Gary Reeder
for those that are not familiar with the Keith #5
Wednesday, March 02, 2022, 14:37

and how it made it thru the years. This is the original Keith #5 from 1929 or so.

The first one to come up with their version of the original was Bill Grover of Texas (as far as I know). From then on several custom gun guys came out with their version.
I received a Grover #5 this morning for some Ivory Max grips and thought a pic or two of it would be good for those not really familiar with the #5. The gun didn't come in with the cylinder (cheaper to ship that way). Anyway Grover's version was unusual in that it was a true right hand revolver. Old Sam Colt was a lefty and all revolvers since Colt were actually left hand revolvers. Grovers is a true right hand with the loading gate on the left side of the frame. That way you hold the gun in your right hand and load it with your left. The ejector rod housing is also on the left side of the gun to be worked with your left hand.





Keith's gripframe was a bastardized gripframe that was part Colt Bisley and part Colt SAA. It was completely something different for that time in history. It was also a short gripframe as Keith was a little guy. I read somewhere that he wore size 4 cowboy boots. Whether that was true or not I have no idea but without his Stetson and his cigar he was a little guy, The original gripframe has been copied by several custom gun guys. Grovers was pretty much a perfect copy of the original. But it was short, a bit too short for someone with normal size hands.

Probably the absolute finest that I know of was Hamilton Bowens version which I don't have a picture of unfortunately. Hamilton's version was supposedly an exact copy of Keith's original #5. And knowing Hamilton I am sure it was perfect in every way.

Somewhere around the year 1997 or 1998 we decided to come out with our version. We did change a few things. One being we added 3/8" to the length of the gripframe for those with average hands. We came out with 2 versions of the #5. The first had a small frame pretty much a copy of the original Colt SAA and the early old model Ruger Blackhawk. I obtained permission from Ruger to copy his early first generation old model and did so with the first version of our #5.


That was where the first problem entered the story. Being a copy of the old model it didn't have a transfer bar safety. In the first few weeks of building the first version of the #5 my guys in the shop loaded the guns and handed them to me to do the test firing. During that time there were 2 or 3 accidental discharges. My guys were young, in their mid 20s and had never handled a revolver without a transfer bar safety. After the 3rd accidental firing in the shop I had to make a decision. Either drop the whole #5 series or come up with a new frame that has a transfer bar. I had put out about 30 of the first version of the #5 before it was dropped from production.
After about a year we came out with a new version of the #5 on our own frame that had a transfer bar. It wasn't a true version of the Keith #5 but it was solid and safe. That is the version of the #5 we are still building today. We also build it in our deluxe Black Chromex and in stainless steel. We also build it on the customer's Ruger Blackhawk.

We actually had another version. The original Keith #5 was chambered in 44 Special. Our 2 versions were chambered in anything up to 45 Long Colt. I had had folks asking for a #5 in 454, 475 Linebaugh, our 510 GNR and so on. So I decided to put out a whole new series we were to call the #6. I figured if Keith were alive today he would be shooting something much bigger than the 44 Special or 45 Long Colt. This was our ad in several gun magazines about the #6.

Both the #5 and the #6 are still being built today and still popular.