been checking out versions of the story and comparing notes with Gatofeo ref: the unusually well-document Hickock-Tutt walkdown of 1865. It is frequently cited as the classic mainstreet, high noon, western gunfight and sometimes as an example of Hickock's virtuosity with a revolver. It certainly went far toward advancing Hickock's reputation as a Great American and a peach of a fine lad.
The story goes that J.B. Hickock and Dave Tutt arrived in Springfield Mo. right after the war having fought on opposit sides. They enjoyed pretty much the same things including gambling, drinking and fooling around with the same woman- something that might have cause a bit of ructure in their friendship. In any case a sort of rivalry developed and one night Dave cleaned Hickock out in a card game. He wound up with Hickocks Waltham repeater watch as surity and when JB asked him not to flaunt it around, Dave just laughted at him. He then told him Not to flaunt it around or he (JB) would blow his (DT's ass off- or words to that effect.
Sure enough, early the next morning both parties showed up in the Springfield town square to see what would happen. Dave showed up fingering the watch and JB got wind of it. Both of them stepped into the street and a later-measured 75 yards and cut loose. Apparently Dave took the classic NRA target stance, side on to JB while Hickock braced his revolver in two hands. The guns went bang at about the same instant and Tutt spun around saying " I am killed" just before falling out kaput.
At this point the story becomes a bit controversial. Most reports have Hickock using a .36 navy and one contemporary account has him already wearing the two reversed navies in a sash at the time he reached Springfield. The same story tellher has him going to meet Tutt with a Colt Dragoon, Another version said he was using a .44 1960 Army revolver. What ever he was using, the three revolvers seem capable of about the same degree of accuracy.
We find that hitting a man sized target from two hands, standing at 75 yards is no particular feat. It does require a bit of luck to land a single shot in the heart at that distance. Gatofeo lives in the desert and has racked up a considerable proportion of hits on man-sized targets at much greater distance.
I was surprised at the flatness of trajectory of the 81 grain ball over 22 grains/vol of pyrodex p. This clocks a bit over 1,000 fps and the revolver shoots dead on at 25 yards. At 75 yards it is only 4-6 Inches under point of aim.
The story goes that J.B. Hickock and Dave Tutt arrived in Springfield Mo. right after the war having fought on opposit sides. They enjoyed pretty much the same things including gambling, drinking and fooling around with the same woman- something that might have cause a bit of ructure in their friendship. In any case a sort of rivalry developed and one night Dave cleaned Hickock out in a card game. He wound up with Hickocks Waltham repeater watch as surity and when JB asked him not to flaunt it around, Dave just laughted at him. He then told him Not to flaunt it around or he (JB) would blow his (DT's ass off- or words to that effect.
Sure enough, early the next morning both parties showed up in the Springfield town square to see what would happen. Dave showed up fingering the watch and JB got wind of it. Both of them stepped into the street and a later-measured 75 yards and cut loose. Apparently Dave took the classic NRA target stance, side on to JB while Hickock braced his revolver in two hands. The guns went bang at about the same instant and Tutt spun around saying " I am killed" just before falling out kaput.
At this point the story becomes a bit controversial. Most reports have Hickock using a .36 navy and one contemporary account has him already wearing the two reversed navies in a sash at the time he reached Springfield. The same story tellher has him going to meet Tutt with a Colt Dragoon, Another version said he was using a .44 1960 Army revolver. What ever he was using, the three revolvers seem capable of about the same degree of accuracy.
We find that hitting a man sized target from two hands, standing at 75 yards is no particular feat. It does require a bit of luck to land a single shot in the heart at that distance. Gatofeo lives in the desert and has racked up a considerable proportion of hits on man-sized targets at much greater distance.
I was surprised at the flatness of trajectory of the 81 grain ball over 22 grains/vol of pyrodex p. This clocks a bit over 1,000 fps and the revolver shoots dead on at 25 yards. At 75 yards it is only 4-6 Inches under point of aim.
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