Gun Review: Colt 1911 Government Series 80 .45 ACP
On March 29, 1911, Lt. Col. John T. Thompson of the U.S. Ordnance Department sent a letter to Colt’s in Hartford, Connecticut. The purpose was to inform them that the ... Read more
Gun Review: Del-Ton Sport Lite AR-15 Rifle
The AR-15 market has never given buyers more choices than it does now. The number of companies making them is virtually countless. Price points are equally plentiful, which means that ... Read more
Gun Review: Smith & Wesson Model 360 .357/.38 S&W J-Frame Revolver
Smith & Wesson introduced their J-frame revolvers to the world in 1950. The Chief’s Special – later, the Model 36 – became a popular gun for concealed carry because of ... Read more
19th Century ‘Milspec’ Was Anything But
By the middle of the 19th century, arms production in the United States was changing. The concept of interchangeable parts had become the primary goal at the Federal armories. If ... Read more
Dream Gun: The Smith & Wesson Registered Magnum
When Smith & Wesson introduced the now-legendary Registered Magnum in 1935, the United States was in the middle of the Great Depression. Even so, that didn’t stop them from offering ... Read more
How Sam Colt Used Nitrous Oxide to Fund His Firearms Entrepreneurship
“Dr. Coult of New York, London and Calcutta.” That’s how the up-and-coming firearm inventor billed himself while exhibiting the effects of nitrous oxide in the 1830s. Traveling the country as ... Read more
John Garand’s Need for Speed
In the waning days of 1928, John C. Garand filed a patent application for a “High Speed Firing Mechanism.” At the same time, he was working diligently at Springfield Armory ... Read more
Wright Arms Company ‘Little All Right’ Palm Pistol
Easy-to-conceal palm pistols were all the rage during the last quarter of the 19th century. Numerous companies produced countless variations of very similar designs. One design was, however, quite different ... Read more
Historic Cost of Doing Business: Smith & Wesson
Horace Smith and Daniel Baird Wesson officially began Smith & Wesson on November 18, 1856. Company records in possession of Smith & Wesson historian Roy Jinks reveal what it cost ... Read more
