VinnieD
03-18-2012, 14:39
I'm currently working on a novel idea. It's your typical throwback gritty Noir detective story, with a healthy dose of the good old ultraviolence.
Without bogging down too much in the story, the protagonist is a former cop, WWII Vet, Private detective and the setting is the late 40's early 50's. He's a rather old fashioned sort, misogynistic, and a bit of a "wholesome racist." Sort of a Dirty Harry type really.
That said I wanted to give him an iconic weapon throughout most of the story. Obviously given the setting the .44 magnum isn't available yet, so I'm mostly in a tossup between having him carry a full size .357 magnum, a .45 long colt, or a .45acp 1911.
Each firearm has significance and he will likely use one of each throughout the story (this thing has lots of guns), but which one to attach to his character is the important part. A .357 somewhat speaks of his police background, and is an obvious upgrade over the .38spl typically carried by most departments at the time. The .45 long colt of course more harkens to the cowboy days and rings true with the old fashioned nature of the character. Lastly the 1911 is something he'd be familiar with from the war. Considering he'll also be using an M1 Garand near the climax of the story, he may end up using a 1911 regardless of which piece is his primary.
That said what I really need is historical context. What rounds were available at the time, and what reputation might his weapons have for stopping power? Certainly his iconic gun will need to be something with a reputation for one shot stopping.
At the same time I'd like lots of suggestions on anything cheap and commonly available at the time, for brief cameos, and of course what "Bad guy guns" are common at the time. What would be reasonable to be carried by villains coming over from Russia, Itally, Mexico, and of course common thugs as well? What are common calibers of the era?
Thanks in advance for any suggestions. Feel free to throw things out there one would expect to see in that time period, and just guns of the era you personally happen to be fond of and would like to see me squeeze in.
Without bogging down too much in the story, the protagonist is a former cop, WWII Vet, Private detective and the setting is the late 40's early 50's. He's a rather old fashioned sort, misogynistic, and a bit of a "wholesome racist." Sort of a Dirty Harry type really.
That said I wanted to give him an iconic weapon throughout most of the story. Obviously given the setting the .44 magnum isn't available yet, so I'm mostly in a tossup between having him carry a full size .357 magnum, a .45 long colt, or a .45acp 1911.
Each firearm has significance and he will likely use one of each throughout the story (this thing has lots of guns), but which one to attach to his character is the important part. A .357 somewhat speaks of his police background, and is an obvious upgrade over the .38spl typically carried by most departments at the time. The .45 long colt of course more harkens to the cowboy days and rings true with the old fashioned nature of the character. Lastly the 1911 is something he'd be familiar with from the war. Considering he'll also be using an M1 Garand near the climax of the story, he may end up using a 1911 regardless of which piece is his primary.
That said what I really need is historical context. What rounds were available at the time, and what reputation might his weapons have for stopping power? Certainly his iconic gun will need to be something with a reputation for one shot stopping.
At the same time I'd like lots of suggestions on anything cheap and commonly available at the time, for brief cameos, and of course what "Bad guy guns" are common at the time. What would be reasonable to be carried by villains coming over from Russia, Itally, Mexico, and of course common thugs as well? What are common calibers of the era?
Thanks in advance for any suggestions. Feel free to throw things out there one would expect to see in that time period, and just guns of the era you personally happen to be fond of and would like to see me squeeze in.