These mainspring housings have a grooved pattern for easier identification. In 1932, a heat-treated mainspring housing was phased in, allowing for the increased pressure of high velocity ammunition. The Match Target model had walnut grips which extended down over the grip frame, giving them the nickname "elephant ear" grips. All first model pistols had the bottom of the grip frame at 90 degrees to the angle of the grip, making the rear of the grip much shorter than the front. A large bullseye target imprinted on the left side easily identifies the Match Target model. From 1922 to 1934, the barrel became thicker, and from 1934 to 1947, a straight tapered barrel was used. From 1915 to 1922, a rather lightweight "pencil" barrel was used. The Target Models had increasingly thicker barrels. These rear sights were adjustable only for windage. The Sport models had fixed front sights, which became adjustable in 1938. The earliest ones, until 1927, had no "Woodsman" markings on the gun. The first series pistols were made from 1915 to 1947. Magazines and grips differ greatly among the three series. These subcategories were the "Sport Model" with a 4 ½" round barrel, a "Target Model" with a 6 or 6 ½" round barrel, and the top-of-the-line "Match Target Model" with a heavier flat-sided barrel. In a nutshell, there were three different series over the years, and each series had three main subcategories. The pistol survived on the marketplace for 62 years, evolving into many different versions.Ĭategorizing and identifying Woodsman pistols is somewhat involved. The factory called it the "Model S," matching their internal designation for the frame. It did not acquire the name "Woodsman" until 1927, at about serial number 54,000. The pistol was placed on the market in 1915 as the Colt Caliber. Tansley, modified and developed the design and should share credit with Browning for its success. This allowed each round to feed forward smoothly.īrowning sold his design in 1911 to Colt. In this design, the rim of the higher round was always in front of the ones below it in the magazine. The key to consistent feeding was Browning's use of a slanted magazine. 22 cartridges was not reliable, as the rims tended to catch on each other. Until Browning's design, semiauto feeding of rimmed. Although there were many permutations of this pistol over the years, the basic design for the original version was another product of the fertile brain of the master, John Moses Browning. 22 pistols deserve inclusion as classic handguns if for no other reason than they were the first successful.
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