The area where this story took place is some of the most remote country in the American Southwest.  On a Texas map, find the border town of Presidio.  As you look upstream on the Rio Grande, from Presidio, you’ll notice that there’s just a whole of nothing for several hundred miles until you get almost to El Paso.

Even though I was a young city policeman, I liked to spend as much time as possible over at the sheriff’s office. The deputies, as a group, were a good bit older and had a lot more experience; I figured I just might learn something useful by hanging around them. One of my favorites was Buster Gibbs.

It’s funny how we associate certain smells or things with memories and people. Having spent a lot of time around my mother’s parents as a child growing up, it’s not surprising I have plenty of fond recollections of them. My granddad and I had a special bond, and we grandkids all called him Pawpaw.

Why would you even think such a thing?  Don’t you know that plastic pistols and high-capacity magazines revolutionized the world?  Where have you been?  Are you some sort of Daniel Boone throwback?  Well, I can share my thinking on the subject with you although I have to tell you right up front that I’m not an operator...don’t have any tattoos...don’t even have any tactical underwear or other super-hero outfits.

I’m not a gun collector. Oh, I’m sure 'nuff a firearms enthusiast, but I don’t collect in the sense of obtaining an organized representation of specific makes or models of guns. Some folks collect Colt Single Action Army’s, maybe only 1st Generations, maybe all. One guy I know collects old Winchester lever actions and further specializes in the Trapper Models.

In the late 1800s, John M. Browning was on a roll. He designed the robust 1886 Winchester that was chambered for big-bore cartridges. Then, in 1892, he brought out a scaled down version that would handle various popular handgun cartridges. Later, we got the Model 1895 Winchester which was a whole new design for high-velocity ammo. But I think his crowning glory, where lever actions are concerned, was his Model 1894 rifle and carbine.

We hunters and gun toters like to present questions to one another in efforts to get a very finite answer from our brethren. “If you could have one gun to hunt with, what would it be? You can have one carry gun, what is it and why? Pick one handgun cartridge to do everything with.”

I love guns with stories. Tales of firearms that belonged to folks of note, guns used in interesting events, or those that came from fascinating places are intriguing to this writer. They bring a particular firearm to life, even though we all know quite well that they are just mechanical devices, right?

The story goes that author Ned Buntline (real name Edward Zane Carroll Judson Sr.) wanted to express his thanks to some of the Kansas lawmen who had been the inspiration for some of the books that he wrote.

So much has been written in the wild west magazines about the Kitchens Gang I figured you might be interested to hear the real story from one who had a minor hand in the whole thing.  You see, I was just out of high school and my folks put me to managing my uncle’s livery stable; the only one in our little town.

The more we hunt, the more wild game meat we accumulate for the freezer. We enjoy eating what we’ve killed and sharing meals with family and friends makes the memories of the outdoors even more special. I’ve not encountered a game animal yet that isn’t tasty, if it’s handled and cooked correctly.

This Colt 1851 Navy, serial number 1388131E, is one of a pair carried by James Butler “Wild Bill” Hickok (1837-1876).  During his lifetime, Hickok was a Union Army scout, a deputy U.S. Marshal, the sheriff of Ellis County, Kansas, and the city marshal of Abilene, Kansas.

W.L. “Lee” Barler was born in Llano, Texas in 1874. The Terrell County history book says Barler’s father had worked as a lawman, fought outlaws and Indians and served as a Confederate soldier during the Civil War.

The idea of a .41 caliber revolver cartridge has been around longer than a lot of folks expect. Probably the most popular was the .41 Long Colt which was designed for the Colt 1877 Double Action revolver that is best known by its nickname, the Colt Thunderer.

As a life-long western historian...with amateur status...I’ve always loved to look at the old frontier photos. But one thing that will kind of ruin your appreciation of cowboy movies and TV shows is the lack of guns showing on regular citizens. Of course, with pictures of frontier lawmen you saw all kinds of sixguns...

Anticipation of adventure filled the air as Charlie Pirtle and I loaded down his pickup with camping gear and enough food to survive several days in the New Mexico back country. With the chuck box situated perfectly, we carefully added cots...

Nothing makes me shudder and cringe like being introduced as a firearms expert.  To tell you the truth, I’ve met very few real experts in the firearms industry.  Ken...

He pulled the old ranch truck with the stock trailer holding his buckskin gelding over to the side of the county road, not far from where all the squad cars were sitting. With his spur rowels jingling softly, he walked up to a young highway patrolman and asked what was going on...

Robust. Strong. Sturdy. Sound. All these words are fit for describing Colt’s New Service double-action revolver. The New Service was an evolution of sorts of Colt’s first revolver with a swing-out cylinder...

In studying the gunfights of the Old West it quickly becomes clear that many of the most savvy shootists preferred using a rifle whenever they could get their hands on one quickly.  The handgun came into use when dealing with a surprise encounter or the rifle was not close at...