Guns in Literature

[Minnesota Joe]

I'm doing some research on the subject. I'm seeking references in fictional literature to specific, real-world, firearms used by characters. As most firearms owners know, there aren't a lot of authors who seem to know a lot about firearms. Even fewer identify their characters using specific guns, instead opting to refer only in the vaguest of terms to a revolver, rifle, or shotgun. Rarely is the make, model, or even calibre identified. So, can anyone out there cite specific references in fictional literature wherein the author went the extra distance to identify their character's weapon of choice?

 

[plmitch]

Nope...

 

[9mmfan]

In Blood Meridian, Cormac McCarthy references the "Whitneyville Colt" horse pistols with which the scalp hunting party is outfitted. One of the characters also carries one of "Colt's five shot belt pistols." No maker is specified for the rifle that the leader, John Joel Glanton, carried but was referenced as a swivelbore, which was a concept I had to look up. The operation is fairly well laid out in the text, I just never knew such a thing existed.

In No Country For Old Men, the rifle Moss uses to hunt pronghorn in the beginning was described as "a heavy barreled .270 on a '98 Mauser action with a laminated stock of maple and walnut." The description of him cocking the hammer on the pump shotgun later in the novel is what tipped off the armorer for the film to the fact that it was a Winchester '97 (per the imfdb/DVD commentary track.) Also Sheriff Bell states that he "still likes the old Colt's .44-40." Says that if shooting somebody with it doesn't work, you can just throw it at them. Later in the novel, he opens the gate to check the load. In the movie, he carried a 1911 though.

I'll try and look up or remember more tomorrow.

Just came to me. In the Gabriel Garcia-Marquez novella In Evil Hour, the gun references were fairly vague. "Jaguar gun," "long barreled .38" and such. When rifles are distributed to a makeshift posse/militia, one of the townspeople shows off his and explains knowingly to one of the others: "it's a Madeinusa." I found that to be particularly humorous.

 

[akodo]

Ian Flemming was pretty specific about Bond's weapons in his novels. Enough that his bad choices and non-sense terms got a real firearms expert peeved enough to write a letter with suggestions, and the two collaborated on future gun choices.

 

[akodo]

In the Maltese Falcon the author has a character using a Webley-Fosbery Automatic Revolver, 8 shot, 38 cal.

It was a very popular book and influenced a lot of detective writers, who unfortunately assumed that revolver and automatic are synonymous, not realizing that this is an odd gun and just one of a very few odd-duck designs that were both revolvers and automatics.

In the film Bogart boggles up the name and refers to it as a 45 8 shot, when only the 38 acp was 8 shot, the 455 and 45acp conversions were 6 shot.

yes 38 acp not 380 acp

 

[akodo]

and of course there is Monster Hunter Inc. written by a member here and full of gun tech stuff.

http://www.amazon.com/Monster-Hunter-International-Larry-Correia/dp/1439132852

some other forum members are writers too, and have accurate yet specific gun descriptions

 

[Ivy Mike]

In Pulp Fiction, Samuel L Jackson referred to his gun as Mr. 9mm which confused many people as it looks like a 1911 which would have been chambered in .45acp. In actuality it was a Star Model B which was chambered in 9mm. The reference was correct.

In the same movie, John Travolta carried a nickel or chrome plated Auto Ordnance 1911 that was chambered in .45acp

 

[JRH6856]

Louis L'Amour was pretty accurate in his novels. I can't remember catching him in an error.

Tom Clancy went the extra mile in describing weapons. Of course, they were often submarines, battleships and jet fighters...

FWIW, I have stopped reading more than one book over half way through because the author's inaccuracies in firearms descriptions just broke the spell and made the book unreadable. I'd give you names but I really wanted to forget them and did.

 

[taliv]

do a search. there are several threads on this topic over the years

 

[NeuseRvrRat]

Stephen Hunter's series of books about Bob Lee Swagger are very specific about guns. The movie Shooter was based on his book Point of Impact.

 

[Charlie Horse]

Check out Dick Marcinko's "Rogue Warrior" series. The first one is autobiographical, and the rest are fiction. All are good reads, and the list of hardware is always interesting.

 

[v8stang289]

The Moster Hunter series, Dead Six series, and Grimnoir Chronicles from Larry Correia fit your criteria. But we'd expect nothing less from Larry

 

[Sock Puppet]

Not specific about the gun itself, but the "Little House" series by Laura Ingalls Wilder talks about "Pa's" gun a great deal. Not only does she talk about the care and maintenance, use, and need of his long gun, but she talks about casting bullets and other such things appropriate to the period.

 

[Sol]

You'd be surprised, I cracked open an old issue of "The Punisher" a few days ago and low and behold the punisher theorized that the taxi cab killer was using a Charter Arms Bulldog .44 magnum.

The Punisher issue #45 February 1990.

If I'm not mistaken The Punisher now uses rainbow colored kittens and hugs to thwart crime now... of course only after he consults the HR department to make sure his weapons are PC for the situation.

 

[JRH6856]

The Anita Blake books by Laurel K. Hamilton have accurate and often fairly detailed description of firearms.

 

[Dr. Sandman]

I remember Louis L'amour describing a Colt revolving shotgun in one of his books. On the L'amour books, you read one, you read 'em all.

 

[JRH6856]

I remember Louis L'amour describing a Colt revolving shotgun in one of his books.

In another he describes a Walch Navy 12 shot.

On the L'amour books, you read one, you read 'em all.

True of some books, mostly his early work. Certainly not true of some of his later works.

 

[theotherwaldo]

Try Murder in the Gun Room by H. Beam Piper - or anything else by this noted author and gun collector.

 

[Neo-Luddite]

As 9mmfan pointed out, Cormac McCarthy goes the extra yard when describing the hardware. He doesn't gush on for pages, but conveys to a gun savvy reader the absolute assurance that he knows exactly what he is talking about and has given serious thought to what kinbd of weapon a charater is carrying.

 

[Arkansas Paul]

If you want a western that accurately describes guns, look for some by JT Edson. It is insane the amount of detail he puts into describing guns sometimes. Love it.

 

[9thchild]

I started a similar thread a while back but only about Hemingway novels. This is what we came up with as far as specific models.

In To Have and Have Not: A Tommy Gun and an unspecified .38 revolver

In Under Kilimanjaro/True at First Light: A Colt Woodsman (not really "fictional" as both are based off memoirs, also at one point Hem says that all a man really needs is a good rifle and a .22 pistol)

In For Whom the Bell Tolls: A Star Model B (and several others you could make assumptions about)

In Islands in the Stream: Tommy guns again, and an unspecified .357 revolver (probably a S&W)

There are several others in all of his books that you could probably guess but these are the ones with specific make/models.

 

[vkeith]

I haven't read it yet, but I'd bet there are good weapon descriptions in Vin Suprynowicz's novel The Black Arrow since Vin has spent his life writing about weapons and the laws that concern them.

 

[robmkivseries70]

Matt Bracken's stuff is extremely good in this regard. The series begins with Enemies Foreign and Domestic
His stuff is available on Amazon and is occasionally listed as a free Kindle down load.
btw no connection, I am just a very satisfied customer.

 

[JR24]

As mentioned, Larry Correia and Stephen Hunter have been my recent favorites.

 

[rswartsell]

Martin Cruz Smith was pretty good in his refernces, In Gorky Park the murder weapon was an Argentine contract Mannlicher 1905 7.63 mm that his forensics thought to be 7.65. Pretty obscure and interesting piece that he must have done his homework on. His protagonist Arkady Renko didn't even like guns and avoided them as much as possible.

(Douglas) Preston and (Lincoln) Child do pretty well with their Special Agent Aloysius Pendergast series. (Stll Life with Crows, Cold Vengance,Two Graves). They don't make the firearms the stars of their stories, but they use interesting ones and generally get it right. A Scottish stag hunt with an H&H .300, Colt 1903 .32 acp backup gun, etc.