"The Evolution of Firearms" - Episode 4 - The Winning of the West

[@AbrahamLincoln4]

I gotta love my Spencer rifles.

[@Coco9thASOS]

Ain’t them old derringers just a pain in the head? Right old Abe?

[@eamonia]

You're still alive, dude!? Sweet. I'll let you shoot some of mine, if I can shoot some of yours. I might have to explain what might seem like magic to you but I promise, you're gonna have a "blast." You're gonna LOVE full auto. And don't worry, I have all my paperwork and everything. In the future, they kinda took a huge dump on the 2nd amendment so legally owning anything fully automatic (I'll explain what that is when you get here) is insanely expensive.

[@jimrutherford2773]

My favorite parts of this series of documentaries are not only the fascinating history of the firearms but the curators of the museums holding fine examples of the original guns.

[@adamfrazer5150]

I'm far from an expert on firearms development, but there seems no greater period of ingenuity, necessity and prolific invention than that of the one surrounding The Old West - damned fascinating 👍

[@Matt-xc6sp]

It’s the development of metallic cartridges and the advent of the industrial revolution, not necessarily the place itself.

[@wsmvolunteers8588]

Metallic cartridges, breech loading firearms, repeating rifles, bored through revolver cylinders, the Gatling Gun were all products of ingenuity, necessity, and prolific invention during the Civil War.

[@mrjockt]

@@wsmvolunteers8588 All that advancement, and the U.S. Army stuck with a breech loading conversion of a muzzle loading rifle for longer than almost any other industrialised nation.

[@wsmvolunteers8588]

@@mrjockt Yep. The Swiss adopted the first version of the Vetterli rifle in 1868. It was a bolt action repeater holding 12 metallic cartridges in a tubular magazine under the barrel. Repeaters didn't show up for the U. S. Military until the Krag Jorgensen in 1892. And it wasn't all that great of a service rifle. I think we finally got it right with the 1903 Springfield and the M1 Garand. Let's not talk about the early M16s in Vietnam.

[@mrjockt]

@@wsmvolunteers8588 What makes it worse was that the U.S. Army carried out trials just before the end of the Civil War to decide which weapons to standardise on, they chose the Peabody breech loader for the infantry and the Spencer repeating carbine for the cavalry, then when the war ended all the money dried up and the Army had to make do with what they already had.

[@averagegunuserhere4107]

8:37 about revolvers is my favorite part of this history video

[@Dilyn514]

I’m here to see shotguns

[@Danogil]

23:44 Geronimo may have had Many battles in the old West, but Little Big Horn Was Not one of them.

[@alanoliveiraarruda7058]

The best documentary of gun history...

[@marshalofod1413]

Hardly. Horrible inaccuracies...

[@wolfswesterns6650]

I sorry, but at 10:04-10:12 those were paper cartridges for an old Colt/Remington. Unlike what the narrator was saying, those were not metallic cartridges. Granted, all around that he was showing metallic ones. Still gave them a Thumbs Up, they earned it.

[@simonsundy518]

The narrator said "cartridges, not yet metallic cartridges"

[@johnryan2193]

This should be titled The History of American Guns !

[@ronmailloux8655]

yes it gets one sided vs the guns of other nations.

[@Graff-z4x]

lmao dyin over that spooky soundtrack while the super-formal cat is discussing technical aspects of the trap-door breach-loader lolll so over the top!

[@outdooraddventure]

I love firearms not just because they're a good tool to have on the home but the mechanical aspect of it just like watches and automobiles anything else with intricate parts

[@mrjockt]

It might have been worth mentioning that the Mauser beaten by the Krag in U.S. trials was the magazine fed Model 92 (future development of this rifle led to the famous Gewher 98) and not the single shot Mauser Model 71, which is the impression given by the narrator.

[@bonanzatime]

I've been waiting my whole life to see this☺

[@rioyr6210]

Missed out to mention about how smokeless powder completely changed the game compared to black powder

[@Johnny.B357]

They won't talk about it since it isn't the Americans who invented it

[@Smarterthanasocialist]

@@Johnny.B357 True

[@SStupendous]

Sort of. There's endless footage from WW1 of 'smokeless powder' making significant amounts of smoke.

[@jamesharris5508]

@@Johnny.B357 thats why he talked extensively about Chinese spear rifles in ep. 1?

[@timmuto7824]

You're right dood. He missed it..

[@TonyfromTO]

Excited to watch this!

[@joejoe2928]

💂 VETERAN SCOTS GUARDS. MUCH THANKS FOR THE GREAT HISTORY OF FIREARMS ..AWESOME VIDS...💂

[@louieHuelsman]

Gr8 information n history!

[@therealhawkeyeii7888]

It was Wild Bill Hickok that was known for carrying the 1851 Navy Colt, not Buffalo Bill Cody. Lots of errors in this episode.

[@SStupendous]

Didn't he also have engraved M1851s or was it something else?

[@jesuschrist2284]

Won the west sounds so much nicer than genocide

[@mighaelwalker6224]

The 30/40 Krag was a well liked by the civilian market for it's smooth action. As a deer rifle it excelled. As a military arm it was lacking.

[@richardelliott9511]

Least we forget, the Krag was absolutely cutting edge at it's inception in 1889ish. It used a cartridge on parr with the other 1st gen smokeless military rounds, it had a very smooth, strong enough bolt action and faster reloading than the other internal box magazines of the time. It is disappointing to me that the army doesn't seem to have developed the ammo packaging or other kit that would allow soldiers to take full advantage of it's rapid reloading capabilites. It's just unfortunate that it was so rapidly over taken by the "en mass" loading systems and higher pressure, flatter shooting cartridges of Mauser, Mannlicher and others. In the US Army it became obsolescent before it was even fully deployed. Thinking on it, I believe that the change over from the Krag to the '03 Springfield may have been one of the shortest developement to adoption times in the Ordinance Boards history.

[@blondbowler8776]

A Ruger No. 3 in 30-40 Krag, two sons, two shots 25 years apart, two deer. I loaded that ammo for the first deer, and a round of it got the next one, too. It's one of those cases that likes The Load (described in articles elsewhere. I don't want to be tossing load data out there...). We have a couple Krags, too, one sorta of crudely and minimally sporterized, the other with a new Boyd's stock. Slickest bolt action I know of. Took first place with the sporterized one in the bolt action assault rifle (five pop cans offhand at 50 yards, fastest wins) event at The Great Celebrity Bowling Pin Shoot in the 90s, using The Load. Right up there with the SMLE No.1 Mk III for smooth and slick. Nice cartridge, like the 30-30.

[@dauntless0711]

@@richardelliott9511 at the time, it was a reasonable choice, considering the trapdoor Springfields were plainly obsolete. The Krag is a weird transitional weapon made before the course of firearms was clear. The idea was you’d fire single shots with a magazine cutoff, and have the rapid fire magazine for when you needed it. As it turned out, soldiers needed it all the time, and from that lesson came a far better rifle in the Springfield 1903.

[@SStupendous]

I find it interesting that it's a smokeless rifle, because you can find some iconic images from the Spanish-American War of soldiers firing in a line, all krags, and yet a large clouds kicks up (Not as big as blackpowder though.)

[@Smarterthanasocialist]

@@richardelliott9511 And the 1903 wasn't ready for deployment for WW1, the 1917 Enfield rifle was the weapon that the vast majority of our combat troops used. This has more to do with the fact that the 1917 was essentially ready to go with slight modification and the 1903 would have required time to get production rolling.

[@Bruciando]

Lots of flaws in this (mispronunciation of Schofield & others) but the worst is the repetition of the "Mauser took the US to court over the 1903 Springfield & won" myth. The '03 Springfield was a licensed design; Mauser took the US to court over the use of spitzer bullets and won *that* suit...

[@Smarterthanasocialist]

I guess the lie just sounded better to some but thank you for truth as it is always more interesting or should be.

[@chriswoodbury99]

Evidence?

[@alanbud5181]

Mauser took the US to court about the patent infringement with the 1903 Springfield. Unfortunately for them WW1 broke out.

[@robertocanales1201]

Very nice series 👌🏼

[@mltndeal5120]

I'm Native American from Navajo nation. The American Indians got hold of variety of different types of firearms in the wildwest days. So we Native Americans are still stereotyped as living in tepees and still live like the old days, but we own firearms too. I bought myself a 22L Heritage Rough Rider recently because I'm fascinated by the wild west days. I like watching documentary videos like this 'evolution of firearms'. In 2022 there is alot of mass shooting sprees and typical gun violence in America, but every US citizens have a right to bear arms. We shall not be infringed.

[@DK-gy7ll]

One of my favorite t-shirts has a picture of Geronimo and his fellow Apaches, with the caption "Department of Homeland Security... fighting terrorism since 1492".

[@rubbafunk]

@@DK-gy7ll no way dude I actually own that t-shirt! Picked it up in Colorado at a gift shop.

[@jonmcclane7433]

I always rooted for the Indians in History Class

[@joaopaulosilva2943]

Epic Ive been waiting for this

[@aaravtulsyan]

Good documentary series

[@bigredmed]

The lack of Moisin Nagant development was a notable absence.

[@aaravtulsyan]

@@bigredmed yes the documentaries of this channel are very American focused, thats the only downside that they potray everything as having American relation

[@bigredmed]

@@aaravtulsyan Given the historical importance of that rifle, it should have been included.

[@aaravtulsyan]

@@bigredmed Indeed I also not enough attention was given to the Needle Gun.

[@bigredmed]

@@aaravtulsyan agreed. Given it's importance in European history, it needed more than a mention.

[@bobworthington6819]

I had a Lemat, a replica of course, the originals are way expensive, what a fun gun! They later became cartridge guns, and a carbine was made as well.

[@danm7298]

Firearms development during this period was rapid. guns were often obsolete by the time they were issued. Thats why so many rifles were sold onto the civilian surplus market. countrys were dumping their entire inventory for a new weapon only to replace it a few years later. The martini henry for example, which is so famous today was only in service for about 16 years.

[@Darqshadow]

Wait... the Rorke's Drift rifle was only in service for 16 years?

[@danm7298]

@@Darqshadow Yes it was replaced in 1889 by the lee metford. adopted in 1871 was the mk1 MH. The version of the martini henry at the battle was the Mk 2 (1872-1879) in 1879 they changed to the mk3. so actually the mk2 was only around for another year after the zulu war. in around 1885 they came out with the mk4 which served for only a few years. I just bought an 1878 mk2 from IMA.

[@JnEricsonx]

M14 for less time I think than even that.

[@europadefender]

Luv it

[@jimothy007]

Currently watching this series to see how to upgrade my alchemist's firearm during my next D&D campaign xD

[@matscaife9014]

The Beltway Bandits Mat 👍🪘

[@outdoorlifemaine6691]

I am here for the 30 40 krag you better talk about it

[@arapahoetactical7749]

No mention at all of the Colt 1895 Potato Digger. A Browning design that was the first DI gas operated gun and was used by the Rough Riders. Also not mention of the Hotchkiss Rotary artillery piece also used in that war.

[@IMBrute-ir7gz]

Why did you show a photo of the Apache, Geronimo when you mentioned the Custer defeat? I don't claim to be a scholarly historian, but I'm pretty sure Geronimo was nowhere near the Little Bighorn that day!

[@pyeitme508]

Cool

[@OldJong]

23:43 I don't believe that Geronimo was present at the Custer battle! 😉

[@beaublackford3697]

Was that Gatling Gun chambered in 7.62 x 39? Kinda looked like it

[@seanberthiaume6909]

NO .45-70 same as the Springfield trapdoor...a really large cartridge

[@wsmvolunteers8588]

@@seanberthiaume6909 The Gatling was chambered in multiple calibers including .30-03 and .30-06.

[@robertg.arbuckle6838]

The early 30-30's were both black powder and smokeless powder. 30 grains of black powder, 30 cal. Bullet, 7.62mm. No matter what they say, the 7.62 has always been the best caliber. The first AK's were so good that our special forces used the AK for many many reasons. The M14 was a rifle that we could use as a semi or a full machine gun. The M16 was a deadly toy, but a toy nonetheless🤔.deadly in a supermarket... The AK is a toy in5.56,but yes deadly in a Mall.. The AR15, also is a killer toy, the terrible thing is it can be in 7.62.

[@richardtuholsky4028]

Let’s go brandon 🍦🍦🍦👍🏿

[@awizardalso]

I have a Marlin Model 336W 30-30 rifle

[@davefellhoelter1343]

twice I noticed the voice talking about center fire cartridge revolvers and the video depicting a Remington 1858 44 black powder cap and ball revolver?? My fist choice as a young man in the early 70's picking my first fire arm to learn from the ground up, building one from raw castings to finish.

[@thatsmrharley2u2]

If you're referring to the cap and ball revolver shown firing at 5:51, (and again at 15:11)... that's a Ruger Old Army, not a Remington 1858.

[@YakubibnEsau]

@@thatsmrharley2u2 that’s what it looked like to me.

[@LapaTheBear]

They only had roughly 300,000 Springfield Model 1903 in World War 1, not 800,000. They did however have 2 million Model 1917 Enfield rifles, a design that was given to them by the British

[@earlcollinsworth4914]

The government also had access to over half a million 1891 Mosin -nagants as Remington had been building these for the Russian Empire, and shipments were stopped by order of President Wilson. I believe these were issued as the model 1917 Remington.

[@MayheM_72]

Everyone assumes the primary US rifle in WW1 was the 1903 Springfield, due to the fact that it was selected as the new US rifle in 1903. Unfortunately, they couldn't make them fast enough to arm all the men once we entered the war. There were, however, multiple US companies who were producing the Enfield pattern 1914 rifle for the British. Once we joined the war in their side, we changed it from the .303 round to our .30-06 round, and the 1917 Enfield was born. On a side note, with the number of inaccuracies in this section of the series, I wonder how many mistakes there were made that I wouldn't have caught because I wasn't as familiar with the earlier firearms...

[@MrSniperdude01]

I can't wait to see GUNS: 2020-2070 Birth of the 40watt range plasma rifle 😆

[@TheMoose126]

Just what you see here pal..

[@therealhawkeyeii7888]

".44 by 44 caliber??" No such thing. Narrator meant to say .44-40.

[@iceberg789]

but , bolt vs lever, which is faster ?

[@danm7298]

They couldve showed a picture of sitting bull or crazy horse when they talked about the battle of little big horn instead of Geronimo who had nothing to do with the battle lol.

[@davejones67]

The .44 by 44 caliber?

[@mighaelwalker6224]

Needle fire firearms have never been considered bolt action firearms. The needle fire is an action type of it's own.

[@ilfarmboy]

what about the French Chassepot rifle invented in 1866

[@iceberg789]

"one of our conductors practiced a while on a cow with it" ..... i also heard, some medieval swordsmen tested new swords on villagers.

[@gobeklipepe]

FN 5.7 is best handgun ever. End of discussion. 💯

[@gg_gameryt]

"Evolution of Firearms", barely talks about European rifles where most of the innovations and actual development of guns happened

[@mrjockt]

Because Americans like to believe any advancement in anything can only be done by them.

[@ilfarmboy]

springfield trapdoors were still used in spanish american war

[@ricardodelano2205]

where can i get a showfield pistol i want a showdield pistol by george showfield.

[@damianbigelow9511]

I would listen to his opinions on what pen I should be using but as far as personal defense goes ill listen to mr Smith and/or Mr. Wesson over an authors opinion any day.. ~A Union soldier probably~

[@harriettedaisy2233]

This would be a 10 minute video without the recaps and precaps.

[@reinaldogarcia70]

Smokeless powder gave rifles and other Firearms more power and deadlier accuracy had a higher speed bullet and also prevented a puff of smoke next to the shooter that will have been detected A factor that was always part of firing a black powder firearm Puffs of gunfire smoke gave away the position of the shooter

[@benquinneyiii7941]

I’ll take a repeater

[@kholt275]

The correct term is 44-40, not 44 by 40.

[@slypperyfox]

Or, 44-WCF. But no one outside of Winchester wanted WCF stamped on their frames or barrels.

[@matthewstewart5507]

US Army - We prefer the slow firing guns for the troops because even through the enemy with fast firing guns will overpower them, at least we will save money on ammo Also US Army - let's also deploy the Gatling Gun to just spray bullets everywhere

[@JnEricsonx]

Well, eventually during the civil war, Lincoln fired/relieved one of the top military guys who kept bucking against the henry and spencer rifles, especially after he got to test a spencer himself.

[@ulrichkalber9039]

the inventor of the needlegun is pronounced drise

[@jeffhill1708]

Been nice if they used a 1st gen Colt

[@TommygunNG]

Colt Single Action Army has only one defect: No safety. It has to be carried with an empty chamber under the hammer. But for that, I'd have a dozen of them.

[@TheMan-je5xq]

Nowadays I think they fixed that problem cause I know I own a own a single action that won’t fire unless the hammer comes all the way back

[@TommygunNG]

Rugers and Ubertis and most others have some sort of internal safety to permit safe carry with all chambers loaded, but current-manufacture SAAs don't.

[@TheMan-je5xq]

@@TommygunNG ok cause mine is a Ruger Vaquero .357

[@JnEricsonx]

You'd think that would be something to keep in mind during development.

[@scottscheuerman6170]

Most of the safety is between your ears if you carry them with a empty under the hammer they are just as safe as any single action revolver

[@patdaly4107]

Okay you're Springfield trapdoor model was not a modification the only part that they actually reused in the gun was the barrel everything else from the civil war was scrapped only the barrels were reused and some of the lockworks

[@Mithrilluin]

Why the incessant banjo? It distracted me so much I had to keep rewatching parts.

[@hunt3rv221]

"Evolution of american firearms" would be a better title , cuz there is almost no talking weapons other than american

[@twogungunnar9456]

Goddamn right. 🇺🇸

[@JohnSmith-vm2jl]

They can have my gun when they pry it from my cold, dead hands. They can have their own Evolution of firearms video when they have more guns than the U.S.

[@mrjockt]

Of course not, haven’t you realised that America invented EVERYTHING.

[@danielcurtis1434]

So there are guns outside the USA???

[@matteoironborn7644]

You fool, don’t you know that the world revolves around the US of A?😂

[@adamfrazer5150]

(Sigh) Micheal Ironside, a legend 👌............there is NO Sam Fisher without Micheal Ironside - his voice sounds like a stream of maple syrup flowing over a bed of the coarsest gravel 🤤

[@JnEricsonx]

And the man looked in his 40s or 50s when he was barely in his 30s.

[@itsyourenotyour9101]

I prefer any gun with +100 to marksmanship and dexterity. I'm not picky.

[@ilfarmboy]

cost $600000 for the US to be able to use the mauser action in the 03-a3 rifle

[@1-7-1lh8]

You should have mentioned that the first successful back loader rifle was from Prussia during the Austro-Prussian war.

[@matthewwilliams8969]

Think they had it before then.

[@danilocynepppiloveyoumotas2401]

i like m2 carbine,1911 A1

[@giovanirosales7526]

I lovey navy revolver

[@WoodrowWoods2007]

Dang, no mention of the 1886 :(

[@benquinneyiii7941]

Conserve

[@williamforbes6291]

Reinactors missing intentionally lol

[@NotInMyRepublic]

No mention of a new pistol by perhaps the greatest designer ever, Browning's 1911? Sad, just sad.

[@RalphReagan]

I don't know how much credibility you can have, you did not mention John Moses Browning even once. For shame!

[@peterparsons7141]

Yep Mauser successfully sued Springfield for patent infringement and won. The US never paid reparations, war provided cause to avoid payment.

[@mighaelwalker6224]

Please stop repeating the inaccurate information that was put in doc's of the 90's. There is much better research that has been done since the fall of the Soviet Union on American arms development than existed before. While I understand the need for being concise, too much brevity leads to inaccuracy. The Springfiedl Trapdoor was not well liked. If it had been liked the civilian market would have mede copies. There are no copies of the rifle because it was inferior. Only the US Army used them. Not even poor civilians used that rifle. Aside from the ammo problems, why would you use a rifle Custer lost with?

[@therealhawkeyeii7888]

That wasn't a Colt Frontier Six Shooter. What they showed as one was actually a replica of a Remington New Army percussion revolver, known today as a Model 1858 Remington.

[@YakubibnEsau]

It looked like a Ruger Old Army. I’m probably wrong.

[@wizardofahhhs759]

"The Gatlin Gun wasn't a true automatic because it required someone to crank the handle" By that logic an M-16 or AK47 isn't a true automatic because it requires someone to pull the trigger.😕

[@DoubleRRHonda]

Full auto is one action of the trigger. The crank on the gatlin gun can’t fire continuously without multiple cranks.

[@wizardofahhhs759]

@@DoubleRRHonda So technically it's a semi-auto.

[@DoubleRRHonda]

@@wizardofahhhs759 correct

[@cottonballs185]

@@DoubleRRHonda No, that's *crank fire*

[@mighaelwalker6224]

The Springfield was chosen because of price not reliability which was at best questionable due to ammo problems. The firearms that were relied upon were the Sharps and Remington. The Army was at a disadvantage in the old west. Look at how Custer died. He was out gunned at the Little Big Horn as well as out numbered.

[@thatsmrharley2u2]

Custer had access to several Gatling guns, but thought that they were too difficult to transport, so they were left behind.

[@savannahariel9636]

❤🧡💛💚💙💜🖤

[@benquinneyiii7941]

Centennial

[@brightly9318]

We not gonna mention the farb with the kepi on backward..... gangsta reb.....

[@arttimm9153]

For an image of a Native American Indian while discussing the Battle of the Little Big Horn - you use an image of Geronimo - wrong man - wrong tribe

[@mighaelwalker6224]

The majority of American forces in World War I used British or French made weapons.

[@robertg.arbuckle6838]

The firearm that won the West was a 12ga. Shotgun in the hands of a woman. Propaganda is so deep in America that the truth is denied. The lever action twelve Ga.was an awesome weapon. Six cartridges of OO buckshot each ball of which could leave a hole the size of a .44 pistol round. Six rounds in each shot. Six cartridges in each loading.

[@rogervaldez-vi5hq]

Winchester 44cal would make man shit on their stick ,when shot in between the eyes

[@michealfigueroa6325]

Neanderthals got on the road to hunting for food and self defense and a Neanderthal is putting a stop to it.or at least trying

[@adtorresitpro]

Military rifle approvers have always had their hands in the till and resisted way better rifle designs to the detriment of the troops. Even the m1 garand could've been magazine fed but this nonesense about shooting too much ammunition continues to impose stupid design considerations. Finally, the m14 using 308 was also the last time military approvers resisted adopting a much better cartridge from the british and decided nato would standardize on 308 instead. They never learn or force these approvers to justify their decision for the benefit of the front line troops!

[@unklekal7571]

Watching actors shoot blanks doesn't really work in a documentary about guns.

[@panos.anastopoulos.]

👍🏻👌🏻👏🏻❤🇬🇷

[@thejayman1886]

Does anyone care about the winchester 1886? You talked about everything except the winchester model of 1886 and I am dissapointed.

[@baneh1329]

I'm sure Curtis?, there is quite knowledgeable, but he has no screen presence

[@wesleygillespie4368]

The 12th Amendment dictates that a vice president can not be selected if they are not eligible for president.

[@benquinneyiii7941]

Piece

[@dennislloyd494]

I had forgotten how inept this series is in matching the dialog to the actual gun depicted. Can't finish this episode and won't waste time on any others. Posing as educational, it's bumbling misinformation.

[@raymurphy2182]

Will Americans ever accept that America is NOT the world and lots of thing happen in other countries ?

[@TheBucketSkill]

Its a subconscious thing, a lot of folks don't realize how America-centric there world view is. Consequence of having a sort of hegemony... sometimes even foreigners get caught in it, for some reason our politics are watched by others as if it were there own. Very annoying.

[@acey_404._.]

"the evolution of firearms" skips over almost all firearms except the american ones. I trully hoped this would be a good documentary about firearms.

[@slavvodkaman9359]

Krag Jogersen was the worst rifle, with a slow fire rate

[@ilfarmboy]

it was a 44-40 or 44 wcf (winchester centerfire ) NOT 44-44 dummy