The First Big Bore Sixguns Part 4
More Cartridge Conversions
Original Richards Conversion (above, top gun) compared to the
currently produced replica. The Colt Conversions below include the
Richards, the Richards-Mason and the 1871-72, which was not a
conversion, but built as a cartridge gun from the beginning.
THE RICHARDS-MASON CONVERSION — With the arrival of the Second Model Richards conversions, the conversion ring, hammer and loading gate were all improved, and the rear sight was moved from the top of the conversion ring back to the V-notch cut in the hammer, as found in the original 1860 Army cap and ball revolvers. William Mason was superintendent of the armory at Colt from the mid-1860s until the early 1880s when he moved over to Winchester. He would be responsible for the improvements on the Richards Conversion, the 1871-72 Open-Top and of course the Colt Single Action Army.
While Richards Conversions were obviously alterations on 1860 Army Models, the Richards-Mason provided a completely new barrel with a provision for a longer ejector rod housing. They are easily distinguished from the Richards Conversions by the web shape under the barrel, as it is boxier with a completely different profile. Most importantly, the Richards-Mason Conversion has a regular cylinder with no conversion ring.
OPEN-TOPS — Both the Richards and Richards-Mason Colt Cartridge Conversions were built on the cap-and-ball 1860 Army Models. However, the 1871-72 Open-Top was not a Conversion but a new revolver. This was the 1871-72 Open Top, a completely new production sixgun began in 1872. The standard barrel lengths for the two Cartridge Conversions were the same as for the 1860 Army, namely 8″, while the 1871-72 had a slightly shorter 7 ½” barrel. Most of these revolvers were shipped from the factory with a 7 ½” barrel and if shortened, were done so by owners or gunsmiths after they left the factory. Shorter barrels were very popular with lawmen, gunfighters, railroad detectives and others needing to clear leather in a hurry
Original short-barreled Cartridge Conversions may be hard to find. However, thanks to such importers as Cimarron Firearms and Taylor’s & Co., both the Richards and Richards-Mason Conversions are offered in replica form as well as the 1871-72 Open-Top all with 5 ½” barrels.
(L-R) An original .44 American compared to the
.44 Russian, .44 Colt, .44 Special and .44-40.
Both 1851 and 1860 versions, so named because of their grip frame, are offered. The former has the grip frame identical to the Single Action Army while the latter is the same as found on the 1860 Army cap and ball revolver. In addition to .44 Russian/.44 Colt/.44 Special and .38 Long Colt/.38 Special in several variations, Cimarron also offer both a .45 Colt and a .45 Schofield chambered version. A check of their current catalog shows the 5 ½” Richards available in both .38 Special, which also handles .38 Long Colt and a second version that chambers .44 Special, .44 Colt and .44 Russian.
A note here on this chambering. The first Cartridge Conversions and the Open-Top I encountered several years ago were chambered for the .44 Colt. This cartridge has a rim smaller in diameter than that found on the Special and Russian. Those cylinders were too small to allow the two latter cartridges to chamber. So if one wants to shoot all three .44 cartridges, it is necessary to make sure it is a later model with the slightly larger cylinder to accept the rims of the Russian and Special.
My favorite chambering be it in the New Model Remington, Richards, Richards-Mason, or Open-Top — is the .38 Special. Ammunition abounds, brass is very easy to find, it is economical to shoot and we also have the choice of shooting .38 Long Colt loads. Whether smokeless or black powder, the .38 Special performs accurately and with minimum recoil.
The one drawback to the Richards-Mason Conversion compared to the First Model Richards is the placement of the rear sight. Without the conversion ring, the rear sight could not be mounted there so the less-desirable path of placing it back on the hammer was taken. When Mason re-designed the Richards-Mason Conversion to become the 1871-72 Open-Top, the rear sight was placed upon the barrel. When the U.S. Army nudged him into coming up with something better after the Army trials of 1872, the result was the Colt Single Action with a Remington-style top strap and the hog wallow rear sight that could not get out of alignment.
