Indiana Jones Real Life Wheelgun Selection

Don't forget the Webley Mk VI he carried in the Holy Grail movie. Personally, I prefer that with the S&W running a very close second.

Once upon a time, Jeff Cooper wrote a Q & A column in Guns and Ammo. Surprisingly, the 1911 was not his answer to all situations.

I recall two cases kinda sorta Jones-ish, both for groups, not solo explorers, though.
One group of archaeologists was going into a region where a man of consequence was expected to be armed. He said for them to get Colt Cobras, then available with 5" barrel. Light to carry and big enough to be considered a Real Gun.
Another party was going to a place where the only thing legal for private ownership was .22 caliber; strictly enforced. He said to get the .22 Jet with LR conversion cylinder. Legal under the letter of the law, powerful enough to smart in defense, cheap to shoot for practice and small game on a long encampment.

Keep in mind the time period that the fictional Jones existed in, primarily the 1910s until probably sometime in the 1940s for his working career.

I think he'd be in the 44 and 45 caliber revolver end of the spectrum. Given that he might need to shoot at something more than just people a larger, heavier bullet would be the way to go.

Something rugged and with ammo available where he would be digging would be my guess.

Since England ruled over about half the world back then, if Jones and his types were carrying the .455 Webley Mk IV it sure makes a lot of sense.




Stay safe.

I'd have to figure Brit-based primary with maybe some U.S. caliber back-up.

Todd.

While many of his archeological sites were outside of the U.S. Jones was an American. I suspect he'd (usually) carry a .44-40, .44 Special, or .45 Colt, but of course, if he had to use a locally sourced gun any of the larger British or French calibers.

IIRC the Jones character was a WW1 veteran, so I'd bet on a 1911 Colt or 1917 revolver because he would have been familiar with them and both ride nicely in flap holsters. A "high tech" Jones might have preferred a Mauser Broomhandle though.
In the 1930s. Britain was banning handguns so I doubt Jones would have found much Webely support in his travels although I could be wrong. I could see a "high tech" Jones with a Webely Fosberry though, since Glocks weren't around then.

Jones crawls through water, rats, sand and treats the gun as a pure tool. I think he would want a small frame revolver in a common cartridge. His whip was primary weapon. I don't think he ever reloaded the revolver but been awhile since I watched.

The Webley was an inspired choice for once by Hollywood.

If not a Webley then a Model of 1917.

John Joseph said:

since Glocks weren't around then.

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Id guess Webley as well


Having done a good bit of spelunking/ Rock climbing/ and diving, I carry a Glock. The trash/dirt/water/pebbles/mud etc is hard on most guns. Revolvers too. And the bumps and scratches is punishing so I wouldn't want to carry a gun that didn't come pre-uglied from the factory...

That said, if supernatural boogers and aliens were after me like they tend to be after Indy I don't know that I wouldn't find a different profession that didn't require me to worry so much.

Indiana Jones is an adventure figure, never existed in the real world. The guy is not an archeologist, he is a tomb robber. A real archeologist would stay the heck away from areas of conflict, as they do now, as they know the risk of being captured, held for ransom, or just robbed and murdered is high. If there was a dig in a real area of conflict, the archeologist would have gotten an agreement with local government, and would have contracted for local paid armed guards.

Why would any real archeologist want to get into gun fights with local armed bandits?

I was thinking K frame in 38 special.

Its for defense, and he hikes around a lot to find these places.

Slamfire said:

Indiana Jones is an adventure figure, never existed in the real world. The guy is not an archeologist, he is a tomb robber. A real archeologist would stay the heck away from areas of conflict, as they do now, as they know the risk of being captured, held for ransom, or just robbed and murdered is high. If there was a dig in a real area of conflict, the archeologist would have gotten an agreement with local government, and would have contracted for local paid armed guards.

Why would any real archeologist want to get into gun fights with local armed bandits?

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During the era in question, the line between archaeologist and tomb robber was very, very thin indeed.

Slamfire said:

Indiana Jones is an adventure figure, never existed in the real world. The guy is not an archeologist, he is a tomb robber. A real archeologist would stay the heck away from areas of conflict, as they do now, as they know the risk of being captured, held for ransom, or just robbed and murdered is high. If there was a dig in a real area of conflict, the archeologist would have gotten an agreement with local government, and would have contracted for local paid armed guards.

Why would any real archeologist want to get into gun fights with local armed bandits?

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You must just plain suck to got to movies with.

Why do they have gravity on the Millennium Falcon?
How could a dirt-farmer turn so quickly into a Josie Wales?

Why do they have all those Corsairs and Hellcats in the movie Midway?

Todd.

Kleanbore said:

The "real" (or probable inspiration for) Indiana Jones was Roy Chapman Andrews, who was often photographed carrying a Colt Army Special, which he said was a .38.

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The revolver pictured here... He was also most often photographed with a Remington Model 30 nearby or in his hands, caliber .30-06. However, Chapman was already director of the NYC Museum of Natural History by 1934, about the time the unions and trans-nationalists were starting their "trouble" in Western Europe. He was out of the field by the time the Axis Powers were on the march. He would have been - or more rightly was - the equivalent of the "Marcus Brody" character played by Denholm Elliot. Quite a man and one to be admired, for sure.

Riomouse911 said:

Something rugged and with ammo available where he would be digging would be my guess.

Since England ruled over about half the world back then, if Jones and his types were carrying the .455 Webley Mk IV it sure makes a lot of sense.


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Stay safe.

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Except that the British were notoriously stingy with their stores. They did not produce ammo for civilian exports and only allowed their own officers a bare minimum allowance of revolver ammo. They were still producing the Rifle, No.1, Sht.MLE with a "magazine cut-off" to save on ammunition usage up until 1909 when it was forbidden for use in "single-loading" by regulation. But, up to the time the No.4 Mk.1 was adopted in the 1930's (the trials rifles had the cutoff) the cutoff was still used for going from loaded and ready to made ready, by command. Yes, the Mk.III* "deleted" the cutoff in 1916 as part of the war-time simplification effort but it came back and went away several more times and not all factories complied until at least the early 1940's when Lithgow and Ishapore finally deleted it (actually, ROF Ishapore may have kept it until the No.2 was adopted... not 100% sure).

Either way, the .38Spl was more common for civilians than the .455Mk.II/III even in the British Commonwealth.

S&W 1917 or a revolver on my bucket list Webley Fosberry 45.

ApacheCoTodd said:

You must just plain suck to got to movies with.

Why do they have gravity on the Millennium Falcon?
How could a dirt-farmer turn so quickly into a Josie Wales?

Why do they have all those Corsairs and Hellcats in the movie Midway?

Todd.

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I know it's an unimportant detail but, just to bolster your position...

1937: Earliest known papyrus scroll found in tomb of Hemaka at Saqqara in Egypt.

I had to consult a timeline of the British Museum to refresh my failing memory. But I do still remember a bit of what we all learned in history class in high school: Following the defeat of the Italian invasion, September, 1940, Egypt was technically a neutral Kingdom. King Farouk II ruled from 1936 through and during World War 2 and he allowed digs in Egypt by members of the Royal Museum - he didn't have much choice and, by all accounts, cared very little. Egypt was part of the British Commonwealth until 1952 and Farouk was a feckless ruler. When the Italian forces pushed into the region in 1940, they went after tangible assets; archeologists were considered unimportant neutrals, poor "diggers" and not very interesting from a military standpoint. The Museum of Antiquities did advise their faculty members to abandon disputed areas for their own safety but no efforts were made to "recall" anyone.

It wasn't just Egypt, either. The excavations in Turkey conducted by Leonard Woolley were only stopped in 1939 because of a lack of funding, not the dangers of being in a war zone. Basically, no one involved with the fighting had time to worry about a bunch of academics scurrying around in the dirt. I'm trying to find out what Woolley carried. I found a picture of him with what looks like a British Bulldog revolver but nothing for sure on the type or caliber.

Side story: While there have been real life archeologist action figures, the real reason we have Indian Jones is James Bond. Spielberg wanted to direct a Bond film but Brocolli who controlled the Bond franchise thought he would be all wrong for it and wouldn't hire him. So Lucas and Spielberg set out to create their own action figure film franchise. It is loosely based on the Allan Quatarmain character of novelist H. Rider Haggard.

If he was smart he would have had a couple 1911s and at least a couple extra magazines. They work well in bad environment .they make a slim carry compared to a revolver.

ApacheCoTodd said:

You must just plain suck to got to movies with.
Todd.

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It's true! I have a real problem suspending belief.

This is one that may ruin your movie experience. Movies use your infantile brain to speed things up . Let me explain, imagine a child watching actor A standing next to a table with a box. Actor A will then put a blue ball in the box and close the lid. Actor B arrives on stage after the ball is put in the box. The child then assumes that actor B knows that there is a blue ball in the box. Because the child knows there is a blue ball in the box.

I cannot remember the number of movies and TV shows where this device has been used. The typical plot is, Mr Good guy has been set up by Mr Evil. Mr Evil being a high ranked official in good guys agency. (Typically a secret agent, or police organization). The whole agency is out to kill Mr Good Guy. No one else in the agency knows that Mr Evil is the real bad guy behind the scenes. Mr Good guy spends the entire movie trying to find out the identity of Mr Evil, and in the last 20 minutes of the film, finds the clue that reveals Mr Evil, and then has a massive gunfight with all of Mr Evil's bad guy minions, kills the whole bunch, and just as Mr Evil falls dead, the Head of the Agency walks in, and knows everything. He knows that Mr Good Guy is innocent and the whole thing was a set up by Mr Evil, and all the twists and turns of the plot.

How the heck does the Head of the Agency know this? Just seconds before, he was leading the agency to kill Mr Good guy. He just arrives as the last body falls, it has taken about two hours of movie time to reveal the nefarious Mr Evil, and yet he knows everything. Well he can't, but the creators of movies know, that whatever the audience knows, they also assume all the characters know. So it cuts down on the explanation time.

Gordon said:

If he was smart he would have had a couple 1911s and at least a couple extra magazines. They work well in bad environment .they make a slim carry compared to a revolver.

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Dearly as I love my Colt New Service, my choice would be a 1911 and a couple of spare magazines.