Historical firearms, Winchester 45-70
 

Had a 45-70 pistol grip Winchester (the big boy of Winchester rifles) across my knees today. Teddy Roosevelt had one. Pretty rare version of the gun that won the west. The walnut crotchwood pistol grip stock was pretty magnificent. A friend of mine is a collector of militaria, carriage mounted Gatlin, several cannons and so on. Next time I visit I'll get a chance to hold one of Buffalo Bill Cody's Winchester rifles.:eek: Cool stuff.

Pics or it didn't happen! :D

:DNobody trusts a southpaw anymore...:( Here's something to occupy you until I get my hands on Mr. Cody's rifle. Dad's souvenier from the 10th Arm. Div. 3rd Army Deutschland tour circa '45. Solingen steel.
RLB dress dagger. :eek:

Thanks!

Hillbilly << Clicks the like button.

Dad traded some c rations for it. No killing involved.:)

The 45-70 looks just like this...pic from google. Although the stock had finer figure to the walnut. Heavy octagonal barrel.

Super nice! And he has a gatlin gun? :eek: Awesome!

Pete

Yup, carriage mounted with the secondary ammunition carriage. I keep volunteering to put on one of those Blue Belly Union uniforms he has if he'll let me fire it.;) He just laughs but who knows?

He just purchased a bunch of Buffalo Bill Cody's Wild West show stuff from one of Bill's performers descendants. It's truly like walking into a museum in this guy's house. The door to his gun room is an old Wells Fargo bank vault door (10" thick.) I'm stunned and amazed every time I visit, at what his latest acquisitions are.

I'm repairing his old Philco 40-120 tabletop tube radio that belonged to his grandma. When I showed him my dagger he pulled out half a dozen better officer's models. He wanted to buy mine but I had to decline. I have three older brothers who would gleefully draw and quarter my sorry ass if I did.

See if he will let you take some photos. I would love to see them.

Finally.

A thread devoid of political talking points and misc personal bullshit.

Bob, you should consider yourself fortunate. You are being blessed with not only seeing, but being able to handle historical weapons seldom seen outside of a museum. Apparently your friend not only bores with a big auger, but has a pretty deep hip pocket as well.

Congratulations,

Chas

I am indeed honored, Charlie. He is a very interesting gentleman of the highest caliber, pun intended.

I know of people who have interesting firearms, and even collectible firearms, including myself, but I know of no one (personally) who own historically significant firearms.

Seeing them in a museum is one thing...holding them in your hands is something else.

Looking back, perhaps the most interesting museum I ever went though was one which was owned by an old couple pretty close to the Little Big Horn...get it???

It was in there house, and I was to young to appreciate what they had.

The best I remember, they ha several .45-70 Trapdoors they claimed they bought from the Indians whut whooped Custer's ass.

That was Americana at it's finest. Whenever Ma & Pa and the kids could pull int to nowhere USA and see history without a stuffed shirt guide.

It was just there.

Myself, I spend my time searching for the last of Amerciana, lost fishing camps from the '50's is my specially. But they're going the way of the Dodo bird.

Don't get me wrong, I can appreciate that the only thing constant is change. But I don't appreciate a world full of condo's with everyone in an offshore Fountain as an improvement.

And if you would like my honest opinion of what's wrong with the world....it''s too many people.

But not to worry, the Earth will shake us off like a wolf drowning lice in a river.

Stick that in your pipe and smoke it. it's what's gonna happen...like it or not.

Chas

PS: Previewing my work, I really shouldn't post it. But I'm good and drunk, as as honest as I' capable of, so, for what it is...it's honest.

Don't mind if I do..http://www.audiokarma.org/forums/ima...es/smoking.gif
Thanks Charlie, That's some good shit!:D

Works for me Chas!

Pete

I didn't think that you partook, Pete? That's a felony in O-high-yo, ya know?;):D

Possession in Ohio's a minor misdemeanor now, a waiverable parking ticket-ish thing, unless you're driving, then an 'administrative' 6 month suspension. Just FYI :)

Pete

So, I saw my friend again for a short time the other evening. Got to hold a rifle that once belonged to Buffalo Bill Cody. Pretty damn awesome.

Buffalo Bill's rifle was a 44-40 with a trick trigger. Button underneath the lever tripped the trigger. Pretty dang cool for a kid who grew up on the Rifleman.:D
All it took for me to be befriended by this impressive collector is an admiration of really old junk:). He used to have some mine ore carts in his front yard and he saw me leaning on his fence one day admiring them and he took a liking. It didn't hurt to have a granddad who was a founding Member of the Order of Daedalians.

My neighbor gave me some curved stripper clips and a few rounds of Lebel 1886 rifle rounds. First smokeless cartridges made. The French/Austrians sure make stuff with a certain flair, even bullets.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi..._8mm_round.jpg
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lebel_Model_1886_rifle

I'll have to see if my friend, the collector, has one of these WW1 era rifles.

Considering it's a French rifle, it may never have been fired in combat.;)

It didn't even get into the frontline troops' hands. We could learn something from those wine obsessive Frenchies, no?:D Designed by Mannlicher, hence the Austrian ref.

I have two 30.06 rifles one a Springfield 03 and the other a Eddystone bolt action. Both are very easy and fast to learn to shoot well. I would think that round would be also!



Barney

These are 8mm? Weird shit, indeed!:) These rounds appear to be full steel jacketed, armor piercing:confused:?

No. 30-06 is also called a 7.62x63 (bullet diameter x case length).

Right the 7.62 NATO. The AK47 also uses a 7.62 round but with a shorter casing. I think Bob may have been talking about the French Lebel cartridge being 8mm.

John

Actually, the 7.62 NATO (7.62X51) is the 308 Winchester, not a 30-06 (which is not a NATO cartridge). The AK shoots a 7.62X39.

Sorry I was alluding to the progression from the Lebel rifle/round to Mauser then onto the Springfield and then Lee-Enfield. How that action and round may have started the trend away from lever action.



Barney

OOPS! Thanks for the correction! I probably had to learn that in the Army but that was 45 years ago.

John

http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstrac...669D94689FD7CF

New York Times Oct. 1889.

Thought I'd resurrect this old thread for shits and giggles. This old lefty has a thing for antique firearms. I want me a Henry rifle for Christmas. ;)

I want a model 1873 Colt Single Action Army Peacemaker in .45 Long Colt.

And a WW2 Vintage 1911-A1 .45 ACP made by the Singer Sewing Machine Company.

Why a Singer? Better construction?

Singer only made about 500 of them. Hence, they're highly collectible.

Ahhh, I see.

You have excellent taste Tom. ;)

I'll have to ask my friend if he has one.

When I saw the first pic in the write-up I was highly impressed. Those do indeed look like the best production values this side of cost-no-object artisan machining. They had all kinds of motivation to aim for that, obviously.

I'm not much of an auto-loader fan, but there is something about those old GI .45's.

One of my favorite scenes from Saving Private Ryan is where Tom Hanks is shooting at the German Tank with one.

http://i843.photobucket.com/albums/z...om-hanks-1.jpg

A gorgeous still. Took bunches of artistry and acting to create that image.