This Week in Firearms History:
April 16: In 1777, US Revolutionary War, the Battle of Bennington; in 1789 George Washington inaugurated as 1st President
April 17: In 1861 Viginia is the 8th state to secede; 1900 US Submarine division is founded; in 1961 Bay of Pigs invasion of Cuba; in 1975 Khmer Rouge begin reign of terror
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April 18: in 1775 the ride by Paul Revere, Samuel Prescott and William Dawes; in 1861, US Civil War; the Confederates capture Harper's Ferry Arsenal; in 1942, the Doolittle Raid strikes Tokyo; in 1983 US Embassy in Beirut bombed
April 19: In 1775 the Battles of Lexington & Concord; in 1993 Waco siege ends with a fire; in 1995 Oklahoma City Bombing
April 20: in 1897 Browning awarded patent for 1st design of the 1911 pistol; in 1915 Stevens is awarded patent for the Model 311 hammerless shotgun; in 1945, WWII, US 7th Amry captured Nuremberg
April 21: In 1836, the Battle of San Jacinto, securing Texas Independence; in 1897 Arthur Savage files for a patent on his lever action design, which becomes the 1899 model; In 1918 the Red Baron is shot down by RAF Capt Roy Brown.
April 22: In 1914 Mexico severs diplomatic relations with the U.S.; in 1915, WWI; Germany is the 1st to use poison gas in war; in 2004 Pat Tillman is killed by friendly fire in Afghanistan.
Gun of the Week: Winchester model 74
The Winchester model 74 was a semi-automatic .22 rifle introduced in 1939.
Originally only chambered in .22 Short, Long Rifle was added a year later and after a short hiatus during the war, production resumed in 1944. The rifle featured a 24" barrel and a 14 round tube magazine located in the butt stock. Sources say that more than 400,000 model 74s were built by the time production ended in 1955, which is curious as you don't see examples very often (although I do own two of them). Read more here
Cartridge of the Week: 45 Colt
The 45 Colt (often mislabeled .45 Long Colt) is a revolver cartridge developed by Colt in 1871 for their Single Action Army revolver.
Working with the Union Metallic Cartridge Company, Colt made a slightly larger and longer version of the .44 Colt with an internally lubricated non-healed bullet. The original loading called for 40 grains of black powder under a 255 grain flat nose lead bullet. In 1873 the Colt Single Action Army chambered in 45 Colt was adopted by the U.S. Army and remained in service for 14 years. The Colt Single Action Army was discontinued in 1941 but brought back in 1956 due to the popularity of Western films. The 45 Colt is nearly as popular today as it was in the late 1800s, thanks to Cowboy Action Shooting and nostalgic gun collectors.Gun Quote of the Week:
"Owning a handgun doesn't make you armed any more than owning a guitar makes you a musician" - Col Jeff Cooper
Bubba Gun of the Week:
This Marlin 336 was submitted too late for the judging in our 1st Annual Golden Poop Awards, but we did give in honorable mention. It was submitted by Houston Delacroix of Conneries Bayou Louisiana
Gun Sticker of the Week:
This week's gun sticker is another sticker pack from Wicked Grips
Gun T-shirt of the Week:
Here is this week's gun T-shirt, I have no idea where you can buy it, perhaps do some searching?
