High Standard Crusader

[warhammer357]

Hey,
Couple of weeks back I was reading an old Charlie Askins book on shooting (Boy the NRA used to produce some fine books!) and he mentioned the High Standard Crusader revolver.
I got to thinking and dug out an old gun book that had a picture of one in it. Basically, they looked sort of like a cross between a Smith and Wesson N frame and a Dan Wesson.
I understand that the early Dan Wesson wheelguns were made under contract by HS, actually, and that some of the internal lockwork, which gun writers back then praised for being simple and sturdy was a very close copy of the Dan Wesson.
They were certainly interesting guns, in that they looked good. Early ones had a Crusader figure swinging a sword on the left hand side of the frame.
They also had a thumb safety where the cylinder latch is on mose wheelguns...(That latch would certianly be preferable to that ugly hole lock Smith now uses).
Anybody ever shoot one of these things?
Have any recollection of handling them?

 

[Jim Watson]

You have part of that backwards.
High Standard sold a line of centerfire Sentinel revolvers made for them by Dan Wesson. (There were some High Standard labeled Automags, too.)

The Crusader was utterly different. They got themselves in a financial hole trying to get in the magnum market against S&W, DW, and Ruger, and never really got out of it. I think they eventually assembled 50 each in .44 and .45 and then dropped the whole thing. I never heard of a .357 Crusader at the time.