The Wildey is a gas-operated, double-action or single-action pistol designed by Wildey J. Moore. It was designed to fire several high-pressure proprietary cartridges including the

.45 Winchester Magnum The .45 Winchester Magnum is a .45 caliber rimless cartridge intended for use in semi-automatic pistols. The cartridge is externally a lengthened .45 ACP with a thicker web to withstand higher operating pressures. The 45 Win Mag is nearly iden ...

and the

.475 Wildey Magnum The .475 Wildey Magnum is a semi-automatic pistol cartridge designed for big game hunting in the Wildey pistol. History The .475 Wildey Magnum was designed to be a hunting round. Cases are formed from .284 Winchester brass with the neck cut do ...

. They are currently being produced by USA Firearms Corp.-Wildey Guns of

Winsted, Connecticut Winsted is a census-designated place and an incorporated city in Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States. It is part of the town of Winchester. The population of Winsted was 7,712 at the 2010 census, out of 11,242 in the entire town of Win ...

Action

The Wildey was purpose-designed to be a hunting firearm. The pistol is built to withstand

breech Breech may refer to: * Breech (firearms), the opening at the rear of a gun barrel where the cartridge is inserted in a breech-loading weapon * breech, the lower part of a pulley block * breech, the penetration of a boiler where exhaust gases leav ...

pressures of over 48,000

PSI Psi, PSI or Ψ may refer to: Alphabetic letters * Psi (Greek) (Ψ, ψ), the 23rd letter of the Greek alphabet * Psi (Cyrillic) (Ѱ, ѱ), letter of the early Cyrillic alphabet, adopted from Greek Arts and entertainment * "Psi" as an abbreviatio ...

associated with Moore's lines of proprietary cartridges. The Wildey was the first

gas-operated Gas-operation is a system of operation used to provide energy to operate locked breech, autoloading firearms. In gas-operation, a portion of high-pressure gas from the cartridge being fired is used to power a mechanism to dispose of the spent ...

double action Double action (or double-action) refers to one of two systems in firearms where the trigger both cocks and releases the hammer. *Double-action only (DAO) firearms trigger: The trigger both cocks and releases the hammer. There is no single-action f ...

semi-automatic pistol A semi-automatic pistol is a type of repeating single-chamber handgun ( pistol) that automatically cycles its action to insert the subsequent cartridge into the chamber (self-loading), but requires manual actuation of the trigger to actuall ...

. The Wildey employs a unique short-stroke gas operation which allows the pistol to be adapted to fire several high-pressure cartridges ranging from the

9mm Winchester Magnum The 9mm Winchester Magnum, which is also known as the 9×29mm, is a centerfire handgun cartridge developed by Winchester in the late 1970s. The cartridge was developed to duplicate the performance of the .357 S&W Magnum in an auto-pistol cartr ...

to the .475 Wildey Magnum. Moore described the Wildey patented gas system as an "air-hydraulic piston powered by the firing gases through six small holes in the barrel. This piston forces the slide rearward, initiating the cycling of the pistol". A further advantage of the Wildey's gas operated system is that it allows for the reliable operation of heavy and light loads for each cartridge type, by manually adjusting the gas-regulator valve to tune the system for different loads. The valve is adjusted by way of turning the gas-regulating collar at the base of the barrel. Another advantage of a gas-operated system is that it often reduces felt recoil. The Wildey uses a fixed-barrel, three-lug,

rotating-bolt Rotating bolt is a method of locking the breech (or rear barrel) of a firearm closed for firing. Johann Nicolaus von Dreyse developed the first rotating bolt firearm, the "Dreyse needle gun", in 1836. The Dreyse locked using the bolt handle r ...

design. The bolt locks into the aft barrel extension. The bolt is linked to the slide via one of the bolt lugs. When the cartridge is fired, the piston is forced against the slide. The retracting slide catches the extended bolt lug which causes the bolt to rotate open. The spent cartridge is ejected by the bolt through the retracting slide's ejection port. The fixed-barrel design is considered by some to promote greater accuracy over pistols designed around an articulating barrel design. The Wildey can be used as either a single-shot or an auto-loading pistol. All pistols feature ventilated, ribbed barrels and angled frames similar to those of

Colt M1911 The M1911 (Colt 1911 or Colt Government) is a single-action, recoil-operated, semi-automatic pistol chambered for the .45 ACP cartridge (firearms), cartridge. The pistol's formal U.S. military designation as of 1940 was ''Automatic Pistol, Calibe ...

designs but considerably larger. The pistols will accept scope attachments which are mounted on the barrel ribs. The pistol uses a single-stack magazine. It utilizes a heel-mounted magazine release lever located on the underside of the mainspring housing, a type of catch which has historically been popular on many European guns like the

SIG P210 The SIG P210 (Swiss Army designation Pistole 49, the civilian model was known as SP47/8 prior to 1957) is a locked breech self loading, semi-automatic pistol designed and manufactured in Neuhausen am Rheinfall (Canton of Schaffhausen, Switzerl ...

Walther TPH The Walther TP and TPH handguns are extremely compact trigger (firearms), double-action lightweight Semi-automatic self-loading pistol, semi-automatic pistols in .22 Long Rifle and .25 ACP calibers. Pistols in this size range are sometimes referre ...

, and FN 1910. The Wildey features a frame mounted auto-resetting decocking lever which will drop the hammer safely. The pistol also incorporates a number of safety features including a firing pin block, trigger block and a rebounding firing pin. The Wildey allows for caliber and barrel conversions by simply installing a new barrel assembly into the original frame and slide. Whenever the caliber and barrel conversions are made, the gas regulator needs to be tuned to allow for the pistol to function reliably. Stainless steel is used for all major parts of the pistol including the frame, slide and barrel. The pistol was offered in four models: the Survivor, Survivor Guardsman, Hunter and the Hunter Guardsman. The Survivor model came in a bright stainless steel, high-luster finish while the Hunter model was available in a matte finish. The Guardsman model has a squared-off trigger guard instead of the rounded trigger guard found on the non-Guardsman model.

Variations

The Wildey Pistol is extensively customizable, from changes to barrel length to caliber conversions. According to Wildey F.A., barrel and caliber conversions can be made by replacing the barrel assembly. The pistol is available with either single-action or double-action trigger mechanisms. Barrels are currently available in 8 in (203 mm), 10 in (254 mm) or 12 in (305 mm) lengths. Other lengths of 5 in (127 mm), 6 in (152 mm), 7 in (178 mm) and 14 in (356 mm) have been discontinued. Barrel changes can be accomplished by the means of loosening the barrel chuck, replacing the existing barrel and re-tightening the barrel chuck. The pistol is currently available in

, .475 Wildey Magnum and .44 Auto Mag. Calibers previously produced by Wildey, which have been discontinued, include the .45 Wildey Magnum, 9mm Winchester Magnum,

.357 Wildey Magnum The .475 Wildey Magnum is a semi-automatic pistol cartridge designed for big game hunting in the Wildey pistol. History The .475 Wildey Magnum was designed to be a hunting round. Cases are formed from .284 Winchester brass with the neck cut do ...

(also known as the .357 Peterbuilt), .41 Wildey Magnum and .44 Wildey Magnum.Wildey Guns - The Wildey
, Retrieved Jan. 16, 2016.AMT Guns, The World's Most Powerful Rifles & Handguns
, Retrieved Jan. 12, 2016. There are some sources which mention .30 Wildey Magnum and .50 Wildey Magnum calibers, but no manuals from the company or other firearms literature list such cartridges.The Security Arms Message Forum
, Retrieved Jan. 20, 2016 Wildey F.A. manufactured a pin gun for duck pin shooting which features a 5 in (127 mm) compensated barrel to allow for fast follow-up shots by reducing recovery time. A silhouette-shooting version of the pistol was also available featuring a wooden fore stock and an 18 in (457 mm) barrel. A carbine version of the Wildey pistol was offered, similar to the Wildey Silhouette Pistol but also featured a removable shoulder stock. All the Wildeys have adjustable rear

sights A sight is an aiming device used to assist in visually aligning ranged weapons, surveying instruments or optical illumination equipments with the intended target. Sights can be a simple set or system of physical markers that have to be aligne ...

and removable front side blade inserts (high and low). The front side blades are interchangeable and available in three colors: red, orange, and black. Special tools are not required to disassemble or reassemble any of the Wildey's four configurations.

Status of production

Health problems of founder Wildey J. Moore, along with a series of litigations with the company's major stockholder at that time, caused production of firearms products at Wildey F.A., Inc. in

Warren, Connecticut Warren is a town in Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 1,351 at the 2020 census. The town was named for Revolutionary War General Joseph Warren. On July 1, 2006, businessman Joseph Cicio placed most of Warren's co ...

, to be suspended in 2011.United States District Court of Connecticut, ''Wildey J. Moore vs. F.A. Investment Holdings, Ltd.'', Civil Action No. 3:10cv891(VLB), March 4, 2012
, Retrieved Jan. 12, 2016.The Firearm Blog, ''Wildey Guns has "suspended operations"'' by Steve Johnson, May 11, 2010
, Retrieved Jan. 12, 2016. In August 2015, USA Firearms Corporation of Winsted, Connecticut announced that the Wildey Survivor models will once again be produced along with parts and ammunition.Facebook, USA Firearms Wildey Handguns
, Retrieved Jan. 12, 2016. Production of the firearms and accessories began in 2016, and customer orders for the new Wildey Survivor models started on February 3, 2017.USA Firearms/Wildey Guns, USAFC Survivor Order Form
Retrieved Feb. 3, 2017. Wildey previously had production sites in

Cheshire, Connecticut Cheshire ( ), formerly known as New Cheshire Parish, is a town in New Haven County, Connecticut, United States. At the time of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the population of Cheshire was 28,733. The center of population of Connecti ...

, and

New Milford, Connecticut New Milford is a town in Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States. The town is in western Connecticut, north of Danbury, on the banks of the Housatonic River, and it shares its border with the northeastern shore of Candlewood Lake. It is t ...

In popular culture

The firearm was integral to a large number of scenes from the

Charles Bronson Charles Bronson (born Charles Dennis Buchinsky; November 3, 1921 – August 30, 2003) was an American actor. Known for his "granite features and brawny physique," he gained international fame for his starring roles in action, Western, and war ...

film ''

Death Wish 3 ''Death Wish 3'' is a 1985 American action thriller film directed and edited by Michael Winner. It is the third film and the last to be directed by Winner in the ''Death Wish'' film series. It stars Charles Bronson as the vigilante killer Paul Ke ...

''; in reality, it was Bronson's personal pistol – a 10-inch brushed stainless finish. The appearance is credited with increasing Wildey sales enough to rescue the company from a near collapse and bankruptcy. Founder Wildey J. Moore said that every time ''Death Wish 3'' is aired on cable TV, sales spike. The Wildey is also featured in the 2021 video game ''

Resident Evil Village ''Resident Evil Village'' is a 2021 survival horror game developed and published by Capcom. It is the sequel to '' Resident Evil 7: Biohazard'' (2017). Players control Ethan Winters, who searches for his kidnapped daughter in a village filled wit ...

'' as the S.T.A.K.E.. The Wildey also features in several of British Writer Andy McDermott's novel series, featuring archaeologist Nina Wilde, and her ex Sas trooper and husband Eddie Chase. It was Chases handgun of choice on many of their Archaeological expeditions for the U.N. The Wildey was also featured prominently in the movie ''

Natural Born Killers ''Natural Born Killers'' is a 1994 American crime film directed by Oliver Stone and starring Woody Harrelson, Juliette Lewis, Robert Downey Jr., Tommy Lee Jones, and Tom Sizemore. The film tells the story of two victims of traumatic childho ...

'', where the protagonist Mickey Knox uses it throughout the first half of the film.

References

External links