Top 20 Classic Handguns of All Time [Revolvers & Pistols]

Deciding on the top 20 classic revolvers and pistols of all time is very challenging. This is a subjective process influenced by many emotional, variable, and personally-preferred factors. Please understand that it is one person’s opinion and it is not any better than anyone else’s. There are many fine revolvers and pistols in many different calibers. Several excellent ones have been introduced in the last 5 to 15 years or so, but over many years of history before then there have been some exceptional ones. I do have my opinions based on my criteria, preferences, and research, probably like you do. So, I was able to reduce the many revolvers and pistols from several years: 1847 to 1873 to 1911 to 1915 to 1927 to 1935 to 1949 to 1954 to 1975 to 1981 to 1999 to fairly recently in 2007, for my top 20 classic handguns of all time. Various caliber are represented, like .357 Magnum, .38 Special, 9mm, .22 LR, .44, .45 ACP, .36, .380, and .327 Magnum. My classics listed below are not in any priority or ranking order.

1.  COLT 1851 NAVY REVOLVER, .36

The Colt Revolving Belt Pistol or 1851 Navy Revolver (shown above) is a .36 caliber, six-round cap and ball revolver that was designed by Samuel Colt between 1847 and 1850. By design, the 1851 Navy revolver was suitably sized for carrying in a belt holster. The Colt Navy remained in production until 1873, being replaced in the Colt line with what would become one of the manufacturer’s most famous handguns, the Colt Single Action Army (below, also known as the Peacemaker.)

2.  COLT 1873 SINGLE ACTION ARMY, .44

The Colt Single Action Army (also known as the SAA, Model P, Peacemaker, or M1873) is a single-action revolver. It was designed for the U.S. government service revolver trials and was adopted as the standard-issued revolver of the U.S. Army from 1873 to 1892. The Colt SAA has been offered in over 30 different calibers and various barrel lengths. Its overall appearance has remained consistent since 1873.

3. SMITH & WESSON MODEL 10, .38 SPECIAL

The Smith & Wesson Model 10, previously known as the Smith & Wesson .38 Hand Ejector Model of 1899, the Smith & Wesson Military & Police or the Smith & Wesson Victory Model, is a K-frame revolver  of worldwide popularity. In production since 1899, the Model 10 is a six-shot, .38 Special, double-action revolver with fixed sights. Some 6,000,000 of the type have been produced over the years, making it the most-produced handgun of the 20th century.

4.  THE LUGER P08 PISTOL, 9MM

The Pistole Parabellum or Parabellum-Pistole (Pistol Parabellum), commonly known as just the Luger or Luger P08, is a toggle-locked recoil-operated semi-automatic pistol. The Luger was produced in several models and by several nations from 1898 to 1949. The Luger was officially adopted by the Swiss military in 1900, the Imperial German Navy in 1906 and the German Army in 1908. The Luger was the standard service pistol of Switzerland, Portugal, the Netherlands, Brazil, Bolivia, and Bulgaria. The Luger is well known for its wide use by Germany during World War I and World War II.

5.   COLT WOODSMAN, .22LR

The Colt Woodsman is a semi-automatic sporting pistol manufactured by the U.S. Colt’s Manufacturing Company from 1915 to 1977. It was designed by John Moses Browning. Browning developed the Woodsman with a short slide, no grip safety and no hammer. These features were in place on his Model 1903 and 1911 designs, but a handgun intended for target use did not require them. The Target Model was the base model in 1915 and featured a 6″ barrel with adjustable front and rear sights. It was not until 1927 that the name “Woodsman” was used.

6.   COLT DETECTIVE SPECIAL, .38 SPECIAL

The Colt Detective Special is a six-shot, carbon steel framed, 2-inch or 3-inch barreled, double-action revolver, and the first example of a class of firearms known as “snubnose revolvers.” It was first introduced in 1927. This model revolver, as the name “Detective Special” suggests, was intended to be a concealed weapon used by plainclothes police detectives. The Detective Special was the first short-barreled revolver produced with a modern swing-out frame. 

7.   BROWNING HI-POWER, 9MM

The Browning Hi-Power is a single-action, semi-automatic pistol available in the 9x19mm Parabellum and .40 S&W calibers. It was first produced in 1935. And it was based on a design by American firearms inventor John Browning, and completed by Dieudonne’ Saive at FN Herstal. Browning died in 1926, several years before the design was finalized. FN Herstal named it the “High Power” in allusion to the 13-round magazine capacity (double-stack design introduced), almost twice that of other designs at the time. The Hi-Power is one of the most widely-used military pistols in history, having been used by the armed forces of over 50 countries. In 1962, the design was modified to replace the internal extractor with an external one to improve reliability. Unlike modern double-action pistols, the Hi-Power’s trigger is not connected to the hammer. This single-action pistol can only be fired with the hammer in a cocked position and this is done when a loaded magazine is inserted and the slide cycled by hand. It is usually carried with the hammer cocked, a round in the chamber, with the safety catch on. This is called cocked and locked carry.

8.  COLT PYTHON, .357 MAGNUM

The Colt Python is a double action/single action revolver chambered for the .357 Magnum cartridge. It was first introduced in 1955. Pythons have a reputation for accuracy, smooth trigger pull, and a tight cylinder lock-up. Pythons, built on Colt’s large I-frame, are similar in size and function to the Colt Trooper and Colt Lawman revolvers. The Python is intended for the premium revolver market and was first produced in 1955 and continued to be produced to 2005, and again with modifications to 2020. It was described by historian R.L. Wilson as “the Rolls-Royce of Colt revolvers.”

9.   SMITH & WESSON, MODEL 39, 9MM

The Smith & Wesson Model 39 is a semi-automatic pistol developed for the U.S. Army service pistol trials of 1954. After the Army abandoned its search for a new pistol, the Model 39 went on the civilian market in 1955 and was the first of Smith & Wesson’s first generation semi-automatic pistols. It was the first U.S. designed double action semi-automatic pistol and was designed to replace the venerable M1911A1.

10.  SIG P226, 9MM

The SIG Sauer P226 is a full-sized service pistol made by SIG Sauer. Its first prototype was in 1980. This model is available in four chamberings: the 9x19mm Parabellum, .40 S&W, .357 SIG, or .22 Long Rifle. It has the same mechanism of operation as the SIG Sauer P220, but is developed to use higher capacity, double stack magazines in place of the single stack magazines of the P220. Although Beretta was awarded the military contract due to a lower total package price, the P226 cost less per pistol but SIG’s package price with magazines and spare parts was higher than Beretta’s. The Navy Seals, however, later chose to adopt the P226 as the P226 MK25.

11.  CZ 75B, 9MM

The CZ 75 is a semi-automatic pistol made by Czech firearm manufacturer CZUB. First introduced in 1975, it is one of the original “wonder nines” and features a staggered-column magazine, all-steel construction, and a hammer-forged barrel. It is widely distributed throughout the world. Unlike most other semi-auto pistols, the CZ 75’s slide rides inside its frame rails rather than outside. In the mid-1990s, the CZ 75 was updated to the B model, chiefly with the addition of a firing pin block. 

12.  GLOCK 17, 9MM

The company’s founder and head engineer, Gaston Glock (1929–2023), had no experience with firearms design or manufacture at the time his first pistol, the Glock 17, was being prototyped in 1982. The Glock 17 was the first commercially successful pistol with a polymer frame.

13.  RUGER SINGLE SIX, .22 LR

The Ruger Single-Six is a single-action rimfire revolver produced by Sturm, Ruger & Company. The Single-Six was first released in June 1953. From 1984 to 1997 Ruger chambered the New Model Single-Six in .32 H&R Magnum. Ruger manufactures several “convertible” models that ship with both a .22 LR cylinder and .22 WMR cylinder, allowing the use of both cartridges. The .22 Short and .22 Long cartridges can also be fired in the Long Rifle cylinder. 

14.  COLT 1911, .45 ACP

The Colt M1911 (also known as 1911, Colt 1911 or Colt Government in the case of Colt-produced models) is a single-action, recoil-operated, semi-automatic pistol chambered for the .45 ACP cartridge. The pistol’s formal U.S. military designation as of 1940 was Automatic Pistol, Caliber .45, M1911 for the original model adopted in March 1911, and Automatic Pistol, Caliber .45, M1911A1 for the improved M1911A1 model which entered service in 1926. Designed by John Browning, the M1911 is the best-known of his designs to use the short recoil principle in its basic design and this operating system rose to become the preeminent type of the 20th century and of nearly all modern centerfire pistols.

15.  SMITH & WESSON MODEL 686, .357 MAGNUM

The Smith & Wesson Model 686 is a six- or seven-shot double-action revolver manufactured by Smith & Wesson and chambered for the .357 Magnum cartridge. It will also chamber and fire .38 Special cartridges. Smith & Wesson introduced the Model 686 in 1981. It is the stainless steel version of the Model 586, which featured a blued steel finish. They are available ported and unported with a choice of 6- or 7-round cylinders. The Model 686 is based on S&W’s L (medium) revolver frame.

16.  SPRINGFIELD ARMORY XD, 9MM

The Springfield Armory XD is a series of semi-automatic pistols produced by Springfield Armory, Inc., in the United States along with follow-on variants: XD-M, XD-S, and XD-E. Polymer-framed and predominantly striker-fired, the series is manufactured by HS Produkt in Karlovac, Croatia. The XD was first introduced in 1999. Using XD (eXtreme Duty) branding, Springfield Armory subsequently expanded the series to include ten models in three different calibers and five different cartridges, seven barrel lengths, and six finishes. The XD sub-compact was named “Pistol of the Year” in 2003.

17.  HECKLER & KOCH P30, 9MM

The P30 is a polymer framed semi-automatic handgun by Heckler & Koch, available in 9x19mm Parabellum and .40 S&W. In 2006 the first customer of the P30, the German Federal Customs Administration procured 13,500 P30s for its forces. The P30, P30L and P30SK pistols offer multiple trigger configurations. It is possible to change the original trigger configuration of a P30 series pistol to another trigger configuration. In addition to classic DA/SA trigger (V3) variants, Heckler and Koch features a proprietary Combat Defensive Action (CDA) or Law Enforcement Modification (LEM) in their P30 line, which is a variant of conventional Double Action Only (DAO) triggers. The LEM versions produce a pull weight comparable to a Single Action and is well regarded.

18.  BERETTA 92, 9MM

The Beretta 92 (also Beretta 92F/FS and Beretta M9) is a series of semi-automatic pistols designed and manufactured by Beretta of Italy. The Beretta 92 was designed in 1975, and production began in 1976. Many variants in several calibers continue to be used to the present. The U.S. military replaced the .45 ACP M1911A1 pistol in 1985 with the Beretta 92FS, designated as the “M9.”  Improvements involved the magazine, which featured direct feed; that is, there was no feed ramp between the magazine and the chamber. In addition, the magazine was a “double-stacked” design, a feature originally introduced in 1935 on the Browning Hi-Power.

19.  SIG SAUER P320, 9MM

The SIG Sauer P320 is a modular semi-automatic pistol made by SIG Sauer, Inc. It is a further development of the SIG Sauer P250 in 2007, utilizing a striker-fired mechanism in lieu of a double action only hammer system. The P320 can be chambered in 9x19mm Parabellum, .357 SIG, .40 S&W, .45 ACP, and 10mm Auto, and can be easily converted from one caliber to another. In 2017, a customized version of the SIG Sauer P320 won the U.S. Army’s XM17 Modular Handgun System competition. The full-sized model is known as the M17 and the compact carry-sized model is known as the M18.

20.  RUGER BLACKHAWK, .357 MAGNUM

The Ruger Blackhawk is a six-shot, single-action revolver manufactured by Sturm, Ruger & Company. It is produced in a variety of finishes, calibers, and barrel lengths. Ruger introduced the Blackhawk in 1955. Chambered for the .357 Magnum, the Blackhawk was a simple and strong design. In 1956, Ruger quickly developed a variant of the Blackhawk in the .44 Magnum new cartridge. Ruger achieved wide popularity with this firearm in this new cartridge, because it was both cheaper and more readily available than others. The Ruger Super Blackhawk is a top choice for handgun hunting and is capable of reliably taking down deer, elk, caribou, moose, lion, grizzly or brown bear. 

HONORABLE MENTIONS

• Smith & Wesson K22, .22 LR
• Walther PPK, .380 ACP
• Ruger Standard Model, .22 LR
• Smith & Wesson Model 36, .38 Special
• Remington XP 100, .222 Remington
• Ruger Single Seven, .327 Federal Magnum

Hope my opinions here about my top classic 9mm pistols of all time have given you helpful information for your decisions. 

Very Best to You and Be Safe!

Photos by Wikipedia.

* This personal opinion article is meant for general information & educational purposes only and the author strongly recommends that you seek counsel from an attorney for legal advice and your own personal certified weapons trainer for proper guidance about shooting & using YOUR firearms, self-defense and concealed carry. It should not be relied upon as accurate for all shooters & the author assumes no responsibility for anyone’s use of the information and shall not be liable for any improper or incorrect use of the information or any damages or injuries incurred whatsoever.

© 2024 Col Benjamin Findley. All Rights Reserved. This article/review and its images/pictures may not be reprinted,  reproduced, or distributed in whole or in part by mechanical means, photocopying, electronic reproduction, scanning, or any other means without prior written permission. For copyright information, contact Col. Ben Findley at [email protected].