Mare's Leg

[whitecoyote]

I was bored last night, so I made a Mare's Leg. I took my Winchester 92, cut the barrel to 12", and sawed the stock off.
Now I have a Mare's Leg (aka Mare's Laig)!

Just kidding.
This is a Puma 92, Bounty Hunter. It's a manufactured pistol, it was not cut down.

This Mare's Leg is classified as a Pistol. It was made in Italy by Chiappa firearms, imported by Puma Rifles. Puma Bounty Hunter & M-87 Shotguns
Caliber is .44 mag., with a 12" barrel. The Mare's Leg is very well built. Quality, fit & finish is excellent.

You can also read about it here:
Puma Model 92 “Bounty Hunter” Lever Action .45 Colt Pistol from Legacy Sports
Mare's Leg - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Steve McQueen used a Mare's Leg in the movie "Wanted Dead or Alive".
YouTube - Wanted: Dead or Alive theme

 

[Lenshappy]

first one posted

 

[Spotteddog]

OK Whitecoyote,
Just when I think I'm totally incapable anymore of acting like a little boy, something like this post comes along?
You Sir, and Steve McQueen have once again proven me wrong!
Well Done!
(I needed it more tonight than you know!)
THANKS!
BTW- I don't care that his M-92 was a .44/40 and that his belt held .45/70's. It was still one of my top 5 favorite TV westerns!
Tango Yankee's once again.
(EDIT)
It sort of makes me want to have a Viceroy though?
(For our younger members, that's an allusion to when we now of old fart status would be bombarded at every commercial break in "prime time" with cigarette commercial's. In many cases, being done by the series star themselves.) Sure feels like all the rules and regulations imposed since have made this a safer place!
Don't you all feel safer now?

 

[Cobroller]

I watched the show faithfully. Now I find out they were faking me out with oversize ammo. Next you'll be telling me that it won't outshoot a sixgun.
Is my memory of Josh using the mare's leg as a club still valid? Seems to me that it worked pretty good for that purpose.
And by the way, great post, you had me going with that last night in the workshop bit.

 

[mjr]

Some may not know that two different styles of Mare's Leg were used over the run of "Wanted: Dead or Alive." The two differed mainly in the shape of the lever, which can be seen in the photos of Steve McQueen posted above. The first photo shows one style; the next three show the other, more rounded design.

 

[S-W4EVER]

That's what shooting is all about... having fun!!! Anyone else (besides me) miss Steve McQueen even more now?

 

[Spotteddog]

Yes Sir!
More and more every year!

 

[whitecoyote]

It sort of makes me want to have a Viceroy though?
(For our younger members, that's an allusion to when we now of old fart status would be bombarded at every commercial break in "prime time" with cigarette commercial's. In many cases, being done by the series star themselves.)

YouTube - Steve McQueen's Viceroy Ads

Video's from "Wanted Dead or Alive"
YouTube - Wanted Dead or Alive - Part 1
YouTube - Wanted Dead or Alive - Part 2
YouTube - Wanted Dead or Alive - Part 3
YouTube - Wanted Dead or Alive

 

[Spotteddog]

Thanks Whitecoyote!

Watching this (almost) allows me to suspend disbelief about some of her lunatic press conferences?
But good Lord almighty, she certainly is a talented, beautiful woman!
And one cannot fault her on her choice of subject matter!

YouTube - Sheryl Crow - Steve McQueen

 

[whitecoyote]

Now, I just need to get a holster for the Mare's Leg.
Wonder if anyone makes an inside the waist band holster for it?

 

[Faulkner]

I have the three season set of Wanted: Dead or Alive. Great show, my 12 year old son and I watched all of it through the winter months.

It appears to me the one Josh carried had a shorter barrel than 12 inches. In comparing the picture below with the ones from the show stills and from watching the show I'd estimate the show gun's barrel was closer to 8 inches. Looks like the original only extended to just past the barrel band, whereas the new Puma gun is a good 3 to 4 inches longer.

The Puma gun looks good, wonder if they make it in .357?

 

[Mickey D]

Now, I just need to get a holster for the Mare's Leg.
Wonder if anyone makes an inside the waist band holster for it?

There ain't room for the too of us,

Dick

 

[PALADIN85020]

McQueen was the epitome of "cool" in anything he did. The mare's laig was just icing on the cake. Nice gun to have as memento of that association. Always wondered what it would be like to fire one and actually hit something!

 

[Wyatt Burp]

That gun is useless, impractical, inaccurate probably..I WANT ONE!! I had a toy of this in the 60's. What a great 44 magnum. NRA magazine showed a new Thompson "pistol". No buttstock and a 13" barrel. Fantastic. How much does the Mares Leg go for?

 

[whitecoyote]

It appears to me the one Josh carried had a shorter barrel than 12 inches. In comparing the picture below with the ones from the show stills and from watching the show I'd estimate the show gun's barrel was closer to 8 inches. Looks like the original only extended to just past the barrel band, whereas the new Puma gun is a good 3 to 4 inches longer.

The Puma gun looks good, wonder if they make it in .357?

The Puma 92 Bounty Hunter is made in .45LC, .44/40, & .44 magnum.

The Mare's Leg in Wanted Dead or Alive probably had a 9" barrel.
(from Wikipedia)
The Mare’s Leg (aka Mare’s Laig; both sometimes spelled without the apostrophe) was the name given to a customized shortened rifle by Steve McQueen’s character on the television series Wanted: Dead or Alive (1958–1961). McQueen’s character was named Josh Randall, and the gun has also been referred to as a Winchester Randall, or a Randall Special.
The original Mare’s Leg was made by cutting down a .44-40 caliber Winchester Model 1892 rifle to a size that could be worn in a large leg holster and used with one hand. The barrel was cut down to a length of twelve (or possibly nine) inches,[1] and much of the butt-stock was removed. For filming three guns were actually made, each with an enlarged loop on the cocking lever. The first gun differed in the size of its lever enlargement, and the last gun had an octagonal barrel instead of a round one. The actual gun being used could sometimes change from shot to shot in a given scene. While the guns were chambered for the .44-40 round, McQueen wore more impressive looking .45-70 rounds in the loops of his gun belt.

 

[mjr]

How much does the Mares Leg go for?

MSRP is $1,250.00. I'd love playing with a Mare's Leg, but I'd rather spend that money on three or four nice K-frames.

 

[BLACKHAWKNJ]

I had a toy one in 1960 or so. Not sure if I ever watched the show. I recall an article in American Rifleman that said McQueen, who was something of a shooter, fired one of the Mare's Legs with live ammunition. Quoted him as saying it kicked like a mule and he couldn't hit anything with it.

 

[Wyatt Burp]

I had a toy one in 1960 or so. Not sure if I ever watched the show. I recall an article in American Rifleman that said McQueen, who was something of a shooter, fired one of the Mare's Legs with live ammunition. Quoted him as saying it kicked like a mule and he couldn't hit anything with it.

I have a book on fast draw by Argonbright and I think I read in it Mcqueen would practice with live ammo on the studio lot and could beat other actors at fast draw with blanks.

 

[44forever]

Now, I just need to get a holster for the Mare's Leg.
Wonder if anyone makes an inside the waist band holster for it?

The most recent issue of the NRA "First Freedom" had an ad for a holster or holster and gunbelt - around $350 as I recall but not IWB. Sorry.

 

[Spotteddog]

Did any of the rest of you folks notice?
NONE of the guns pictured has the "slamfire" tab at the rear of the trigger guard. I've seen it done with a machine screw as well as a fold down tab. But none of these guns seem to have one?