Preview: SOG | A Photo History Of The Secret Wars

Read today's "The Armed Citizen" entry for real stories of law-abiding citizens, past and present, who used their firearms to save lives.

Elbert Searle isn't one of the most well-known firearm designers, but his Savage Model 1907 and its derivatives were popular guns in their time. Now, a unique prototype pistol of his has been discovered, illustrating what else could have been in Savage's early 20th-century handgun lineup.

Special incentives from Hornady, Smith & Wesson and Beretta have already been come and gone, but they were just the first. Things have accelerated since.

One of the most interesting, and short-lived, breechloading designs of the mid-19th century is the Terry carbine, produced by the firm of Calisher & Terry. Despite its novel mechanism, the carbine didn't survive the transition to the metallic-cartridge era.

When I was growing up, my father was one of the bigger Smith & Wesson collectors in Northern California. This led him to have an acquaintance with Roy Jinks of S&W.