Whitney Wolverine?

[ACP230]

In the 2002 Gun Digest there was a pic of a guy from Olympic Arms holding up a Whitney Wolverine .22 semi-auto pistol. The company was supposed to start making them again.

This is the second or third time I've heard this. The first time was at the NRA Convention in Orlando in 1988. Some company had new in-the-white frames there. They were supposed to start producing the gun then. I heard rumors later too, but have never seen an actual gun new or old.

The Whitney Wolverine was a pistol with a "Buck Rogers" look to it.
I wish someone would bring it back. I've always liked the way it looked.

Has anyone shot one? If so, how did it do for accuracy and functioning?

 

[gun-fucious]

Whitney Wolverine Project Moves Ahead
http://www.olyarms.com/frcontent2.html
Hoping for a late summer, early fall release, the Whitney Wolverine project is moving ahead full steam.

Polymer and aluminum framed models will be available for this famous .22LR pistol.

 

[dfariswheel]

There were stories about the Whitney being reproduced as far back as the mid-70's. These stories usually appeared in the large gun "bible" type books, but nothing ever happened.

The Whitney was an exceptional gun, with astounding function and usually very good accuracy.
J.L. Gale, the wholesaler, wanted to rename it "The Lightening" because of the extremely fast action.
Accuracy was usually very good because of the design of the barrel/bolt system.

A popular misconception about the Whitney is the legend that it failed because it was "too modern" looking.
In fact, production stopped because of a contract dispute.

The company made the mistake of signing a contract with Galef to be the SOLE distributor of the pistol, and for some reason, Galef just wouldn't "push" the sales of them, and wouldn't allow anyone else to.

The company decided to offer the large hardware/department stores like Wards, Sears, Western Auto. Gambles, and True-Value a store-brand .22 pistol.
Since the Whitney "frame" is really nothing but a cover for the action, the outer appearance of the gun could be easily changed to almost any form wanted. Whitney wanted to offer the stores a Whitney pistol with a store-specific appearance. The basic gun would be the same, only the appearance would be different for each.

The plan was well along, when Galef threatened legal action, since his contract stated that the guns could only be sold through him.

Galef being unwilling to sell the guns for some reason, and unable to go around him, the company was forced to shut down.

Before closing, the company had plans for an adjustable rear sight, a slide stop, and other improvements.

In a marked difference from how companies do business today, when a reloading press company informed Whitney that the Wolverine brand name was owned by them, the two companies made a "gentleman's" agreement for Whitney to simple stop using the name. No law suits, no money changing hands, no legal papers, just a hand-shake. Thereafter, the gun was simple the Whitney.

I've owned a couple of the originals and when, or if, these are reintroduced, I'll buy one in a second.
The Whitney was a tremendous gun.

 

[Mike Irwin]

"Wanted to nickname it the "The Lightening"...

Would that be, say, as opposed to naming it The Heaviest"?

 

[Jim K]

Contrary to the usual reaction, I was one that liked the looks but didn't like the pistol itself, mainly because I kept comparing the thing to the sweet and simple Ruger Standard Model.

The Whitney was difficult to disassemble and a lot of small parts ended up trying to get lost. Reassembly was never easy and some of those parts always seemed to be left over. All in all, I never cared for it, but decided to get one. I ordered and a week or so later the dealer returned my deposit and told me the company was out of business. So I never got one until last year when I found one almost new and bought it, paying just a "little" more than the original price.

Jim

 

[George Hill]

I've seen pictures of them in some of my gun books... but I've never seen one in person. It looks nifty. I would love to try one out.

 

[dfariswheel]

Mike Irwin

"Wanted to nickname it the "The Lightening"...

Would that be, say, as opposed to naming it The Heaviest"?


Smart A** So I got fat fingers

 

[Standing Wolf]

They weren't at all common when I was a lad. They were said to be finicky an unreliable. I always thought they were awfully cute, but the only one I've ever found at http://www.gunbroker.com was closer to $500 than $400, as I recall, and I wasn't that curious.

 

[Gordon]

I got one as a 16 year old lad, the N.J. State Troopers took it from me when they caught me shooting rats (safely) in a dump in 1960. My father was pissed and got the gun back but did not give it to me again(ever!) . I bought another one used in late 60's(out of spite!) and felt like it was pure junk in comparison with a 'real gun'.I sold it for less than $50 I paid for it! It was kinda like a Whamo toy. Wish I had the Whamo toy and the Wolverine back again as I like INVESTMENTS, even in junk!

 

[Murphster]

Sorry for the late reply. Just found this message. I received a Wolverine as a gift from a friend about 4 months ago. Gun had belonged to his father who had apparently kept it in a sock drawer. Gun got passed down to my friend who gave it to me. Pistol was like new with the exception of a broken cocking piece. Guess that's why it stayed in the sock drawer. Got a new part for $20 and the gun is as good as new. (There are at least two sources on the web for replacement parts.)

Gun is ergonomically great. The Buck Rogers look is very comfortable to hold and fire. Mine functions perfectly and despite the cheesy appearance of the rear sights, it is as accurate as any similar .22 auto that I've fired. If there is a fly in the ointment, it is as another poster said, the multitude of small parts that seem to be designed to fall or leap from the gun during disassembly. It was suggested to me by another member of this forum that I disassemble it the first few times while holding it in a pillow case to catch pieces. Not a bad piece of advice.

Olympic's web site still talks about coming out with the pistol (last time I checked). Hopefully, they'll be able to maintain the unique, original appearance of the gun while eliminating some of the quirky, easily-lost parts.