the Gringo?

[yahoody]

"I'm a little surely so don't make me ask again.  The Gringo rides a spotted pony and carries a  fancy old Henry.  You seen him?"

[Coal Creek Griff]

Those are some great pictures.  Thanks!

CC Griff

Oh--And I think I saw that guy over on the 1876 board, but I'm not sure...

[Tuolumne Lawman]

Great pic!  I'll bet that is an Open Top or Richards conversion, too..

[yahoody]

Made me laugh when I saw my hammer about to get caught up in my braces.   John Hardin once yelled "Texas by GOD" as he tried to pull his pistol and got buffaloed for his efforts when the hammer hung on his braces by the Texas Range tracking him.

[Abilene]

I like the hat 

[yahoody]

I like the hat 

The Gringo can appreciate such sentiment 

[Major 2]

That is a remarkable hat 

[yahoody]

That is a remarkable hat 

Back in the day can you imagine how much a man would be identified by his horse, saddle, guns and hat?

"he wears ivory grips on his Colt, fancy Mexican silver spurs and a big old sombrero......riding an spotted  injun pony".

[Tuolumne Lawman]

I do like the hat , AND the rifle (but I am partial to my Henry), and the Colt...What model?  I have a Type II Richards and an 1858 gated conversion to go with my Henry!

[yahoody]

I do like the hat , AND the rifle (but I am partial to my Henry), and the Colt...What model?

Henry's were used a long time after 1860.     But gonna have to disappoint you my friend 

This is the six gun in the photo... at least it's a BP frame!



and a close up of that Henry carbine....

[Tuolumne Lawman]

Very true.  Henry owners and 1866 owners did not generally trade them in for the newest and latest like people do today.  Consider that at 1120 fps from the muzzle, a .44 Rimfire 215 grain bullet has just a tad over  445 ft lbs ME at 100 yards. That's the same as a modern 45 auto +P 200 grainer at the muzzle! (per Handloads.com ballistic calculator) I wouldn't want to be shot with one!  I know that the 1120-1150 fps for the Henry is accurate, as I chronographed a 200 grain .45 Colt bullet in a Schofield case with 27 grains of FFFG, fired from an Uberti 1860 Henry in .45, and got 1140.

Me with my  Uberti .44-40 Military Model 1860 Henry. (I like 44-40 in the Henry better than the .45 I had because the 44-40 seals the case mouth in the chamber.  Shooting .45 Schofield "Henry duplication loads" in it fouled the action, even using Trail Boss!.)  I love my Cimarron Richards Type II and 1858 gated conversions, both it .45.  I shoot Schofield brass with 200 grain bullets and 6 grains of Trail Boss when not shooting BP

[yahoody]

Agree 100% on all of it.  I converted my little carbine to .45 Special, the short .45 with a Colt rim.   Easy to duplicate that 44 Henry/45ACP +P loads with it and the full ammo load (which is what I wanted) in a Henry.  44-40  and  the better seal is a proper answer as well.

Mike V is on the Colt forum and was just rereading an article (1999) he did on the Henry comparing  the original load to a 357 mag.  Not even close for speed or bullet weight.  Dissappointing data at best.

I also don't find there was a huge rush historically to match rifle caliber to pistol or the other way around.  A .45 was very common on the hip with a 44-40 in the scabbard very common and thoughtful.  The best of both worlds for the weapon it was in.

Just like your Henry, a guy gets to trust what he has and is slow to change.  WB Hickock  is a good example with his cap and ball Navy through '76.

When you think about it the Henry and .44 rimfire BP came out in '60/61.  The 1895 Win in '95 as a smokeless gun.   That is a very short 35 years.   I have been shooting some of my guns much longer than that and  they still do nightstand duty.  Nothing special about the guns or 35 years.....but gives one some perspective on how things changed for guns and ammo  in those 35 years.   When you look at the 1873...basically the improved Henry and the 44-40 I think you have reached the pinnacle of pistol caliber rifles.  Even today the H&K MP5 has to give the '73 a nod for ammo load and power with the  original deliver system.

Between '74 and '92 there wasn't a better rifle to be had for it's use than a '73.  That is dang near 20 years!.   In that same 35?  Only the SAA can compare for longevity and reliability.   And I'd argue today that the 1873 Winchester has yet to be bettered after spending a lot of time behind a number of '92s.   Just random thoughts, sorry for  the long winded comment.  Trying to convince myself to buy another '73

[greyhawk]

Very true.  Henry owners and 1866 owners did not generally trade them in for the newest and latest like people do today.  Consider that at 1120 fps from the muzzle, a .44 Rimfire 215 grain bullet with one!



 I know that the 1120-1150 fps for the Henry is accurate, as I chronographed a 200 grain .45 Colt bullet in a Schofield case with 27 grains of FFFG, fired from an Uberti 1860 Henry in .45, and got 1140.

These numbers make ya wonder about efficiency? it takes a full length case and 12 grains more powder to gain - what - 100fps?

[Tuolumne Lawman]

My main EDC carry gun (I'm retired LEO) is the same 1st/2nd gen Glock 19 I got as a duty weapon in 1994 as a detective.  In 24 years, I have never had a single malfunction with it, through many thousands of rounds.  I have had a plethora of other pistols, but the Glock is it.  A couple years ago I picked up an S&W M&P Shield 9mm for the occasions I need a smaller piece.  It has been as reliable as the Glock.  

With that said, if I had been a lawman back then in the 1860s/1870s instead of now, I would have bought an 1860 Henry when they first came out, and a .44 Martin cartridge conversion (1860 or 1858) when they came out.  I might have even gone with 1872 Open Tops.  Knowing me, I doubt if I would have replaced them, times being the way they were back then.  If it ain't broke, don't fix it, and if it still works, keep it was the way things were.

Last year I had an 1860 Henry in 45 Colt and a pair of open tops in 45.  I used my Henry duplication load of 6 grains of Trail Boss or 24 grains volume of Triple 7.  The guns loved it accuracy wise, BUT even with Trail Boss, the Henry fouled horribly.  OI had to clean it every other stage.  I sold the 45 Henry and bought the 44-40 Henry from a pard here.  At about the same time, I had an opportunity to get author samples of the 1860 Type II Richards and the 1858 gated from Cimarron.  

I sold the Open Tops.  I got the conversions in .45 for a specific reason.  The basic .44 Martin cartridge in the conversions used a .452-.454" heeled bullet so it was tight in the bore of the converted percussion revolvers.That is  the same diameter as the .45 Schofield  bullets I use.  Weights of the Martin varied from 200 to 225 grains.  powder charges were from 25 to 27 grains.  

I load my .44-40 Henry rounds with 7 grains of Trail Boss and a 200 grain .428 bullet, and it gives me 1100-1140 fps on a chrony.  The .45 Schofields in the conversions, I use 6 grains of Trial Boss and a 200 grain .452" bullet.  That should be close to the .44  Martin.

Here's the Richards.  I don't have photos of the gated Remington yet.  The box is a Cheyenne Cartridge Box for 45 Schofield with a 44 Colt label on it.  The .44 Martin rounds in the belt and on the boards are originals from my collection.  I think I have 17 or 18 of them.

[yahoody]

Nice rigs!   Spent some time in your area down in the "big ditch"    But  some  wonderful  cattle country  as well.  You're a lucky guy

[Tuolumne Lawman]

Gringo,  where did you get that hat in the first picture?  That would be perfect for my persona as a lawman in California in 1871.....

[yahoody]

Gringo,  where did you get that hat in the first picture?  That would be perfect for my persona as a lawman in California in 1871.....

Yep, I think it would indeed.  Texas boy, RJ Preston Sombreros on face book.  Museum quality sombrero for a reasonable price.  I make my own 100% beaver cowboy hats, none better.  I wear a hat every day, got a nice beaver on as I type this.  And gotta say RJ's sombreros are one of my favorite wearing, working, riding hats.  $250 is the base price for a damn nice sombrero.  Just ordered my 2nd one this morning.

[G Bulldog Grainisland III]

Lovely photos.
Makes one feel privilidged just to see them

-Bulldog

[Fox Creek Kid]

Clean shaven & no dust on his person? 

[yahoody]

Clean shaven & no dust on his person? 

What you never seen a clean Gringo?
You think everyone was dirty all the time in 1880?  They had barbers, baths and even folks that would clean your clothes in the city....besides the Chinese laundry.

"On March 3, 1821, Thomas L. Jennings became the first African-American to be granted a United States patent. The patent was for his invention of a cleaning process called "dry scouring", which was the precursor to dry cleaning."  By 1855  it was a pretty common process in America and Europe.  There was a cleaner in Tombstone  prior to the OK Corral shoot out.    It is history, ya wretched  heathen