Owen Guns Trust Museum

Thermals are now one of the most important products we stock at Owen Guns. We are constantly hearing about different brands, but we have limited space. So we would like your input....

Which Thermal is your favourite and why?
If you write a comment you will go in the running to win a $100 voucher. I will draw the winner on Saturday.

Wi******er 25 Gun Safes just landed... The only thing is, Chester doesn't know where to put them?
I think your house.
$1415 BUT the first 2 we will let go for $1370

Something new has landed at Owen Guns this Merchandise Monday, the Sabre Shooting Sled Rifle Rest!

Designed to provide a solid, stable platform at the bench, the Sabre Shooting Sled is ideal for sighting-in, load testing and checking groups. The weighted design can reduce felt recoil by up to 95% at maximum weight, while the adjustable front cradle, padded contact points and anti-slip feet help keep everything steady on the bench.

A handy bit of kit for anyone who spends plenty of time at the range and wants to take some of the human movement out of their bench testing.

👉 New to Owen Guns and available in-store now!

Drop in and check one out!

Owen Guns – Gympie, QLD

Welcome back to another Owen Guns Firearm Friday, where each week we take a closer look at one of the interesting fi****ms from our museum collection and explore the history, engineering and stories behind it.

This week we’re heading to the American West to look at a revolver that earned a formidable reputation for strength, precision and quality, the Freedom Arms Model 83. Our museum example is chambered in the classic and powerful .44 Magnum cartridge.

Freedom Arms was established in Freedom, Wyoming, in 1978, with gunsmith Wayne Baker and businessman Dick Casull closely associated with the company's beginnings. Casull had already spent decades experimenting with extremely powerful revolver cartridges, work that ultimately led to the development of the .454 Casull.

Freedom Arms initially became known for its small .22-calibre mini-revolvers, but it was the company's large-frame single-action revolvers that would establish its reputation among serious handgun shooters.

Introduced during the early 1980s, what eventually became known as the Model 83 was originally developed around the immense pressures generated by the .454 Casull cartridge. At a time when many shooters were accustomed to the .44 Magnum representing the upper end of mainstream revolver performance, the .454 Casull pushed the concept of the powerful sporting revolver considerably further. Building a handgun capable of repeatedly handling such ammunition required an exceptionally strong frame, cylinder and locking system, and Freedom Arms developed its revolvers with extremely close manufacturing tolerances.

The result was a substantial five-shot, single-action revolver with a design that visually owes much to the traditional American single-action handgun while being engineered as a thoroughly modern firearm. The Model 83 uses a solid frame and an unusually robust cylinder, with five chambers rather than the six commonly found on traditional revolvers. That additional material between the chambers contributes to the strength for which the Model 83 became famous.

Freedom Arms also developed a reputation for carefully fitted components, precise cylinder alignment and excellent barrels, giving the Model 83 a level of accuracy more commonly associated with specialised target fi****ms than heavy-calibre revolvers.

Although closely associated with the .454 Casull, the Model 83 has been produced in several powerful handgun chamberings over its history, and the revolver pictured from the Owen Guns museum collection is chambered in .44 Magnum. Introduced commercially during the 1950s, the .44 Magnum was already one of the world's best-known revolver cartridges by the time the Model 83 appeared. Pairing it with the extremely strong Model 83 platform produced a revolver combining a historically significant magnum cartridge with Freedom Arms' exceptionally robust construction.

The Model 83 also represents an interesting point in the evolution of the American single-action revolver. Externally, its lineage is immediately recognisable: a large exposed hammer, traditional grip profile and single-action mechanism all recall revolvers of the nineteenth-century American frontier. Internally and mechanically, however, it belongs to a very different era. Modern metallurgy, precision machining and extremely tight tolerances transformed the familiar single-action concept into a platform capable of handling cartridges producing levels of performance that early revolver designers could scarcely have imagined.

Freedom Arms revolvers consequently developed an almost legendary reputation among handgun hunters, silhouette competitors and enthusiasts of powerful revolvers. Rather than being mass-produced service handguns, they have generally occupied the premium end of the market, where manufacturing quality, durability and accuracy are major selling points. Individual revolvers have traditionally received considerable fitting and attention during production, helping establish Freedom Arms as one of the best-known names in high-end American single-action revolvers.

Our .44 Magnum Model 83 is therefore an interesting museum piece not simply because of its calibre or imposing appearance, but because of what the design represents. It connects the traditional American single-action revolver with the development of the modern magnum handgun, demonstrating how a design philosophy dating back well over a century could be adapted through better materials and precision manufacturing into an extraordinarily strong and accurate sporting revolver.

More than four decades after its introduction, the Model 83 remains closely associated with the Freedom Arms name and with the era in which increasingly powerful handgun cartridges challenged manufacturers to build revolvers capable of safely and reliably containing them. From early experiments with high-pressure ammunition to the precision-built revolvers that followed, the Model 83 earned its place as one of the distinctive heavy-duty American revolvers of the modern era.

That wraps up another Firearm Friday. From the six-shooters of the Old West to a five-shot Wyoming-built powerhouse, revolver design has certainly come a long way,  although in the case of the Model 83, sometimes five is more than enough!.

Join us again next Friday when we reach back into the museum collection and pull out another piece of fi****ms history. Until then, stay safe and shoot straight!

Happy Birthday Chester!
For his birthday, you can buy 10 packets of ammo in any calibre or box size and get the 11th free.
He has also been working very hard on his Chester's Picks with 9 more 2nd hand guns up on the website! https://owenguns.com/collections/chesters-picks

Any calibre, any size box.
11 is the winning number!
Mandatory Pats for Chester!

I interrupt Merchandise Monday
1. Because Facebook doesn't like me posting about things we sell, they think it's dangerous and offensive.
2. Because I don't want Chris Minns to do this to NSW Gun Shops and firearm owners. The man who has been the best at putting this into words is Philip Donato Independent NSW MP.

“These are law-abiding people who have complied with the rules, paid their fees, stored their fi****ms properly and followed the law. They are now being told that property they lawfully purchased can be taken from them – in most cases for well below its market value.”
The fixed compensation arrangements are expected to range from approximately $450 for an air rifle to $1,000 for centre-fire fi****ms, with handguns also included in the scheme.
“The government needs to explain how it arrived at these figures. A fixed payment of $450 or $1,000 does not necessarily reflect what these fi****ms are actually worth,” said Mr Donato.
The scheme also provides for some higher-value fi****ms to receive compensation of up to $10,000 each from early next year, however, there is scant detail on this proposed phase, and there is a massive $2k void between fi****ms valued at $ 1,000 in the first phase and the $3000+ fi****ms in the second phase!
“What exactly is a ‘higher-value’ firearm? Who decides what it is worth? What valuation methodology will be used, and what right will an owner have to challenge an assessment?”
“These are not minor details. We are talking about people's property and, potentially, thousands of dollars in value,” said Mr Donato.
Dealers face an uncertain future…
The impact on fi****ms dealers is another major concern, with eligible businesses able to apply for grants of up to $25,000.
Phil Donato MP said the proposed assistance was nowhere near sufficient for many businesses.
“A $25,000 grant is simply not an adequate response for a business that may have hundreds of thousands of dollars legitimately invested in stock.”
“These dealers purchased their stock lawfully and operated their businesses within the rules set by government. They should not be left carrying the financial burden of a policy change they did not cause.”
“Some dealers are already struggling. This scheme could push otherwise viable small businesses to the wall, and many will not survive long enough to receive the government’s paltry offer."
“I’ve been lobbying government all year to support these businesses, yet it’s been ignored. The Bondi businesses were given almost immediate financial support, but fi****ms dealers have been thrown on the scrapheap - just like the fi****ms the government will now just pay cents on the dollar for.”
The overall cost of implementing, administering and compensating people under the scheme has been estimated at close to $1 billion!
“Close to $1 billion is a staggering amount of taxpayers’ money,” Donato said.
“Think about what that money could do in regional hospitals, schools, roads, public transport, or essential services.”
“It does not address the real source of the problem.”

We need to tell the public how much money people will be losing under this regime. We need to tell the public how much government money is going to be wasted on "protecting the public" from the most vetted, responsible citizens in our communities. People that are scared to step a foot wrong in fear that they may lose their fi****ms licence.

"This is a big undertaking, but the principle behind it is simple: fewer dangerous guns in our community means a safer New South Wales."

NSW premier pledges 'toughest gun laws of any state' in buyback New South Wales will become the first state to begin a gun buyback scheme promised in the wake of the Bondi massacre, with shooters to be compensated up to $10,000 per firearm.

Welcome back to another Owen Guns Firearm Friday, where each week we reach into the museum collection and pull out another piece of fi****ms history. This week we’re heading back to the golden age of the American lever-action rifle with a name that is far less familiar than Wi******er or Marlin!. The Whitney-Kennedy, represented in our collection by an almost forgotten example chambered in .38-40 Wi******er Center Fire.
When most people picture an American lever-action rifle of the late 1800s, the Wi******er Model 1873 is usually the first firearm that comes to mind. Wi******er dominated the repeating-rifle market, but it certainly wasn't alone. A number of manufacturers attempted to challenge Wi******er, and one of the most interesting was the Whitney Arms Company of Whitneyville, near New Haven, Connecticut. The Whitney name had already been associated with American fi****ms manufacture for generations, beginning with Eli Whitney's establishment of his armoury around the turn of the 19th century. By the 1870s and 1880s, the company was still producing fi****ms and looking for a way into the increasingly important lever-action repeating-rifle market.
The story of the Whitney-Kennedy begins with prolific American fi****ms designer Andrew Burgess. Burgess developed a large-frame lever-action repeating rifle that Whitney began manufacturing as the Model 1878 Burgess. Chambered in .45-70 Government, the rifle was intended in part to compete in the American military rifle trials of the period. Military adoption never eventuated, and production of the Burgess was relatively small, with fewer than approximately 2,000 believed to have been manufactured between late 1878 and early 1880. Nevertheless, the design provided Whitney with the foundation for a much more commercially successful sporting rifle.
In 1880, Samuel V. Kennedy and Frank W. Tiesing redesigned the Burgess system to accommodate smaller and increasingly popular sporting cartridges. The resulting rifle became known today as the Whitney-Kennedy. The transition happened remarkably quickly, the final Burgess rifles were shipped in March 1880, and the first Kennedy rifles were shipped that same month. Production continued until approximately 1886, with the Eli Whitney Museum estimating total production at around 23,500 rifles and carbines.
The Whitney-Kennedy appeared in a surprisingly broad selection of cartridges. Early production centred around the popular .44 Wi******er Center Fire, or .44-40, while later examples were offered in cartridges including .45-60, .45-75, .40-60 and, importantly for the rifle we are looking at today, .38-40 WCF. Late production also included examples in .50-95 and .32-20. As production evolved, the rifle changed in other ways as well, including the introduction of the more conventional loop-style operating lever in place of the distinctive earlier serpentine or S-shaped lever.
Our firearm is chambered in .38-40 Wi******er Center Fire, one of the classic American black-powder cartridges of the period. Despite its name, the .38-40 actually uses a projectile of roughly .40 calibre. It was essentially developed by necking down the .44-40 case and became associated with Wi******er's Model 1873 around 1879–1880. A typical period loading used a roughly 180-grain projectile, and the cartridge offered shooters less recoil and a somewhat flatter trajectory than the larger .44-40.
The .38-40 would go on to become particularly useful as both rifles and revolvers were chambered for it. In the American West, having a rifle and handgun capable of using the same ammunition was a genuine convenience for farmers, ranchers, travellers and outdoorsmen. While the .44-40 became the most famous of these dual-purpose cartridges, the .38-40 earned a strong following of its own and remained in use long after the black-powder era that produced it.
Mechanically and visually, the Whitney-Kennedy is an alternative to the Wi******er rifles that have come to define this period. It uses the familiar combination of a lever-operated action and tubular magazine beneath the barrel, but the shape of the receiver, lever and associated mechanism gives the Whitney a character all of its own. Earlier Kennedy rifles are particularly recognisable by their unusual S-shaped lever, while later production moved towards the more familiar loop lever. Examples could also be encountered as rifles and carbines and with different barrel configurations, making the surviving variations an interesting field for collectors today.
Production was generally placed between 1880 and 1886, and Whitney subsequently introduced the Scharf magazine rifle before the Whitney Arms Company was sold to Wi******er in February 1888. In a rather fitting end to the story, one of Wi******er's competitors was ultimately absorbed by the very company whose lever-action rifles had dominated the market Whitney was attempting to enter.
Today, the Whitney-Kennedy occupies a fascinating place in American fi****ms history. It never achieved the fame of the Wi******er 1873, but that is precisely what makes examples like our .38-40 Whitney-Kennedy so interesting. It represents an era when American manufacturers and inventors were rapidly experimenting with repeating actions, new metallic cartridges and different solutions to the same problem. Rather than simply being another old lever gun, the Whitney is a surviving reminder that the American lever-action story involved considerably more competition and innovation than the Wi******er name alone might suggest.
That wraps up another Owen Guns Firearm Friday! The next time you see an old lever-action rifle, don't automatically assume it's a Wi******er, companies like Whitney were right there competing during one of the most innovative periods in fi****ms history. Our .38-40 Whitney-Kennedy is a fantastic survivor from that era and another unusual piece we're proud to preserve in the Owen Guns museum collection.
Join us again next Friday when we'll pull another piece from the collection, dust off the history and see what story it has to tell. Until then keep your powder dry and we'll see you next Firearm Friday!