airsix wrote:Scottsax got it right. It is nicknamed a "mare's leg" and is traditionally a cut-down Winchester model 1892. The nickname comes from some old western movie. I can't remember which. The biggest downside is the tubular magazine that runs along the bottom of the barrel has to be shortened. A standard 1892 had a 15 round capacity but a cut-down mare's leg holds only 7. Most shot a .44 Winchester which is a pistol cartridge. So I don't know if it really makes sense as a weapon. A revolver in .44 would be smaller and easier to manage and would have nearly the same capacity.
Steve McQueen carried one in "Wanted: Dead or Alive."
Zoe Alleyne Washburne carried one on "Firefly."
I'm such a gun nerd...
I'm going to look like a moose on rollerskates. -airsix
... my Mom caught me fenestrating once. -lavachickie
And I get so tired of fainting and peeing all over myself when the hammer falls on an empty chamber! -Nailer
Setting aside the technical merits of the weapon I sort of "get it" now (thanks to Scottsax). I looked up "Wanted: Dead or Alive" and see it was about a BA bounty hunter. So here's what we know: Steve McQueen is cool. That's a fact. His character hunted down the baddies. My own interpretation from what I read about McQueen's character: it would seem to me his weapon was symbolic of him being the big dog - the guy who would go where others wouldn't, after baddies others wouldn't. (the other bounty hunters carried a smaller less intimidating revolver). Maybe Harrelson's character sees himself as a lone-ranger righting wrongs and settling scores, and his use of that gun is a tribute of sorts. I think that's cool and it says something about the character's personality. I'm not very good at analyzing movies/music/literature, but it's fun to try.
-Ben
"The place looked like a washing machine full of Josh's carharts. I was not into it." --Sockmonkey
This is my favorite smiley!!