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.45 Schofield

The .45 Schofield or .45 Smith & Wesson is a revolver cartridge developed by Smith & Wesson for their S&W Model 3 American top-break revolver. It is similar to the .45 Colt round though shorter and with a slightly larger rim, and will generally work in revolvers chambered for that cartridge. US government arsenals supplied .45 Schofield cartridges for the Schofield revolver and the Colt Army revolver to simplify their armament needs. 45 Colt cartridges cannot be used in .45 Schofield firearms, since the .45 Colt is a longer cartridge.

History

This cartridge was originally designed as a black powder round. The Schofield revolver (a variant of the Smith & Wesson Model 3) was patented in the USA on 20 June 1871 and 22 April 1873 by Smith & Wesson. It was a Smith & Wesson Model 3 that was modified by Major George Schofield to make it easier for a cavalryman to reload while riding. While the Colt 45 had more power, the speed at which a cavalryman could reload a Schofield was less than 30 seconds, half of the time for a Colt 45. By 1879, the U. S. Army had purchased 8,285 of the revolvers. Due to its reduced power and recoil compared to the Colt .45, it was easier to shoot accurately, yet still retained effective stopping power on the battlefield. It became the standard cartridge of the Army, though the Colt 1873 still was the main issue side arm of the Army.

.500 S&W Magnum

The .500 S&W Magnum (12.7×41mmSR) is a fifty-caliber semi-rimmed handgun cartridge developed by Cor-Bon in partnership with the Smith & Wesson "X-Gun" engineering team for use in the Smith & Wesson Model 500 X-frame revolver and introduced in February 2003 at the SHOT show. Its primary design purpose was as a hunting handgun cartridge capable of taking all North American game species.

Cartridge history

Smith & Wesson had been at the forefront when developing powerful handgun cartridges such as the .357 S&W Magnum and the .44 Remington Magnum. However, since 1960 the company’s .44 Remington Magnum, which it had developed in partnership with Remington, was eclipsed by the .454 Casull. Since then, several other more powerful cartridges had been developed by Action Arms, Linebaugh, Ruger, Wildey, and Winchester for repeating handguns.

In 1971 Smith & Wesson had experienced a dramatic surge in orders for their Model 29 revolver in the .44 Magnum cartridge with which S&W production was not able to keep up. Available Model 29 revolvers were being sold for two to three times the suggested retail price, due to the low supply and high demand for the revolver. This surge in demand was due to the Dirty Harry movie, where the Model 29 revolver was billed as the most powerful revolver (The .454 Casull designed in 1955 would not be in commercial production until the 21st century). With the entry of the .500 S&W Magnum and the Model 500 revolver, Smith & Wesson recaptured the title of the most powerful handgun, and with it an increase in sales.

.32 S&W

The .32 S&W cartridge was introduced in 1878 for the Smith & Wesson Model 1 1/2 revolver. It was originally designed as a black powder cartridge. The .32 S&W was offered to the public as a light, defense cartridge, for "card table" distances.

Design

Originally designed by the Union Metallic Cartridge Co. (UMC) as a black powder cartridge using 9 grains of blackpowder, the round has been loaded with smokeless powder since 1940. It is low powered and perfect for use in small frame concealable revolvers and derringers. The round remained popular in the United States and Europe long after the firearms for which it was chambered were no longer produced.

At one time it was considered to be the bare minimum for a self-defense round, but was judged unsuitable for police work.

For defensive uses, the .32 S&W is grouped with other turn of the century cartridges designed for use in "belly guns", or guns meant for use in point blank defensive situations such as in a carriage, or alley way. These cartridges include the .25 ACP, and the .22 Short, Long, and Long Rifle. For comparison, the minuscule .32 S&W projectile, is over 40% larger in diameter, and over twice as heavy as the 40gr lead round nose used in the .22 long rifle of its day (Known as standard velocity today). The .32 S&W's velocity of approximately 700fps was very close to the .22 long rifle's performance from a sub-3in barrel, but with this larger diameter, and better sectional density.

Smith & Wesson

Smith & Wesson (S&W) is a manufacturer of firearms and BB guns in the United States. The corporate headquarters is in Springfield, Massachusetts. Founded in 1852, Smith & Wesson's pistols and revolvers have become standard issue to police and armed forces throughout the world, in addition to their popularity among sport shooters. Their revolvers have been featured in numerous Hollywood movies, notably Clint Eastwood's Dirty Harry.

Apart from firearms, Smith & Wesson has been known for the many types of ammunition it has introduced over the years, and many cartridges bear the company's name.

History

Early history

Horace Smith and Daniel B. Wesson founded the Smith & Wesson Company in Norwich, Connecticut in 1852 to develop the Volcanic rifle. Smith developed a new Volcanic Cartridge, which he patented in 1854. The Smith & Wesson Company was renamed Volcanic Repeating Arms in 1855, and was purchased by Oliver Winchester. Smith left the company and returned to his native Springfield, Massachusetts, Wesson stayed on as plant manager with Volcanic Repeating Arms.

Smith & Wesson Model 619 & 620

The Smith & Wesson models 619 & 620 are 7 shot revolvers introduced by the company in 2005. The 619 has fixed rear sights while the 620 comes with adjustable rear sights and a different handgrip. They are very similar and often mistaken for members of the 686 family.

In actuality they are descendants of S&W's model 65 & 66. The 65 & 66 models were discontinued and the 619 & 620 filled their place as the next generation. They were updated to current S&W standards with the addition of a key lock safety as well as 7 round cylinders. The K-Frame of the 65 & 66 was replaced with the newer reinforced L-Frame.

620 vs 686P

These handguns share many common traits but are easily distinguished by key differences. Both models are based on the Smith & Wesson L-Frame and are available in 4" barrels with 7 shot capacity. The 686 features a full-underlug barrel made of one piece whereas the 620 sports a half-lug and two piece barrel. The 620 weighs in at 37.9oz, just a hair lighter than the 686's 38oz. The lighter model also shaves 1/8" off of the 686's 9⁵⁄₈" overall length.

S. W. T. Lanham

Samuel Willis Tucker Lanham (July 4, 1846 – July 29, 1908), was the 23rd Governor of Texas from January 20, 1903 to January 15, 1907. He was a member of the Democratic Party. Prior to winning election as Governor, he served two periods in the US House of Representatives. He served five terms from the 11th District (which covered a vast area of West Texas) then ran for governor, losing in his first attempt. When he returned to Congress, it was in the Eighth District, where he served 4 terms.

Early years

Samuel Willis Tucker Lanham was born in 1846 in South Carolina to James Madison and Louisa de Aubrey (Tucker) Lanham in Spartanburg District (now County), South Carolina, and named for his maternal grandfather, Samuel Willis Tucker. When the Civil War began, Lanham volunteered for the Confederate States Army, despite the fact that he was only fifteen years old. He fought primarily in Virginia, was wounded at the Battle of Spotsylvania Court House, and after hostilities ended he married. He and his wife settled in Weatherford, Texas, where he worked and studied law.