34:
151:
To avoid the risk of damage or potential delay, pistol-whipping may be done with the gun held in an ordinary manner, hitting the target with an overhand strike from either the barrel or the flank of the gun above the trigger. It was a fairly common way to incapacitate a man in
Western frontier days
160:
Pistol whipping may leave unusual lacerations on the body of the injured due to various protruding details of the pistol. When blows are struck using the butt of the weapon rather than its barrel or flank, semicircular or triangular lacerations on the skin may be produced. The magazine well at the
131:
weapons that were tedious to reload were used to strike opponents directly in close-quarters combat after their projectile had been expended. It was entirely up to circumstance whether the user had time or chose to reverse the gun in their hand and strike a blow with its handle or merely swung the
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bottom of a semi-automatic pistol and its surrounding base produce rectangular lacerations on the skin. These lacerations can vary in depth and severity, but "whipped" fractures are common. The skin underneath the "whipped" area often will not present with
168:
The practice was seen as a means of avoiding fatal confrontations. Instead of opening fire, an officer could knock someone unconscious with the barrel of their revolver which they claimed lowered mortality rates.
99:
would also be a prominent practitioner of the technique. The new use of the term developed because the act of hitting someone with their revolver was seen as an additional insult to the character of the victim.
147:
era, were relatively fragile around their cylinders relative to solid single-shot weapons. Third, rotating a gun so that it can be held by its barrel takes extra time, potentially crucial in a conflict.
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338:
87:
originally to refer to the act of being intimidated or cheated by bluffing. It would develop into a term meaning to strike someone with a handgun in the 1870s when
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143:, is problematic. First, the danger of an unintentional discharge could fatally wound the wielder. Second, many early revolvers of the black-powder
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322:
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152:(assisted by the heavy weight of the handguns of the era), known as "buffaloing", with the verb form being "to buffalo".
482:
Spitz and Fisher's
Medicolegal Investigation of Death: Guidelines for the Application of Pathology to Crime Investigation
71:, which were brandished in such fashion in close-quarters combat once the weapon's single projectile had been expended.
258:
534:
507:
463:
419:
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367:
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285:
458:"Gunshot Wounds: Practical Aspects of Firearms, Ballistics, and Forensic Techniques", Vincent J.M. DiMaio, 1999,
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27:
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60:
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571:
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The practice of using the handgun itself as a blunt-force weapon began with the appearance of
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notes that clubbing an opponent with the butt of a gun held by its barrel, as seen in some
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439:
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363:
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96:
509:
Dodge City: Wyatt Earp, Bat
Masterson, and the Wickedest Town in the American West
343:
140:
178:
88:
560:
287:
The
American Cowboy Chronicles Old West Myths & Legends: The Honest Truth
124:
68:
64:
144:
136:
128:
38:
37:
Lieutenant
Mainwaring pistol-whips a pirate using an unloaded pistol, in
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92:
20:
84:
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There are arguments as to the efficacy of either approach. Author
56:
162:
260:
Crime, Justice and
Retribution in the American West, 1850–1900
360:
The
Trampling Herd: The Story of the Cattle Range in America
384:
The True Life Wild West Memoir of a Bush-popping Cow Waddy
414:, by David Dolinak, Evan W. Matshes, Emma O. Lew, 2006,
132:
heavy weapon as a club or baton holding it normally.
19:
For the similar act of clubbing with a long gun, see
432:
Dolinak, David; Matshes, Evan; Lew, Emma O. (2005).
431:
337:"Fifty Years Among the New Words: by John Algeo,
558:
115:in 1955, with cited usages dating to the 1940s.
479:Spitz, Werner U.; Diaz, Francisco J. (2020).
230:"Where did the term "buffaloing" originate?"
227:
435:Forensic Pathology: Principles and Practice
165:because the skin is split and not crushed.
478:
314:Historical Dictionary of Law Enforcement
32:
587:Western (genre) staples and terminology
532:
386:, by Charley Hester, Kirby Ross, 2004,
67:. Such a practice dates to the time of
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505:
283:
256:
341:, from vol. 30 (1955), no. 4 of the
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252:
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41:'s illustration for his 1897 story,
83:is documented as being used in the
13:
228:Fossenkemper, Allen (2011-04-26).
217:Random House Unabridged Dictionary
14:
603:
512:. St. Martin's Publishing Group.
304:
247:
16:Using a handgun as a blunt weapon
111:were reported as "new words" of
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499:
472:
452:
425:
63:, wielding it as an improvised
485:. Charles C Thomas Publisher.
401:
377:
362:by Paul Iselin Wellman (1988)
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331:
317:. Greenwood Publishing Group.
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221:
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1:
199:
533:Goodman, Michael E. (2005).
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74:
7:
172:
10:
608:
25:
18:
311:Roth, Mitchel P. (2001).
236:. Fountain Hills, Arizona
118:
539:. The Creative Company.
396:Chapter 14: "Buffaloing"
348:American Dialect Society
290:. Page Publishing Inc.
284:Correa, Thomas (2019).
257:Agnew, Jeremy (2017).
55:is the act of using a
45:
346:, the journal of the
127:in the 15th century.
36:
506:Clavin, Tom (2017).
26:For other uses, see
577:Firearm techniques
412:Forensic Pathology
234:True West Magazine
194:Mordhau (weaponry)
46:
582:American frontier
546:978-1-58341-339-5
519:978-1-4668-8262-1
492:978-0-398-09312-9
445:978-0-08-047066-5
408:"Pistol whipping"
324:978-0-313-30560-3
297:978-1-64584-285-9
270:978-1-4766-6447-7
213:"Pistol whipping"
189:Gunstock war club
103:The modern terms
43:Captain Scarfield
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125:muzzle loaders
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109:to pistol-whip
89:Stuart N. Lake
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69:muzzle loaders
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137:Paul Wellman
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61:blunt weapon
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468:pp. 270–271
129:Single-shot
39:Howard Pyle
592:Wyatt Earp
561:Categories
536:Wyatt Earp
240:2020-09-01
200:References
184:Buttstroke
95:doing so.
93:Wyatt Earp
81:buffaloing
53:buffaloing
28:Pistolwhip
21:buttstroke
156:Forensics
91:reported
85:Wild West
79:The term
75:Etymology
422:, p. 185
173:See also
163:bruising
141:Westerns
567:Assault
57:handgun
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489:
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418:
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372:p. 196
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339:p. 142
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119:Method
410:, in
59:as a
541:ISBN
514:ISBN
487:ISBN
460:ISBN
440:ISBN
416:ISBN
388:ISBN
364:ISBN
319:ISBN
292:ISBN
265:ISBN
107:and
65:club
51:or
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466:,
394:,
370:,
249:^
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23:.
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