Bill DeShivs
New member
While the SAA was expensive, SOMEBODY bought an awful lot of them- and I'm not talking about the military!
Fanning
- Thread starter rmocarsky
- Start date
Pathfinder45
New member
Sam Colt and Oliver Winchester did not get rich without plenty of customers.......
And back to fanning a sixgun:
What's skewed the whole image is the Western movies where it seemed
that everyone carried a sixgun, even in towns, and wore a broad brimmed
hat. And let's not forget the buscadero holster rigs with tied down holster.
If you think abut John Wayne Westerns, the ones from the 1940s on, he
seldom played a cowboy even though he was dubbed a cowboy star.
Usually he was some gun for hire, but a nice one, or a peace officer
or in regard to ranching, the boss, not a hired hand.
And so came about in nearly all the popular Westerns the fast gun and
fast came to mean in many cases fanning. Think Eastwood in the
spaghetti Westerns. Or Shane. A lot of nonsense.
What's skewed the whole image is the Western movies where it seemed
that everyone carried a sixgun, even in towns, and wore a broad brimmed
hat. And let's not forget the buscadero holster rigs with tied down holster.
If you think abut John Wayne Westerns, the ones from the 1940s on, he
seldom played a cowboy even though he was dubbed a cowboy star.
Usually he was some gun for hire, but a nice one, or a peace officer
or in regard to ranching, the boss, not a hired hand.
And so came about in nearly all the popular Westerns the fast gun and
fast came to mean in many cases fanning. Think Eastwood in the
spaghetti Westerns. Or Shane. A lot of nonsense.
While I'm sure there was an idiot or three who actually tried it in the old west, Fanning the sixgun is a movie trick. Even folks who recognize that its only done in the movies (and TV) don't usually ask WHY its done in the movies.
we all know why we don't do it in the real world (other than planned exhibitions), because its hard on the gun, can be hard on the shooter (fan a Ruger Blackhawk
), and unless you are a natural talent (rare) or have shot a wagon load of ammo practicing from the hip, you won't be hitting your target.
It is done in the movies, for the dramatic eye catching movement. And that's all. They are shooting blanks, they are shooting prop guns (not their personal property) so who cares if the gun gets battered, or even breaks, as long as it lasts for the scene being shot.
The WORST gun handling (in terms of what's bad for the gun) is in the movies and TV, though to be fair, TV just upheld the "traditions" established in the movies.
Fanning the SA revolver, "Bogarting" the DA revolver (flipping the cylinder open and shut), flipping the double barrel shotgun so it slams shut, and others. Visually dramatic. Director's love it. Bad for the guns, but good for the picture, and the guns are just props, so who cares??
Chuck Conners spin cocking his Winchester as he walked was very dramatic and eye catching, very impressive.
Of course, the rifle had to be specially modified so the blank ammo used wouldn't fall out of the gun as he spun it, And you had to be as tall as Conners to spin the rifle, without hitting the dirt with the muzzle....
Think of fanning as "movie special effects" and not something to be tried at home, or the range and you'll be better off, and so will your guns.
we all know why we don't do it in the real world (other than planned exhibitions), because its hard on the gun, can be hard on the shooter (fan a Ruger Blackhawk
), and unless you are a natural talent (rare) or have shot a wagon load of ammo practicing from the hip, you won't be hitting your target.It is done in the movies, for the dramatic eye catching movement. And that's all. They are shooting blanks, they are shooting prop guns (not their personal property) so who cares if the gun gets battered, or even breaks, as long as it lasts for the scene being shot.
The WORST gun handling (in terms of what's bad for the gun) is in the movies and TV, though to be fair, TV just upheld the "traditions" established in the movies.
Fanning the SA revolver, "Bogarting" the DA revolver (flipping the cylinder open and shut), flipping the double barrel shotgun so it slams shut, and others. Visually dramatic. Director's love it. Bad for the guns, but good for the picture, and the guns are just props, so who cares??
Chuck Conners spin cocking his Winchester as he walked was very dramatic and eye catching, very impressive.
Of course, the rifle had to be specially modified so the blank ammo used wouldn't fall out of the gun as he spun it, And you had to be as tall as Conners to spin the rifle, without hitting the dirt with the muzzle....
Think of fanning as "movie special effects" and not something to be tried at home, or the range and you'll be better off, and so will your guns.
the Black Spot
New member
I doubt their revolvers got so hot they needed a fan...
Model12Win
Moderator
Them old shootists that did this were called "fansmans" and were well feared out on the frontier. 
Kidding, it's Holly Weird.
Kidding, it's Holly Weird.
"We Pointed Them North: Recollections of a Cowpuncher" by C.E. Abbott is a great first hand account of cowboying in the old west. He talks a bit about who wore guns, where, and why. Including some insight on who wore two guns. A must-read for those of us born a century too late.
My wife and I were watching an otherwise entertaining show over the weekend and both were laughing out loud at the fact that somebody got, IIRC, 17 shots out of a revolver without reloading. To make it even funnier, the shooter pulled the trigger one more time and got a click. Darn near fell off the couch then. It wasn't supposed to be a comedy, but sheesh!
Tailgater,
Well now, my most ignorant friend, displayed was probably my 18-shot
revolver that shooters of great discernment have purchased.
Obviously and mistakenly the hero in your movie assumed he could
not have a round under the lowered hammer so he only loaded.17
cartridges.
I'd like to assure all and one that my 18-shooter is perfectly safe
with the hammer down on a loaded chamber unless you are drunk
and prone to hitting the hammer with a hammer.
For more information, consult the internet on UncleEd's
Wonder Wheel Gun patents pending and pending and pending.
Ignore the July recalls regarding malfunctions and burst cylinders.
They didn't amount to much.
Well now, my most ignorant friend, displayed was probably my 18-shot
revolver that shooters of great discernment have purchased.
Obviously and mistakenly the hero in your movie assumed he could
not have a round under the lowered hammer so he only loaded.17
cartridges.
I'd like to assure all and one that my 18-shooter is perfectly safe
with the hammer down on a loaded chamber unless you are drunk
and prone to hitting the hammer with a hammer.
For more information, consult the internet on UncleEd's
Wonder Wheel Gun patents pending and pending and pending.
Ignore the July recalls regarding malfunctions and burst cylinders.
They didn't amount to much.
Bob Wright
New member
the Black Spot said:
Maybe not, but I have had my Super Blackhawk get hot enough after twenty-five or thirty rounds fired to get hot enough to burn my hand, this the cylinder and barrel.
No blistering, but hot enough to be uncomfortable to hold while punching out empties.
Bob Wright
Maybe not, but I have had my Super Blackhawk get hot enough after twenty-five or thirty rounds fired to get hot enough to burn my hand, this the cylinder and barrel.
No blistering, but hot enough to be uncomfortable to hold while punching out empties.
Bob Wright
