Over the past few years, I have come to expect
certain things from United States Fire-Arms (USFA). One
thing is that the guns will feel like a single action should
feel. That is to say that the action will feel
"right", for lack of a better word. Those of you who
know single action revolvers will know what I mean by that.
When thumbing back the hammer, the working parts of the sixgun
will feel precise, yet smooth. Another thing that I have come to
expect from USFA is that their replicas of the Colt
Single Action Army revolver will have that special feel in the
hand; that the grip will be perfection, that the hammer spur
will be placed exactly where it should be, and that the gun will
point naturally, like the finger of God. The final thing that I
have come to expect from a USFA sixgun is that the finish will
be flawless. Even on their Rodeo,
which wears a dull, utilitarian finish, there are no flaws.
Their other sixguns, such as the Flattop
Target and Pre-War,
are some of the most perfectly finished revolvers available, at
any price. It was with these preconceived expectations in
mind that my interest was piqued, when in a conversation with Gary
Germaine at USFA that he told me about their new Gunslinger
revolver that comes from the factory with an antiqued finish. I
wanted to see this for myself, as I have seen guns before that
were "antiqued" by various processes that did not
quite achieve the desired effect. I have seen new guns that were
stripped of their bluing and soaked in vinegar, among other
things. I have also seen a sixgun that was purposely rusted,
which looked more pitted and neglected, rather than old, like
you had loaned a new gun to your brother in law. With all of
this in mind, I requested a sample gun from USFA.
Upon opening the package, after a few weeks of
awaiting its arrival, inside I found what did indeed appear to
be a very old Colt. The exterior finish is a dull grayish brown,
with some mottling, but is not pitted at all. It looks much like
the finish seen on an old original Hawken rifle, or the browned
appearance that is sometimes seen on an old lever action barrel.
It is not a worn appearance, as is seen on old sixguns that
spent a lot of time in a holster, nor does it look like a
revolver that has seen years of neglect. It just looks,
again for lack of a better word, old. Gary tells me that their
aging process is not a quickly applied chemical finish, but that
they start with a finished gun, and carefully brown the exterior
in several thin layers, which results in an even finish, with
absolutely no pitting.
I carried the Gunslinger to a couple of gun
shows where several collectors of old Colts were present.
Showing the sixgun to these dealers, none suspected that it was
anything other than an old Colt, until I directed then to read
the inscription on the top of the barrel, which reads: "U.S.F.A.
MFG. Co. Hartford, CT U.S.A", in two lines. I had removed
the grips for this, as they are the only thing on the Gunslinger
that looks new. They are made of checkered hard black
rubber, and would look better on the Gunslinger if they too were
aged a bit. However, grips are easily replaced, and one could
substitute a set of old ivories or a one-piece walnut grip that
would look great on this sixgun. Also, a couple of hours in a
brass tumbler might do the trick on these new grips, but since
it was not my gun, I left them as received.
The Gunslinger is available chambered for the
.32, .38, .and .44 WCF cartridges, the .38 and .44 Special
cartridges, and the .45 Colt cartridge. My sample was chambered
for the latter. It can be had with either a four and
three-quarter, five and one-half, or seven and one-half inch
barrel, with the sample gun wearing the former. The .45 Colt 4
¾ inch sixgun weighs in at 36.8 ounces unloaded. The .096
inch wide front sight is of the traditional single action
profile, and measures .351 inch tall. The rear sight notch is of
a squared design that measures .109 in width, resulting in a
very good sight picture, with adequate front sight height to
accommodate most common .45 Colt bullet weights. The
cylinder throats measured a perfect .4525 inch diameter, and the
barrel/cylinder gap measured a consistent .003 inch. The trigger
pull on the Gunslinger measured a crisp 2 pounds and 14 ounces,
with no discernable creep. The Gunslinger has that same
wonderful "four-click" feel to the action as should
all Colt SAA replicas, and the action feels just right. The
ejector rod rides smoothly in a cam-cut housing, and the
chambers line up perfectly with the loading gate at half-cock,
just as it should. While the exterior of the Gunslinger is aged
to a brown patina, the insides and the bore of the gun are
perfect.
I fired the Gunslinger for functioning and
accuracy with a variety of different .45 Colt loads appropriate
for any new SAA in good condition, including handloads and
factory ammunition. The gun fired five-shot groups measuring
from a best of just under one inch to the largest group which
measured right at three and one-quarter inches at twenty-five
yards from a rested position. Functioning was flawless, without
any misfires and with all empty cases falling easily from the
chambers. Besides the accuracy testing, I packed the Gunslinger
around for a few days in a "Duke"
holster and money belt from El Paso Saddlery, plinking
at various targets of opportunity. This is one of my favorite
holster rigs for carrying a sixgun, as the belt is soft and very
flexible, and the pigskin-lined holster carries the sixgun very
well.
For those who favor the look and feel of a first
generation Colt in a sixgun built of modern steel, the
Gunslinger is a very good alternative to paying several thousand
dollars for an original. The list price on the Gunslinger at the
time of this writing is only $912, which ain’t cheap, but is a
quality sixgun built by American craftsmen from quality
materials. The Gunslinger should only improve its appearance as
it gains some holster and grip frame wear. It is a gun that you
will not worry too much about marring its finish as I do with my
other USFA sixguns, as a mark here or there will only add a bit
to its character. It is a gun that should be very well accepted
by the Cowboy Action crowd, for it looks as if it has spent a
year or two on the open range. The grips need some attention to
match the rest of the gun. A set of Tru-Ivory aged grips are
optional from USFA, as are smooth or checkered walnut or even
genuine elephant ivory for the well-heeled. If I keep this
Gunslinger, I have my eye on a set of very old yellowed stags
that will look just right on this new "old" sixgun.
The Gunslinger shoots good, feels right, and is built by USFA in
the USA.
Check out the extensive line of revolvers,
autos, and rifles from United States Fire-Arms Company online
at: www.usfirearms.com.
To order the excellent El Paso leather, go to: www.epsaddlery.com.
Jeff Quinn
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