H. K. Uriah, SASS #74619 1,114 Posted November 29, 2020 Share Posted November 29, 2020 (edited) Yep, here's another thread about the Colt Lightning, and the reproductions thereof. It has occurred to me that it might be interesting to own a "complete" collection of Lightnings. By "complete" I mean at least one of all of the following... Colt Large Frame Colt Medium Frame Colt Small Frame Pedersoli AWA USFA Uberti Beretta And yes, even a... Taurus. It might be fun to compare them to each other. And throw in the AWA Lighting Bolt pistol as a bonus/wild card. This is in some ways more of a curiosity than anything else. This is not so much about the merits of the various makes, or lack thereof, as much as it's about owning a variety of stuff. After all, isn't that what gun collecting ultimately is? So far, in my collection of 6 of the guns, only three of the "categories" are represented, and that includes the wild card. So who out there has a complete set of these things? Or an almost complete set? To be honest, while I may acquire a Pedersoli some day, I don't know if I'd really be interested in actually getting a complete collection. But it is fun to speculate. Beware the Lightning bug. It grabs you hard and doesn't let go... Edited November 29, 2020 by H. K. Uriah, SASS #74619 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Larsen E. Pettifogger, SASS #32933 1,278 Posted November 29, 2020 Share Posted November 29, 2020 Some 8 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Yul Lose 6,454 Posted November 30, 2020 Share Posted November 30, 2020 1 hour ago, Larsen E. Pettifogger, SASS #32933 said: Some I think I recognize one of those. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Larsen E. Pettifogger, SASS #32933 1,278 Posted November 30, 2020 Share Posted November 30, 2020 Bottom 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
watab kid 1,078 Posted November 30, 2020 Share Posted November 30, 2020 2 hours ago, Larsen E. Pettifogger, SASS #32933 said: Some more than some , looking great , Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Badlands Bob #61228 1,891 Posted November 30, 2020 Share Posted November 30, 2020 Wow, that enough Lightnings to keep Lassiter busy for months. 3 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Mud Marine,SASS#54686 Life 773 Posted November 30, 2020 Share Posted November 30, 2020 The Lightning revolver had a big brother, the .41 Long Colt "Thunderer. I have a pair and fool with them in SASS matches as a joke. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
H. K. Uriah, SASS #74619 1,114 Posted November 30, 2020 Author Share Posted November 30, 2020 Larsen, I gotta ask, from top to bottom, what are they? Oh, at it occurs to me that there is another category... Colt "Baby Carbine" version of the medium frame. Add in barrel lengths and available calibers and you created an exponential plethora of options to consider, along with round and/or octagon barrels. Maybe that's that going a bit too far... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Pee Wee #15785 100 Posted November 30, 2020 Share Posted November 30, 2020 I like 9 and 10 from the top Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Larsen E. Pettifogger, SASS #32933 1,278 Posted November 30, 2020 Share Posted November 30, 2020 Baby 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Roger Rapid 235 Posted November 30, 2020 Share Posted November 30, 2020 I think Larson clearly wins the prize, but thought I'd share my Lightnings: Top to bottom: three Pedersoli's (.45LC), Uberti (.357), and Taurus (.45LC). ...RR 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
H. K. Uriah, SASS #74619 1,114 Posted November 30, 2020 Author Share Posted November 30, 2020 I shoulda known this would happen... From top to bottom... AWA .45 Colt AWA .44-40 Colt .44-40 Yes, that is a bayonet lug. Costa Rica army surplus. Anyone know where I can get the bayonet? Colt .32-20 Colt .22 Long AWA Lighting Bolt .45 Colt. The top one is my favorite main match rifle, and the only one I've shot clean matches with. The Lightning Bolt pistol [not SASS legal] is ridiculously fun to shoot, and yes, I shot a clean match using it. So what's next? Well, I've got a line on a large frame in .45-85 that I hope will still be available when I finally save enough for it. After that, who knows? I might call Lassiter and ask him if he can customize a Pedersoli to .44 Special. And then, maybe a Colt carbine, preferably in .32-20, but I dunno. After that... Only time will tell. And just for the heck of it, here's my other Lightnings. Bottom is an antique. Top is not. We need to design an all Lightning side match. Revolvers optional. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Roger Rapid 235 Posted December 1, 2020 Share Posted December 1, 2020 I think I read somewhere in the SHB that "any shooter with more than five Lightning rifles has to give one to his friends." I know it's in there somewhere. Yeah, I'm sure it is. So Larsen, you have my email address! Just sayin' RR 1 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
H. K. Uriah, SASS #74619 1,114 Posted December 1, 2020 Author Share Posted December 1, 2020 21 minutes ago, Roger Rapid said: I think I read somewhere in the SHB that "any shooter with more than five Lightning rifles has to give one to his friends." I know it's in there somewhere. Yeah, I'm sure it is. So Larsen, you have my email address! Just sayin' RR I guess I'm safe for now. Do .22s count? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Larsen E. Pettifogger, SASS #32933 1,278 Posted December 1, 2020 Share Posted December 1, 2020 Fortunately I do not have any friends. 1 5 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Roger Rapid 235 Posted December 1, 2020 Share Posted December 1, 2020 Larsen... Just think! What an incredible opportunity this is for you to get friends!!! RR 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
WOLFY 131 Posted December 1, 2020 Share Posted December 1, 2020 (edited) thought this was about the da revolvers with those cool grips Edited December 1, 2020 by WOLFY Quote Link to post Share on other sites
H. K. Uriah, SASS #74619 1,114 Posted December 1, 2020 Author Share Posted December 1, 2020 10 hours ago, WOLFY said: thought this was about the da revolvers with those cool grips Nope, it's about the rifles with the pump action. But a couple of folks mentioned the pistols, so I put up pics of mine. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Yul Lose 6,454 Posted December 1, 2020 Share Posted December 1, 2020 These are all Pedersoli Lightnings in 44-40 except the bottom one started out as a .45 Colt that I bought very reasonable and drilled the barrel and installed a Redman liner in 38-40. As you can see it’s a work in progress. The top one has the Lassiter slam fire modification and is my main match rifle. All but two of these I’ve bought here on the Wire Classifieds. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
WOLFY 131 Posted December 1, 2020 Share Posted December 1, 2020 (edited) 17 hours ago, H. K. Uriah, SASS #74619 said: And just for the heck of it, here's my other Lightnings. Bottom is an antique. Top is not. We need to design an all Lightning side match. Revolvers optional. 3 hours ago, H. K. Uriah, SASS #74619 said: Nope, it's about the rifles with the pump action. But a couple of folks mentioned the pistols, so I put up pics of mine. H.K., Now I gots to know,; they’re not both antiques ‘cause of their ages? Also, what caliber are those Lightning wheel guns? Edited December 1, 2020 by WOLFY Quote Link to post Share on other sites
H. K. Uriah, SASS #74619 1,114 Posted December 1, 2020 Author Share Posted December 1, 2020 4 minutes ago, WOLFY said: H.K., Now I gots to know,; they’re not both antiques ‘cause of their ages? Also, what caliber are those Lightning wheel guns? To be an antique, according the legal definition, the gun must have been manufactured in or before 1898. The top revolver was made in 190something, and the bottom was made in 188something. [I'm at work, so I don't recall off the top of my head.] Antique guns are not firearms according to federal law, and are not subject to any regulations at that level. MOST but not all states treat them the same way. All Lighting revolvers were chambered for .38 Long Colt, which brings up a whole other set of variables. The original bore size for this caliber was .375", which my bottom gun has. As some point, the bore was changed to .357" which my top one has. All Lightnings, regardless of when they were made, are black powder only guns, Colt never said they were okay for smokeless. I have read here that even the ones sold in 1909, the last year of production, were marked black powder only on the box. Anyway, to deal with the two different bore sizes, I use a .358" pure lead bullet with a hollow base. It goes down the smaller bore just fine, and expands out to grab the rifling on the bigger bore. Any other questios?// 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Dogmeat Dad, SASS #48563L 404 Posted December 1, 2020 Share Posted December 1, 2020 On 11/29/2020 at 6:57 PM, Larsen E. Pettifogger, SASS #32933 said: Some Hoarder! Nice Collection though. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
evil dogooder 982 Posted December 1, 2020 Share Posted December 1, 2020 Ive got the three colt sizes, and an uberti my father has a lightning bolt, As for the pistols I sold my 2 lightning's and thunderer Recently. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
H. K. Uriah, SASS #74619 1,114 Posted December 1, 2020 Author Share Posted December 1, 2020 43 minutes ago, evil dogooder said: Ive got the three colt sizes, and an uberti my father has a lightning bolt, As for the pistols I sold my 2 lightning's and thunderer Recently. Somebody else has a Lightning Bolt? Wow. That makes 2 that I know of. I really wonder how many AWA made before they folded up shop? What caliber is your Dad's? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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