Who Needs A Rifle? The Walker At 100 Yards

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I have read the correspondence between Walker and Colt and have seen nothing to indicate there was any design requirement for shooting horses. If you have any primary documentation about arms being designed with that requirement in mind I'd be very interested to read it.

I think this is a myth perpetuated by people who thought that "horse pistol" meant a pistol for shooting horses. But this was just how the pistol was meant to be carried, just like a "pocket pistol" or "belt pistol" was not for shooting pockets or belts, but how you carried them.

In my opinion, Colt knew he was up against cavalry carbines as competition. So, he invented a revolver that with the capability of a carbine. It is essentially a carbine for your hand.
calvary carbines were one shot. so you have proof of Colt saying he invented a repeating carbine. why wasnt there a shoulder stock for the walker. when the rangers fighting Commanches both on galloping horses what would be easier to hit? the horse or the indian. with the indian on foot he was easy prey.in WWI almost everything was moved by horses. Even in WWII when the Germans went into Russia more then half their gear was moved by horses. they were always a target
 
Cowboy Action Shooting at its best! (note, make sure its a wide open area you are shooting towards)

Pistols are not rifles, riffles are not pistols.

Shooting a horse is easier because its a bigger target and you just removed a valuable assent from the battlefield.

Shooting in a Melee? All sorts of stuff happens.

Could you hit a horse at 50 yards? Maybe, far more likely than hitting a rider if you are on a horse as well.

Reality is people can train to do unusual things but its not common nor do most have the time as regardless of what you are doing, you also have lots of other training that needs to be done.
that is exactly what I have been saying that the Walker had to have enough power to take down a horse.
 
Because horses are a time-tested alternative to the dangers of climate change? :rolleyes:
And the go where no ATV can, most of the rugged terrain of the US southern border is still patrolled by the fine men and women of the US Border Patrol on horseback…and yes, the horses and horsemen are trained to shoot off the horses back!
 
The second video looks like it was a bit more edited. I have yet to see a video of a walker in action that did not require two hands to both deal with the loading lever and the turning the cylinder past the cap jams...


Just finished re reading W. T Hamiltons book My 60 years on the plains.
He made every shot count in battle. They picked good ground and dug rifle pits. They even added logs on top when available to have firing ports below the logs. kept their war horses saddled and under cover if possible inside the circle of fighting holes that usually surrounded a grove of trees that the horses were sheltered in. Did not engage the charging Indians with rifles untill they reached 50 yards. The 2nd volley was at 40 ft with shotguns, that usually broke the charge. They then mounted their horses and chased the retreating Indians down on horseback firing at close range. Each man having two pistols at his disposal. They practiced shooting a 10 inch thick pole at a gallop at close range so when they galloped in amongst the Indians with revolvers it was a slaughter. They never lost an engagement and had very few of their bunch wounded or killed. They even thought to approach on the right side of the horse because you cant shoot an arrow to your right while galloping on a horse. I have no doubt they were excellent shots at longer range but when It counted they got close. Think of it. If you waste your walker rounds at 100yards you are empty by the time they close. He never specified which model. Always simply said Colts Pistols. He wrote the book in 1905 and died in 1908 so don't know how accurately he remembered everything???? Or what he thought was important enough to put down in ink.
 
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Yea, sure! Maybe 130 feet! Luck over skill anytime w/multiple shots=one hit.....scoped pistol? I'll lay $$ on one shot, one hit every time!
Not sure where you're going with this one. Are you implying that such a shot is not possible or that I made it up? I don't use scopes on pistols, my eyes are still remarkably good for my age and when those shots were made I was doing a lot of handgun shooting and chasing jackrabbits around the country in Nevada. The range of 130yds was confirmed with a range finder and I had a witness.
 
And the go where no ATV can, most of the rugged terrain of the US southern border is still patrolled by the fine men and women of the US Border Patrol on horseback…and yes, the horses and horsemen are trained to shoot off the horses back!
yes the BP are fine men and women to oversee 30 million illegals invade the US. a fine job indeed
 
Just finished re reading W. T Hamiltons book My 60 years on the plains...

Thanks for the book reference, its not one Im familiar with. Looks good.

Not sure where you're going with this one. Are you implying that such a shot is not possible or that I made it up? I don't use scopes on pistols, my eyes are still remarkably good for my age and when those shots were made I was doing a lot of handgun shooting and chasing jackrabbits around the country in Nevada. The range of 130yds was confirmed with a range finder and I had a witness.

Any comments about longer distance shooting with pistols is nearly always met with a combination of skepticism, disbelief and sometimes implied or direct accusations of lying.

Its not really that difficult to hit with a pistol at longer distances, the method of using the sights can make a significant difference in the results, as does practice, who knew? We had an 18"w x36"h plate in arizona set at 300 yards, we shot everything at it, It amazed many people, but in 5 minutes or less I could generally get them hitting it with a 22 pistol or whatever they had and were familiar with. Its nearly always a rough start with widely missing shots, but with the feedback of dry ground and seeing hits, corrections and a concerted focus on the basics of sights and smooth trigger pull, its certainly doable. On that one at that time, Ive done 6/6 with s&w 22, and 5/6 with model 29 4" and medium loads.

Fast forward, 20 more years of practice, mostly one handed, and 18" round plate @ 300 yards isnt really that challenging with modern arms, and standing offhand. Kneeling or other cheating methods improve the results. First round hits on game at up to 200 yards by one moderately practiced in the longer distance shooting game isnt the least bit surprising. I made a little over 200 yard shot on a coyote, first round hit, 4" 44. I cheated, was sitting against dirt bank, two hands, resting on knees.

If one never does something enough, or doesnt get good basic instructions, it can seem impossible to do many things, but because one person is incapable hardy means nobody can do it. Good eyesight helps tremendously of course. The optical aids with the adjustable hole aperture can help get a clearer sight picture.
 
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yes the BP are fine men and women to oversee 30 million illegals invade the US. a fine job indeed

I generally ignore politically oriented stuff, but the implied accusation against the BP is ill informed and lacks judgement on the subject. The BP is doing exactly what their superiors tell them to do. They are not able to make their own choices on what to do.
 
I get amazed at how many folks seem to think 100 yards is equivalent to a half a mile. It's 300 feet. I've personally dropped jackrabbits at 130 yards with a pistol. Not a big deal.
I like watching the videos anyway. It's better than most everything else on TV!
 
I had a diamond shaped road sighn the Twisty road arrow type about 220yrds from my cabin when I was a 19yr old irresponsible young man. I thought it was hillarious how long it took a .22 to get there and make a plink and how long it took for the sound to come back.. A friend stopped by with a .44 redhawk. I allready had the range with my .357 Security six so i nailed the sign first shot with the red hawk. All my cap and ball rigs from the 70s were shot out and broken at that time..
 
Wasn't the Walker commissioned and purchased by the USA Army for use in the Mexican War? Were Comanches a big part of the Mexican Army? Wasn't Ranger's fighting pistol the hand-me-down Patterson that the Texas Navy didn't want? Some confusion between these two perhaps?
I think the selling point of these guns was the repeat firing rather than any other factor. In opposition to a force armed with single shots, the ability to shoot six times between reloads would have been an advantage.
 
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