, for supply reasons if nothing else. I don't know if there were field maintenance issues as well, but the supply problem was enough.

Tex

 

[cane]

TEXFIRE, I think there were some politics involved too. The supply "problem" could have been solved by simply buying only the shorter Schofield rounds. While the Schofield itself failed to gain popularity in US military circles, the parent model 3 was sold extensively to foriegn military and was used by the Russians (Soviet Union) through WWII. I have a "clone" Schofield in .45 Colt and shoot it extensively in SASS matches. It does feel different than a SAA, but affter you use it for a while it is an easy shooter.

 

[Hatchett]

You can reload a Schofield a heck of a lot faster than a SAA, though.

Indeed. It seems to me that if you're on horseback, battling banditos or injuns or what have you, and your Schofield runs dry, all you need to do to empty it is reach over the hammer, thumb back that little hinge, and tip the barrel down against the side of your leg while still steering with your other hand. Absolutely superior to trying to unload a SAA in the same situation.

About seven times superior, according to the documentation that came with it.

 

[Texfire]

TEXFIRE, I think there were some politics involved too. The supply "problem" could have been solved by simply buying only the shorter Schofield rounds. While the Schofield itself failed to gain popularity in US military circles, the parent model 3 was sold extensively to foriegn military and was used by the Russians (Soviet Union) through WWII. I have a "clone" Schofield in .45 Colt and shoot it extensively in SASS matches. It does feel different than a SAA, but affter you use it for a while it is an easy shooter.

Politics? About military arms procurement? What a shocker.

Tex

 

[Bart Noir]

Politics is what I have always suspected, since Major Schofield's brother was an influential General at the time....... And the sad thing is that Major Schofield later committed suicide using...... you guessed it, a Schofield.

Anybody know the exact terms used by the Army for the two different sixguns? In other words, did they ever call it a Schofield or was it just the S&W?

Bart Noir
Who just bought the Uberti version last weekend.

 

[MrAcheson]

I could never get over the balance of the schofield. The colt just feels agile in comparison. That and the schofield is a lot more expensive.

 

[Lone_Gunman]

That and the schofield is a lot more expensive.

What brand of guns are you comparing?

 

[rfurtkamp]

What brand of guns are you comparing?

Darned near any of 'em. The cheapest street on a new Schofield or No 3 Russian clone I've seen are the new Ubertis at 700. Fit and finish was abominable compared to my Beretta Laramie ($950ish).

Comparable import or worked over import SAAs are almost half price in my experience.

 

[rfurtkamp]

Sometimes they DO make them like they used to.

Yes, yes they do. I love a good top break. I could live in revolver-land with a good Schofield or No3 Russian clone and a Webley and never feel lonely.

I still am kicking myself for missing the S&W reissues, though. One will come into the shop here eventually or they'll do another run.

FYI, if you want to be profoundly non-retro, the same speedloaders that fit my M29 S&W also load and hold the 45 S&W or 45LC and load fine into mine.

 

[joneb]

is any one producing a top break chamberd in .44 spl ?

 

[Father Knows Best]

In fact, the Army did issue .45 S&W ammo

TEXFIRE, I think there were some politics involved too. The supply "problem" could have been solved by simply buying only the shorter Schofield rounds.

In fact, that's exactly what happened. The U.S. Army did buy about 1,000 S&W "Schofield" revolvers, IIRC. Also, the Army quickly discovered that the .45 Colt round, with its load of 40 grains of black powder under a 255 grain bullet, was simply more powerful than it needed to be, and indeed was too powerful for most troopers to shoot accurately. They solved the problem by issuing only the shorter and less powerful .45 S&W round, with 28 grains of powder pushing a 230 grain bullet.

The U.S. Army didn't buy its ammo back then -- it manufactured its own at the Frankford Arsenal. Frankford Arsenal produced its last batch of .45 Colt ammo in August of 1874, and for the next few decades produced only the shorter .45 S&W round, which was used in both revolvers.

That's a big part of the reason that the .45 Colt became known as the .45 "Long" Colt. The U.S. Army had a single .45 caliber pistol cartridge that was primarily used in the tens of thousands of Colt revolvers. To distinguish the commercial .45 Colt round from the Army's shorter standard issue round, people took to calling it the "Long" Colt.

 

[Father Knows Best]

is any one producing a top break chamberd in .44 spl ?

No, but you can get one. Navy Arms is distributing Uberti-produced repros of the Schofield in .44-40. I'm pretty sure they use .4295 major diameter barrels on them (every Uberti 44-40 revolver I've ever owned had a .4295 barrel). That's the same diameter as .44 Magnum, .44 Special and .44 Russian. You can do what I did with my 1875 Remington replicas, which is find a couple in 44-40, and buy some spare .38 special cylinders. Any decent gunsmith can rechamber the .38 special cylinders for .44 Special and fit them to the gun (Steve Young did my 1875 Remmies). Then you have a dual-cylinder revolver that can fire both .44 Special and 44-40.

Navy Arms also carries a replica of the S&W "New Model Russian" revolver in the original .44 Russian chambering, which is just a short .44 Special. If the cylinder is the same length as on their .45 Colt and 44-40 guns, there should be plenty of room to have the chambers reamed out to accept .44 special cartridges.

 

[gnovotny]

Schofield

How much is one worth?

 

[rmfnla]

My first handgun was a 4th model S&W in .38 S&W (NRA Mint for $40 in 1970!) and I've loved top-breaks ever since.

Some ranges won't let you shoot top-breaks because of all the cheapie guns from the early part of the century; yet another reason to find a good shooting spot!

 

[Nicodemus38]

i htought the -performance center models had the engraving and 4,000 dollar price tag.

 

[average_shooter]

Schofield
How much is one worth?

Um, you resurrected an almost four year old thread, with your first post, for this?

 

[WARDER]

hi Guys, has anyone got a nice load for a s&w .45 schofield ,for a 230grn lead roundnose or 200.grn lead semi wad cutter.i just purchased a new custom shop schofield made in 2000 brand new in its wooden box with blue baiz lining ,beautifull .i purchased some starline brass but have not yet got any loading data any help appreciated

 

[Coyote3855]

Um, you resurrected an almost four year old thread, with your first post, for this?

And that's wrong/inappropriate/unwise in your opinion because?

Average Shooter,

As noted in the other posts in this thread, value depends on the individual firearm and condition:

Uberti replicas, $650 to $900.

S&W Performance Center Reissue: $2500 and up, mostly up.

Original 19th Century S&W production: Probably minimum $1000 for a beater, up from there depending on condition.

 

[Dnaltrop]

As someone who recently added one to his collection...

Apparently with the new model year, the new MSRP on the Uberti Schofield has arrived.

Old MSRP was $830 for my Taylor's model 855, new MSRP is $999.

I don't think i'll be going for a matched set anytime soon.

The nickel plate ones up to $1300. Reality's prices wont be that high (you hope)... but significantly higher already than just 2 months ago.

Took some shopping, but I found a NIB one just before the price increase for $680 online, and recently at the Portland Gun show, a Beretta Laramie for $650 on a table in .38 spl. (All the same company, just polished and a nicer sight.. few other tweaks i'm sure that I've missed)

Good luck finding any on the cheap, most SAA shooters use the Peacemaker Clone variants. It's simply more durable. But the Schofields have that certain over-built charm.

Off the shelf Cowboy strength rounds were fairly satisfying, Standard lead tip higher pressure rounds gave that happy giddy THWACK you feel in your gut, recoil was suprisingly light for what I'm used to, but the weight of the gun helps there.

ABSOLUTELY no +P rounds. Get an appropriate Ruger or similar sturdy gun if you want more than Fun.

If you don't already, Just don't bother trying to find off the shelf .45 colt ammo, with the Taurus Judge owners spawning like locusts, (hey, it DOES get guns into more peoples hands, can't be a bad thing) The few boxes of rounds in town disappear fast unless you know the 1 or 2 shops in town that have an "in".

It's a great excuse to get serious with your reloading hobby.

I'm still looking for "the right" shoulder rig, I was looking online, and the one that caught my eye so far turned out to be a local company, I'll be going into their offices when convenient. If you have a poorly fit schofield holster, a quick draw can pop the latch, and turn into "throwing your shells dramatically around like an idiot"

Good luck on the search.
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