Though I am a revolver guy, I've wanted a Colt Woodsman .22LR semi auto for some time. A lot of the appeal to me is aesthetic: I think they are wonderfully slim and elegant.

Below, the Target is from 1932 and the Sport from 1938.





There are three Woodsman series: The first running from 1915 to 1947, the second from 1947 to 1955, and third from 1955 to 1977. Each series has three models, a Target, a shorter barreled Sport, and a Match Target competition pistol. Of course, there's much, much more to it, and for those who'd like to learn more:

• Our own Paladin/John Marshall has an excellent, detailed, 2013 write up here: http://smith-wessonforum.com/firearm...light=Woodsman.
• Bob Rayburn's definitive Woodsman site is here: 22 caliber rimfire semi-auto Colt pistol: .22 calibre Colt Woodsman.
• In addition, LeeRoy Wisner's site is very good: Colt Woodsman 22 RF Semi-Auto Pi

They weren't initially called "Woodsman," but simply "Automatic Target Pistol." Colt soon noticed the model's popularity with outdoorsman, however, and added the "Woodsman" name in 1927. On our forum I've found several members who speak highly of them and who have used them with great success over a lifetime outdoors.

Colt stopped production in 1977 because the design, which requires considerable handwork in production, became too expensive to produce and compete with more modern pistols.

The Woodsman has had well known fans, among them Ernest Hemingway, General George S. Patton, and Harry Selby, the white hunter made famous by Robert Ruark.

I initially thought I wanted a second series because the second, unlike the first and the third, has a thumb activated magazine release near the trigger, rather than on the heel, or bottom of the grip. But I then realized that since I was not buying the pistol for self defense, the magazine release in the heel of the gun did not bother me.

The second series is also alone in having an automatic slide stop/hold open device when the magazine is empty. [Edit: Incorrect. See post 8 below. Third series has this as well.] It seemed cumbersome to me to count 10 rounds fired to avoid pulling the trigger on an empty rimfire gun. But as I continued my internet reading, I came across Tom Platt, who goes by the internet moniker prewoodsman. He is a seasoned expert on Woodsman mechanics and repairs. Platt is wonderfully generous with his advice, and a highly respected and valued member of the Woodsman owner/collector community. He explains that all Woodsman series of pistols, 1915-1977, are designed to be safely dry fired. (He suggests checking to be sure your pistol is in spec by placing a credit card in front of the breech face, closing the slide, and pulling the trigger. No indentation means it's in spec.)

My reading indicated that the first series had the most hand work, were the most finely fitted, something which attracts me. That little knurled/checkered knob is the takedown pin, pressed for disassembly.



I've been for this reason attracted to prewar S&W and Colt revolvers for a long time, and at one point had a couple of dozen of them. As someone else wrote about firearms from the 1930s, "...factory machining capacities were at an advanced state (relative to 20 years before), there was better steel technology, and there was a work force skilled in combining state-of-the-art machinery with semi-hand work. ...The 1930's were the brief moment [when] ... machinery & craftsmanship existed, really for a tragically brief time, in a marvelous equipoise..." https://www.leverguns.com/articles/model71_info.htm

Well put!

Early models, those built prior to 1932 or so, were not designed for high velocity .22LR. It didn't yet exist. While there is overlap, later pistols were. One can tell the difference by the appearance of the markings in the area of the back strap where it meets the web between thumb and forefinger. HV capable has straight horizontal lines. Standard velocity only has checking/checkering.



But, I reflected, why shoot HV in these older guns anyway?

Having decided on the first series, the question became which model? While the Match Target is surely a great shooter, it is less elegant to my eye, and also a whole lot more expensive. I went back and forth between the Target and the Sport, and ultimately decided to buy them both.


And I may add a first series Match Target at some point... (And then there's the second and third series to consider...)

Beautiful pistols, my friend! I like how you think and was sitting here trying to recall the old saying regarding how many you buy before it is a "collection." As with many folks, when I was at the place where acquisition required the sale of something already owned I let one go away. Posts like yours rekindle a smoldering spark. Thank you for the excellent refresher course on how great these older pistols are.

Great post Onomea, and I’m happy that my purchase of these beautiful Colt Ivory grips from you (also from the 1930’s) helped fund your new acquisitions!

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Terry Lester

Those ivories are looking great, Terry! Thanks again for the purchase!

I had a Woodsman some years back and have often regretted selling it. It was an absolutely superb target pistol and tack-drivingly accurate.

Those are gorgeous. I had a long running email correspondence with a member of THR that was well versed in Woodsmans, and his opinion about the first series reflects yours - that the first series are the best and most craftsman-like of all the Woodsmans, and that the later ones all had degrees of cost-cutting attached to them. That said, he certainly didn't sneer at the later ones, he just pointed out the differences between the series that showed how the earlier ones were better.

I've never had the pleasure of owning a first series Woodsman, but I have two third series Woodsman, one a Match Target, and they are lovely to shoot. In my own way, I appreciate the 1970s guns as much as the prewar guns, mostly because it was the end of an era and that makes them interesting as well, and they are not so far removed from the peak of American gun-making that the craftsmanship, while diminished, is still visible.

Thanks for the write-up and the excellent photography. Someday I'll have an early one as well!

I've got a Sport and a Targetsman. Both fine pistols. I don't know which generation. The Sport had Coltwood grips on it which had warped and broken.

""""The second series is also alone in having an automatic slide stop/hold open device when the magazine is empty. It seemed cumbersome to me to count 10 rounds fired to avoid pulling the trigger on an empty rimfire gun."""

My 3rd series stays open after the last round.

Nice writeup Onomea. There is something about the 1st Series Woodsmans that I can only describe as a certain grace, balance and class that the later guns don't have. Maybe it's because I view them through the lens of how shooters must have viewed them 100 years ago.

I have a 1st Series Target, a 2nd Series Sport and a 2nd Series Match Target with a 4.5" barrel. The later guns "corrected" the complaints that the earlier shooters had and I certainly can't criticize the changes, but the 1st Series guns sure are fun when you think of them in their historical context.

Great write-up. Here's my "pre woodsman" with aftermarket grips. The original were too gone to restore.

Guess I got that one wrong, then! Beautiful pistol you have there.

The 1st series Sports with adjustable sights are my favorite model. I muchly prefer the feel of the longer prewoodsman triggers over the shorter, later ones. add a good trigger shoe and call it perfection....




I have added a reblued second series Sport with Huntsman grips since the whole fam damily pic was taken...

A 1938 model target has ridden with me nearly everyday for 40 plus years. The things that it and I did over the years if told, would get me branded a liar. When my eyes were good, prairie dogs at 100 yards were is serious danger when I had a rest. Mine sure doesn't look like the OP's. What little bluing is left is very thin. The checkered walnut stocks are hammered flat. Mine sleeps in a vintage Heiser lined flap holster. When guiding elk and deer hunters it was used to finish off many elk, deer and antelope.

Huntsman and 30-30remchester, thanks for commenting. I've read your Woodsman comments here and elsewhere, and they were a contributing factor to my decision to buy a Woodsman.

The Alaskan equivalent of Africa's Peter Hathaway Capstick, was a writer named Russel Annabel. He wrote many stories of Alaska life and quite often of 22 handguns used in Alaska. So many of the old sourdoughs used and carried 22 handguns daily. I am not sure if I repeated earlier about a rancher in Kodiak, Alaska who carried a 4" model Woodsman. It was his constant companion in which he practiced daily. Coming around his barn he encountered a charging Kodiak bear. One shot and the bear folded. The only known Kodiak to be killed with a 22 handgun. I have many stories about Colt Woodsman's but don't want to repeat any story and cant remember which I have told.

Very nice post, great information. I couple years ago I bought a Series 2 at a local gun show. While I was checking it out I noticed two guys looking over my shoulders so I stuck the Woodsman in my belt told the man SOLD and got my money out of my pocket. I think it was a pretty good buy for 7 bills. I would not mind having a Series 1 some day.

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I enjoyed your post, Onomea. The Woodsman has an aura missing from many other pistols. I remember reading outdoor magazines as a kid and wanting a Woodsman. Someday, I said.

Today I have a Huntsman and a Sport. The Huntsman belonged to Mom. She kept in her nightstand. Dad was a little better armed with a Model 94 Winchester on his side of the bed. Although Mom and Dad are gone, I am thankful to have both guns residing in my safe awaiting their next outing. But I digress . . . . The Sport doesn't have a story. It was just a deal in Cabela's gun library that I couldn't ignore.

These old pistols are a joy, and I enjoyed reading about yours.

That´s my only one, a lettered 3rd series from 1956. Not original but I feel lucky indeed to own it.
Regards, Ray

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I thought the '56 models still wore black plastic grips?

I’m also a big fan of the Woodsman! Great info, thanks!

I have a couple 3rd gens, a Sport model and a Match Target that both run often and flawlessly.

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Pass it on.
Mark

Through the years I've had a first series Match Target with the "elephant ear" grips, a second series 6" Match Target, a 4 1/2" third series Target (a favorite beginning shooter's gun), and 4 1/2 and 6" third series Match Targets. All wonderful guns and another lasting reminder of John Browning's design genius.

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Alan
SWCA LM 2023, SWHF 220

Great post Onomea. Enjoyed it. You have 2 very nice colts there.
Always wanted an early one, they are getting hard to find and expensive. Like all older guns the craftsmanship is amazing.

I have the “red headed stepchild” of the line, a 3rd series Targetsman I bought from our own Handejector in 2013. It’s pretty accurate and has shoot quite a few squirrels as well as paper since then. I have enjoyed the little semi-auto very much and would buy another if the opportunity arrived.

I thought the '56 models still wore black plastic grips?

Yeah that´s true but one of the original panels broke off, so I got a walnut (I think) set whIch dress it way better.
Regards, Ray

Onomea,
I too have a 1st Gen Sport and a Target model. Is the front sight on yours an ivory bead? Most came with the Patridge front sight. Mine has the rare ivory bead. I have not seen any others. Both versions are adjustable for elevation in case anyone was wondering.
They are a joy to shoot and I can regularly hit a clay pigeon (perched on a sand bank) at 100 yards with the Target model (it's the gun, not me).

Your guns look outstanding.

Thanks for the kind words, bigmoose. My Target has the adjustable front sight, as they all did, but no ivory bead. Very cool that yours has that. In my Sport, the front sight is fixed. I think all Sports were initially fixed front sights, and that later in the 30s one had the option of fixed or adjustable front sights. Rear sights are windage adjustable, of course.

Not a handgun but Bella TwIn killed a grizzly or brown bear with a .22 Long single shot rIfle.
Regards Ray

I have a Match Target which I believe is a third generation. A nice gun and accurate right up to the time it jams. I have tried various brands of ammo but haven't found what it likes yet.

GSP Fan, I suggest you contact prewoodsman/Tom Platt, and tell him your troubles. While I have no direct experience with him, many Woodsman owners sing his praise. He is familiar with the mechanics of the entire series. There is a link to his email on this page: 22 caliber rimfire semi-auto Colt pistol: .22 calibre Colt Woodsman

A couple decades back I found my Woodsman languishing on the back shelf at my local GS. It was a well loved but complete example and while humble looking still shoots with 100% reliability …

The Woodsman is the most natural pointing handgun I have ever shot. Many feel the same way. I have shot at 6 flying birds with mine and dropped 3 of them. It is like pointing your finger. The man I mentioned that shot the Kodiak bear, point shot daily. He had to because the entire front sight had been missing for decades. I had to gut a cow elk I had shot on the side of a steep hill. It dropped at the shot, so dead right there. Not wanting to lug my heavy rifle up the oak brush mountain, then wrestle it and the elk back down the mountain climb, I grabbed my Woodsman and as I reached to roll her over, all hell broke loose. She regained her footing, kicked me in the stomach and off she ran. I was off balance but still bi-pedal. No time to aim, 2 quick shots at the back of her fleeing head brought her to bag. My neck shot had missed the neck vertebrae and had temporarily spinal shocked her. Ahh good memories. Just point and shoot fun. An interesting tidbit about the Woodsman design is whether John Browning designed it this was or just a happy accident, is the guns ability to fire with a broken firing pin. It wont always fire but it will continue working reliably enough to get you to town.

I have owned two Match Target Woodsmans (Woodsmen?). My first was an early postwar pistol. As I remember, it had brown plastic grips, Coltwood, I suppose. I bought it sometime around 1963-64 at an OGCA gun show for around $100. That was when I first started shooting Bullseye Target, and I used it until I stopped shooting Bullseye in the late 1980s. I sold it to a friend, but I don't remember the price. The second one was a very late production model, bought around 1977-78, for, I think, about $300 from a gun shop in Fort Worth that was going out of business. They happened to have this Woodsman because it had been ordered for a customer who left a deposit but never returned to pick it up. It was new, in its original box with all paperwork and a funny little keychain screwdriver. It had wood grips. I never fired it, it just went into the safe. As I wasn't using it, I finally sold it in the early 1990s for $550 at a gun show in San Antonio. Strange as it seems today, I considered that to be a very good price at the time. The old postwar Woodsman punched a lot of holes in the black, and performed very well for me. I wish I had kept at least one of them.

I bought this one decades ago.

I believe it's the most elegant visual for a .22 l.r. pistol.

It was most beautiful to me then and is to this day.

enjoy,

bdGreen

Tap on image to enlarge.

Wow! That's a gorgeous second series, BD. Superb condition. Is the box related or just doing photo prop duties?

Ha. Prop duties.

That is actually a custom made case for a 5 screw K22 Masterpiece.

But, I like wood grains and guns. Just a natural.

Thank you. The gun is gorgeous. I find it real easy on the eyes.

bdGreen

The early Woodsman is a piece of art. I have my fathers with his leather holster. I don't know the serial range of these but his is in the 1111X range. I still shoot it with SV .22 loads. I doubt there is a finer shooting pistol made.

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Mike Maher #283

Mike, what a treasure to have your father's Woodsman. And his leather holster as well!

1111x would be 1919: Colt Woodsman, Match Target Serial Number Ship Dates - Old Colt

Collectors call the the pre-1927 pistols "pre-Woodsman" because the Woodsman name was adopted, and put on the pistol, in 1927.

(There is a sub forum here for gun leather. You might show the holster there and see what you learn.)

Original paperwork. Thought this might be interesting or useful to other first series owners:

Complementing what Onomea said about Mr. Tom Platt aka Prewoodsman, I can attest to his utmost kindness and expertise in all kinds of Woodsman pistols issues.
He even has posted at Colt22.com site a series of maintenence tutorials that are invaluable, with detailed photos to boot.
Check it out.
Regards, Ray

I sort of remember that someone once made a Woodsman reproduction. Iver Johnson?

Norinco......

How about that?! Actually, looks like a pretty good deal for a pretty good pistol:

Norinco M-93 Sportsman - YouTube

Tried to find one on Gunbroker but could not. Above YouTube video talks of the Canadian market.

Another gun to consider is the Browning Challenger, the 1st series guns that were made by FN in Belgium. They were designed by J.M. Browning's grandson Bruce Browning in the early 1960's who made some improvements to the Colt produced Woodsmans. They are all forged steel, beautifully polished and blued, have an adjustable trigger and do easy barrel swaps to different lengths. They are appreciating in price now but still can be found for less than a similar condition Colt Woodsman. The magazines are very pricey though, if you find one for under $100 consider yourself lucky.

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The 1st series Sport is one of my favorites. Skeeter Skelton wrote how shooting his Dad's at a young age got him started on a lifetime of shooting. He wrote an article on finding one to replace his Dad's that was traded years ago. Here's one of my favorites- early medium barrel ('33-'34), King sights. I shoot it often

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PTLAPTA!

Very nice, S&W ucla! I like King sights, etc. While for collectors (aside from King collectors) they can detract from value, I always think that some guy cared enough about the gun to have the work done at the primo place for the time period. I've seen, on the internet, Sport models with weighted barrels, etc.

Read something, somewhere, where the added King underlug tube had three inserts: lead (steel?), mercury, and aluminum, with the idea being adjust/sequence balance to your liking.

Back in the day, shooters took bullseye seriously.

Any leads on how to read Skeeter's article you reference? E.g., publication/date, or anthology?

Onomea, thank you for the Exploded View and serial number dates. I just re-read my post and I believe the SN range needs one more digit; another '1' (one) before the 'x'. I'll need to pull it out of the safe as it was bought new by my father and he was born in 1914. A serial of 11111x (1937) makes more sense. I'll try to post a photo of it.

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Mike Maher #283

I have two. A 1939 1st issue 4 1/2” target and 3rd issue 6” with adjustable sights.
Pic of my 1st, my 3rd is at home resting in the safe.

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There were a few articles in Shooting Times he mentions his first shooting experience with the woodsman. In his book "Good Friends, Good Guns, Good Whiskey" p. 223 he mentions it in "Guns I remember best" August 1978?
A later article was about his quest to find a pre-war sport model like his Dad's.

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PTLAPTA!

Thanks, S&W ucla. I think I have that book, "Good Friends, Good Guns, Good Whiskey," in my other house.