It's without a question that the NCAA March Madness Championship game was one for the records. A nail-bitter up until the very last second...
While our Official Gun Bracket didn't quite produce the same type of exhilaration, it nonetheless has been quite an exciting journey!! We asked you, our awesome readers to vote for your favorite pistols, rifles, revolvers and shotguns all the way to the final round...
We saw some very close calls, like the Barrett M82 vs. M16...with the Barrett M82 winning by just ONE point!
And then we saw some very big upsets, like the Ruger Black Hawk vs. the S&W Schofield, two beautiful revolvers, but only one winner... The Ruger Black Hawk swept the S&W Schofield, kind of like when Villanova beat Oklahoma (ouch.)
The finals came down to a tough match up. As a commenter put it,
"Like comparing apples and oranges. They are both ideal fruits but with much different tastes."
So it came down to the classic Colt 1911 vs. the S&W Model 29 Revolver...
Only one could come out on top and be crowned "Champion of The Official Gun Bracket."
And the winner is...
... drum roll...
The Colt 1911, born from the inventive mind of John Browning, is the most revered sidearm in the history of the United States Armed Forces and arguably the most successful semi-automatic pistol of all time. Introduced in 1911 as the M1911 and still utilized today, the pistol has participated in every major conflict of the 20th and 21st centuries over its 105-year service.
More than two million M1911s have been produced, not including the countless commercial replications that helped the pistol become a commercial success in competition, self defense, and recreational use. Its ubiquity in the military, civilian life, and entertainment has made it the de-facto modern centerfire pistol against which all others are compared. Recently, our NRA Gun Gurus named it one of ten classic guns - a list it is expected to stay on for quite a long time. Even the story of its ultimate replacement by the Beretta 92F is interesting and can be chalked up to NATO pressuring the adoption of a standard 9mm pistol.
The 1911 is so celebrated you would be hard pressed to find a critic and it's no surprise this influential and iconic .45 ACP pistol came out on top of our 64-gun bracket.
Congrats to those who voted for Colt! If you completed the form after voting, you’ve been entered to win an exclusive NRA prize pack! The winner will be randomly selected and notified today.
Thank you to all who participated! Hope you enjoyed playing The Official Gun Bracket!