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PRESS REVIEW
hunter Josh Randall weekly as he tracked
down and captured (or killed) villains and
desperadoes for the bounty they afforded.
Randall had a special gimmick that set him
apart from the rest of the then-celluloid
heroes. Like the big-looped Winchester
carbine of the Rifleman or the long-
barreled Colt of Wyatt Earp, Randall’s
shtick was also the weapon he carried.
His was the Mare’s Laig or Mare’s Leg, a
Winchester Model 92 carbine cut down at
both ends to make it portable enough to
pack like a pistol.
With its barrel shortened to around
9 inches and its buttstock cut off just
behind its lever, the Mare’s Laig hung from
its saddle ring on a specially built holster
rig that allowed McQueen to wield it with
the speed necessary to outdraw the most
proficient of “pistol-packin’ miscreants”
he faced.
A search on the Internet found
me a set of four DVDs containing all 24
episodes of season one of Wanted: Dead or
Alive. It had been about 48 years since I’d
seenMcQueen’s portrayal of the polite and
respectful, play by the rules hunter of men
and even though all episodes were made
in black and white, I was just as entranced
and entertained as I had been at 10.
From the opening close-up of
the holstered Mare’s Laig strapped to
McQueen’s leg, to where the camera pans
back to a full shot of McQueen ripping
down a “Wanted” poster, one begins
to wonder who is the actual star here –
McQueen or the sawed-off Winchester
he carried. McQueen became rather adept
at handling his unique weaponry and
practiced with it daily.
He could thumb-cock it, twirl-cock
it, fan it, and was rather speedy at drawing
it from its unique holster.
Wanted: Dead or Alive lasted from
1958 until 1961 but the mystique of the
Mare’s Laig lives on today. Only federal
law, which prohibits the shortening of a
rifle to handgun dimensions, has prevented
the mutilation of countless numbers of
original Winchesters.
But now there’s hope for us would-
be bounty hunters out there. Since federal
law wouldn’t allow shortening a rifle or
carbine to create a Mare’s Laig, the answer
was to create a Mare’s Laig from the ground
up and designate it as a handgun from
the get-go.
Made for Legacy Sports International
by Chiappa Firearms (aka Armi Sport) in
Brescia, Italy, the Bounty Hunter is new
for 2009. It is sure to stir the heart and soul
of all those who grew up on the westerns
from the 1950s and ‘60s.
Released under their Puma brand,
the Bounty Hunter joins their stable
of other Chiappa-produced Model 92
replicas that includes guns configured as
solid-framed rifles and carbines as well as a
takedown model and a big-looped carbine
like the one carried by Chuck Connors as
the Rifleman.
Shipped in pieces from their facility
in Italy, final assembly of the Bounty
Hunter takes place at Chiappa USA.
Offered in the original .44-40, the
Bounty Hunter also comes in .45 Colt and
.44 Mag. Chiappa has created a rendition
of McQueen’s gun that should please the
most finicky of Mare’s Laig aficionados.
I was immediately impressed with
the crispness of its lines with all of the
angles and flats present appropriate to an
original arm. Screw holes were all round
and all edges were flush and seamless.
The receiver, hammer, trigger, lever,
buttplate and its two barrel bands were
attractively color-case hardened displaying
vivid hues of blue, silver and brown with
the remainder of its metal being deeply
blued.
Proper metal prep prior to finish
application was evident.
S p e c i f i c a t i o n s
LSI Bounty Hunter
Caliber:
.44 Mag, .44-40, .45 Colt •
Barrel:
12 inches
OA Length:
24 inches •
Weight:
71 ounces (empty)
Sights:
Fixed square-notched dovetail rear, brazed-on post-type blade front
Grips:
Walnut •
Action:
Lever •
Finish:
Blued and casehardened
Capacity:
6 + 1 •
Price:
$1250
The casehardening found on the Bounty
Hunter is absolutely gorgeous.
GUN DETAILS