Modern Handguns

This article is meant as an introduction to the subject of handguns. It is not meant to be a definitive guide. Books have been written about specific firearms and remain the most comprehensive guides to their subjects.

Early Revolvers

It wasn’t until Colt’s first factory—the Patent Arms Company, in Paterson, New Jersey—introduced the Colt Paterson in 1836 that the handgun world was introduced to a repeating firearm employing a rotating cylinder in which each opening acted as a separate chamber: a true revolver.

There was a hitch, though. The operator was still required to fill each chamber with black powder, seat a lead ball, and add a percussion cap. Not exactly a speedy operation. Another unique feature of the Paterson was that the trigger wasn’t exposed until the shooter thumbed back the hammer.

The Paterson enjoyed limited success with both civilian and military markets. It wasn’t until fully metallic, centerfire cartridges—usually brass—were available that the Colt Single Action Army became a practical firearm.

The Colt Single Action Army, often associated with the Peacemaker name, is popularly known as “the gun that won the west.” A single-action six-shooter, it is the iconic weapon many people identify with cowboys, gunslingers, and old-west lawmen.

Since its introduction, the revolver has been available in many calibers and configurations, including the famous Buntline Special. The solid design, reliability, and mythology surrounding these revolvers have ensured their place with collectors and shooters.

Revolver Development

Single-action handguns remain widely available in today’s marketplace. Calibers range from .22 rimfire to powerful big-bore cartridges suitable for large-game protection.

This brief review of revolvers would not be complete without mentioning one of the most influential handguns in U.S. history: the Smith & Wesson Model 10. This revolver has been used in military, law enforcement, and civilian hands since its introduction in 1899.

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Modern Semi-Automatic Pistols

Although several Europeans designed self-loading pistols, those firearms had not won broad acceptance. In 1896, legendary American gun designer John Moses Browning produced auto-loading, semi-automatic pistol designs first manufactured by Fabrique Nationale in Belgium and later by Colt in the United States.

In response to the U.S. Army’s requirement for a sidearm with more stopping power than the .38 caliber revolvers, Browning designed the .45 ACP cartridge for the prototype of his Colt semi-automatic pistol.

Browning’s Colt pistol became the world-famous M1911, a single-action, semi-automatic, magazine-fed, recoil-operated handgun chambered for the .45 ACP cartridge. Due to experience in World War I, several minor changes were incorporated and the pistol became known as the M1911A1.

With the advent of World War II, demand for the .45 sidearm was overwhelming. Remington Rand, Ithaca Gun Company, Union Switch and Signal, and even Singer Sewing Machine Company were pressed into service to build M1911A1 pistols.

Many variations on the central theme have been made, but the handgun designed more than a century ago has stood the test of time. The M1911A1 continued to see use among elite military, law enforcement, and civilian shooters.

John Browning’s simple, solid design has also lent itself to customization. Many prominent gunmakers use the basic M1911 platform as their guide for highly accurate and attractive pistols.

The Luger and the Glock

While U.S. soldiers carried M1911A1 pistols into battle, German forces used a radically different design. The Luger used a toggle-lock action rather than the slide action found in most semi-automatic pistols.

The Lugers used by German forces in World War II fired the 9x19mm Parabellum cartridge, popularly called 9mm Luger. Although not as popular as the M1911, the Luger remains sought after by collectors for its sleek design and wartime association.

A look at modern pistols would not be complete without considering the Austrian-designed Glock family of semi-automatic handguns. Glocks were among the first successful polymer-framed semi-automatic pistols.

These handguns are double-action-only designs with no external hammer. Although the marketplace was initially reluctant to accept a “plastic pistol,” Glock’s simplicity, lighter weight, and reliability made the design popular with law enforcement, military, and civilian users.

The manufacturer refers to its pistols as Glock Safe Action Pistols. The safety system is built into the trigger, with safety mechanisms disengaging as the shooter presses the trigger and reengaging when the trigger is released.

Learn More About Semi-Automatics

Full-Automatic Pistols

It is difficult to make a clear distinction between a fully automatic pistol, sometimes called a “machine pistol,” and a submachine gun. The term machine pistol is derived from the German word maschinenpistole, meaning machine pistol.

Modern examples of full-auto pistols include models from H&K, Steyr, and Glock. These pistols are typically described by manufacturers as personal defense weapons or close-quarters combat firearms.

Because they fire pistol rounds, have shorter effective ranges, and typically use smaller magazines, they are generally less effective as offensive weapons than shoulder-fired automatic arms.

Definitions

• Muzzle-loaders: Firearms loaded from the front of the barrel. Except for nostalgic shooters and collectors, they are mostly obsolete.
• Breech-loaders: Firearms loaded from the rear of the barrel; these include the bulk of modern handguns.
• Pistols: Many purists define a pistol as a handgun in which the chamber is integral to the barrel.
• Revolvers: Handguns with a rotating drum holding several cartridges.
• Single action: Handguns that require cocking the hammer before each shot.
• Double action: Pulling the trigger cocks and releases the hammer, and in revolvers rotates the cylinder.
• Double-action only: Handguns that do not allow the operator to pre-cock the hammer.
• Semi-automatic: A single-chamber pistol that uses energy from one shot to reload for the next, firing once per trigger pull.
• Full automatic: A firearm that fires multiple rounds with a single pull of the trigger.
• Magazine: The box, drum, or tube that holds ammunition for feeding into the firearm.
• Clip: A device used to facilitate loading magazines.

This article is a concise sketch of handgun development and is intended to open the way for more in-depth study.

About Thomas Rowe Drinkard

Thomas Rowe Drinkard was born and reared in Alabama. He graduated from the University of North Alabama with a degree in English, was commissioned an Army second lieutenant, completed parachute school, and was selected for U.S. Army Special Forces.