InStainedWretch, when I saw your post about Curtis being a fencer that scene did come to mind It's been along time since I've seen that movie, but it's one of my favorites for a rainy Sunday when there is nothing else you can do..
And Worf, you are right about the PT Boats, and SUBMARINES too, There's NO EXTRA room at all in Subs.
You are 100% correct. I have a Uberti 1876 Winchester rifle in .45-60 and it makes an 1873 seem like a toy.Tom Horn with an 1876 Winchester. You wouldn't think it was that much bigger than the '73 but it is.
In older movies, no matter what the time frame, the moves were taken from Olympic-style fencing. That's because the fight arrangers were fencing masters, often from the Hollywood Atlhetic Club. Even when the weapons were 18th century smallswords, as in "Scaramouche," the moves were often saber moves. This is because the wide, sweeping cuts are easier for the audience to follow, unlike the tiny, precise thrusts of foil or epee. To see a realistic smallsword fight, watch the second duel in Ridley Scott's "The Duellists." After a bit of feeling out, the two come together, there is a flurry of thrust and parry that is too fast to see, then one of the fighters staggers off and collapses. Once engaged, the fight lasts no more than a second or two. This is very realistic.
One viewing of the (I've read) reasonably accurate "Das Boot" would have educated all those film makers - you can feel the claustrophobia, the heat, the tightness of those era subs in that movie.
Something I have really only noticed in still photos from old Westerns, mainly B-movies, is that while not necessarily authentic, the holsters and other leather goods like saddles were sometimes clearly well-used. The so-called Hollywood holster has been around longer than you think but they weren't used by working cowboys before WWI, nor did working cowboys invariably carry a Colt S.A.A. like in the movies. Nevertheless, many holsters appear to be fairly correct historically. Sometimes the belts look like they were made for slimmer men, too.
A peculiar one is the Man from U.N.C.L.E. episode "The Hong Kong Shilling Affair." The villain Mr. Cleveland, played by a smilingly despicable Gavin MacLeod (very unlike his cuddly roles as Capt. Steubing and witty news writer Murray), has a Colt Single Action Army as his sidearm.I also find it interesting that Colt S.A.A. revolvers frequently show up in non-Western movies, usually in some kind of adventure movie. . . .
Q, since you folks are knowledgeable about handguns. The Colt Army 1860 model, which (I've read) was the most widely used revolver in the Civil War, used paper cartridges, or the regular cap-and-ball method of loading. Now I've read also that many of these c & b revolvers were converted to use metallic cartridges later, when those became available -- the Walker Colt, for example. Was that true also of the Army 1860? Was it possible for a gunsmith to do?
I've got a Rambo knock off it's an Explorer RAMII 21-033. Got it back when "First Blood" debuted. It's pretty solid, wouldn't use it for hunting and such, but it's a conversation piece. Probably get one for under $40.00.
It's got fishing line and a hook in the plastic bag and under the removable pommel is a substandard compass, so don't get lost if you have this knife. It's best use is as a wall or drawer decoration.