I’d say that you’re preaching to the choir.

Tom

 

Although , my true love is a somewhat newer version that Colt has blessed me with ; I seldom go to bed without , at least , looking at it. It's time has truly "come and gone" but I can never shake the "love" I have developed for this unique handgun and cartridge combination ! I attach pics of my "Beauty"...………(1911 .38 super)

 

I think based on your reasons the Winchester Model 1894 would be a strong contender. You did say firearm, not just handgun.

 

Perhaps you should better define your criteria, "best" is a relative and subjective term.

 

I'll toss my limited knowledge into this discussion. My best is a Colt 1873 SA in .45Colt. My 2nd best is a Colt 1872 Open Top in 45Colt. My best rifle is a 1894 Winchester in 30-30 although the 1873 Winchester follows in a close 2nd. However in my mind every rifle or pistol in your hands is "the best" when you need it. Also it depends on what era we are talking about since firearms made dramatic leaps in design from Flintlock to Percussion then on to cartridges during the 19th century. Personally I love my SA's all of them and Open Carry them daily on my land when out doing chores or even when I go to town. It's almost a daily event when in town with tourists asking to take photos of my SA's in my holster and gun belt. So the love of SA's is very much alive today as ever!

 

There are allot of 1898 mausers out there and that basic design was used by many countries as their primary military weapon .

 

For American guns, my opinion is based on "most useful" vs "most innovative, novel, etc." Some were not made very long due to expenses or whatever.

Best for buffalo hunting - Sharps Old Reliable
Best for waterfowl hunting - Winchester 1897
Best for woods deer hunting - 1894 Winchester
Best for long range target shooting - Ballard schuetzen
Best for .22 plinking and hunting - Winchester 1890 pump
Best for .22 target - Stevens Pope single action rifle

But trying to think of the best 19th century revolver....I'm leaning towards the SAA. The Merwin and Hulbert would be a close second too.

 

The Merwin and Hulbert would be a close second too.

Merwin & Hulbert revolvers are a marvel of 19th century engineering an ingenuity. I have presented photographs of one to aid in this discussion, a Pocket Army Second Model. You will note the tolerances and the tight fit of all components; some say that the revolver contains such strict tolerances that suction will pull it closed on its own, or nearly so. I own several Merwin & Hulbert revolvers, most with condition, and I've never experienced anything like that. Many have lauded the Merwin & Hulbert, and its popularity increased significantly after Art Phelps wrote a book about them, praising them profusely.

It's hard to say whether or not they are better than Colt Single Action Army revolvers, but, without a doubt, the fitting is far superb to that of a Colt Single Action Army revolver. It definitely required much individual hand fitting during production, which would make the cost to produce today prohibitive.

I would suggest that longevity is not necessarily a decent criteria to determine if a revolver, or any 19th Century firearm, for that matter, is superior to another. A firm can produce a great firearm, but be managed poorly, leading to its demise. Merwin & Hulbert produced a top notch revolver during its 15 year existence, 1876 to 1891. In 1891, the company filed for bankruptcy. It wasn't that the quality of the product was poor, just that management was.

Other considerations with regards to what was the best 19th Century firearm. Number produced? Others have mentioned the Winchester Model 1894. Millions were produced, any post 1964, according to most, are slightly better than junk. In my opinion, anything after mid to late 1920's suffers in quality. In my opinion, even though only 159,994 Winchester Model 1886's were produced, they are far superior.

Obviously, a fair number of Colt First Generation Single Action Army revolvers were produced (over 357,000), but a large number were produced for use by the military (Cavalry and Artillery Models). Perhaps familiarity with these as a military firearm led to their popularity with private individuals later in life. Also, marketing and the size of a firm would have something to do with production numbers and capacity. No doubt about it, a Colt Single Action Army revolver, first generation, is a fine firearm indeed, but was it the best one ever? That has no definitive answer.

One last thing to think about. I would imagine that if one intended to do a lot of firing from horseback, the Smith & Wesson New Model No 3 revolver, a competitor at the time, would be superior to a Colt Single Action Army revolver, due to ease of loading and unloading. Crack open the (top break) revolver, insert six rounds easily and quickly, fire said six rounds, crack open the revolver, quickly dispense 6 spent rounds on the ground, and repeat. Loading and unloading a Colt Single Action Army revolver requires much more manual dexterity.

 

The 'BEST' 19th century firearm is the one I am currently holding at the time, listening to it whisper to me about it's history. Now if only I could hear better.

 

mrcvs, yep I really liked the Merwin innovations, and they were very popular on the frontier. The S&Ws too, I'd thought about that. I thing the slow loading of the Colt SAA was it's worst problem, otherwise it was a accurate, good sized gun made in many calibers. That helps longevity too.

 

Let’s just all admit that Wild Bill knew what was best.

Tom

 

View attachment 653249
Let’s just all admit that Wild Bill knew what was best.

Tom

We will have to consider that at the height is "gunfighting" days there was no SAA yet.

But he was shot in the back with one.

 

I'd agree...

And for the 20th Century, I'd say the Colt m1911 / Government Model.

So...Colt seems to be the winner for both Centuries of course!

 

If we're gonna talk 20th century, then I will submit the Browning M-2 50 caliber machine gun.

 

If you want to break it down, cartridge guns only...

Revolver-Colt New Service, 1898.

Self loader-Luger, 1900, (1900 is still officially the 19th century, but for any nit-pickers-C96 Mauser then).

Rifles-1898 Mauser by a landslide.

Shotguns-Winchester 1897.

 

Maybe one of these
All made 1897

 

I shall offer no argument to the OP.
I reckon any response is a matter of opinion, conjecture, & preference, based on individual interpretation of the question.
Note the wide variance in the responses.

 

Love the New Model #3 Target, what caliber is it?

 

Parsons noted (and I'm paraphrasing) that the Army loved the SAA......... for five shots, then you could throw it away.

 

The breechloader.

 

I really like this discourse of which certainly there will not be universal agreement, at least with this bunch here...

I would have to argue that the Colt Paterson would have to be the Best 19th Century American Firearm from the perspective of we Colt collectors. Granted, the Model 1873 Colt Single Action had the longevity, usefulness, practicality and time of manufacture and could therefore be considered a better revolver, but let us not forget that the Colt Paterson, patented in America by Samuel Colt in 1836, was THE precursor to the revolver, Colt Single Action or other revolvers, as we know them today. Certainly the Single Action was a perfection of the Colt Paterson revolver patent, but if it were not for the Colt Paterson patent, then the Single Action would not have existed, at least in its current form. Sure, somebody would have gotten around to it eventually, but Samuel Colt was the first - in America.

But let's not forget the inspiration of the revolver to Samuel Colt, the Elisha H. Collier Flintlock Revolver, patented by Bostonian Elisha H. Collier who moved to England in 1818 to patent his design there and in France. Samuel Colt had Collier testify at the famous Colt vs. Massachusetts Arms Company patent infringement trial of 1851 and still has two of these few flintlock revolvers in the Colt Collection in Hartford today. Although Samuel Colt would not give the Collier revolver the credit of being his inspiration, the facts seem to suggest otherwise. Technically not American, this revolver represented the beginning of the development of the revolver as we now know it.

Here's a Collier and a couple of Patersons...

 

Nobody has mentioned the Webley revolvers which saw vastly more action that any other revolver. Although looking at long arms the development of the Minie cartridge in rifled muskets changed warfare.

 

[QUOTE=Rick Bowles; What caliber?

44 Russian
Front target sight only

 

Hereby nominated for 1st Place in the "Best Not-A-Colt" category, the 1890 Remington.

View attachment 653575

 

The best at what?

 

Colt SAA? The best firearm of the XIXth Century?

Not by a long shot.

Ever heard of a fellow named Hiram Maxim?

I won't even go into artillery.

 

Just today I got this: https://truewestmagazine.com/old-we...om/old-west-guns-22-guns-that-won-the-west/?mc_cid=8dcf92019f&mc_eid=4b0ca3fb71

 

The Forsyth Patent Gun Company was formed 1808. Later the name was changed to Forsyth & Co in 1809. Doctor Alexander John Forsyth and his invention of the percussion gun it was the greatest step forward since the invention of gun powder and the most important development since firearms were first made some four hundred years before. His invention came to him when out duck shooting he noticed that the ducks would dive under the water when they saw the flash of the powder in his flint lock pan. It is of interest to note that Pauly of France and are said Prelat to have carried out the inventions around the same time. Numerous plans were soon devised in Europe and America. Samuel Colt then brought the Paterson percussion revolver out some 30 years later. So the best fire arm of the 19th Century in my book goes to a Scottish Minister who formed Forsyth & Co, hand gun and rifle maker. Colt being next with his 5 shot Paterson revolver, also the Eli Whitney Walker revolver which is very much credited to early USA arms history.

 

Well, an argument can be made for the ugly Mosin-Nagant, due to its ruggedness, its military use in three centuries, its ubiquitous nature, the sheer number made by numerous nations and the fact that its caliber exceeds the .308 almost 60 years prior.

It is rumored that Soviet General Aleksei Antonov said of the Mosin Nagant: "это лучшее боевое орудие, когда-либо разработанное!", roughly, "It is the best battle implement ever devised!"

OK, I made that up.

 

Well, an argument can be made for the ugly Mosin-Nagant, due to its ruggedness, its military use in three centuries, its ubiquitous nature, the sheer number made by numerous nations and the fact that its caliber exceeds the .308 almost 60 years prior.

It is rumored that Soviet General Aleksei Antonov said of the Mosin Nagant: "это лучшее боевое орудие, когда-либо разработанное!", roughly, "It is the best battle implement ever devised!"



OK, I made that up.

The Moisen Nagant is a reliable rifle and an accurate one too. But the action is stiff and due to its design it is awkward to use with a slow rate of fire. The Lee Enfield is a far better battle rifle due to its much better ergonomics, its high rate of accurate fire, and with twice the magazine capacity of the Nagant.