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Improving Upon Perfection: Alan Harton and the Freedom Arms Model 97by Boge Quinn photography by Boge Quinn September 24th, 2009 (Click pictures for a larger version)
Freedom Arms, I can say without fear of contradiction, makes the finest factory revolvers available today. In fact, it can be said that Freedom Arms makes the finest factory revolvers ever made. From the immaculate fit and finish, to the precision line-boring of the cylinder, to the perfect timing, to the absolute bank-vault lockup, everything about their revolvers screams QUALITY. Sure, they are not cheap, but if you compare them to their only competition - fully custom revolvers available from some of the world's finest gunmakers and costing thousands of dollars - the Freedom Arms products are a bargain. Plus, Freedom Arms revolvers tend to hold their value very well, even better than most custom guns, because they wear amazingly well; you will not batter them loose with heavy loads over an extended period of time. I personally know of Freedom Arms guns that have had literally hundreds of thousands of heavy loads run through them for commercial load development; they still lock-up as tightly as a new gun, and still exhibit Freedom Arms' legendary accuracy. Freedom Arms makes their guns not just for us, but for our grandkids. Freedom Arms introduced their Model 97 as a smaller alternative to their original large-framed revolver (now called the Model 83). The Model 83 is available in calibers ranging from .22 Long Rifle to high-performance calibers such as .454 Casull, .475 Linebaugh and .500 Wyoming Express; the smaller-framed Model 97 is available in calibers ranging from .17 HMR, .22 Long Rifle, .32 Magnum & .357 Magnum (as six-shot revolvers), through .41 Magnum, .44 Special and .45 Colt (as five-shot revolvers). The Model 97 is every bit Freedom Arms, with the same exemplary level of fit & finish as can be seen in its larger-framed sister. I am privileged to own examples of the finest work available from our custom revolversmiths, and some Freedom Arms revolvers as well. As fine as all my other revolvers may be, there is one revolver in particular that stays with me in the field, and gets shot and handled, more than any other: my short-barreled Freedom Arms Model 1997 in .45 Colt. My Model 97 .45 sports a 3-1/2" barrel, round-butted grip frame, and fixed sights with Freedom's replaceable drift-adjustable front blade. This is truly, as John Taffin would say, a Perfect Packin' Pistol. I have even been told by retired lawmen who have shot it that, despite being a Single Action, it would make a wonderfully-balanced fighting revolver. The balance, the feel in the hand, the lighter weight, and the grip frame's ability to tame the recoil of heavy loads all combine to make my Model 97, at least to me...PERFECT. Almost. The only flaw I have been able to find in the design of the FA 97 relates only to the 3-1/2-barrelled version, and it is admittedly a minor one: because of the shortened ejector rod, the ejector rod and housing must be removed before the cylinder can be removed for cleaning or maintenance. The base pin simply will not pull out far enough before contacting the ejector rod head to allow the cylinder's removal. So before the cylinder can be removed, the base pin locking screw must be loosened; then the ejector housing screw; then finally the ejector rod housing, ejector rod, and spring must be removed. Although this is a minor design flaw, it can be quite annoying at the bench, and can be disastrous in the field; anyone who has ever lost a spring or screw in the field knows how aggravating it can be, and how impossible it can be to find such small parts on the ground.
Handling a 3-1/2" Cimarron Thunderer that belongs to my friend Jared Schmidt got me to thinking about a possible solution: the Thunderer design simply has the ejector rod housing's cam cut offset to the outside just enough to allow the ejector rod head to bypass the base pin. Not only does this allow the base pin to be easily removed, but it also allows for a longer ejector stroke for more positive case extraction.
I recently spoke to Houston, TX custom gunmaker Alan Harton about this, and wondered if a similar solution could be applied to the Freedom Arms Model 97. We smoked it over for a few minutes, and realized that this solution would require obtaining an uncut ejector rod housing from Freedom Arms, then milling a slot in it; this would result in a quite expensive solution to a relatively minor problem. Alan told me he thought he had a better idea, and suggested I send him the ejector rod housing, ejector rod and base pin. I was only too happy to oblige, and in short order I had the parts back. Alan's solution was exactly what I have come to expect from him: ingenious, simple and effective:
A clean and inexpensive solution, and it WORKS. The normal operation of the ejector rod is in no way affected, and the ejector rod head has shown absolutely no tendency to flip under recoil. Alan wisely made his cut just a bit back from the end of the factory slot, which is the normal resting place for the ejector rod head; this eliminates any tendency for the head to flip under recoil, while keeping the head's ability to effortlessly flip when desired. Really slick! Alan also made another improvement relating to the base pin and ejector rod; while not a major change, Harton's modification is another nice touch that just makes the Model 97 a bit easier to handle:
Alan removed excess length from the smooth portion of the base pin head, and hollowed-out the back end of the ejector rod head:
Alan Harton's three simple and ingenious modifications to the Freedom Arms Model 97 takes one of the finest revolvers ever made, and elevates it to absolute perfection. The work is inexpensive, and turnaround time is surprisingly fast. When I order my .44 Special version, I will be sending it to Alan immediately for identical treatment. I highly recommend it. Email Alan Harton at aharton@mac.com, or call him at (713) 907-6031.
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