Colt's · Rifle
Colt Lightning Magazine Rifle
Pump action · .44-40 Winchester · introduced 1884
Also known as Colt Lightning Carbine, Colt New Lightning Magazine Rifle, CLMR
About the Colt Lightning Magazine Rifle
The Colt Lightning Magazine Rifle was the first American slide-action (pump) rifle, a tubular-magazine repeater introduced in 1884 to challenge Winchester's lever guns. The medium-frame model was chambered in revolver cartridges such as .44-40 and .38-40, letting a shooter share ammunition with a Colt Single Action Army. Its faster pump cycling and shared chamberings made it a distinctive, if mechanically temperamental, alternative to lever-action rifles.
The Lightning was the first successful American slide-action rifle and could be slam-fired by holding the trigger while pumping; the San Francisco Police bought a batch of .44-40 rifles in 1898, marking them with department numbers.
Colt Lightning Magazine Rifle specifications
General
- Type
- Rifle
- Action
- Pump action
- Firing mechanism
- Hammer-fired
- Trigger
- Single stage
- Calibres
- .44-40 Winchester, .38-40 Winchester
- Magazine capacity
- 15 rounds
- Magazine
- Tubular magazine
Dimensions
- Barrel length
- 660 mm (26.0 in)
- Weight (empty)
- 2.95 kg (6.50 lb)
Barrel
- Rifling
- Right hand
Materials
- Barrel
- Steel
- Receiver / frame
- Steel
- Slide
- Steel
- Stock
- Wood
- Finish
- blued
Performance
- Muzzle velocity (typical)
- 381 m/s (1250 fps)
- Muzzle energy (typical)
- 847 J (625 ft·lb)
- Effective range
- 150 m
History
- Introduced
- 1884
- Discontinued
- 1904
- Production status
- Discontinued
- Country of origin
- US
- Designer
- William H. Elliott
Available calibres
Features
- Slide action
- Tubular magazine
- Straight grip stock
- Shares cartridges with colt saa
Safety
- Half cock notch
Made in small (.22 rimfire), medium (pistol-caliber), and large/Express frames. The medium frame is the standard pattern; total production across all frames was roughly 186,000.
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