Product Description: This western pistol has been designed after the original pistol of the Wild West era. It is constructed with solid die-cast metal that looks like real antique metal and quality plastic that looks just like real wood. 11" long;
Nice look & feel, but needs some upgrading This toy gun has a great look & feel to it, it's got some weight like a real gun. But like some of the other reviewers mentioned, part of it doesn't hold up to even light play. There is a plastic retaining clip that holds the barrel up in place. After firing 3 shots, on our gun, the clip no longer held the barrel up, it falls face down instead of firing the caps when the trigger is pulled. Here's what will happen...the "child" playing with the gun will be tempted to flip the barrel into place. Let's face it, that's a cool cowboy thing to do. This will weaken the plastic clip, which should be a stronger metal clip, and the barrel will not stay in place anymore.
Fun at First, but didn't Pass the "Test of Time" Well, I bought Six of these Gun/Holster sets in March 2007, for my Grandchildren (actually one was for me!), along with 1000 rounds of the 12-shot Ring Caps. (The Gun listed on this page is the same on in the Gun/Holster Set.) At first, they were great: the detail and looks are excellent. We fired a few Ring caps, and all was well. You use something like this once in while, so it took a while to see the problems. After a few months of intermittent use, the gun no longer stays closed after you insert caps, because the "keeper" is made of plastic. So, the gun either won't stay closed, or it closes and then springs open when you fire it. Next, the gun seizes and won't fire. You pull the trigger, you hear a snap, but the cylinder doesn't turn. Or, on some, you pull the trigger and it moves freely with no action. Oil and spray cleaners won't help. So, after about 6 to 7 months of intermittent use by children from five thru 13, and one who is over 60, none of them work. I now have 700 rounds of Ring caps that I'll sell on Ebay. The "looks and detail" are great, but they work well for only a short period, so you have to make a decision. I know cap guns: I have a collection, including my original cap guns from the 1950s, and they all still work. I would pay two to three times the price of this gun to get something that would last - wouldn't you?
Excellent ! What a great toy! The Big Tex is a solidly made cap pistol which has some heft to it, unlike the plastic ones which break rather quickly. I had been looking for a cap pistol that was more like the ones we had in the 50's, but they sadly are not available anymore. But Big Tex is the ticket now.
The best toy cowboy gun you can get! Simply, the Big Tex pistol (and likely any pistol or rifle made by this company) is awesome! As a 40 something who grew up on Westerns, I recently introduced my nine and six year olds to several old Western classics (they love Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid) and based on their positive response, I set out to find some quality Western toys for them to play with. Sadly, the Western genre no longer has cultural currency and finding any cowboy related toy, book, or other is frustrating as there is little to select from.
I found the Big Tex (Parris) on an amazon search and was pleasantly surprised. These guns remind me of the quality you would expect from a product made in the 1950's/60's. It is heavy duty and very well made with a nice heft and action. The fit and finish is flawless and very accurately detailed. The plastic wood grip looks like wood. The antiquing of the metal is perfect, too. The gun has a release lever to open the barrel allowing the 12 round cap cylinder to be removed for pretend reload or for use with the related 12 round caps (which also worked perfectly). The action on the gun is very sound. Your children can fire this over and over with no fear of internal parts coming uncoiled or breaking. For $13, this toy is a great, great value. The only issue I have is trying to track down a quality gun belt to match the guns.
Lastly, and this is clearly a polarizing discussion point (and probably illegal), I must confess that I'm not a fan of the orange barrel end caps. They are OK on a Star Wars gun, but I didn't grow up with them on my cowboy guns and I feel they ruin the look gun and as such, I prefer to remove them (again, cowboy guns only). The orange end cap on these guns are very well attached (again - great quality). Should you be inclined to remove them, I suggest screwing a sheetrock screw directly into the center of the cap to create a small opening. Then, in a well ventilated area, use a BBQ grill lighter to hold an open flame to the orange cap with the flame directed at the small opening. The plastic will smoke and begin to melt away, and after a couple minutes, will render the small opening in the center of the cap soft enough to insert a flathead screwdriver so that you can easily pry the cap housing from the barrel end. You may have to whittle way from the inside a bit, reheat and repeat this process a couple of times until the core housing comes out. There will be a good smudge of black soot on the barrel, but it rubs off completely with zero discoloration or damage to the antiqued finish.
If you are looking for a classic, good ole cowboy gun for your kids that reminds you of a toy you would have grown up with - - this is the one to buy.
Great cap gun! Best cap gun - and I go back to the days of the Mattel Fanner 50! High quality metal, not plastic. Easy to load. Looks great. Ring caps sound great and eliminate most misfires.
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