J.T. Gerrity
Member
I've had three Walkers in the last thirty years, and I just don't seem to be able to keep them! I have other pistols I've had for nearly as long and never given a second thought to, but the Walkers all seem to slip out of my grip! What's the deal?!!
Bought the first one in the mid '80s - an ASM. A good friend and I would go out and do some plinking together; he with a .22 SAA and me with the Walker, and he was always in awe of the Walker's flash and boom. When he eventually moved to nearly the other side of the world, I gave him the ASM as a farewell gift. He still has it.
After a few years without one, I saw the Uberti version in Cabella's for a good price, so I picked it up. By now, I'd acquired an 1860 Army, a 3rd Model Dragoon, a "Confederate Navy" in .44 cal, and a Remington 1858 New Army, and was looking to increase the collection. While I wasn't impressed with the bogus "charcoal bluing" it was finished with, it was a good shooter and I had a lot of fun with it. During a move, the house was broken into and quite a few items were stolen, including the Walker. Fortunately, I had already packed and stored the other guns, so they were safe, but the Walker was gone (along with a Fender Stratocaster, a 1959 Gibson Les Paul, and a Marshall stack, among other things). I reported it to the police, but I never heard anything about it again. I always imagine some thief thinking he had something special, then tossing it into a lake when he realized he couldn't figure out how to get the bullets in...
A few more years passed and I picked up a couple more pistols, including the Uberti "Custer" model SAA with black powder frame and authentic military markings. I already had a 2nd gen 1860 Army, and a 3rd gen Dragoon, so the only model missing in the evolution of Colt's black powder "Army" series was the one that started it all; the Walker. In keeping with the authenticity theme, I purchased a 3rd gen new from Colt Black powder, built a special wall rack, and happily displayed my Army collection in my studio.
The only problem with the new Walker was that it was just too pretty to shoot, and the value nearly doubled shortly after my purchase, so it remained unfired on the wall. Six years ago, my wife developed breast cancer and a lot of things happened all at once so that, for a time, we found ourselves struggling to get by. We started looking for things we could sell and, of course, the Walker was a fairly valuable wall decoration. I knew there was a reason I never could bring myself to shoot it; and the price I got for it unfired was more than I could have gotten otherwise.
My wife has now been five years cancer free, and each passing year gives us just that much more hope it won't return. Things are back on a more normal keel, now; with her back to work our financial circumstances are better than ever, and we are looking forward to the future.
But, still... I sit in the studio and look at the "Army" wall placque, and there's a missing space... I recall the BOOM of my early Walkers, the feel of the kick of 50 grains of powder punting that ball-et down range, the cloud of smoke enveloping everything, and my friend gleefully shouting "Jeeze! That's a friggin' cannon!"
Power. That's what a Walker is all about.
So, I'm toying with getting yet another Walker. I'm not sure I'd go for full on authentic this time... maybe just a standard Uberti without all of the fancy stuff... I don't know... the urge just doesn't seem to want to go away.
There is one concern I do have about getting one, though, that makes it a risk I'm not sure I should take...
How long can I keep it?
Bought the first one in the mid '80s - an ASM. A good friend and I would go out and do some plinking together; he with a .22 SAA and me with the Walker, and he was always in awe of the Walker's flash and boom. When he eventually moved to nearly the other side of the world, I gave him the ASM as a farewell gift. He still has it.
After a few years without one, I saw the Uberti version in Cabella's for a good price, so I picked it up. By now, I'd acquired an 1860 Army, a 3rd Model Dragoon, a "Confederate Navy" in .44 cal, and a Remington 1858 New Army, and was looking to increase the collection. While I wasn't impressed with the bogus "charcoal bluing" it was finished with, it was a good shooter and I had a lot of fun with it. During a move, the house was broken into and quite a few items were stolen, including the Walker. Fortunately, I had already packed and stored the other guns, so they were safe, but the Walker was gone (along with a Fender Stratocaster, a 1959 Gibson Les Paul, and a Marshall stack, among other things). I reported it to the police, but I never heard anything about it again. I always imagine some thief thinking he had something special, then tossing it into a lake when he realized he couldn't figure out how to get the bullets in...
A few more years passed and I picked up a couple more pistols, including the Uberti "Custer" model SAA with black powder frame and authentic military markings. I already had a 2nd gen 1860 Army, and a 3rd gen Dragoon, so the only model missing in the evolution of Colt's black powder "Army" series was the one that started it all; the Walker. In keeping with the authenticity theme, I purchased a 3rd gen new from Colt Black powder, built a special wall rack, and happily displayed my Army collection in my studio.
The only problem with the new Walker was that it was just too pretty to shoot, and the value nearly doubled shortly after my purchase, so it remained unfired on the wall. Six years ago, my wife developed breast cancer and a lot of things happened all at once so that, for a time, we found ourselves struggling to get by. We started looking for things we could sell and, of course, the Walker was a fairly valuable wall decoration. I knew there was a reason I never could bring myself to shoot it; and the price I got for it unfired was more than I could have gotten otherwise.
My wife has now been five years cancer free, and each passing year gives us just that much more hope it won't return. Things are back on a more normal keel, now; with her back to work our financial circumstances are better than ever, and we are looking forward to the future.
But, still... I sit in the studio and look at the "Army" wall placque, and there's a missing space... I recall the BOOM of my early Walkers, the feel of the kick of 50 grains of powder punting that ball-et down range, the cloud of smoke enveloping everything, and my friend gleefully shouting "Jeeze! That's a friggin' cannon!"
Power. That's what a Walker is all about.
So, I'm toying with getting yet another Walker. I'm not sure I'd go for full on authentic this time... maybe just a standard Uberti without all of the fancy stuff... I don't know... the urge just doesn't seem to want to go away.
There is one concern I do have about getting one, though, that makes it a risk I'm not sure I should take...
How long can I keep it?
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