Guns Illustrated 2011. Dan ShidelerЧитать онлайн книгу.
many of their defensive handguns, which is a welcome option.
TAURUS
Taurus USA has many different revolvers available for use for concealed carry, target shooting and hunting. From their small lightweight pocket revolvers up through their 454 Raging Bull, Taurus has a wide selection of revolvers from which to choose. Their small-frame snubnose revolvers are available chambered for the .22 Long Rifle, .22 Magnum, .32 H&R Magnum, .327 Federal, .38 Special, and .357 Magnum calibers. They are available in blued, nickel, or stainless finishes, mostly with fixed sights, but a couple of models have fully adjustable rear sights. Their duty-size four- and six-inch .357 Magnum revolvers are still in production, with a wide variety of models available. The Raging series of hunting handguns chamber powerful cartridges like the .44 Magnum and .454 Casull and are good choices for hunting big game.
Still probably the hottest-selling revolvers on the planet now are the many variations of the Taurus Judge. Folks have really taken to these versatile handguns. They are available in all-steel or lightweight versions, with two, three-, or six-inch barrels, depending on model. Available chambered for the 2-1/2- or 3-inch .410 shotshell, both also chamber and fire the .45 Colt cartridge. These are formidable close-range defensive weapons, firing .45 Colt, .410 birdshot and .410 buckshot. They will also fire .410 slugs, but if a solid projectile is desired, the .45 Colt cartridge is a much better choice. I really like the personal defense loads that are now being sold by Winchester, Hornady, and Federal. These loads are tailor-made for the Judge series of handguns and are very effective for social work. New for this year is the Taurus Judge with a short barrel and a polymer frame, making for a relatively lightweight and compact package.
THOMPSON/CENTER
Thompson/Center is responsible for making the single shot hunting pistol popular. Starting with their Contender model decades ago, the T/C pistols have evolved into the Encore and Contender G2 designs, but both are just improvements and refi nements of the original Contender pistol. The Contender is offered in just about any chambering that one would want, from .22 Long Rifle up through powerful rifle cartridges such as the .45-70 Government and all the magnum handgun cartridges, including the .460 and .500 S&W Magnums. Thompson/Center offers wooden and synthetic stocks and a variety of barrel lengths. The barrels are interchangeable within the same frame group, and these hand-rifles come pre-drilled for scope mounts to take full advantage of their power and accuracy potential.
UBERTI
Uberti Firearms has been producing quality replicas of nineteenth century American firearms for decades now.
While manufacturing replica rifles and handguns for other companies such as Beretta (Uberti’s parent company) and Cimarron, Uberti also markets their own line of replica firearms. The Uberti Cattleman series replicates the Colt Single Action Army design and includes the brand-new Callahan Model that is chambered for the .44 Magnum cartridge, probably a first for an SAA clone. This Magnum is offered with original-style fixed sights or as a fl attop style with adjustable target sights. In addition to the Callahan, Uberti offers this 1873 style sixgun in .45 Colt, .357 Magnum, and .44 WCF (.44-40) cartridges. Finish options run from a standard blued/casehardened to nickel and even a bright charcoal blue finish.
The Uberti Stallion is a slightly scaled-down version of the Single Action Army and is chambered in a choice of six-shot .22 Long Rifle or .38 Special, or a ten-shot .22 Long Rifle. There are also Bisley and birdshead grip models available. Uberti also has fans of the old Remington revolvers covered with their Outlaw, Police, and Frontier models, replicating the 1875 and 1890 Remington revolvers. Uberti has several variations of the S&W top-break revolver, including the Number 3 Second model, as well as the Russian, in both nickel and blued finishes as well as fully hand engraved models. These are available in .38 Special, .44 Russian, and .45 Colt chamberings. Uberti has not forgotten the fans of the early cap and ball sixguns and offers authentic replicas of the Colt and Remington cap and ball revolvers.
U. S. FIRE ARMS
USFA of Hartford, Connecticut, builds some of the best 1873 style Single Action Army revolvers that money can buy, crafted to precisely replicate one of the fi nest sixguns ever designed but built on modern CNC machinery and hand-fitted by American craftsmen. I own a few of the USFA revolvers, and each one that I have owned and fired has been very accurate and well-fitted. USFA offers an extensive choice of calibers and options, from hand engraving to ivory or fancy walnut stocks. Caliber choices include .45 Colt, .22 Long Rifle, .32 WCF, .38 WCF, .44 WCF, .38 Special and .44 Special. Standard barrel lengths of 4.75, 5.5, and 7.5 inches are available, as well as non-standard custom shop lengths. Abbreviated barrel lengths are available on some models.
One very unique USFA sixgun that I love is their Snubnose model. This sixgun has a two-inch barrel, a modifi ed Thunderer style grip, and is the ultimate single action big bore belly gun. Offered in blue or nickel, it wears a full-size rounded grip and for a touch of class, it has a lanyard loop on the butt. [Editor’s Note: The USFA Snubnose, as well as its big brother the Omnipotent, seem to be modeled after the Colt Model 1878 Double Action but are single action only.-DMS] Another USFA that I love is their John Wayne “Red River D” sixgun. This gun replicates the Single Action Army revolver that John Wayne carried in most of his western movies, and it has his Red River D cattle brand tastefully applied to the gun. The John Wayne revolver has a special serial number range, simulated ivory grips, and a quality western holster and belt rig.
S&W 63: Smith & Wesson Model 63 .22 Long Rifle.
USFA now offers a slightly scaled down version of the SAA frame that is chambered for the .327 Federal cartridge. Called the Sparrowhawk, this eight-shot revolver wears a blued finish and a 7-1/2-inch barrel. It has a fully adjustable rear sight and a post front sight. The sights are just like the ones on their .357 Magnum Shooting Master revolver.
As I stated at the beginning of this piece, last year was certainly an interesting one for gun owners, and this next year looks to be exciting as well. Gun manufacturers are reporting all-time high sales numbers, as well as strong profits, all in this time of deep fi nancial recession. As we cross into this second decade of this new millennium, revolver sales are still very strong. The semiauto fans have tried to put the nail into the coffi n of the antiquated revolver for decades now, but it refuses to die. No need for such rivalry! While semiauto designs are more popular than ever, many shooters, hunters, and those who carry concealed still prefer the reliable, accurate, and easy-to-use revolver. At the same time, the derringer is still running strong, providing a compact, simple design with plenty of power for close-range performance. The single shot pistol is still very popular with hunters, offering rifle-like accuracy with rugged reliability and simplicity. 2011 is shaping up to be a banner year for gun sales of all types, with revolver sales continuing to be red-hot.
The H&R Vest Pocket BY DAN SHIDELER
To me, revolvers are a thing of beauty and a joy forever. I can get just as tickled by an old Iver Johnson top-break .32 as I can by a Smith &Wesson Triple Lock .44 -- which just goes to show that my mother probably dropped me on my head when I was little.
A Forehand and Wadsworth? I’m your boy. A Whitneyville .22? Bring it on. An H&R .32 Vest Pocket? You betcha! In fact, I just bought my first H&R Vest Pocket .32, and it’s one of the ugliest, oddest little revolvers I’ve ever owned -- so much so, in fact, that I just have to share it with you.
Most of us today probably wouldn’t think of Harrington &Richardson as primarily a revolver manufacturer, but that’s how they started. The company that would become known as H&R was founded in Worcester, Massachusetts, in 1871 when Gilbert H. Harrington teamed up with Frank Wesson, brother of the more famous Daniel B. Wesson, to form Wesson & Harrington, Inc. Among Wesson & Harrington’s first offerings was a family of solid-frame, spur-trigger single-action rimfires that were named, in Smith & Wesson style, the Models 1, 2, and 3 revolvers. The Wesson & Harrington Model 1 was patented in 1871 but it’s unknown how many of the Models 1, 2 and 3 were produced.
It’s possible that Frank Wesson had little to do with the actual