Why does Geronimo have a Confederate Revolver?

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The interim period of the "old west", which like to refer to as the old old west, included the use of a lot of surplus weapons from the US Civil war. The transition and evolution from percussion revolvers to cartridge revolvers took time, and thus it would be common to see someone with a percussion revolver but a cartridge long arm. Let's talk about why Geronimo has a Confederate percussion revolver in this 1890's (or later) photo.

[@blvalverde]

I'm Brazilian. Despite druglords buying M4s and even Ma Deuces, most crimes in my country are committed with 38sp revolvers old enough to have a midlife crisis.

[@caylumhenderson9396]

Old enough to have a midlife crisis loll

[@george2113]

Or even worse, the midwife crisis

[@exploatores]

thats nothing. one of my fathers hunting rifles is old enough for it´s great grand son to have a midlife crisis

[@GrosvnerMcaffrey]

If it ain't broke don't fix it

[@blvalverde]

@@GrosvnerMcaffrey yup. And a revolver can take a long time to break.

[@InrangeTv]

Sadly I missed some audio leveling from ~9 minutes in for 1 minute. Rather than re-upload, lose views and cause confusion, I figured I'd just apologize. If you raise the volume for that one minute, it's all still there, just a mistake in leveling consistency. :( Also, yes - I realize that that revolver was provided to Geronimo as a prop in the Wild West show. That still speaks to the longevity and proliferation of these firearms well into the 1900's, considering that there were only a few hundred Dance revolvers ever even manufactured.

[@Wigalot]

Don't forget to pin this comment to top :)

[@Treblaine]

150 years from now: "why is this holo-flick set in the 2020s got so many people armed with glock pistols? The FN Five-seveN had been on the market for years!"

[@george2113]

Most people don't wear body armor, so most people don't need armor piercing weapons

[@exploatores]

I would more say, why pepole have 1911, when Glock and polymer framed guns have existed for decades.

[@toddwebb7521]

Well shit j frame revolvers are still popular for self defense

[@Treblaine]

@@exploatores I know I'm gonna get flak for this but it'll be worth it: using a 1911 in the 2020s is like using a flintlock pistol in the 1870s.

[@george2113]

@@exploatores some people are into old technology

[@grisslebear]

Louis L'Amour once said in an interview, "There are many so-called 'experts' that decry the range & power of the black powder revolver. There are hundreds of men in boot hill that wish that was true."

[@456eec]

I have an original copy of Clyde Baker's "Modern Gunsmithing" published in 1933. In it he states that the single most common handgun that came through his shop was still percussion Colt revolvers.

[@mathewparrish9377]

I live in Kentucky, here and in Tennessee and other Appalachian areas folks in the mountains were still using cap lock long rifles up into the early 1900’s. They kept them working and they were reliable, so they kept using them. Often they were called hog or bear rifles.

[@johncanzoneri4771]

Amen. My grandad born 1883 was raised with Bannerman cap locks converted shotguns from smoothbore Civil war muskets, Woodruff County, AR

[@BillyJ244]

So goes that concept for today as well. I'm disabled and have less money than I used to. Just about everything I own is obsolete. From my weapons to my automobile. This was a very good, informative video. Thank you. I love history. You presented this very well! 😁

[@Tornado1861]

The average person had little need for pistols. The shotgun and rifle were far more useful, therefore handguns were they were last gun to acquire. Surplus C&B revolvers were about $6 versus about $15 for a new Colt SAA.

[@JamesThomas-gg6il]

Yep but three and New York reload twice before having to re feed the rifle if needed.

[@gregzeigler3850]

Quite true. My grandpa made due with a .410 shotgun and a bolt action .22 rifle during the great depression and as far as I can tell, never owned any other guns(both of which still go bang, though the rifle is from 1917, and the shotgun from the 1920's). I have of course given them to my grandchildren, so they'd stay in the family. I expect, if they take care of them as well as I did, they will be handed down to their children.

[@bryangonzalez1398]

Another fantastic video and I really can't wait to try Dead eye sometime! I really love how you're highlighting the wide variety of firearms used on the American frontier, one of my favorite examples of a mix of technology is that when the famous Californio Tiburcio Vasquez was captured in 1874, the posse that caught him stated they seized a “six revolvers, two Winchester rifles of the model of 1873, then considered the best weapon made, and a Spencer seven-shooter". And while his rifles were the newest model, Tiburcio's personal pistol was a second model Colt Dragoon. Maybe for Dead Eye I'll try and run with the same setup Vasquez had.

[@navajoguy8102]

There are famous photos of Geronimo, along with other Apache fighters, posing with their rifles. His was a trapdoor Springfield carbine, single shot. Now I remember that you guys actually did a video of that one too. Interesting bit, those pictures of Geronimo and his followers were taken while they were still enemies of the United States. Most other photographs of chieftains or leaders in from those days were taken before or after hostilities stopped. An interesting detail I think is his headdress, its very Plains Indian style like what the Comanche or Shoshones would wear. In his "retirement/imprisonment" Geronimo was very aware of his celebrity with Americans. So he became something of a hustler. Wearing Apache or Indian style clothing, appearing in Western shows, and posing for photographs. He was able to make a little money for himself doing all that. He actually really liked White Americans apparently and didn't harbor too much animosity though Teddy Roosevelt denying him leniency to return to Arizona was really fucked up.

[@frankrives9964]

The Colt 1871 revolver was not the first revolver to be chambered in the same cartridge as a rifle. The S&W No. 3, which came out in 1869, was chambered in .44 American, but some revolvers were also chambered in .44 Henry. About 100 of the First Model and about 3,100 of the Second Model were chambered in .44 Henry.

[@ooloncaluphid]

In the climactic 3-way duel at the end of The Good, the Bad, and The Ugly, there's a closeup of Lee Van Cleefe's character's revolver, which was a Remington percussion revolver being carried in a cartridge belt. I always thought that that was an oops on the part of people who didn't know any better, or thought the audience wouldn't know any better, but at this point I can't really say whether it was a oops or consciously done for authenticity.

[@ringoworkagain]

Period accurate was percussion revolvers for that movie, however it's extremely unsafe to fire black powder(even without a projectile) on set, so they used blank cartridges when they needed to shoot, and even they weren't absolutely safe.

[@ringoworkagain]

And maybe cartridges were for henry rifle, since it's 1862 in the film

[@pissingeverywhere]

The opening and ending about "where you were wasn't for you anymore" was very evocative for just a few throwaway lines. Good job, Karl

[@wigon]

This is the type of history that I had no idea about. I absolutely love your historic videos like this (well actually all of your historic videos). Keep up the awesome historic videos. Super cool stuff. I've just barely gotten into lever action guns (after decades of owning AR's) and I am absolutely hooked on Old West guns. I'm now really excited about exploring single action revolvers and eventually, black powder firearms. So the history behind these firearms for me is just amazing to learn and appreciate.

[@prestongarvey7745]

I just happened to be working on a project set in the early 1870s so this video is quite handy. Thanks.

[@herknorth8691]

Years ago, I took your advice and installed an ad blocker. As of today, ironically, it looks like I won't be able to watch YT without removing it.

[@InrangeTv]

I don't know what ad blocker you're using, but Brave browser is still being effective against KZbin's nonsense.

[@herknorth8691]

@@InrangeTv Thanks!

[@SnausageKing]

Love the history stuff Karl, good video

[@InrangeTv]

Thanks 👍

[@karsonbranham3900]

Excellent video, and history lesson! Thank you professor Karl!

[@WhatIfBrigade]

In the wilderness I'd probably prefer a smoothbore so I could shoot both ball and shot depending on various game, but an 1860 Henry and 1860 Colt would mean you could shoot cartridges if they were available and shoot muzzle loading if that was all that was available. You've also got 22 shots on tap which is more than most people have loaded even in the present day.

[@noahcount7132]

Fascinating and appropriate history lesson, Karl! 👍

[@milesh.1125]

I have some caps given to me by an old timer that were made in the teens or twenties, his dad had an old muzzeloader given to hime by a civil war vet, the caps were his. furthermore those suckers still work, this oldtimer fired one a few years ago in a old shotgun he had.

[@antonioadinolfi4052]

That's a great video. It takes skills to seamlessly blend firearms and history. Thanks

[@steveneldred8928]

Brilliant! Thank you!

[@paulcrusse7800]

Thank you for all of your hard work.

[@Gunge-vq2ik]

LOVE THIS CONTENT

[@Steven-p1o]

Thanks.Very good.

[@mariodias6197]

Amazing content. One of the best about the old west

[@richardsveum8452]

People just can’t wrap their heads around the fact that their forefathers didn’t throw anything away. They would use something until it no longer worked or couldn’t be fixed anymore.

[@leckthetech6132]

Assuming that cardridge revolvers took over immediately is like assuming a new model year of car replaces all other previously made model years on the road. A look at most streets would show the inaccuracy of that assumption.

[@brucesnz]

Think about how often everyday people update their cars. I work in aftermarket parts and every day we are selling parts for 20-30 year old vehicles.

[@cu4870]

Very interesting and extremally detailed video

[@reubenleal7098]

Very interesting video 👍

[@soonersmith4179]

I want a science fiction movie set 150 to 200 years in the future, where direct energy weapons exist but most peoples side arms are Glock clones, the may have a pulse rifle in the 20watt range but their side arms are antiques. When asked why they didn’t have the new super phaser, they say “have you priced that sh*t! “

[@charlescomly1]

That was one of the things I liked about the movie True Grit the remake, Ruster carried a Colt Navy as a back up.

[@DK-gy7ll]

It's not so different from today. Not everyone who has a gun for protection uses a Gucci Glock or P320. Plenty of people still have an old S&W Model 10 in their sock drawer. Heck, some people even still carry them!

[@theblindsniper9130]

We see people modifying surplus equipment after every major war. Look at the sporterized milsurp rifles that came out after ww2

[@texasviking1]

Here in Comanche country, you carried as much ammunition as you could.

[@stacybrown3714]

Growing up in central Nebraska starting in "68" this seems like common sense. That said, I don't know why it's called "common sense" since so few possess it. I can tell that this sort of content is fun for you. I also think it is useful in making people that see it think about history and the people who lived it in the way they lived instead of how that person " feels" they should have lived. Thank you for more content with purpose.

[@kodiakkeith]

Same thing happens today. I see a lot of Gen 1 Glocks around (40 year old design?) as well 1911s, etc. Most people don't go out and buy the latest gee-whiz defense gun when an established design will serve.

[@itsfyeo1520]

I know this isn't exactly the same, but how many people do you know that still use a 38 spl revolver they bought in the 70s or 80s even though we have polymer framed double stack 9mm. Same kind of thing.

[@EPWillard]

even if it's not the best alot of people will hold onto it if it can potentially fend off say one or two assailants(human or animal). if you look at britain for example even though the law is strict people are willing to carry smoothbore handguns built from pistols designed to fire rubber bullets. even if you had a new cartridge revolver that was your preference it wouldn't be entirely unreasonable to keep your old pistol around in a saddle bag or something just in case you forget the other one.

[@Dan-be7iu]

Ur correct I believe in ur conclusions...However, Geronimo when he surrendered was carrying a Springfield trapdoor rifle in .50-.70, no sidearm tho plenty of the warriors that were with him did have handguns of various types probably procured in all sorts of different ways. The Wild West show photography is not necessarily indicative of what he would have used on the warpath. Show props were Just that- Props and i suspect that percussion revolvers were and are a easy way that someone could create "blanks", powder loads with no projectile that would produce noise and smoke but obviously no ball or bullet and so safe to use in a arena or theatre (its a show with an audience afterall)

[@Dan-be7iu]

I didn't know you had already done a video on Geronimo rifle. So ur already well aware, hell u probably even know the serial number.

[@steveferris663]

Great JOB! Thank you! Noone ever addresses the centerfire, cartridge shotgun … SASS has it wrong, as they did not exist until 1875; and, not readily available until the Colt 1878! Muzzleloader, pinfires, and under levers would have been the rule into the 1880s! Interested in your take.

[@mf3281]

I imagine people also used these guns for so long is cased ammunition is expensive

[@tmutant]

Look at some of the weapons being used in Ukraine. Some of those weapons were state-of-the-art in World War 1.

[@martinhg98]

Some may have a muzzle loading rifles

[@tigerkrag]

Not just the west. Look at Sgt York in the 1916 still using muzzle loading rifles in the mountains of Tennessee

[@Lawfully_Armed]

46-100? Would that be for the Colt Walker?

[@joelahnstein2281]

Got it Fromm Josey Wales?

[@jackhowe6]

What, Geronimo can't shop the Army Surplus?

[@nandayane]

People still use nearly century old mosins.

[@jacobmarley4907]

P.S. A lot of people used and carried paper cartridge's too.

[@somersethuscarl2938]

If people want a modern take on old guns still being used, just look at Ukraine. You can be issued with a modern RPKM which takes a sight of some kind in 7.62x54R, but if you are in a fixed defensive position like a bunker, a PM M1910 Maxim takes the same issued cartridge will keep on chugging without stopping, no need for barrel change and “gun still go pop pop, Ivan drop”. In this case PM 1910 is just as good or better …. Ever other case Nah, but for that one yes. You have it, it works, just keep on using it.

[@cdubsoptional7849]

I thought we all agreed that we were over the whole Ukraine thing. Hamas has jet packs and frickin' sharks with laser beams. The war in "BOO!"crane sucks, compared to that.

[@somersethuscarl2938]

@@cdubsoptional7849 I didn't

[@alexisborden3191]

They're not exactly frontline combat though are they? I thought they were using the maxims in more established checkpoints far west of most of the fighting.

[@alexisborden3191]

​@@cdubsoptional7849 Are you trying to have a take on which genocidal invasion is better? Or sucks less?

[@somersethuscarl2938]

@@alexisborden3191 As I said fixed postion, like bunkers. Which is at the moment The Frontline in a defensive war

[@TUCOtheratt]

Very interesting video and it was cool to see cowboy guns on what looks like USPSA/IDPA stages! I've always thought that would make cowboy matches much more fun..

[@InrangeTv]

Thank you! We've added a "Dead Eye" division for pre-1898 firearms and gear into InRange's Brutality matches - you should join us sometime! Here's a video all about Dead Eye: kzbin.info/www/bejne/roXSiIivmsx1nLs

[@TUCOtheratt]

@@InrangeTv I went and checked that out. Very cool!

[@brandonha]

@@InrangeTvbug match for a 32 top break when?

[@rds978]

My suspicion is that many people in the west used their existing firearms until they couldn't use them anymore. When you are poor in a rural area a gun is a survival tool, you don't replace until you have to. My grandfather was a farmer in Illinois. He bought a used 12-guage shotgun in 1936. He actively hunted with that gun until his death. Then my father, older brothers, and I all used it. That gun was still in active use until 1986 when it just stopped working. The gun smith my dad took it to in order to get it fixed said it was just completely worn out and that fixing it would cost more than buying a new gun. No idea how many shells were put through that gun over the years, but I'd guess the number was in the thousands.

[@NikoMoraKamu]

thats how it is in Spain normally ,we have hunting tradition in the rural areas and weapons pass trough family generations usually you will learn how to fire with the grandpa gun

[@francisdec1615]

@@NikoMoraKamu Similar here in Sweden as well. And people used old black powder muzzle loaders well into the early 1900s.

[@chrisball3778]

Most people in the Old West weren't outlaws or lawmen, just ordinary working people. A lot of them owned guns as a deterrent against robbery and as a self-defence option in case they were attacked, but never fired them in anger their whole lives. Most really didn't need the latest state-of-the art weaponry.

[@JamesThomas-gg6il]

Oh definitely, the scene in the original true grit, where the duke exclaimed " that's a colts dragoon, why you're no bigger than a corn nubbin, what are you doing with all this pistol?" Nobody wants to be on the receiving end of that thing right in any time?

[@plaguepandemic5651]

​​@@JamesThomas-gg6il definitely, the Dragoon and Walker were capable of putting out *almost* as much energy as a modern .357 magnum if loaded with max load conicals. The only things that make them obsolete today are a)how often you have to clean them and b)how slow they are to load. (They also don't perform well in wet conditions but better than you would probably think! There's a video here on KZbin of someone submerging a cap and ball revolver underwater and firing it no problem)

[@christopherreed4723]

The modern guns were also expensive. A new cartridge revolver of the latest type might cost twenty dollars or more, even assuming you could find one. But weekly wages generally ran to five dollars or less. Out of which all the week's expenses had to be paid before you could even think of setting aside some money to buy your fancy new shootin' iron. Cartridges also weren't creap. So if what you had worked for what you were doing, you wouldn't be likely to change it for some new-fangled pistol that you had to save more than a year for.

[@williamromine5715]

I would assume many went West with a percussion muzzleloader. They weren't gun fighters, and probably only used their guns to kill preditors. A muzzleloader was very easy to use. Ball and powder were available. They probably never had the need to defend themselves from gun slingers. The surplus guns were cheap and muzzleloaders were easy to come by. That was probably why the shotgun was so common. I am glad you made this video. I always thought that after the war, people going West only carried guns they could afford, and you filled in the reasons why I was right. Gun fights are greatly exaggerated in the movies.

[@natenotabot1234]

@@plaguepandemic5651the scene in both versions of True Grit the girl fails in the River shooting at the murderer and her revolver malfunctions. I saw a test of caps and ball vs cartridge guns in rain and it was nearly complete failure in the caps and ball. Moisture is definitely an other major reason to jump over. The price of a revolver however was high for most. It wasn’t worth the kind of upgrade. It’s like an old man holding onto a revolver today. It works, it just has trade offs many would rather not make if buying a new gun today.

[@DeviantOllam]

Absolutely cool. These subtle bits of historical minutia are the kinds of details so many of us live for. 😁👍

[@63DW89A]

Well done, professional video, and a superb presentation of historical FACT. One of the reasons I'm a subscriber and a regular visitor to InRange TV. The last manufacturer of revolver combustible cartridges, H.W. Mason of Connecticut, did not cease production until 1888, and that was upon the death of Mr Mason, the company ending with him. One of my pet peeves is the constant referencing of the Western Frontier as the "Cowboy Era". In reality, the American Cowboy frontier cattle-drive era only lasted about 14 years, 1866 to 1880. The most influential era on the Western Frontier, post Lewis & Clark, was the Fur Trapper / Mountain Man era roughly 1807-1840, because the Mountain Men blazed all the main trails westward. Following the Mountain Man Era the most influential era by far, was the "Gold Rush & Silver Strike Era" roughly 1848-1900! The prospectors were roaming all over the frontier establishing new trails, filling in the vast areas between the earlier main trails, and establishing mining camps and towns, stage lines, freight lines and law and order. The "Gold Rush & Silver Strike Era" arrived about the same time as the 1851 Colt Navy revolver, and it was the Navy Colt that firmly established the era of the "sixgun-packing frontiersman. Mining Camp / Town law and order was often via "Vigilante Committees", because "The Territories" were lawless, and news of a gold or silver strike drew the criminal element worldwide. The most violent towns on the Western Frontier weren't cow towns like Dodge City or Abilene; the violent places were mining camps and towns like Hangtown, Virginia City, Deadwood and Tombstone! OK rant finished! I can't brag on your channel enough. The mix of modern and old is beyond fascinating. All I can say is if the History Channel needs to learn how to present history properly, then they need to look at your channel. Along with The History Guy, Cap and Ball, Duelist1954, Hickok45 and many others. I'm amazed at how much better the content is of all of you independent KZbin guys, compared to supposedly mainstream TV programs! Keep up the great work you do! And thank you!

[@georgg372]

as a German speaking Central European who grew up with narratives of the Old West that were written by people that had never been there (Karl May e.g.) I sincerely thank you for this short but yet concise overview!

[@jerrysmooth24]

People have this idea because most modern shooters always have access similar guns also movies but the same year that the famous cattleman 1873 Colt SAA came out there was also a massive bank crash and depression so most people couldnt buy them until decades after.

[@samuelhowie4543]

Always gets me when they show a gunman using a cap and ball pistol but they're pistol belt has full cartridge loops on it.

[@anangryranger]

In 1958, my great uncle introduced me to the shooting world with his EDC weapon. An 1882 Colt SAA in 45Colt. He shot only black powder loads. He'd carried that weapon before the turn of the 20th century, as a peace officer and bounty hunter in the northern plains up until his death in 1963. During our many talks, he'd tell me of events he'd participated in or witnessed. Said his father (my great grandfather) carried a brace of 1851 Colt Navy revolvers even as late 1920. His dad got them in 1870 as a teenager, and didn't see the need for replacing what worked fine in the first place. 😏

[@samparkerSAM]

My family is similar, I grew up looking at my Great Uncles colt 44 from the first 20,000. He got it while driving wagons for the US Army... he had it with him when he was in the town near the wounded knee massacre. He passed down the Colt and his Testimony against the cavalry, he was sickened by what he witnessed. He told my grandmother in the 1930s about the drunken troopers returning to town bragging about their killing of braves. He was employed in collecting the dead natives and reckoned their casualties were closer to 400. He carried the colt with him to Anchorage Alaska and gave it to my Grandfather as a wedding gift in the 1930s.

[@ronrobertson59]

I use 1860 Army revolvers an 1860 Henry and a double barrel hammer shotgun with all black powder for CAS. My percussion revolvers are as reliable as any of my cartridge guns. I did have to do work on them and go to slixshot nipples to get them that way. I use paper cartridges in them too it is a lot of fun.

[@csipawpaw7921]

To give you an idea how long people held onto and used old pistols. I remember when I was a small child in rural Oklahoma in the mid 1950s my family attended a wedding at an old farm house. I was sleepy and so they put me on a bed. As the reception party went on for hours into the night. suddenly I was awakened by gun fire as the party goers started shooting into the air. Then an old man came into the room, opened a cedar chest, and removed an old converted black powder pistol. Loaded it with old ammo and went out to fire it. A few minutes later he and my father were at the kitchen table trying to get the corroded empty brass out of the cylinder chambers!

[@2011Matz]

Surplus Civil War weapons were shipped in huge numbers to Australia and the Pacific Islands where they remained in common use up to 1900 and beyond.

[@alun7006]

Good stuff, Karl. Your point can be proven even today - look how many people opt for the century-plus-old .45ACP, .30-06, .357 etc. Just because something new comes along doesn't mean that the old thing vanishes. Indeed, many people prefer to stick with what they know.

[@bobhill3941]

Exactly, dad hunted with a Winchester 88 in .308 and he loved it. He said, it's the most versatile hunting round.

[@jacobmarley4907]

Great video and spot on info. James Butler Hickok used a pair of percussion .36 cal Colt Navy revolvers up until he was shot in Deadwood in 1876. He shot and killed Dave Tutt in 1865 at a distance of 75 yards, the bullet entering between Mr. Tutt's 5th and 7th ribs.

[@Miningpastpresentfuture]

I grew up close to the ruins of Virgil Earp’s cabin where he lived in the very late 1880s and early 1890s. This is after his “recovery” from being crippled by a shotgun blast in Tombstone Az. He returned to the Prescott Az area from his families home in California. There were lots of old brass laying around the cabin site. Not like most old cabins where you might find a shell casing or two. The most common brass was .22 long or long rifle, and 16 gauge paper shotgun base brass. The next most common was .45-70 followed by a bottle necked case that might have been a sharps or Winchester .40 caliber based on a .45-70 base case. There were several .44 Henry rim fire cases with the double firing pin marks from a Henry or model 1866 rifle. I found and kept a .20 all brass shot shell in very good condition, did not find any other 20 gauge shells. I found a very few .41 colt shells but no .45 colt or 44-40 WCF shells. I wondered over the site many times as a gun and history fascinated teenager and compared brass to cartridges of the world drawings. This was back in the 1960s and early 70s. So even a knowledgeable gun fighter still used “out of date” firearms.

[@markeastman6187]

In the 1930's my dad as a young teenager worked for a farmer part of his pay was a muzzle loading double barrel shot gun which he used for ducks and rabbit hunting

[@neilbodwell9172]

We see that even today. I remember when 6.5 creedmore came out, I worked at a gun shop at the time and folks were all nervous about .308 and what's gonna happen with it and on multiple occasions had to say "that caliber is going nowhere. It's been around way too long and NATO is still going to be rocking their equivalent for a long time. Old stuff does not mean bad stuff. Love your content keep it up.

[@wallyzworld7108]

I grew up in the Owens Valley (Eastern Sierra) in the 70s and early 80s and many a Rancher still had their family's originally purchased Winchester 1892s in their trucks back windows. One of these old gentleman's truck pistol was a percussion revolver, but never got to see it close enough and was too young to know what specific model it was. Colt 1873s in 45 Colt or even 44 WCF were quite common.

[@tballstaedt7807]

I think the "interim" period you're referring to actually was the old west. I'd push the new old west period another 10 years to 1890.

[@dorisjohnson8857]

I had been under the impression that the reason the military flap holster was worn on the right side and reversed was because the saber was worn on the left side for "cross draw" with the strong arm as these two weapons were primarily issued to cavalry troops and officers. i always enjoy your historical presentations immensely Thank you for them.❤DJ

[@nomadmarauder-dw9re]

The draw described was called High Cavalry for a reason. Because it was better for a seated person, especially with those long barrels. And a cavalryman spent a lot of time where? Sitting on a horse! And the saber was more often carried on the saddle. Men wouldn't be using pistol AND saber. That's ridiculous. The old reins between the teeth thing wasn't to guide the horse, but to keep the reins from tripping your mount. So you'd need one hand for driving anyway.

[@ArizonaGhostriders]

Excellent information about this part of the period.

[@InrangeTv]

Thank you!

[@WurledPeas]

One of my great uncles who traveled with my grandfather on a buckboard from Minnesota to California in the very late 1880s carried the same Colt percussion revolver he’d carried across country until he died in the late 1930s. He bought that pistol cheap before the turn of the century and held onto it because it did what he needed it to do.

[@gregzeigler3850]

"My Confederate friend, is your holster snapped or unsnapped?" "Snapped. I guess he's my pigeon."-John Wayne, The Undefeated. A lot of people carried 1851 Navy pistols clear into the 1880's.

[@SwordFighterPKN]

Josey Wales

[@cdubsoptional7849]

"What have you heard, Shane?"

[@Brigand231]

Throwing away perfectly functional stuff when the new model comes out is as ridiculous as throwing away a perfectly functioning car when each new model year comes out. Some people have had it too good for too long.

[@pmgn8444]

Excellent analysis! The average person in the 1870s didn't have the disposable income of post-WWII or 2020s USA. Go visit an accurate recreation of an 1870s or 1880s homestead and see how sparse it is. "Make it do, use it up, wear it out" was a necessity. Our modern 'planned obsolescence' is a post-WWII phenomena.

[@rjoetting7594]

There were a lot of gunsmith conversions to, before the drilled through cylinder patents, ran out. American ingenuity was amazing, especially in the early years of the old west. Do whatever is necessary to get the job done. Also, when the 1873 SSA came out they were very rarely found in civilian hands. Supply and demand basically only the military had access to them earlier in production.

[@ECJ1776]

The TV show, Hell on Wheels, portrayed this fairly well actually. They did get some names of the guns wrong like using an 1860 army with a brass frame and calling it a Griswold and Gunnison revolver. It takes place right after the Civil War so most guys are carrying cap and ball revolvers. A little later in the show as the years start to pass, some guys start using cartridge conversion guns.

[@Hanks1938ELKnucklehead]

A brass framed 1860 is exactly what a Griswold and Gunnison Confederate made revolver was..

[@anthonyhayes1267]

In one of my favorite scenes in that show, the camera pans over the Mormon militia standing guard at Ft Smith. You can see a proper variety of common civilian arms of the period in their hands.

[@ECJ1776]

@@Hanks1938ELKnucklehead kzbin.info/www/bejne/r4nIaKatgpqGoLsfeature=shared Not really. At first glance, yes they look similar, but no it isn't just a copy and paste Colt Army with a brass frame. The Army is in .44 and the Griswold is in .36 to name one difference. This youtuber explains this in this video and does reference the Hell on Wheels inaccuracy on the Griswold and Gunnison. Fastforward to about 2 minutes and 50 seconds into the video and you'll see him explain it.

[@justalurker3489]

​@Hanks1938ELKnucklehead I believe it was a brass-framed .36 1851 Navy Colt with a round barrel, not the .44 1860 Army

[@NahBro-kv1yc]

​@@justalurker3489 If we are being pedantic, it was a scaled down Walker/Dragoon to .36 cal..The 1851 Navy was a .36 cal. scaled up version of the scaled down .31 cal. Baby Dragoon/Colt Pocket revolver. Basically just skipped a step because infringing patents is fun

[@herdware]

This is the kind of content that makes me a Patron. As a side not. Husqvarna in Sweden manufactured rolling block rifles until (at least) 1912 probably .22LR even longer. They also made rolling block single shot shotguns until 1950. They were (probably) also the last manufacterer in the world making Lefaucheux shotguns in the world with the model 20B that was produced until 1956. People needed simple and cheap hunting weapons and Husqvarna provided them.

[@jhackett9482]

I have a 99 gmc pickup. It’s 24 years old and still in use and there are many around. It’s the exact same thing. I’m only suspicious of firearms when I see a picture where the gun someone’s holding hasn’t been invented yet.

[@SatansPooper]

Great content Karl. Thanks for doing what you do!

[@gmclucy]

love your old firearms history stuff as well as the new, I learn something every time

[@garrow12225]

This is my favorite period also. A rolling block 50-70 and a new model army is what you would see me with in western Kansas near New Mexico. Of course, I still would have had my percussion Sharps carbine from the war as well. :)

[@Sphinx-19]

46 rimfire was being made in the late 1860s as well , reminngton new model armies fired it, i think they only stopped making it in like 1916.

[@ArizonaGhostriders]

Love the info, the firearms, and them moccasins!

[@christopherreed4723]

The classic Western "The Sacketts" kind of shows this. The younger Sackett brother carries either a short Colt .44 percussion revolver or a Richards-Mason conversion of one.

[@Dan-be7iu]

Yes and the oldest brother Tell has a percussion Navy Colt belt gun and a 1873 Winchester rifle. Ur rifle is important u want the best available, pistols much less so as long as it works.

[@hetzel3606]

some antique flint lock where still used in rural europe mid last century so to me its really not surprising

[@davewright6368]

Great video. This era is one of my favorites for firearms history.

[@cowishere8222]

Would i choose a 1911 A1 as my carry weapon… no. Would it work if I was primarily using a rifle anyway? Obviously. Same is true back then I guess

[@JaykPuten]

4:30 those moccasins look A) very legit n B) perfect n comfortable for the time... If i still lived in the SW id drive my butt n get a pair Can i ask what they cost? (Ish don't wanna make them feel stuck to a price) as ill have some family in Apache junction (who lived by the old catcus club, for anyone in the know) drive out n get me a pair (Less they need be fitted) Either way just throwing in engagement if you never anser Karl (as im sure you're busy or don't wanna talk pricing of another company, which is all understandable)

[@cascadianrangers728]

Wild Bill Hickock shot and killed a man from 25+ yards with a percussion revolver, anyone who looks down on black powder revolvers just cant aim well enough

[@Fredninja22]

Here in Canada, my great-grandfather bought a surplus WW1 bolt action 303 for moose hunting. My grandfather said he would have continued to use it if he could only attach a scope to it. Until that point, they took down loads of moose with only irons.

[@malgremor85]

Studio prop. Photographers would keep old junk guns in their shops for customers to pose with. An old Confederate revolver would have been worthless back then, perfect for a prop gun.

[@edwardbarton1680]

I feel like a good comparison might be revolvers vs semi-auto pistols. Semi-auto pistols have been around for over 100 years, but you still find a lot of revolvers.

[@sixgunsymphony7408]

Military surplus guns were cheap snd plentiful after the war. They work, so they got used.

[@lewissmith8743]

Thank you for the accurate historical look into the reality of what the old west really was like. As Clint Smith has said old does not mean obsolete. It is just a different weapon system to learn. I look forward to similar videos.

[@j.r.warren5794]

Maybe it was a gift from a predator. Why do some solders have souvenirs?

[@JamesThomas-gg6il]

Yes and to stress your point even more, a certain William Hickok used his percussion pistols up until he was murdered. He never saw the reason to change and had he not been at the card table with his back to the coward, he might not have ever moved to the new fangled cartridge hand gun.

[@j.bowman8699]

Don't forget Elmer Kieth and his book hell I was there

[@guardianofgoblins682]

They are still relevant even today i know a large amount of people who use percussion revolvers as their daily carry gun for many reasons i myself use and carry a 1860 konverted as well as a few other percussion replicas I got in trade or purchased back when i was still a fellon ( im no longer a felon but im still poor) and other reasons that they remain relevant is traveling i cant tell you how many people in the military or truckers that own and carry these guns