Tennessee River Valley Sportsman

Blacksmithing was an umbrella for several endeavors.  It was the early "village smithy" who was known for making various types of metal products.  As time passed, the blacksmiths evolved into more specialized occupations.  To name a few, blacksmiths became known as Bladesmiths, Locksmiths, and Gunsmiths.  Originally, gunsmiths produced very limited quantities of weapons since each part of the weapon was produced by hand in meager metal working facilities.  With the beginning of the mass production, the gunsmith settled into a new role of selling and repairing over-the-counter firearms.

• A derby or mechanic's cap
• A bleached or unbleached muslin shirt with a collar
• Plain wool or cotton trousers with ordinary suspenders
• Plain wool or cotton socks with brogan shoes
• A plaid, blanket mackinaw during cold weather

• Small metal files of various lengths, widths, and cuts
• Small brass punches of the same diameter as the steel pins in a revolver, rifle, or shotgun
• Small wooden handled precisely ground screwdrivers
• A small wooden mallet

• Two 1872 open top revolvers
• A two-inch wide natural colored belt (natural leather ages beautifully with just a light oiling) with a matte finish brass buckle
• Two natural colored Slim Jim holsters (strong right side and left side cross-draw)
• Two natural colored cartridge pouches (one on the right hip behind the holster for loose shotgun shells and one on the left hip behind the holster for loose revolver cartridges)

Millions of words have been written about cowboys - from the red sash gang in Arizona to the last train robbers - and millions more will be written.  Cowboys probably originated with the vaqueros who migrated into present-day Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, California, and points north.

• A straw or fur felt cowboy hat with an unshaped crown, a soft or stiff brim, and a simple grosgrain fabric or tooled leather hatband
• A bleached or unbleached muslin shirt with a collar
• Plain wool or cotton trousers (sometimes re-enforced with leather in the seat and inside the thighs) with ordinary suspenders
• Plain wool or cotton socks with coffin toed (squared off toes without ornamental stitching), fourteen-inch shaft, smooth or ruff-out leather boots with a spur shelf on the top of the heel
• Spurs of either plain metal with no adornment or precious metals with fancy adornments
• A saltillo, poncho, or unlined duster during chilly weather but a lined duster during more severe weather conditions
• A basic or elaborately tooled leather cartridge belt and plain or tooled holster
• A knife and sheath

• Two 1872 open top revolvers
• A two-inch wide vegetable tanned cartridge belt with a matte finish brass buckle
• Two vegetable tanned Wyoming double-loop holsters (strong right side and left side cross-draw)
• One vegetable tanned cartridge pouches (on the right hip behind the holster for loose shotgun shells)
• A double-edged, antler handled camp knife (spear point) and vegetable tanned double-loop sheath (closely matches the Cheyenne double loop holsters)

Cowboy shooting means real firearms sending real lead downrange and bouncing the lead off of steel targets.  Safety is first, last, and always.  To participate in the "Spirit of the Game", you need the following specific firearms:

• Two single action revolvers
• A level action or pump rifle
• A hammered double barrel (some hammerless double barrel shotguns are allowed as specified in the SASS rule book) or hammered pump shotgun.

• The 1872 Open Top Colt revolver or the 1873 Colt Army revolver in .38 caliber
• The 1860 Henry in .45 caliber or the 1866 Winchester GoldenBoy in .38 caliber (it is always best for safety reasons to keep all revolvers and rifles in the same caliber but the Henry is not available in .38 caliber)
• The Baker style, hammered, double barrel 12-gauge coach gun or the Winchester 1897 12-gauge pump shotgun with low brass No. 8 shot for fixed, knockdown, or popper type targets