FALL 2019
travel.Theactionwasalsoperfectlytimed,
andtherewasno“ring”betweenthebolt
cutsofthecylinder,evenaftertherangetest.
Finally,thefrontsightis a rounded
blade,andtherearisa fixedsquarenotch
cutintothetopstrap.Theoverallfitandfin-
ishonmypistolwerefirstrate.
TocomplementTheShootist,I wanteda
leatherrigthatwasveryclosetowhatThe
DukeworeinmostofhisWesternmovies.
I’msureeverybodyreadingthishasnoted
th e rough-cutleathercartridgebeltlowon
Wayne’ships,withtancartridgeloopsand
a tan,high-ride,gunslinger-styleholster.
Nolow-hangingBuscaderorigswithtie-
downsforTheDuke!
IfoundjustwhatI waslookingforfrom
GalcoGunleather.I startedwiththecom-
pany’s1880sCartridgeBelt.It’smadefrom
rough-side-outpremiumsaddleleather
withtheleatherfoldedatthebottomand
sewnatthetoptofashiona
moneybeltthat’sa full3 inches
wide.Italsohaspremiumsteer-
hidebilletsandcartridgeloops
(30in.44or.45caliber)aswell
asa nickel-platedbrassbuckle.
TothisI addedGalco’s
st rong-side1880sHolster,which
matchestheloopsandbilletsin
tancoloration.Thishigh-ride
designismadefrompremium
st eerhidewithan adjustablehammerthong
retentionstrap.It’smoldedtoSAArevolv-
ers,andthedesignisreminiscentofthe
Mexicanloopstyle,withouttheskirting
inth e back.It fitsperfectlyon the1880s
CartridgeBelt,andI thinkTheDukehim-
selfwould’vebeenproudtowearthisrig.
MyfirsttaskattherangewastestingThe
Shootistwiththreedifferentloadsfrom
BlackHills,HSMandRemingtontoobtain
somevelocityfigures.ThenI setuppaper
targetsatthe15-yardlinetoassessthe
revolver’saccuracypotentialandsights.I
firedfive-shotgroupsfromthebenchusing
a sandbagrest,andthetopscorecamewith
theHSMcartridges,witha groupmeasur-
ing1.92inches.TheRemingtonloadcame
inse condwitha 2.03-inchcluster.
Mygroupsweregenerallyabout4 inch-
eslowandslightlytotheright,soI held
thefrontsightnearthetopofthebullseye
andjusta littlelefttogetcenterhits.I’ve
GUNS OF THE OLD WEST 37
Made by Pietta for EMF, The Shootist
has a dark blued finish, a one-piece
Ultra Ivory grip and laser engraving that
covers roughly 85 percent of the gun.
