Colt Woodsman

The Colt Woodsman is a semi-automatic sporting pistol manufactured by the U.S.Colt's Manufacturing Company from 1915 to 1977. It was designed by John Moses Browning.[2] The frame design changed over time, in three distinct series: series one being 1915–1941, series two 1947–1955, and series three being 1955–1977.

Colt Woodsman
An early first series Colt Woodsman pistol and magazine.
TypeSemi-automatic pistol
Place of originUnited States
Production history
DesignerJohn Browning
ManufacturerColt's Manufacturing Company
Produced1915–1977
No. builtMore than 690,000 [1]
Specifications
MassApprox. 1.875 lbs
Barrel length4.5, 6, or 6.625 inches
Cartridge.22 Long Rifle
ActionSemi-automatic
Brownings 1918 Patent of the .22 Colt Woodsman Target Pistol

Design

The Colt Woodsman sprang from a design by John Moses Browning and was refined by gunsmiths and designers at Colt's before its introduction in 1915.[3]

Browning developed the Woodsman with a short slide, no grip safety and no hammer. These features were in place on his Model 1903 and 1911 designs, but a handgun for the civilian market did not require them.[4]

Variants and versions

There are three series of the Colt Woodsman and each series had three models: Target, Sport and Match Target.[3]

First Series 1915–1941

The Target Model was the base model and featured a 6" barrel with adjustable front and rear sights.[3] It was not until 1927 that the name "Woodsman" was used.[5][6]

The Sport Model was designed as a field sidearm for hiking and camping in 1933 and had a 4.5" barrel. Original versions were made with a fixed front sight in the first series, but by the latter half of production, an adjustable sight was available.[3]

The Match Target Model debuted in 1938 and featured a heavier barrel with a one piece wrap-around grip known as the "elephant ear."[7] A "Bullseye" Icon was rollmarked into the slide lending the nickname "Bullseye Match Target".[3]

In 1941 as the US entered World War II, Colt ceased civilian production of the Woodsman but delivered 4000 Match Target models to the US Government as late as 1945.[5] These pistols had oversized plastic two-piece grips and were marked "Property US Government", but appeared on the surplus market after the war.[4]

Second Series 1948–1955

Colt resumed production of the Woodsman in 1948. The three Models remained the same, but were built on a longer heavier frame and had a magazine safety, automatic slide stop and magazine release located at the rear of the trigger guard.[3] Colt also introduced the less expensive Challenger model, which came equipped with fixed sights and featured a magazine release near bottom aft side of the grip.

Special versions were made for the United States Marine Corps (100 Match Target Models and 2500 Sport Models); United States Air Force (925 Target Models) and 75 Match Target Models for the United States Coast Guard. The Air Force models had no special markings and most were sold as surplus through the Director of Civilian Marksmanship Program. The bulk of the Marine and Coast Guard versions were destroyed and sold as scrap metal.[3]

Colt Woodsman Match Target

Third Series 1955–1977

Colt changed the design of the Woodsman in 1955. The three Models remained the same, but the markings, grips and sights underwent slight changes. The most significant was relocating the magazine release from the rear of the trigger guard to the heel of the grip as on the first series.[3] Colt also introduced new models, such as the less expensive Huntsman Model equipped with fixed sights. From 1960 walnut stocks with a thumbrest were optional, in place of the standard black plastic stocks.[1]

See also

References
  1. Hacker, Rick (4 March 2011). "Colt Woodsman Target Model". American Rifleman. National Rifle Association of America. Retrieved 25 March 2015. This is yet another classic firearm from John M. Browning, assisted by Colt employees George H. Tansley and F.C. Chadwick.
  2. Campbell, Dave (28 October 2010). "Colt Woodsman". Shooting Illustrated. National Rifle Association. Archived from the original on 2 February 2015. Retrieved 26 March 2015.
  3. Rayburn, Bob (2007). Rick Sapp (ed.). Standard Catalog of Colt Firearms. Iola, Wisconsin: F+W Media, Inc. pp. 171–179. ISBN 0-89689-534-3.
  4. Miller, David (2006). The History of Browning Firearms. Lyons Press. pp. 50–52. ISBN 978-1-59228-910-3.
  5. Eger, Chris (22 April 2014). "The Colt Woodsman: A most pined after plinking pistol". Guns.com. Retrieved 26 March 2015.
  6. "A Basic Woodsman Collection". Retrieved 5 August 2018.
  7. Emanuele, Rasti. "Colt Woodsman". GunsCollecting.com (in Italian). Bernardino Carducci. Retrieved 26 March 2015.

Cited in footnotes
  • Chandler, Raymond T. 2002. ‘Trouble is My Business’ originally published in Dime Detective Magazine, August, 1939. Republished in Raymond Chandler: Collected Stories. 2002. Everyman's Library, Alfred A. Knopf, New York. P. 1009.
  • Hemingway, Ernest. 1938. 'My Pal the Gorilla Gargantua' in Hemingway on Hunting ed. Sean Hemingway. The Lyons Press, Connecticut. p. 189 Originally published in Ken Magazine, July 28, 1938
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