When was/is the golden age of handguns?

F

Falcon642

New member
So people talk about the golden age of cars, comedy, whatever. When would you say was/is the golden age of handguns?

Personally I think it's different for revolvers and autos. I think the golden age of autos is now, almost every manufacturer is making high quality autos with all sorts of variety.

For revolvers, I would say the golden age was the 70's and early 80's. Smith and Wesson, Colt, and Ruger were all very much in the revolver game back then.

So, what do you think?
 
Interesting question. However, there can be more than one golden age.

I think in the case of revolvers, there was a golden age, of sorts, in the late 1930s, when you had a wide variety of high quality revolvers from Colt and Smith & Wesson. One often reads that because of lower labor costs, more hand finishing was lavished on the product, although that may not be true. While catalogs did list a variety of models and variations on through the end of the 1950s, it shouldn't be assumed that they were easy to find just anywhere. But prices just about doubled, if catalog prices are what you actually ended up paying. And that was just in a twenty year period.

But revolvers available from 1960, let's say, were still of excellent value and may have been even better in some ways. The S&W K-frame was made stronger, for instance. But the period when S&W was introducing a gun a month, or so it seemed, may have been another golden period. Was that the 1980s?

That same period was also when the nicest selection of all-steel pistols was available from S&W, too, and Colt was beginning to introduce a bigger variety of their automatics as well. So that might have been the second golden age of handguns.

No one ever realizes when they're living in a golden age because most people never have enough gold.
 
For those of who love handguns it will always be a "golden age" of some sort. Yet if I were to put a time frame on golden age, I vote goes to 1900 - 1980, Smith and Wesson released the triple lock, the hand ejector, the 38/44 and finally the .357 Magnum in the N frame then in the K frame in 1955 these were Some of the best if not the best production revolvers ever made. Sadly we don't see that kind of quality anymore.

For you autoloader fans the Colt 1911 and Browning H/P were introduced to the pubic.
 
It depends where you are coming from. In pure numbers present days is right up there. If you're talking reliability present day may again be right up there. If you're talkin quality, fit and finish present day is dang near if not at the bottom of the barrel. Let's face it, when was the last time a truly classic handgun was introduced? New so-called innovative semis are butt ugly and revolvers are covered in lawyer crap with no where near the finish they had a few decades ago.

Give me something old(ish) any day.

LK
 
Interesting question

That is a good question. There are different standards as to what would constitue a "Golden Age", though. If you are talking about from the perspective of crafstmanship, hand finishing, and overall beauty and pride of the product, I would think that the pre WWII examples from Colt and Smith & Wesson would be the top of the hill, and possibly to include some of the post war revolvers. But pre WWII had the introduction of the Hand Ejector, or Triple lock, along with the fine Colt guns. A case could be made for the autos made from about 1900 to WWI, The Borshcart, the Lugar design, and of course, John Moses Browning designs, the 1900, 1903, the 1905, the Colt/Browning/FN,Baby, and of couse the epitome of pistol deign- the peerless 1911. (No bias here, really:D!) Along with some others I have left out. Then you have the period that starts, I guess, in the Sixties, with the Smith model 39, Beretta's entrance to the world market, the incredible Sig P210, ( I have handled one, they are that good!) the Walthers, etc.
And then the explosion in the eighties of every concievable type of high cap
"WonderNine Crunchenthickers", as Col. Cooper would refer to them. Some of which are better than others. From the perspective of the availability, this period, up to the present would have to rule IMHO, just try to take a count of how many different Pistols there are to choose from now. You would need a calculater just to count how many Smith & Wesson varients are currently available. Those boys must drink a lot of coffee!:).
In my humble opinion, we now live in a truly "Golden Age", between the used market, and the dizzying variety of pistols, and to a lesser extent revolvers, that we can choose from, and of course argue over endlessly face to face or in a great forum such as TFL. "My -Fill in the blank-, is the best gun ever, and your - fill in the blank- doesen't even make a good paperweight:p;)"
I hope we all realize just how truly great things are for Gun lovers, and more importantly, for those who cherish individual freedom and their God given right to exist and defend their families and loved ones, and realize that if we do not keep up the fight, what we take for granted may be gone forever. Excuse my while I step down off of my soapbox.
JMHO, and as always, YMMV
Willy
 
I have to agree with previous posters, that now is going to be remembered as a golden age. Maybe not for fit and finish as much as in bygone years but for innovation and availability you can't beat the past 30 years and currently.
 
It's very subjective. Some will say the past, as the guns were made by hand and finished with care. They were works of art, but often do not share the same functionality of guns made today.

For me, the present day is about as good as it gets. Never before has there been such a huge selection of guns for the shooting public to choose from. There are a wealth of companies making guns right here in the U.S., as well as may companies importing older military and police weapons that were just about unobtainable years ago. Also consider the wealth of different ammunition companies, and the various odd ball calibers that you can now find factory ammo for.
 
THIS is the golden age of handguns -- thus far. I bought a T-series Browning Hi Power in 1968, and still shoot it at the range. I love it, but I also see many more recently designed handguns that I consider to be more than its equal. It's a fact: the chocolate handguns are the way it is going, and there are some excellent ones out there. And ammunition keeps getting better and better.

The legal situation is another story, for another thread.

Cordially, Jack
 
Another vote for the present day.
Never have we seen such a variety of well-designed and reasonably priced weaponry, and I wonder how long it will last.

Enjoy it while it's here.
 
That rare pay day when all my bills are caught up and some put away into savings and still some left for a toy is THE golden age of firearms in my book. :D
Jees, I have not purchased a firearm in almost a year! I feel awefull!
 
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