POTD: Colt Shooting Master – Depression-Era Target Revolver

Welcome to today’s Photo of the Day! Here we have a 1933 Colt Shooting Master in .38 Special, one of roughly 2,500 produced in that caliber out of approximately 3,500 total across all configurations. The Shooting Master was Colt’s premium target revolver, introduced in 1932 and aimed sq...

By Sam.S •

Review: Bulova MIL-SHIPS Watch

In today’s review, Randall Wilson takes a look at the Bulova MIL-SHIPS watch. This is a precision timepiece with its origins tied to the U.S. Navy’s UDT divers. The watch reviewed here is personally owned by the author. There are times when a high-quality product is enhanced by a compelling h...

By Randall Wilson •

POTD: Prussian Potsdam Model 1809 – Flintlock Converted to Percussion

Welcome to today’s Photo of the Day! Here we have a Prussian Potsdam Model 1809 percussion conversion rifle-musket with buttplate tang and barrel dated 1832. The base gun started life as a flintlock. The 1832 date tells you when Prussia decided to modernize it, pulling the flintlock hardware ...

By Sam.S •

POTD: Bavarian Swivel Breech Fowler – Engraved, Inlaid, Carved

Welcome to today’s Photo of the Day! Here we have an elaborately decorated Bavarian swivel breech percussion fowler from the early to mid-1800s, marked “JOHAN ARNED” and “A. WIRZBURG” with silver inlay at the breech. This is a lot of gun to look at. The lock plate, ham...

By Sam.S •

Wheelgun Wednesday: The Last Revolver Samuel Colt Ever Made

There's a pretty common misconception floating around gun circles that Samuel Colt had some hand in the Single Action Army. Maybe he designed it, maybe he approved it, maybe he at least lived to see it. The reality is that Colt died in January 1862, more than a decade before the SAA ever exi...

By Sam.S •

Curious Relics #135: Two Guns, One Name – The Colt 1862 Police Part II

Welcome back, folks! Last time around we kicked off a four-part look at the Colt 1862 Police revolver, covering the design philosophy that produced it, the Civil War timing that hampered its sales, the factory fire that made things worse, and the conversion craze that ate up the majority of survi...

By Sam.S •

POTD: Needham Conversion Bridesburg Musket – 1of 5,020 Converted

Welcome to today’s Photo of the Day! Here we have a Needham conversion of a Bridesburg rifle-musket with an 1863-dated lock, one of approximately 5,020 Civil War muzzleloaders converted to breechloading centerfire using the Needham side-opening system. After the war the Army was sitting on an...

By Sam.S •

POTD: Brown Manufacturing Ballard – Scarce Newburyport Single Shot

Welcome to today’s Photo of the Day! Here we have a Brown Manufacturing Company Ballard Patent single shot sporting rifle manufactured 1869 to 1873 out of Newburyport, Massachusetts, with at least 500 produced according to Flayderman’s Guide. Brown Manufacturing was one of several small...

By Sam.S •

The Rimfire Report: Do You Have The Green For This Historic Henry?

When we talk about rimfires today, we mostly think of .22LR, .22 Short or maybe .22 Magnum. In the past few years, we’ve seen .17 HMR and .21 Sharp come on the scene, and the .17 HM2 come and go. All these cartridges have their advantages and disadvantages, but they’re all small-bore ...

By Zac K •

POTD: Colt Model 1909 – Army Issue Before the 1911 Took Over

Welcome to today’s Photo of the Day! Here we have a 1911-manufactured Colt Model 1909 double action revolver marked “UNITED STATES PROPERTY” on the barrel underside with RAC inspection marks on the barrel, frame, cylinder, and left grip. The 1909 was the Army’s standard side...

By Sam.S •
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