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Wild Boys
Wild Boys was a short-lived Australian series about bushranging in colonial Australia. It was cancelled for good reason, but the armoury of the show is quite respectable.
The following weapons were used in the television series Wild Boys:
Handguns
Allen & Thurber Pepperbox
Early in the show, Jack Keenan (Daniel MacPherson) uses a Allen & Thurber Pepperbox alongside his Tower Percussion Pistol. A more compact example is seen on the dealer's table, and in use later.
Colt 1860 Army
Daniel Sinclair (Michael Dorman) has a Colt 1860 Army with a short barrel in the opening sequence of Ep. 1. Captain Gunpowder (David Field) also shows the boys an 1860 in his collection at the hut. To have a Colt in 1860s Australia usually meant to have a Navy.
Whitney Revolver
The Whitney Revolver makes an appearance first as Hogan's (Simon Lyndon) revolver. During a police ambush he drops it and it falls into posession of the superintendent Francis Fuller (Jeremy Sims), who returns it to Hogan later, before shooting him dead outside the hotel.
The Whitney would easilly be mistaken for a Remington at a distance. Note the smaller overall size and "Colt-style" ball-rammer.
The Whitney revolver was issued to the South Australia police for a period. The one used in the series is probably an original.
Tranter Third Model
Superintendent Francis Fuller (Jeremy Sims) uses a Tranter Third Model revolver with a double trigger.
The Colt 1851 Navy appears throughout the series as a "generic" police arm. The brass-coloured frame is probably not correct for an issued revolver as the police in colonial Australia would most likely be using Colts made in London, which were all-steel framed.
Remington 1858
Captain Gunpowder (David Field) (undoubtedly a reference to the other "captains" of bushranging history) gives the trio a Remington 1858 among some other firearms when they visit his hut.
Tower Percussion Pistol
Charlie the tracker (Heath Bergersen) carries what appears to be a Tower Percussion Pistol with a belt hook. The lack of standardisation and multitude of manufacturers makes it difficult to identify the origin. "Bushie" the old man who steals the boys' horses points what appears to be the same pistol at the boys.
Colt 1862 Police
During the home invasion in Ep. 3, Conrad Fischer (Alexander England) has what looks like a Colt 1862 Police revolver. The revolver used in the show seems to be mocked up with a bored-through cylinder from some other revolver, either to imitate the 1862 Police, or just to personalise Conrad's piece for characterisation. From closeups the revolver looks a little too large for an 1862 and the frame is probably just an 1860 repro.
LeMat Revolver
Captain has his LeMat Revolver (which up until this point hadn't been seen) confiscated by police in Ep. 3. Another strange pick for an Australian setting. An episode or two later Captain has either a new Le Mat or has managed to secure his old one somehow.
Boxlock pistol
These were relatively cheap, single shot percussion pistols for personal defense at close range. There were many makers but a large volume of affordable ones in Australia would have come out of Belgium.
Colt Walker
Another repro Colt, Colt Walker would have been relatively rare in this period and location.
IXL Pocket Model
Herman Prescott (Josef Ber) is armed with an exceptional example of a IXL Pocket Model in Ep. 4. This revolver can be mistakened for a pocket Tranter but the ball-rammer gave it away.
Rogers & Spencer Army
Captain Moonlite (Aaron Jeffery) carries a Rogers & Spencer Revolver in his first appearance. More distinctly American firearms which would not have made their way to the colonies in any great numbers. The R&S is a solid frame design much like a Remington or Whitney - Its distinguishing feature is the smooth curve on the rear of the frame, where most contemporary revolvers would be scalloped.
Spur trigger "Suicide special"
Rupert Wentworth (Charlie Garber) tries to attack Moonlite with it in the opening of Ep. 5, but suffers a chain fire and burns his arm (adopting the shooting position from the superintendent in the previous episode - perhaps someone pointed it out in production)
Colt 1849 Pocket
In Ep. 7 a couple of Colt Pockets appear and continue to make appearances as the series goes on. They start off as Jessie West's pair, but Jack is seen using one later as well.
Back-action pistol
For one shot in the series an extra is seen using a back-action single shot "travelling pistol" as they would have been known in the day. These would have been relatively common and had a multitude of makers, very little standardisation. Nock produced a bunch of them, among other English makers, and many would have also been put out by the nameless Belgian makers. The back-action placed all the lockwork behind the hammer (in the pistol's case, inside the grip) instead of underneath/beside the barrel. This made for a more slender piece.
Longarms
Hawken
Captain sticks the boys up with a Hawken Rifle when they appear at his hut. This is probably not accurate as the Hawken was never popular in colonial Australia, usually rather the Enfield or, for the more discerning shooter, the Whitworth.
Sharps Carbine
Captain demonstrates a Sharps Carbine in "54 calibre" to the boys in the hut. The Sharps didn't have a strong following in Australia (but rather the Snider conversions in Victoria, Alex Henry rifle in NSW, and a few Braendlin-Albini in South Australia) Furthermore, the Sharps was not available in "54 Calibre." Common parlance at this time would most likely have referred to projectile measurements in "bore." 54 bore was a common projectile weight in Australia and the British Empire for revolvers at the time, and is equal to about 442/100ths. Certainly no police force in Australia was ever equipped with the Sharps. The bandit Joey Butler (Diarmid Heidenreich) also has a Sharps in addition to his Whitney revolver.
Pattern 1853 Enfield
Captain also has in his armoury, what would have been the more common Enfield Pattern 1853. He names it in "fifty-seven calibre" which, like his description of the Sharps, sounds awkward for the era.
Percussion shotgun
A couple of double-barrel percussion guns appear in the show. It's unclear whether this is the same prop used over, or multiple. It is probably a genuine example as they are not hard to source in Australia.
