State of the Sixgun in 2011

Thanks cowdog, I kind of like the cimarrons also and the 44 Bulldog sounds nice, does it have adjustable sights? Chris

Thanks! 

Yes the 4" model called the "Target Bulldog" has adjustable sights. Not quite as heavy framed as the old Rossi Amadeo, but another inch of barrel is nice for sight radius. I may try one, but I am still a little leery of Charter's past reputation. If I do, I will post a range report here.

A five inch barrel would maybe be even better as Skeeter said that was his optimum length for a shooter. Chris

Cowdog
Thanks for the update.
  I think you are correct about DA six-guns, There doesn't seem to be much exciting out there now. The S&Ws mostly look like something out of a fantacy catalog what with all the doodads hung under the bbl nowdays. UG they aren't the eye pleasing six-guns of 15 years ago. There are some exceptions, mostly in the concealed gun catagory, seems that's where the interest is now. 
     Colt doesn't seem interested in a big bore six-gun ( save the SAA) & I'm not sure how well a New Service would sell now either? Up date it into a nice .44 Mag & it might surprise you. I'm pretty sure if I wanted a big bore DA six-gun today it'd be a Ruger Red Hawk. They are just a little larger than the S&W N frame & very strong, I think that's the way I'd go today. 
   I hope Charter Arms will pull it together, I've looked at the targed Bulldog on the web & it could be a nice easy packing handgun. I'm not sure how it'd handle some of the warmer loads though? But even a moderatly moving 245gr SWC will be effective. I've handled a few of the Bulldogs & they really don't look all that bad, again we'd need to keep the loads down some for them. Hope it works out for them.
Cimarron is making some nice six-guns & they are pretty authentic. The quality of those I've handled is right up there too. I think we have a much better selection of SA guns than we do of DA guns. I'm pretty fond of the New Vaquero for a nice packing six-gun.
Thanks again.
Frank

I'd love to be able to go to one of these shows, but realistically, probably won't happen any time soon. Therefore, thanx much for the report.
Some years ago I used to read GUNWORLD magazine, mostly because I thought the editor, Jan Libourel, did a great job. I found myself reading articles about things I had little interest in, because they were well written. Well, Mr. Libourel penned a series of articles on defensive handguns. He wrote that while small and medium frame revolvers had application, the large frame revolver was dead and buried.  I remember reading the article with a hint of feeling like a dinosaur. Looking at those old pictures of Colt and Smiths, I felt like someone looking at a family album from an earlier era. Seems he read the tea leaves correctly.

In a world of plastic molded high capacity self shuckers, everyone, it seems is enamored with pretending to be their personal incarnation of Robocop. I'll be the first to admit that when facing multiple threats, having a fully loaded double stack is a comforting thing. An ugly black pistol is not going to get any tears shed over it when it collects new scratches from getting bounced off a rock. No one is going to beg you to show them your hideous black pistol, because well-its hideous, and therefore you'll have more time for other things. Despite these virtues, no plastic fantastic I have ever been acquainted with is capable of threading the needle at 40, 50, or longer yardage. No plastic fantastic can come close to the sheer regal and beautiful lines of a New Service, or a Highway Patrolman, and while magazine springs have gotten better over the years, one can keep the wheelgun loaded for long periods of time without concern if it'll work. Finally, the greatest virtue of the large frame DA is POWER. You can fire cartridges that dwarf those chambered in the plastic gun.
I am glad that the Single Action continues to generate attention and industry refinement. Cimarron has a good reputation for getting the best fit and finish, glad they are paying attention to the action as well. The new New Vaquero is a solid gun-I just wish Ruger would offer a Bisley version with adjustable sights, and the shorter barrels. In my experience, easy to see adjustable sights do wonders for accurate shooting.

I guess USFA wasn't at the show-too bad, I wonder what their Shooting Master .357 is like.

I recently read something about why a good sixgun could be a better choice than a high capacity semi-auto. The author suggested even five 44 or 45 shots from a single action sixgun, if well placed, would negate the need for more rounds. His implication was that having a high capacity magazine might instill a shooter with the false confidence to shoot less than accurately because more rounds were available, the "spray and pray" scenario.  In essence he was stating that a good, well placed hit from a large caliber sixgun would most likely end the incident and then you wouldn't need the other 13 or 14 rounds the auto would hold. I suppose that means those of us who would choose the sixgun must then be confident enough in our shooting ability to place the first shot where it will do the best job of stopping the adversary thereby making the remaining rounds  back up insurance. The possibility of facing multiple opponents would indicate the possibility of a slow reload with a sixgun but the author stated he saw no reason why a sixgunner couldn't carry another gun, just like a lot of old time pistoleros did. Chris

Chris wrote: "His implication was that having a high capacity magazine might instill a
shooter with the false confidence to shoot less than accurately because
more rounds were available, the "spray and pray" scenario."
Col. Jeff Cooper (Who often advocated the 44special revolver for police work)  one said: "Give a duffer a machine pistol and he thinks he is an assault brigade"

When I was a youngster, I saved and traded and bought a surplus M-1 Carbine. I figured I would kill every groundhog on the farm with that kind of firepower. My Dad, who actually carried an M-1 carbine in the service, just shook his head.  I learned that multiple  shots without careful aiming  were only a threat to my shallow pocketbook. The groundhogs were safe.

The issue of marksmanship is one that will never fade. Before the firearm, marksmanship with bow and arrow turned many a fight. It was the Longbow that defeated a superior French force at Agincourt.  Before this, it was an arrow that felled the King of England, and gave William the conqueror both his title and the crown. Of course, our needs are more humble than taking the crown, or defeating a sea of French Knights, but still the persistent need for marksmanship remains.
There are cases today, usually involving police shootings, where marksmanship was notably absent. Locally here, a well known story of Pancho Ortega saw dozens of rounds from three officers spraying the entire area. Mr. Ortega was hit and killed by less than 5 of those shots. We know less about personal defense situations, since the media sensationalizes them, and is often very thin on the truth. I know that if you can't hit the intended target under stress, you will not do much better with 15 rounds, than you will with 5 or 6.
Personally, I like the idea of carrying more than one gun, but I rarely do. If one good hit from a large caliber will drop a deer, why would it be any different with a man?

"ONE IS NONE AND TWO IS ONE"

True enough, for Mr. Murphy's law is always at work. However, there are times that I need to pack light and a second gun adds extra weight.  When it seems that i need something to defeat especially tough and/or armored targets, out comes the big bore levergun.

Mak  
I agree a good hit with a powerful handgun will (almost) always stop a bad guy, nothing is 100%. What I'm increasingly seeing, though, are more & more attacks are being performed by packs of predators not singles as we normally had several years ago. So does it make sence to carry a gun holding more ammo, & maybe one that's easy to reload quickly, as with an auto with extra magazines? For me it does! It also makes sence to PRACTICE!!!!! Some don't, that's up to the individual. 
    I love SAs as much as almost anyone, & a good DA revolver just behind that. For a number of years I was issued an auto & had to carry it. Now I'm retired & can carry pretty much what I want. I'll often carry a good DA revolver here at home (small town) when I venture into a big city, my Glock normally goes with me. Our friend Clint Smith also said a handgun is supposed to be comforting, not comfortable. 
I'm not arguing or trying to start an argument, I submit though a poor shot with an auto is still going to be a poor shot with a revolver. Just being careful with your ammo doesn't make a good shot. Practice, regular, structured, various problems, dedicated, practice makes good shots.
Thanks, Frank

Most if not all situations where force will be deployed are both fast developing, and inevitable. Some might disagree with me here, but this is the truth from my perspective.  If and when one is unfortunate enough to find themselves here, then any weapon is good, more are better, and ammo a plenty is manna from heaven.

Truth be told, I find most things in life are a compromise.  Ultimately, everyone must make their choice, and hope theirs is the correct one for the situation. No gun is going to save you if you are not prepared to use it, and a high cap is not guaranteed to see you through. However, I reiterate that I am not making choices for anyone else. I am not telling anyone what they should, or should not carry. For those fortunate enough to own a number of different choices, they can tailor their choice to the specific need. Those who do not have such a breadth of choice will find themselves relying on their best known piece.
There are some real issues with plastic fantastic pistols, issues which make them-in my opinion-specialized items. This does not make them bad per se-just that for me, they were too specialized to effectively serve my lifestyle. I know people who would have nothing but Glocks, Walters, etc., and be deliriously happy. They might own other guns, but they have no real use for them. For them, the wheelgun does not serve their lifestyle.

I know up close and personal that human predators exist. They are not bound or deterred by anything other than force. Their demonic leaning can only be penetrated by reminding them that while they may walk with Satan, they are in fact mortal.  No doubt a high cap autoloader can bring them to this realization-yet so can a good wheelgun, DA or SA. Really, the only drawback to any wheelgun is capacity, and really, the vast majority of encounters end without emptying the ammo locker. I recall a comparison done by Massad Ayoob a while back, where he fired 18 rounds out of a S&W .38-one cylinder & two speedloads, and then squeezed off a cool 17 from a Glock 9mm in half that time. No one is arguing that the hicap equates to impressive firepower, and that this has converted thousands, if not millions of wheelgun devotees.
I live rurally, and it is quite common for my guns to get blasted by dust, covered with woodchips, fallen on, roughed up by thick brush. They get frozen, they get scorched. The cheap finish on the slides of these guns goes away pretty quickly, as do their sights. I'm not purposely trying to beat the heck out of 'em, but facts are, they just don't stand up to this kind of use. A gun that won't go bang is an expensive rock. On the other hand, I've been packin wheelguns for decades, and despite this hard life, they still look pretty good, and still shoot pretty good.
I wish I had the bankroll to afford one of these high cap S&W's out now. 7 or 8 shots of .357 magnum, in a nice IWB holster would be the ticket. And following the advice of Mr. Smith, I'd carry two!

It's always fun to play the guessing game of "how much is just right". I call it Goldielocks syndrome. I am sure that I will never know, until it happens, whether I sould have a high-cap 9mm or a big bore revolver. because if I knew, I would have stayed in bed or brought a long gun if bed wasn't an option. As you may expect from me by now I have a couple of stories to illustrate my point. While I try to keep as much as possible on this site restricted to revolvers, for the purposes of illustration I will allow myself to stray.
As a young man, at the now terrifying (apparently to some) age of 12 I entered into a deal with my Father whereby I would be allowed to work for other people, doing yard work, mowing lawns etc, in an effort to earn enough money to buy my own .22 rifle. Dad's part of the bargain was rather unique, he would see to it that I had a matching amount of work to do at home for which I would likewise be compensated. He was a generous kinda guy that way. Actually it still seems rather fair of him as I get older and wiser. At any rate I spent most of a year trying to put money back and I had timed out the sales at our local "K-Mart" so I knew within a month when the gun of my choice would be on sale. I was not going for the famous and coveted Browning semi owned by a wealthy cohort of mine. That would take forever, The Marlin 36 was likewise too rich for my blood. If I worked longer and harder I could probably have swung a Remington "Nylon" like the kid down the street got but if I were to chooses a "Marlin Glenfield (model 60) I could have it, when it came on sale and a whole lot of ammo. The deed was done and Dad and I set up a little 75 foot range on our property. Boy could I go through ammo with that thing and I occasionally found some shots on the target that resembled a group, I am sure it serendipity rathr than patience and deliberation. Sadly, that very summer my paternal Grandfather passed. When it all was over I was to fall heir to his "old, funky, Savage model 4 bolt action .22.  It even had an "uncool" peep sight. To shorten events, I found that my hit percentage was actually better with te bolt gun. I joined a Scouting based rifle team in high school and my education on the value of one good shot was stressedby . My father had taught me that much earlier but somehow having my hands on that semi had blunted the lesson. I made up for my lapse. Saved a lot of ammo money to boot.
 
To move to the present day and in a similar vein, I do have a couple of "black rifles" but I divested myself of one very popular model and still consider the M-1/M-14 family to be my favorites. In fact, I am of the unpopular belief that the "firepower" issue with the "mini rifles" is  bloody well overrated. To that end, last year , for Fathers Day my wife presented my with the uber-popular SOCOM16. I dutifly acquired enough 20 rd magazines for "zombie day" and am now about to secure several 5 rd mags. Why? Well I like short, handy rifles. This SOCOM is up against my Remington 600 .308 for the job of "Handy Rifle". It is already way behind in the weight category and those bloody 20 rd mags hanging down there are not helping in the "Handy" division. I figure, if it ever comes down to some kind of "rifle situation" If five shots won't do, there are enough Baddies that they will have me out firepowered anyway and I should play to my skills and use distance, and tactics to my advantage not try to "outgun" superior numbers.
This relates directly to how I feel about handguns. I have yet to see a case of a citizen emptying a high cap mag and settling things on the last shot or the first shot in the next mag. It just doesn't happen. I admit to owning, and when appropriate, carrying said handguns but it is generally because of things like ergonomics, and the fact that some great designs are only available in high-cap. My nightstand gun, is in fact  polymer 13 shooter with a rail for a flashlight, but in fairness It is a .45 acp and I think 1911s with light rails look ugly. In terms of self defense during the daytime that is actually a small part of the mission for my daytime gun. I am just about certain that the "working loads" in any of my sixguns equal or, in most cases better, anything I could put in an auto. They  also "do the chores" better than an auto caliber and I can use a wider variety of loads for special circumstances. keeping a couple of shotshells in my belt loops for rats in the barn come to mind. Again my basic philosophy is simple, if the boogey man shows up alone, I don't need a lot of ammo, if he brings friends using my brain to do the best while attempting to lay hands on a long gun beats the heck out of attempting to imitate some scene from a Hollywood production.
I like my autos but I do not feel outgunned by anybody I've ever met, when I've got a .357, .41, .44, or .45 sixshooter handy. And I sure won't apologize for my sidearm either.

I think, left to themselves. the 'packs of predators' will use up all their ammo in about ten seconds. For instance, a few years ago, one of my employees was accosted at a local convenience store. He was sitting in his car, the villain walked up to the open window and fired his 9mm 11 times at him (held sideways, of course). The victim recieved a superficial scratch on his shoulder, got out of his car and ran 6 blocks to the hospital. Had he had a poor six-shooter 44 or 45, the assailant would be pushing daisies instead of walking around the street.
In another case, a dude whipped out his 15-shooter in the parking lot of the local McDonald's to shoot another dude. He emptied his gun at ten feet and succeeded in taking some chips out of the brick wall of a church across the road.
I think you have to consider the mentality and ability of the common thug more than his handgun. Sometiomes, it seems, the safest place is where the target stands.

I still maintain that a good shot is a good shot whichever gun he or she uses. Just because some choose a high cap auto for some purposes doesn't mean they suddenly loose the ability to shoot well. 
 The predators running in packs may well use up their ammo in a blinding blurr of not hitting anything. The idea behind a higher capacity weapon is that the BG may have friends, & those friends may take exception to their buddy being defeated & thus lend a hand.
 I'm not advocating anyone use a gun he or she doesn't like or isn't comfortable with.The only thing I'm saying is just because some choose a different weapon for a different purpose we shouldn't chastice them or look down our noses at them. 
 I too don't feel unarmed with a good DA revolver, or for that matter with a Good Colt, Ruger, Cimarron, or USFA SA, I do feel there are situations that,for me, indicate a different weapon. Skill isn't dependent on weapon type.
Frank