Why are single-action revolvers still so popular?

[J Miller]

On the serious side , my love of single actions started when I was about 5 years old or so. It was my non handgun owning fathers fault. He, mom and I went to the outdoor theater in Farmington, NM and watched a John Wayne movie.
That would have been about 1957 or so and the movie was of course a first run. So John Wayne was my first mentor for the SAA. That does not make it nostalgia exactly but something about it really got my attention.

When I finally reached the legal age to buy handguns my very first gun was a Colt Peacemaker .22 Convertible. That was nearly 40 years ago and I haven't been without at least one single action for very long since.
I've used them for everything you can use a revolver for and found they work just as good as DA revolvers.
Currently I have four. This number is of course subject to change at a moments notice without warning.

OH, I didn't answer the OP question.
For me the SA is popular because it feels good in my hand. Is comfortable to shoot, pleasing to look at, simple to maintain, durable (far more so than my DA revolvers), and just fun to use.
And I like the click, click, clack, click they make when you cycle the action.

Joe

[Griff]

The Gub-mint gave me my first single action a little over 40 years ago. I ain't seen a need to progress. Oh wait, you're asking about REVOLVERS!

Back to what I said before: Rugged Elegance. The rest of you guys are motor-mouths!

[J Miller]

Griff,

Did they let you keep the 1911a1, or were they indian givers?

Joe

[Old Savage]

Griff, come to think of it my introduction to single actions was from a much older army cousin - my parents almost age. They went down to the vineyard and shot some 45s from a Govt Model and later I went down and dug one of the FMJ slugs out of one of the 6x6 posts - thanks for bringing that memory back. And now I have had a couple of Nickel Colt 1911s but kept the actually better Springfield Military model from 30 years ago. Wow!!!

[Griff]

Griff,
Did they let you keep the 1911a1, or were they indian givers?
Joe

Not that initial one! Not sure I'd have wanted it!

Griff, come to think of it my introduction to single actions was from a much older army cousin - my parents almost age. They went down to the vineyard and shot some 45s from a Govt Model and later I went down and dug one of the FMJ slugs out of one of the 6x6 posts - thanks for bringing that memory back. And now I have had a couple of Nickel Colt 1911s but kept the actually better Springfield Military model from 30 years ago. Wow!!!

I think some of those "off-brand" military units were actually the best you could get.

[gundownunder]

Like TravisM said

I couldn't hit anything with it! My hands were just to small for the Houge grips on it and it felt strange to "choke up" on it instead of holding low as on the plow handle grips.

I can't hit the broad side of a barn from the inside if I shoot double action, and I can actually shoot single action faster than double if I use my left thumb in a double handed right hand grip.
I have however found that I can shoot a security six with original grips in a similar fashion to a SA because it is made to fit a small hand, and doesn't need "choking". Still can't hit jack in DA though

[stanforth]

They would always have been around but I think Ruger did more for the SA than anyone ..

How come? Colt did the most.... They invented it

[J Miller]

They would always have been around but I think Ruger did more for the SA than anyone ..

How come? Colt did the most.... They invented it

Colt may have invented the SA but prior to Ruger they were all still in the black powder class. Ruger brought them into the modern era with the Blackhawk.

Joe

[BAGTIC]

I prefer DA to the point that I no longer have any SA. I do almost all my shooting single action. The reason I have DA is that the ejection/reload system is more convenient and quicker.

There are historical examples of SA revolvers that used a swing out simultaneous ejection and if someone made a modern example I would probably have several of them. Unfortunately the industry is dominated by the cowboy & Indian fantasy market to the point that practical utility has been supressed in favor of nostalgia.

[J Miller]

Bagtic,

Check out this thread over on Single-Actions forum:
http://singleactions.proboards.com/inde ... hread=5014
Uberti's got you covered.

Joe

[Griff]

They would always have been around but I think Ruger did more for the SA than anyone ..

How come? Colt did the most.... They invented it

Colt may have invented the SA but prior to Ruger they were all still in the black powder class. Ruger brought them into the modern era with the Blackhawk.
Joe

But Joe,

You think Ruger or Sturm were smart enough to invent one from scratch. All their production pieces are really nothing more than good copies or adaptations of someone else's design? Without the original, I wonder if Ruger would have make such an impact. Sacriledge, I know!

[JReed]

Women like them - my wife saw the 44 Special Ruger Flat Top (current model) sitting on the dining room table and said "that is very attractive" and she meant it!

If I had one with pearl grips my wife might say something like "that pearl is pretty" or if it was small she might think it's cute. But, other than that I don't think my wife would say it's attractive as a general statement.

My wife wanted this one because she thought it was pretty.

[J Miller]

They would always have been around but I think Ruger did more for the SA than anyone ..

How come? Colt did the most.... They invented it

Colt may have invented the SA but prior to Ruger they were all still in the black powder class. Ruger brought them into the modern era with the Blackhawk.
Joe

But Joe,

You think Ruger or Sturm were smart enough to invent one from scratch. All their production pieces are really nothing more than good copies or adaptations of someone else's design? Without the original, I wonder if Ruger would have make such an impact. Sacriledge, I know!

Griff,
No I don't think so at all. If you'll look at Rugers history it all about taking existing designs and improving them. Had there been no Colt SAA, there would never have been a Ruger Blackhawk.

Women like them - my wife saw the 44 Special Ruger Flat Top (current model) sitting on the dining room table and said "that is very attractive" and she meant it!

If I had one with pearl grips my wife might say something like "that pearl is pretty" or if it was small she might think it's cute. But, other than that I don't think my wife would say it's attractive as a general statement.

My wife wanted this one because she thought it was pretty.

Jeremy,
I agree with her. What caliber is it?

Joe

[JReed]

Joe
Its in good old .45colt as if there was another option

[J Miller]

Jeremy,
Really there is no other option.

"The .45 Colt, first, foremost, and forever." - J Miller

Joe

[Old Savage]

Just a question here: was the 45 Colt the first cartridge the single action was chambered for???

[J Miller]

Just a question here: was the 45 Colt the first cartridge the single action was chambered for???

Fred, I've read that when it was first presented to the Army for testing it was chambered for the .44 Colt cartridge. The Army rejected that wanting a .45 caliber round. Colt and Frankford Arsenal then combined efforts and the .45 Colt was born.

I would love to find a written report on the gun trials of the early 1870s. That would answer many questions I have.

Joe

[kimwcook]

Did I already say "Because they're cool"?

[kimwcook]

Did I say they were cool?

[Old Ironsights]

I had a Casull just like that. Wish I had never sold it...

[C. Cash]

You guys are killing me with these fine pistolas.

[J Miller]

Oh heck, here' mine:

Joes SAs.JPG

For now anyway.

Joe

[Bogie35]

If you like firing 6 inaccurate shots very rapidly, I would get the DA. But if you like firing 6 very accurate shots rapidly enough with an ultra-cool looking gun, I would get the SA.

bogie

[tman]

Just a question here: was the 45 Colt the first cartridge the single action was chambered for???

Could be between the .44 henry rimfire flat, 44-40, and the 45? Good trivia question.

[Bogie35]

Just a question here: was the 45 Colt the first cartridge the single action was chambered for???

Everything I've ever read either says or implies that it was. The one I give most credence is John Taffin, who stated in his article "The Colt Single Action Army" on sixguns.com:

"The now legendary Colt Single Action Army was first offered in the now equally legendary .45 Colt. Basically designed for the military market, the SAA was offered in a barrel length of seven and one half- inches to duplicate the feel of the 1851 Navy and 1860 Army. The Single Action Colt was soon offered with a five and one-half inch barrel, the Artillery Model as opposed to the longer Cavalry Model. When the barrel length was cut even with the ejector rod housing one of the finest balanced sixguns (the finest?) ever emerged, the four and three-quarter inch barreled single action."

He may have stated it subconsciously tongue-in-cheek. But even Mr. Taffin's subconscious is probably very reliable.

bogie

[Nate C.]

Single-action revolvers hearken to a bygone era, albeit one that popular culture has romanticized, dramatized and distorted until contemporary (say, the last hundred years) perception only vaguely resembles the reality of that time.

Besides, they just plain get the job done.

[COSteve]

Deleted

[C. Cash]

Here is my finest: a U.S. Arms Abilene(Riverhead, NY mfg.), in 44 Mag. I believe many folks missed a fine pistol when these were made back in the 70's. My brother bought this new back in the late 70's.

[Rexster]

I was a latecomer to SA sixguns, late 1990's, in my late 30's, after shooting autoloaders and DA sixguns since 1983, but with my USFA Single Action, something just clicked, no pun intended. It was as if there was no learning curve; I seemed to take naturally to the SA.