Wheelgun Wednesday

Welcome back to TFB’s Wheelgun Wednesday. Today’s installment is a new product announcement: Taurus has added a shorter 8 3/8" barrel to its 350 Legend Raging Hunter that joins the 10-inch and 14-inch versions already in the line. TFB covered the 350 Legend Raging Hunter in another Wheelgun Wednesday, and this is the version that finally looks like a revolver rather than a carbine that lost its stock.

Custom & Collectible Firearms isn’t in the business of making their own firearms—they take other manufacturers’ designs and embellish and otherwise improve them. In this case, they’ve gotten their hands on a Colt Python and given it a makeover.

This week for Wheelgun Wednesday, we are taking a look at the venerable Smith & Wesson Model 14 revolver in .38 Special. These guns have a reputation for accuracy and dependability from the era when bullseye shooting was the most common handgun sport. I picked this one up to put it back on the line in CMP Service Revolver competitions, so let’s discuss how it has played out.

Finely embellished handguns are a thing of the past, right? Nobody goes in for engraving and other fancy-pants finishes anymore, right? Wrong. Uh, sort of. The Korth Dreadnought is an example of an old idea reborn for the 2020s, although it is a far cry from the work that F.W. Martin used to do at Smith & Wesson.

North American Arms’ revolvers are very well-known for their ability to offer self-defense in a micro package. Not everyone wants to stake their life on a rimfire round, but sometimes you’ve got no other choice. I remember reading about one undercover narcotics cop who hauled an NAA revolver to beachside meet-ups hidden away in a soft drink cup, because that’s all they could bring for a SHTF scenario. Other owners will tell you similar stories. There’s no smaller, more discreet firepower available.

Pietta has added a second revolver to its partnership with Oregon's Pendleton Round-Up. The new Pendleton II is a decorated 1873-pattern single-action available in .357 Magnum and .45 Colt.

The breakaway Confederate forces had a big problem at the start of the American Civil War—they needed guns. Many of the South’s top soldiers came out of the federal military and would spend the next years fighting their former comrades, now in the Union forces. The Confederates also seized some federal arms and ammunition that fell within their territories, but they needed a lot more war material—and they didn’t have the factory capacity that the North did. They needed guns, and they needed factories to build those guns.

Midweek already and it’s time for another episode of TFB’s Wheelgun Wednesday. Today we’ll look at some very interesting upgrades for the Smith & Wesson L Frame revolvers with 6-inch barrels. Midwest Industries shows the new Bounty Hunter Rail System, a full-length aluminum platform that adds a lot of rail. Everyone, take note, because there’s a probability this is the future for modern revolvers.

Welcome back to TFB’s Wheelgun Wednesday. In this edition, we are going to be taking a closer look at the Chiappa Rhino Stormhunter edition. The Stormhunter is a special color edition of the classic 6” Chiappa Rhino chambered in 357 Magnum. Over my time with the Stormhunter edition of the Chiappa Rhino, I've shot a fair amount through it to come up with this review. Let's take a closer look at the Chiappa Rhino Stormhunter.

Most weeks that I show up on Wheelgun Wednesday, I am hauling something actually old off the shelf and telling you about it. Today is a little different. The revolver on my bench got built recently; it is just wearing 1875's clothes. Uberti sent me their "Frank" out of the Outlaws and Lawmen line, which is their version of the Remington Model 1875 that Frank James handed over when he surrendered in 1882. Let's dive right into it!

You’ve almost certainly seen an ARWEN in a movie (more on that later), but chances are you didn’t know what it was, or its Cold War backstory.

Colt was the king of the wheelgun world in the 1800s, even though other manufacturers made arguably better revolvers. That’s because Colt’s reputation was built on the rough, tough frontier; they were the first company to sell revolvers, and their handguns were arguably the reason that Texans were able to fight off the Comanche warriors during the 1840s and 1850s. That was the start of decades of revolver firepower dominating the West, from the Mexican-American War to the California Gold Rush to the Civil War and the Indian Wars. Colt made full-sized revolvers that dominated the battlefields as well as personal conflicts in frontier towns.

We are back with another installment of Wheelgun Wednesday, and this week we are going to take a gander at some of the new patriotic-themed revolvers that Smith & Wesson has announced. The new Smith & Wesson America 250 Limited Edition revolver series includes a Model 642 as well as a Model 66 Combat Magnum. So, whether you are looking for a snubbie for concealed carry while packin’ some fiery .38 Special loads, or you want something a touch bigger yet concealable in the Model 66, Smith & Wesson has some commemorative and practical options for us. We’ll dive in to see what they’re all about, their pricing, and if this is something that you will want to make room for in your gun safe.

Welcome back to another edition of Wheelgun Wednesday. Last week, we took a look at the Manuhin MR88's return, so if you missed that article, be sure to click the link here to check it out. This week, I want to look at why we love revolvers despite their limitations in capacity and overall size. There are certainly benefits to carrying a revolver, but these types of handguns trigger an emotional response for a lot of us. Let's take a closer look at why we love revolvers.

Founded in the early 20th century, Manufacture de Machines du Haut-Rhin, aka Manurhin, has done a lot of things. They made food processing machinery and scooters. But after World War II, like much of reindustrializing Europe, they were keen to try new things, so they started making semi-auto pistols. First they licensed the Walther PP, PPK, and PPK/S designs, and built a reputation for solid quality. Then, the French government did something that many would find surprising: They asked Manurhin to build them a .357 Magnum revolver.

If there was ever a company with street cred in the concealed carry game, it is Charter Arms. Their Bulldog revolver of the late 1970s, chambered in .44 Special, was a hard-hitting, no-nonsense hideaway piece that had the lines of a classic European hand cannon of the late 1800s (think: Webley’s MP, or their classic British Bull Dog revolver). When most American hideout guns were chambered in .32 rimfire or .22LR, the British (and their Belgian copycats) were making hard-hitting pocket pistols for gentlemen of taste.

Right away, if you know anything about revolver manufacturers, you’re saying to yourself: “Manurhin is a French company, not American, so why are they selling revolvers to celebrate our milestone?” … and you’d have a point. But as their post on The Social Network Formerly Known As Twitter says, France was right there with America during the Revolutionary War:

When you think of true deep concealment handguns, a few companies go a bit deeper than anyone else. North American Arms is one of the stealthiest of those companies, making hideout guns that can be stowed away in a spot that you wouldn’t normally think of—and this limited-edition revolver, made to celebrate America’s birthday bash this weekend, is the perfect example. Although considering the blinged-out look of the belt-buckle holster and the handgun inside, maybe the point isn’t to hide it at all, but to show it off?

The high-end auction houses always have some sort of interesting firearm up for auction - sometimes it’s a rare piece of history, sometimes the gun belonged to a notable figure from the past, and sometimes, it’s a set of diamond-encrusted, gold-plastered Smith & Wesson No. 1 revolvers. Admittedly, that’s extremely rare, but that’s what we see for sale at Rock Island Auction on June 27, 2026.

Welcome back to Wheelgun Wednesday, our weekly article series that covers everything about wheelguns, and on this selected day. This week, Taurus gives the single-action revolver segment something it has rarely offered: a factory dual cylinder setup on a traditionally styled wheelgun.

Heritage Manufacturing has expanded its Rough Rider single-action revolver line with a new centerfire chambering: .32 H&R Magnum. It's the first time the Rough Rider has stepped beyond .22 LR and .22 WMR since the platform launched, and it's a meaningful jump.

Welcome back to another edition of Wheelgun Wednesday. This week, I wanted to look at some of the interesting quirks that the motorcycle community has when it comes to concealed firearms. In the world of polymer lightweight carry guns, some bikers are still choosing to carry full metal framed revolvers, but my main question starting out was why that was the case. Let's take a closer look at revolvers in bike culture.

Chiappa Firearms has added a new single-action revolver to its lineup for 2026, and this one does not pretend to be a period piece. The S.A. 1873 Black Thunder Hunter takes the silhouette and operating system of the 1873 pattern revolver and layers in a set of practical modern upgrades aimed squarely at hunters and field shooters.

Colt's snake guns have had no shortage of spotlight since their reintroduction, but Davidson's keeps finding new angles. This week, the distributor dropped two new exclusives built around a first for both the Python and the Anaconda lines: a round-butt grip frame paired with a 2.5-inch barrel. What do you think about the looks?

Sam first told us about the Pietta Blacktooth when he handled it at the SHOT Show in 2026. Here’s what he said then:

The old saying goes: "Don't bring a knife to a gunfight”. But the Meligun MG-22 is a knife you could actually bring to a gunfight. Meligun, based in the United States, has built something that genuinely blurs the line between blade and firearm. The MG-22 is a fixed-blade knife with a six-shot .22 LR revolver mechanism built directly into the handle.

Forty years of waiting ends with this Wheelgun Wednesday, as the CNC Firearms x Colt's Manufacturing Company BOA collaboration is officially unveiled. Originally introduced in 1985 as a limited run, the BOA never had the chance to become common. Among serious collectors, it occupies a rare position in Colt's history, defined not by how many were made, but by how few.

Welcome back to another edition of Wheelgun Wednesday. This week, I want to look at the world of lightweight revolvers that are on the market and how they drastically differ from their full-metal variants. I recently bought the new Smith & Wesson Nightguard and although I'm not ready to release my full review yet, I have a standard 686+ that is almost identical except for weight. Shooting them side by side has been interesting to see the differences. When you look at other options like the airweights, there are two very different guns that you have the ability to choose from. Let's take a closer look at lightweight versus full-weight revolvers.

My local CMP-affiliated shooting club recently announced a full slate of bullseye pistol matches this summer. I have dabbled previously and plan on jumping in with both feet this year to work on my various distinguished pistol ranks. But that means I needed a good target revolver and ammo to go with it. So here is some info from my first go at loading .38 wadcutters for match use.

For this week’s Wheelgun Wednesday, we’re stepping well outside the realm of practical revolvers and into something closer to functional sculpture. This is also, possibly, one of the most expensive firearms ever shown here on TFB. What you’re looking at is the Korth Panther set, an exceptionally rare pair of revolvers built on the proven Korth Mongoose platform and chambered in .357 Magnum. But beyond the mechanical foundation, these guns are less about shooting and more about artistic expression taken to an extreme.