My favorite handgun

American Handgunner, Nov-Dec, 2005 by Mike Venturino

Okay, that's enough! First our esteemed editor asked John Taffin to detail his favorite handgun, and then it was Dave Anderson's turn. Now I want my 15 minutes of fame!

Picking my favorite handgun out of the many I have in the vault isn't the same as saying it's what I would choose if limited to one. Picking my favorite means settling on the one I take out when shooting just for myself for fun. And that's easy, because I like it so much I bought another just like it.

It might surprise you to know even though I consider myself a "hard-core" shooter, my favorite handgun is a commemorative. Yep, it's the 1873-1973 Peacemaker Centennial Commemorative; specifically the nickel-plated version in .44 WCF (.44-40). Why shoot a commemorative? It is the nearest thing I've ever found to a genuine 1870s Colt Frontier Six Shooter, yet is made of modern steels and uses closely-matching barrel/cylinder specs.

Interestingly, the Centennials didn't come out in 1973. Colt finally got them on dealer's shelves in 1975. And, there were two versions. One was finished in blue with color case hardened frame and hammer. It was in .45 Colt with 7 1/2" barrel, and was a perfect rendition of the Colt SAA as bought by the U.S. Government for cavalry service starting in 1873.

The other half of the Centennials were those .44-40s I'm so fond of. Likewise they had 7 1/2" barrels, the so-called blackpowder frame with its base pin securing screw angling in from the front and bullseye ejector rod button. The markings were even perfect for a 1870s vintage Colt, with three line patent dates on the frame and a tiny ".44CF" stamp on the left side of the trigger guard. The best marking, however, is the COLT FRONTIER SIX SHOOTER logo in a panel on the barrel's left side.

The sights are also the very fine types consisting of a groove down the frame's topstrap and a very thin blade front. When I say thin--it's sharp enough to cut you. Most shooters don't like those tiny sights because they indeed are hard to see. I had a special set of shooting glasses made to correct my tired, old eyes so I do like them.