FAQ – BBQ Gun

The Gun Thing

For the benefit of my Furrin Readers (Euroland, Oz, Britishland, California, etc.), I probably need to explain the meaning of the term “BBQ Gun” or “Governor’s BBQ Gun”.

This would be the handgun you’d wear to a formal barbecue event.  It should be a little more “showy” than your EDC (everyday carry) piece, and one you’d not be ashamed of wearing in polite company.  (By the way, this stipulation would automatically exclude such filth as Glock and Hi-Point pistols, but not old, well-worn pieces like your grandfather’s Colt Peacemaker.)

Your holster too would be a showpiece, not an IWB (inside the waistband) type.  Depending on the state, it could be unadorned or else festooned with things like silver buckles, turquoise stones and fringes.

Anyway, the question I’m frequently asked is:

“So what’s your Governor’s BBQ Gun, Kim?”

It’s not a pistol, but a revolver:  my beloved Ruger New Model Blackhawk (.30 Carbine)

I have a holster for it, but it’s kinda plain:

….so I’m idly looking around for something a little dressier:

Okay, maybe not that last one.

It might be that I have to sniff among the options at an Evil Loophole Gun Show, soon.

– Note that in the states outside America such as California, Illinois and New York, there’s no such thing as BBQ gun because those governors tend to hate and fear guns (unless carried by their bodyguards, of course).

14 comments

  1. That basket weave offering is beautiful!!!

    I need a good OWB leather holster for my 1911 and my S&W model 29. I have an event in April where it would be appropriate to display. Connecticut Citizens Defense League’s annual dinner is coming up.

    1. In my unlettered opinion a BBQ gun should be a revolver, preferably a single action. My only single action is a well worn Ruger blackhawk .357. It would cost more than its worth to have it reblued and decorated. My only other blue revolver is a .44 Dan Wesson @ 8″ barrel. The other 5 are plain jane stainless smiths and rugers. Actually, to be honest, I wouldnt feel underdressed with a tricked out 1911 in a nice leather holster.

  3. I sadly don’t have a “Dress Gun” as we used to call it, as in dress shoes, dress shirt, for you unenlightened.

    Closest would be my immortal beloved SW Mod 19. With the still very shiny blue finish.

    1. That Model 19 is a fine revolver!! They tend to shoot very well. Maybe some Bill Jordan Trooper grips from Herrett’s Stocks to dress it up.

      1. I have a beautiful set of walnut custom grips for it. But it fits my hand poorly so I put some pachmyrs on it. But if I was playing dress up, those walnut grips would go right back on.

  4. I’ve only got one gun that MIGHT make the cut for a upscale social event (my focus has always been on downscale, non-social events), and that’s my Grandfather’s Colt Model N Type IV. He purchased it new in 1931 when he was heading off to Malaysia to build railroads (he was a railroad bridge and trestle engineer/inspector). It has the original ivory grips with medallion and while the grips have yellowed, it is in near mint condition. He had a custom-made shoulder rig and a separate small-of-back (SOB) holster (for them wily sons o’ bitches), but sadly, they have both suffered from neglect these past 95 years and are no longer functional. I was thinking about having a new set cut from the pattern of the old set, but that’s a $1000+.

    I asked my Grandfather back in the 70’s if he every shot it in anger. He was smoking his pipe and reading the paper when I asked. He slowly lowered the paper, thought for a second and replied simply, “no.” He went back to reading his paper and slyly mumbled “I wasn’t angry at all, any of the times.”

    He wound up working for the railroads for over 65 years, and was also a well-known and well-respected card game dealer. Since he rode the trains for free, he would often take the train from St. Louis to Chicago or Kansas City to Omaha and back again for a moving poker tournament (this was in the 40s to the early 70s), deal for 48 hours straight and come home with $1500-5000. He always dealt in a 3-piece suit and wore the shoulder holster openly.

    Every year during the 60’s and 70’s, he would take one of his 7 grandsons on the train with him to Rochester, NY where he would get the newest Hickey-Freeman suit cut and finished, and get his older ones “refreshed.” It was a real testosterone rush to watch him have the suit measured while wearing his shoulder rig.

  6. If I ever get to free state, my choice for a BBQ gun will be a S&W 586 with 6″ barrel. It still has the presentation grips but needs some refinishing. I plan to have it blued (or cerakoted) in a deep blue color — think of the finish on the original Python.

    1. If that’s the prettiest gun in your collection — and that’s a fine-looking gun — of course it would qualify.

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