.45 Schofield
Encyclopedia
The .45 Schofield or .45 Smith & Wesson is a revolver
cartridge developed by Smith & Wesson
for their S&W Model 3 American top-break revolver. It is similar to the .45 Colt
round though shorter and with a slightly larger rim, and will generally work in revolvers chambered for that cartridge. In fact, US government arsenal
s supplied .45 Schofield cartridges for both the Schofield revolver and the Colt Army revolver to simplify their armament needs. 45 Colt cartridges cannot be used in .45 Schofield firearms, since the .45 Colt is a longer cartridge.
had more power, the speed at which a cavalryman could reload a Schofield was less than 30 seconds, half of the time for a Colt 45. By 1879, the U. S. Army had purchased 8,285 of the revolvers. Due to its lesser power and recoil compared to the Colt .45, it became the standard cartridge of the Army, though the Colt 1873 still was the main issue side arm
of the Army.
The .45 Schofield cartridge was shorter than the .45 Long Colt. It could be used in both the Schofield and the Colt 45 Peacemaker, but the .45 Long Colt was too long to use in the Schofield. As a result, by the 1880s the army finally standardized on a .45 cartridge designed to fire in both revolvers, the M1887 Military Ball Cartridge. The M1887 was made at Frankford Arsenal
, and was issued only to the military. It had a shortened case and reduced rim; as it was short enough to fit the Schofield, and its rim was not needed for the rod-ejector Single Action Army, the M1887 would fire and eject from both revolvers.
The Schofield was quite a popular handgun in the old west, and may have been used by General Custer at the Battle of the Little Bighorn
. It has been claimed that had all of Custer's men had the Schofield revolver, the results at the Little Big Horn may have been different. This is not likely, however, since the Indians significantly outnumbered Custer and his men and were well armed.
The Indians also had model 1860 Henry
repeating rifles that held 15 rounds of .44 rimfire
cartridges, giving the operator 14 more shots than the soldiers without the need to reload. Custer's men were armed with single-shot .45-70
trapdoor carbines
.
Many reports indicate that while the .45 S&W cartridge could be used in a gun chambered for the .45 Colt, not every chamber in the gun could be loaded at the same time. Because of the larger diameter rim (.522 inches) on the S&W cartridge, the rims would sometimes interfere with each other when attempting to load every chamber of a .45 Colt chambered gun. Current production .45 S&W cases have a head diameter larger than .45 colt but smaller than the originals to circumvent this problem on the Colt single action army revolver.
Because of this, the Frankford Arsenal produced the .45 M1877 Military Ball Cartridge which was identical to the S&W cartridge but had a slightly smaller rim diameter of .512 inches (identical to the rim of the .45 Colt cartridge) which could be used in either the Colt or the S&W revolvers. Production of the .45 Colt cartridge was then discontinued by the Frankford Arsenal with the .45 M1877 ball revolver cartridge being adopted as the only .45 revolver cartridge issued from then on.
In the early 1880s the benet (inside) cartridge primer was retired and the modern boxer type (externally visible) primer was adopted for all future military production of revolver ammunition.
Revolver
A revolver is a repeating firearm that has a cylinder containing multiple chambers and at least one barrel for firing. The first revolver ever made was built by Elisha Collier in 1818. The percussion cap revolver was invented by Samuel Colt in 1836. This weapon became known as the Colt Paterson...
cartridge developed by Smith & Wesson
Smith & Wesson
Smith & Wesson is the largest manufacturer of handguns in the United States. The corporate headquarters is in Springfield, Massachusetts. Founded in 1852, Smith & Wesson's pistols and revolvers have become standard issue to police and armed forces throughout the world...
for their S&W Model 3 American top-break revolver. It is similar to the .45 Colt
.45 Colt
The .45 Colt cartridge is a handgun cartridge dating to 1872. It began as a black powder revolver round developed for the Colt Single Action Army revolver, but is offered as a magnum level handgun hunting round in modern usage. This cartridge was adopted by the U.S. Army in 1873 and served as the...
round though shorter and with a slightly larger rim, and will generally work in revolvers chambered for that cartridge. In fact, US government arsenal
Arsenal
An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, issued to authorized users, or any combination of those...
s supplied .45 Schofield cartridges for both the Schofield revolver and the Colt Army revolver to simplify their armament needs. 45 Colt cartridges cannot be used in .45 Schofield firearms, since the .45 Colt is a longer cartridge.
History
This cartridge was originally designed as a black powder round. This revolver was patented in the USA on 20 June 1871 and 22 April 1873 by Smith and Wesson. It was a Smith and Wesson Model 3 that was modified by Major George Schofield to make it easier for a cavalryman to reload while riding. While the Colt 45Colt Single Action Army
The Colt Single Action Army is a single action revolver with a revolving cylinder holding six metallic cartridges. It was designed for the U.S...
had more power, the speed at which a cavalryman could reload a Schofield was less than 30 seconds, half of the time for a Colt 45. By 1879, the U. S. Army had purchased 8,285 of the revolvers. Due to its lesser power and recoil compared to the Colt .45, it became the standard cartridge of the Army, though the Colt 1873 still was the main issue side arm
Side arm
A side arm is a weapon, usually a pistol but can be a dagger, as used in pre-modern times, which is worn on the body in a holster to permit immediate access and use. A side arm is typically required equipment for military personnel and sometimes carried by law enforcement personnel...
of the Army.
The .45 Schofield cartridge was shorter than the .45 Long Colt. It could be used in both the Schofield and the Colt 45 Peacemaker, but the .45 Long Colt was too long to use in the Schofield. As a result, by the 1880s the army finally standardized on a .45 cartridge designed to fire in both revolvers, the M1887 Military Ball Cartridge. The M1887 was made at Frankford Arsenal
Frankford Arsenal
The Frankford Arsenal was a United States Army ammunition plant located adjacent to the Bridesburg neighborhood of Northeast Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, north of the original course of Frankford Creek.-History:...
, and was issued only to the military. It had a shortened case and reduced rim; as it was short enough to fit the Schofield, and its rim was not needed for the rod-ejector Single Action Army, the M1887 would fire and eject from both revolvers.
The Schofield was quite a popular handgun in the old west, and may have been used by General Custer at the Battle of the Little Bighorn
Battle of the Little Bighorn
The Battle of the Little Bighorn, also known as Custer's Last Stand and, by the Indians involved, as the Battle of the Greasy Grass, was an armed engagement between combined forces of Lakota, Northern Cheyenne and Arapaho people against the 7th Cavalry Regiment of the United States Army...
. It has been claimed that had all of Custer's men had the Schofield revolver, the results at the Little Big Horn may have been different. This is not likely, however, since the Indians significantly outnumbered Custer and his men and were well armed.
The Indians also had model 1860 Henry
Henry rifle
The Henry repeating rifle was a lever-action, breech-loading, tubular magazine rifle.-History:The original Henry rifle was a .44 caliber rimfire, lever-action, breech-loading rifle designed by Benjamin Tyler Henry in the late 1850s. The Henry rifle was an improved version of the earlier Volcanic...
repeating rifles that held 15 rounds of .44 rimfire
.44 Henry
The .44 Henry, also known as the .44 Rimfire, the .44 Long Rimfire, or the 11x23R cartridge was a rim-fire round that uses a .875 inch casing. The round has a total length of 1.345 inches. It uses a 200 or 216 grain bullet with a .446 diameter. The cartridge was loaded with 26 to 28...
cartridges, giving the operator 14 more shots than the soldiers without the need to reload. Custer's men were armed with single-shot .45-70
.45-70
The .45-70 rifle cartridge, also known as .45-70 Government, was developed at the U.S. Army's Springfield Armory for use in the Springfield Model 1873...
trapdoor carbines
Springfield Model 1873
The Model 1873 "Trapdoor" Springfield was the first standard-issued breech-loading rifle adopted by the United States Army...
.
Synonyms
- .45 S&W
- .45 S&W Schofield
- .45 M1877 ball revolver
Many reports indicate that while the .45 S&W cartridge could be used in a gun chambered for the .45 Colt, not every chamber in the gun could be loaded at the same time. Because of the larger diameter rim (.522 inches) on the S&W cartridge, the rims would sometimes interfere with each other when attempting to load every chamber of a .45 Colt chambered gun. Current production .45 S&W cases have a head diameter larger than .45 colt but smaller than the originals to circumvent this problem on the Colt single action army revolver.
Because of this, the Frankford Arsenal produced the .45 M1877 Military Ball Cartridge which was identical to the S&W cartridge but had a slightly smaller rim diameter of .512 inches (identical to the rim of the .45 Colt cartridge) which could be used in either the Colt or the S&W revolvers. Production of the .45 Colt cartridge was then discontinued by the Frankford Arsenal with the .45 M1877 ball revolver cartridge being adopted as the only .45 revolver cartridge issued from then on.
In the early 1880s the benet (inside) cartridge primer was retired and the modern boxer type (externally visible) primer was adopted for all future military production of revolver ammunition.
External links
- .45 Schofield Revolver
- Reloading info Schofield, G. W., "Revolving Fire-Arm", Issued 1873