How I came to be honored with the care and feeding of Sixguns.com

By Al Fernandez

Here’s my story:  First caveat, I aint no writer. I put down a bunch of words and then keep rearranging them until they looks good to me.

Second caveat, I have never been an expert in the field, it’s a new and wonderful challenge every time I take a six-shooter apart, wondering if it will ever shoot again. 

I have owned and own now a few  wheel guns, Starting in the 80’s, first off  was a Dan Wesson SS .357 with 4 barrels and 3 sets of grips in nice case. The most inaccurate revolver I have ever owned, but very pretty. I now have in the wheel gun category, a Single Six and several 3 screw Rugers, and a Field Grade Freedom Arms #83 in .454 with a 7-1/2” magna-ported barrel, and a S&W 629 Classic.

          I do quite a bit of reloading, started in the 90’s with a Dillon 650, so it’s all “New School”, 22 hornet to 45-70,  never seen a piggy back or a turret and when talk turns to single stage presses and Unique powder I shudder. Only thing I know about casting is not to do it with trees at your back and the wind in your face. Why me, I  don’t remember even hearing the name “Elmer Keith” until after he passed away, Couldn’t imagine shooting lead bullets in this day and age (At least until I saw a couple of ol’ boys put them on a target 600 yards away out of a Colt SAA and a Ruger Blackhawk).

          Although I like my autos and my CW around the city now days is a Kimber “Ultra Carry” in 45ACP, When I want to shoot for fun or sport, it is the wheel gun I pick up first. A 45 Colt wins out over a 45ACP every time. A wheel gun and a lever gun, that’s even better. Two wheel guns on a leather belt, a lever gun, and a shotgun, I’m in Heaven.

 Anyway, when I did get the bug, and knowing my way around a computer, I started playing catch-up. And of course, like every other sixgun lover who searches the web, came across this site. Wow, and “It will take forever to read all this” was the first thing that came to mind. Then one day the site was gone. A while latter it was up again. Read some of Mr. Taffin’s posts on other forums, the story was it wasn’t his site, a friend had built it for him in the “old days”, and it had been sold to someone whom I later found out to be a gunsmith in Tennessee.  Through the internet registry and other means I found out the domain had had no activity on it for several years, and was due to expire in 2010. Set about trying to contact the owner, and after trading messages and a couple of “No, not the Museum, the Memorial Shoot” over a 12 month period, the very generous Mr. Fletcher and I worked out a deal.

 In the mean time, during one of the periods when Sixguns was online, I mirrored it over to our servers. The “Sixguns” domain was good, but the content of the website was the real gem. I then contacted Mr. Taffin through a mutual friend, and one, asked him if I could continue to use his articles, and two, if he would like to again contribute the site. Yes on both accounts! Since then, while keeping the overall look and feel of Sixguns, I have tuned it up a little, rearranged a few things, added a guest book, fixed some broken links, and added some new content.

I still don’t think I have read everything article and story on the site, but I’m working on it.

AL