The Colt Woodsman is a semi-automatic sporting pistol manufactured by the U.S.

Colt's Manufacturing Company Colt's Manufacturing Company, LLC (CMC, formerly Colt's Patent Firearms Manufacturing Company) is an American firearms manufacturer, founded in 1855 by Samuel Colt and is now a subsidiary of Czech holding company Colt CZ Group. It is the suc ...

from 1915 to 1977. It was designed by

John Moses Browning John Moses Browning (January 23, 1855 – November 26, 1926) was an American firearm designer who developed many varieties of military and civilian firearms, cartridges, and gun mechanisms many of which are still in use around the world. He m ...

. 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.

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. 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 A notable ongoing event was the race for the South Pole. Events January * January 1 – A decade after federation, the Northern Territory and the Australian Capital Territory are added to the Commonwealth of Australia. * ...

designs, but a handgun intended for target use did not require them.

Variants and versions

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

First Series 1915–1941

The Target Model was the base model and featured a 6" barrel with adjustable front and rear sights. It was not until 1927 that the name "Woodsman" was used. 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. The Match Target Model debuted in 1938 and featured a heavier barrel with a one piece wrap-around grip known as the "elephant ear." A "Bullseye" Icon was rollmarked into the slide lending the nickname "Bullseye Match Target". In 1941 as the US entered

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

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

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. 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 The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through c ...

(100 Match Target Models and 2500 Sport Models);

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Si ...

(925 Target Models) and 75 Match Target Models for the

United States Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and law enforcement service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the country's eight uniformed services. The service is a maritime, military, m ...

. 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. 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. 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.

References

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

External links

Collector's Guide to the Colt Woodsman

{{DEFAULTSORT:Colt Woodsman Firearms by John Browning

Woodsman Woodsman (also, woodsmen, pl.) is a competitive, co-ed intercollegiate sport in the United States, Canada and elsewhere based on various skills traditionally part of forestry educational and technical training programs. In North America, the s ...

.22 LR pistols