# Did cowboys really used to do quick draw? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 5, 2010, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-cowboys-really-used-to-do-quick-draw/538416 "2010-05-05T16:09:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![AClockworkMelon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aclockworkmelon/32/10803_2.png) [@AClockworkMelon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AClockworkMelon)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2010, 4:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-cowboys-really-used-to-do-quick-draw/538416/21 "2010-05-06T04:24:41Z")
According to the historical videogame _Gun_… yes. ---
**Author:** ![DocCathode](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doccathode/32/18773_2.png) [@DocCathode](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DocCathode)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2010, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-cowboys-really-used-to-do-quick-draw/538416/22 "2010-05-07T00:06:24Z")
According to a bunch of sources, samurai _did_ practice the art of quick draw. It was called IIRC (probably I don’t) iju jitsu. I gather it was used more for display than in actual combat. ---
**Author:** ![notsoheavyd3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/85e7bf/32.png) [@notsoheavyd3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/notsoheavyd3)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2010, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-cowboys-really-used-to-do-quick-draw/538416/23 "2010-05-07T01:05:47Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > I agree the Cracked article leaves one with an impression that the Wild West was almost a peaceful, idyllic time which I have a hard time swallowing. > > We barely have that now and I am hard pressed to think people back then were all just excellent to each other and let each other be. > > That said the OP asked about “quick draws” and evidence seems to suggest such a thing is mostly Hollywood. I suppose some few might have practiced it for fun or boredom and make a show of it but by-and-large it was not a required skill on the Frontier. There are some few quick draw artists today…[you can see them on YouTube](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CqABkG1JpHM) (frankly amazed he hasn’t shot his own balls off doing this…or at least a few toes). Well that’s Bob Munden who advises to NEVER use live ammo when doing quick draw. Come to think of it if you fire from the hip like that the accuracy probably isn’t good at all. ---
**Author:** ![Martini\_Enfield](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/martini_enfield/32/11123_2.png) [@Martini\_Enfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martini_Enfield)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2010, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-cowboys-really-used-to-do-quick-draw/538416/24 "2010-05-07T04:15:16Z")
It’s worth bearing in mind that the handguns used in the Old West tended to have fairly long barrels- usually around 5 and a half or 6 inches, depending on the model, but some of them were up to 7 and a half inches long. It’s not particularly easy to quick-draw a handgun with a 6-inch barrel unless you’re cross drawing, which isn’t generally recommended for safety reasons. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2010, 4:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-cowboys-really-used-to-do-quick-draw/538416/25 "2010-05-07T04:27:16Z")
> [@Martini\_Enfield](#): > > It’s worth bearing in mind that the handguns used in the Old West tended to have fairly long barrels- usually around 5 and a half or 6 inches, depending on the model, but some of them were up to 7 and a half inches long. Yep, the Colt Model 1851 Pistol of Navy Caliber, one of the most popular handguns at the time, had a 7-1/2" barrel. The ‘1851 Navy’ was properly called the Revolving Belt Pistol of Naval Caliber. After the Civil War the Remington 1858 Army revolver was a very popular piece. It had an 8" barrel. Hickock favoured the Colt, and often wore them in his sash, as was the practice at the time. During the Gold Rush the Colt 1849 Pocket Model. I suppose one could put in in his sash or a holster, but I suspect that since it was popular during the Gold Rush that people actually carried them in their pockets. Military revolvers included the Colt ‘Dragoon’ models. These were intended to be carried in a pommel holster by – you guessed it – mounted troops. Like the later 1851 Navy, they had 7-1/2" barrels. But they were much beefier. I don’t have one yet, but they’re not that much smaller than the famous (or infamous) Walker (9" barrel). ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2010, 10:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-cowboys-really-used-to-do-quick-draw/538416/26 "2010-05-07T10:54:12Z")
> [@notsoheavyd3](#): > > Well that’s Bob Munden who advises to NEVER use live ammo when doing quick draw. Come to think of it if you fire from the hip like that the accuracy probably isn’t good at all. What’s he using for quick draw? Blanks? ---
**Author:** ![notsoheavyd3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/85e7bf/32.png) [@notsoheavyd3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/notsoheavyd3)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2010, 12:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-cowboys-really-used-to-do-quick-draw/538416/27 "2010-05-07T12:43:29Z")
> [@Crafter\_Man](#): > > What’s he using for quick draw? Blanks? I think it’s blanks. His about page mentions it. (I guess he could be using live in rare circumstances but he’s pretty clear that quick draw is dangerous and you shouldn’t use live ammo) [http://www.bobmunden.com/about.htm](http://www.bobmunden.com/about.htm) ---
**Author:** ![velomont](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/8491ac/32.png) [@velomont](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/velomont)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2010, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-cowboys-really-used-to-do-quick-draw/538416/28 "2010-05-07T18:59:50Z")
Whenever I see quick-draw scenes in movies my first thought is “If I was the sherrif (how in God’s name is it spelt anyway?) I wouldn’t be standing in the middle of the street playing target, I would be taking cover and preparing to pop-off the bad guy before he could see me” It just seems logical. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2010, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-cowboys-really-used-to-do-quick-draw/538416/29 "2010-05-07T19:08:07Z")
Agreed. And it’s one “r,” two "f"s: [Sheriff - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sheriff) ---
**Author:** ![velomont](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/8491ac/32.png) [@velomont](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/velomont)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2010, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-cowboys-really-used-to-do-quick-draw/538416/30 "2010-05-07T19:19:37Z")
Thanks for that Elendil’s Heir. I’m Canadian and our folklore is essentially sheriff-less so I inadvertently spelled it like the marmalade producer. ---
**Author:** ![DiosaBellissima](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a8b319/32.png) [@DiosaBellissima](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DiosaBellissima)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2010, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-cowboys-really-used-to-do-quick-draw/538416/31 "2010-05-07T19:39:38Z")
The idea that 1.5 murders a year isn’t a lot kind of confuses me. Sure, in a large modern city it isn’t. In a tiny, 500 max person mining town, that is a lot of murder. I’m sure there are cities in the midwest with much larger populations with less murderin’ than that. ---
**Author:** ![Lumpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lumpy/32/446_2.png) [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2010, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-cowboys-really-used-to-do-quick-draw/538416/32 "2010-05-07T20:48:55Z")
I would presume there’s some truth behind the legends based on the popularity of [Boot Hill](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boot_Hill) as a cemetery name. ---
**Author:** ![Sailboat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sailboat/32/461_2.png) [@Sailboat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sailboat)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2010, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-cowboys-really-used-to-do-quick-draw/538416/33 "2010-05-08T15:53:41Z")
Can’t find a citation at the moment, but in his memoirs, Wyatt Earp was specifically disparaging toward quick-draw type gunfighting. He maintained that it’s not who fires first, but whoever takes the time to aim, who wins the gunfight, and said that he had many times forced himself to remain calm and carefully draw a bead while being fired on rapidly and wildly. ---
**Author:** ![Susanann](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7ab992/32.png) [@Susanann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Susanann)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2010, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-cowboys-really-used-to-do-quick-draw/538416/34 "2010-05-08T16:27:29Z")
> [@notsoheavyd3](#): > > Well that’s Bob Munden who advises to NEVER use live ammo when doing quick draw. . All you guys are funny!! What makes all the balloons, clays, and eggs, etc. break? …if Bob is only shooting blanks? magic? ---
**Author:** ![Susanann](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7ab992/32.png) [@Susanann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Susanann)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2010, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-cowboys-really-used-to-do-quick-draw/538416/35 "2010-05-08T16:36:11Z")
> [@GreasyJack](#): > > I do question that assertion the idea that established cow towns like Dodge were necessarily the centers of violence. > > What’s probably more representative are the frontier mining camps . > > … trying to suggest that much of frontier America wasn’t a very violent place is IMHO sort of wandering into revisionism. Mining towns, or other towns that contained mostly young single men, who drifted, had little money, no land, no roots, were obviously more prone to crime. Other than those, most towns built to serve farmers and ranchers, were so peaceful as to be boring. My family settled Colorado, Wyoming, the Dakotas, Kansas, etc, and our family history, other than indian attacks, overwelmingly portrays the wild west as NOT wild, and very boring to average folk. We didnt even lock our doors on the frontier, because it was not the bad guys that we were afraid of, rather, we feared hostile indians, disease, and the weather. ---
**Author:** ![Susanann](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7ab992/32.png) [@Susanann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Susanann)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2010, 4:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-cowboys-really-used-to-do-quick-draw/538416/36 "2010-05-08T16:40:41Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > As for the traditional Western gunfight as depicted in movies, the inaccuracy of handguns at the time would have made quick-drawing skill irrelevant: I own, and have shot a lot of Colt Peacemakers from the 1870s and up, and they are pretty darn accurate if a person knows how to shoot. Virtually as accurate as any handgun made today. ---
**Author:** ![Susanann](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7ab992/32.png) [@Susanann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Susanann)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2010, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-cowboys-really-used-to-do-quick-draw/538416/37 "2010-05-08T16:47:58Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > I agree the Cracked article leaves one with an impression that the Wild West was almost a peaceful, idyllic time which I have a hard time swallowing. We barely have that now and I am hard pressed to think people back then were all just excellent to each other and let each other be. YOu make a good point, people today, in the “wild west”, or 10,000 years ago are basically the same, some good and bad, some evil or peaceful. That said, in the west where I am from, EVERYONE owned and carried a gun, and kept it loaded. Unlike today, virtually no one back then was defenseless. Criminals back then had no easy “prey” since all citizens were armed. I agree that while the old west was not idyllic (mostly because of indians, disease, weather, lack of modern densitry, etc), on the other hand I would guess that unarmed people (then and now) are more often victims of crime and violence much more than people who are armed and able to defend themselves. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2010, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-cowboys-really-used-to-do-quick-draw/538416/38 "2010-05-08T16:51:40Z")
> [@Sailboat](#): > > Can’t find a citation at the moment, but in his memoirs, Wyatt Earp was specifically disparaging toward quick-draw type gunfighting. He maintained that it’s not who fires first, but whoever takes the time to aim, who wins the gunfight, and said that he had many times forced himself to remain calm and carefully draw a bead while being fired on rapidly and wildly. I posted earlier that I thought Hickock said that. I concede I could have been wrong. Do you have a cite for the quote? (Not that I don’t believe you, but I’d just like to know for sure who said it.) > [@Susanann](#): > > I own, and have shot a lot of Colt Peacemakers from the 1870s and up, and they are pretty darn accurate if a person knows how to shoot. Virtually as accurate as any handgun made today. I have a .45LC Ruger Blackhawk, which is basically a Peacemaker. I also have several (Uberti) Colt 1851 Navy revolvers. I can attest that they are indeed quite accurate, and (for some reason) this surprised me when I first fired a Navy. Funny story: I was shooting with my then-g/f and we both had Blackhawks. She complained her sights were off, and she didn’t want to shoot it anymore until we came back with tools so she could adjust them. I asked to shoot hers, and she was like, ‘Well, I don’t have much ammo left, and it’s expensive.’ I told her I’d use my ammo and she finally let me shoot it. There was a gallon paint can out a way and I took aim at it. I pulled the trigger and it jumped back. I cocked and shot again. The paint can leapt farther away. I fired again and the can started up a little hill. I chased the paint can up the hill with the remaining shots. Handing the gun back to my g/f, I told her the sights seem fine. That was the last time we went shooting together. ---
**Author:** ![Susanann](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7ab992/32.png) [@Susanann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Susanann)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2010, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-cowboys-really-used-to-do-quick-draw/538416/39 "2010-05-08T16:58:15Z")
…and by the way, personally speaking, in all of my genealogy studies for myseld and others, family histories, old newspapers, old church/cemetery/town records, verbal stories from old people in my youth, etc. from where we lived… I never once encountered or heard of a single actual Hollywood style “fast draw shootout”. I periodically ran across fights, drunkenness, thefts, cattle stealing, robberies, shootings, indian attacks, etc. here and there, but no Matt Dillion Dodge City Saturday night fast draws. ---
**Author:** ![notsoheavyd3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/85e7bf/32.png) [@notsoheavyd3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/notsoheavyd3)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2010, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-cowboys-really-used-to-do-quick-draw/538416/40 "2010-05-08T17:13:45Z")
> [@Susanann](#): > > All you guys are funny!! > > What makes all the balloons, clays, and eggs, etc. break? …if Bob is only shooting blanks? > > magic? Well stuff still comes out when you fire blanks as this guy found out the hard way [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jon-Erik\_Hexum#Death](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jon-Erik_Hexum#Death) So I’d think that’s what pops a balloon. (Of course he might make an exception for himself for some items since Munden is an expert and has been doing this kind of stuff for decades. Still, a balloon or an egg a blank is probably enough.) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-cowboys-really-used-to-do-quick-draw/538416.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-cowboys-really-used-to-do-quick-draw/538416.md?page=3)