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Colt (actually Uberti) Bisley?


Copper Sean O Driscoll

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I have always liked the looks of these guns but never held one. 
 

No one that I know at my local group has this pistol (some do have the Ruger but that’s not what I’m looking for).  I spent today going to all the local gun shops with no luck either. 
 

Are they decent guns? Are the grips hard to get use to? Just wondering I I should look at some thing else or if it’s some thing one could adjust to with a little practice? Think for duelist or may be gunfighter.  

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I just picked this ASM .38-40 up from Gunbroker, but haven't stepped outside to try it yet. It's supposed to get up to 41 tomorrow, so I'll go out back and pull the trigger a few times. :)

I've got a custom Ruger in .475 Linebaugh on a Bisley frame, and had another one in .45 Colt a couple years ago, but calling the Ruger style a Bisley is a stretch - it's kind of a hybrid somewhere in between.

Bisley.jpg

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I shoot lots of Ruger Bisley models; calibers, barrel lengths, Vaqueros and Blackhawks. I'm very accustomed to the Ruger Bisley grip.

 

While I have never shot a Colt style Bisley I've handled several and can say it feels much different than the Ruger Bisley. The Magum Research BFR Bisley is altogether yet another Bisley design as is the Keith (#5?).

 

The Bisley feel you get will probably in part be dictated by your hand size. I wear an XL glove and while I did not dislike the Colt Bisley style, I'm not sure I'd ever get used to it, as different as it is from what I'm familiar with. 

 

Only you'll be able to make that decision.  I do think the Colt Bisley SAA gun from Uberti is a great looking firearm and decently well made. I'm sure I'll own two someday and 38-40 would be my choice.

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 I shoot Ruger Bisley's. They are...as I have been told...closer to a number 5 Kieth grip frame than an original Bisley grip. I like the Ruger...not all people do...but then I seem to have an extra large economy size hand. I have trouble finding gloves that fit properly...or at all. I have held a couple of the Uberti Bisley's and they are quite a bit different. I don't know if I could get used to them or not. It would be interesting to try shooting one of them some day.

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I have a pair of Uberti Cattleman Bisleys in 38-40. Love them. The grip allows for a more natural point of the gun. I also like the wider trigger.

Go for it!

 

La Sombra

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I tried one in 44sp a few times. But the grip is much different. My first shot was always low, then I would remember to re-adjust my grip. I would have had to dedicatye myself to shooting the Bisley exclusively for a while if I wanted any success.

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The Colt Bisley was designed for the timed Bisley matches in England. The grips were designed for a bent elbow/bent wrist stance. In the match the target would only appear breifly. The shooter had to raise the revolver, shoot, then lower the revolver again. I believe the muzzle had to be touching the table in between shots.

 

Colt Bisleys were heavily favored in the desert Southwest. Perhaps it was a fad for the area or maybe they wanted to be like Pancho Villa, whom was very popular with Americans at the beginning of the conflict in Mexico at the time.

 

I have shot Bisleys and I own a Colt Bisley. They are awkward for me but I am used to the Ruger Bisley grip and the plow handle grip. Supposedly, those with arthritis or other hand ailments find the Bisleys easier to use.

 

Beware that not all Bisley reproduction's are made the same. The Cimarron Bisley I had for NCOWS was almost identical to a Colt, so much so Colt grips fit perfectly. (See photo). I picked up another EMF Hartford version online that had more "hump" in the grip and it was very uncomfortable for me to hold and actually cause my hand to cramp. 

 

Here is a photo of Pancho Villa holding the Bisley as it was intended.

 

image.thumb.jpeg.783e47bfec3acbb88f00d79322f24cfc.jpegimage.jpeg.e5ee9feaaad5cd43db40107c03181f94.jpegimage.thumb.jpeg.15888d760fd7a42796f606e1e3390a60.jpeg

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10 hours ago, Three Foot Johnson said:

I just picked this ASM .38-40 up from Gunbroker, but haven't stepped outside to try it yet. It's supposed to get up to 41 tomorrow, so I'll go out back and pull the trigger a few times. :)

I've got a custom Ruger in .475 Linebaugh on a Bisley frame, and had another one in .45 Colt a couple years ago, but calling the Ruger style a Bisley is a stretch - it's kind of a hybrid somewhere in between.

Bisley.jpg

This looks like the version I briefly had that had more "hump" in the grips and cramped my hand.

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I never held a colt bisley but I tried to shoot a ruger bisley (loaned to me) at a match and it did not work well at all for me with my small hands.  Best try some before you buy any.

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Ah, the Bisley.   Fascinating gun to look at, and I always thought I wanted one.   A few years ago, I got a chance to handle one, I believe it was Driftwood Johnson's, and I didn't like the way it felt in my hand, so I stopped wanting one.

 

Then, about 2 years ago, I found one for sale in .32-20 for an excellent price.  So, after hemming and hawing for a while, I bought it.


284829595_BisleyRight.jpg.2dbbcabb1dc2fcec277fb56161be544e.jpg


Soon after that, I went to the range with these guns...

2054089903_32-20Battery.thumb.JPG.3a302a8a658f3c20496322659e1ea1b6.JPG

 

And I shot a clean match.   Real Winchester 92.   Real Colt Lightning, Real Winchester 97.    Previously mentioned Bisley.   3rd Gen Colt.   All rifles and pistols in .32-20.   I brought the two rifles because I had just replaced the ancient and weakened original magazine springs.   Both rifles now work properly.   I had not used the short barreled 97 in a long time, so I took it out for a change.

Once I actually got to shooting, I really didn't notice any difference between the Bisley and the standard SAA.  I even switched hands half way through the match.  (I shoot double duelist style.)  I was just concentrating on shooting and did not pay the differences any mind.

I enjoyed the Bisley so much that I did not hesitate to get another one when I found another for a relatively inexpensive price.

251353330_NickelBisleyRight.thumb.JPG.ea7fe6a5b328fd040a87a78b0fe694bc.JPG

 

Sooner or later, I'll take 'em both to the range for a shoot.  :)

 

Now if I could just figure out how to cut this foam to fit....

 

1591130019_BisleysonFoam.thumb.png.441871edbcd0ea601d8eebb6f6b7d94e.png

 

Bisley revolvers are fun.

 

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My wife and I are recent shooters only getting into the game a few months ago.  We shared handguns, Ruger Vaquero 357.  Another shooter offered my wife a chance to shoot a pair Cimarron Lightnings in 38 Spl.  My wife loved them. They are a smaller grip and she has smaller hands.  She now owns a pair of Lightnings and she is a happy shooter.  My two bits.

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