A couple of weekends ago, I was fortunate enough to squeeze off a few rounds from a
Sharps 1874 - you may remember the 1990 movie, "Quigley Down Under" with Tom Selleck.
The weapon had a prominent role.
At its peak, the Sharps was considered one of the best, long-range firearms in the world.
From the
Uberti site, makers of Sharps replicas:
"...In 1874, after 700 Comanche warriors attacked 30 buffalo hunters in the Texas panhandle, the hunters used their Sharps rifles to exact a punishing toll. By the early 1880s, the long-range models had become the favorites of professional buffalo hunters because of their long-range capability..."
Indeed, even today, the long-gun is a fully functional, work of art: double triggers, lever action, 34" barrel, 15 pounds she delivers a good kick, our black powder loads were clustering in 8 inches, 300 yards - we aren't that good.
The Sharps is cool - but the movie/sales metaphor?
Rugged individualism in the face of despotic ownership and management;
Analog Guy, in a digital world full of other analog guys who think they're digital.
Huh?