MOVIES - Hombre

[Barcelona Rick]

Watched Paul Newman in Hombre yesterday and I have a question....I believe he toted a Winchester 1876 with a button magazine. Anyone know the caliber ?? Pretty good movie.....

jumbeaux

[Leverluver]

It's set up to appear to be a 76 but I think it is just a 73.

[Buck Elliott]

Yup, it's a '73, set up to sound like a '76...

Deeply allegorical picture. Man wants to be left alone, to mind his own business, is persuaded by others to do something no one else will do (against his better judgement), and he's the one who gets killed ...

I find that part very disturbing.

[Malamute]

Thats bothered me for a long time also.


Good adventure movie tho.

[rangerider7]

What made me mad was why didn't that kid yell or motion for those women to duck so he could a least try and shoot the bad guy (Richard Boone), Hombre would have gotten the other one.

[kimwcook]

One of my favorite movies. Didn't like the ending, thought that part really sucked.

[w30wcf]

It's a '73 Winchester Short Rifle w/ button magazine. The same rifle(s) were used in Rio Conchos by Richard Boone. Here's a preview:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q5UlVVT6tBQ



w30wcf

[mescalero1]

Yeah,
I know Apache,
NO Apache would have let himself get into that.

[JerryB]

Was he a full blood or halfblood? Maybe his white blood got in the way, sometimes that happens in the stories but I doubt it would for real.

[J35]

Most of the movie was filmed at Gun Sight Pass in the Santa Rita MtNS just S. of Tucson.

Where the stage coach was held up is right in the pass, where Richard Boone rides off afterwards across the side of the mountain that old road dead end's at a core drill sight.

Most every Sunday afternoon for many years I shot clay pigeons right where the robbers tossed the guns to.

Those two old mine shanties were just below and a little N of Gun Sight pass. We had some wild parties there when I was in High school.

The scene where the three ladies sitting talking about men and Newman is rolling a smoke is about two miles below the pass and about a mile above the old Ghost town of Helvetia, I trapped a many a Grey fox right where they shot that scene .

Where Newman shoots the vaquero right after the stage hold up I killed my first deer about a 100 yrds to the South of where the vaquero falls, the whole MTN range is premo Couse deer habitat.

I can't hardly watch that movie anymore, I get to homesick.

Have fun

[Buck Elliott]

White kid, raised by Apaches..

Culturally conflicted...?

Shows what happens when you let the do-gooders influence your behavior.

[rangerider7]

J35nut, a few years back my wife and I went to a 30,000 acre ranch just above Claude, Texas near Amarillo. The movie "Hud" was shot on part of that ranch. The old house can be seen from the highway outside of Claude. Paul Newman stayed in the old adobe bunkhouse, that was previously a stagecoach stop, with the vaqueros to learn their mannerisms and how they worked. He stay there through out the shooting. We got to go in and it was a neat place, very historical building over 150 years old. The ranch is privately own by my friends cousin. We were treated royaly. Hud reminds me a lot of my younger days. I'm not to proud of that time but you live and learn. It also is one of my favorite movies. We were invited back and I hope to see more of the ranch.

[Buck Elliott]

Russell shoulda' butt-stroked the meddling stage driver and told Jesse to siddown and shuddup, and shot Dr. Favor, and left the worthless kid and his whinin' bride and the snooty "lady" to the elements.

"it wouldn't bother me, if you had to walk all the way to Bisbee."

"Wouldn't bother me, either, Lady..."

[J35]

J35nut, a few years back my wife and I went to a 30,000 acre ranch just above Claude, Texas near Amarillo. The movie "Hud" was shot on part of that ranch. The old house can be seen from the highway outside of Claude. Paul Newman stayed in the old adobe bunkhouse, that was previously a stagecoach stop, with the vaqueros to learn their mannerisms and how they worked. He stay there through out the shooting. We got to go in and it was a neat place, very historical building over 150 years old. The ranch is privately own by my friends cousin. We were treated royaly. Hud reminds me a lot of my younger days. I'm not to proud of that time but you live and learn. It also is one of my favorite movies. We were invited back and I hope to see more of the ranch.

Hi Yea Hud is a good movie

Over the years they filmed a lot of the westerns in and around the movie set of Old Tucson, i bumped into film crews quite often when out running the hills in S AZ.

The Last time was quite memorable they were shooting a scene for Young Guns right at dusk at Helvetia I was on my way home from running the trapline as I topped out over Gunsight I could see alot of vehicles and semi trailors down at Helvetia so i just motored on down the mountain like I did everyday this time of year as I came around the last corner before Helvetia I seen couple of guys throw down their clip boards and throw their hands up in the air, I just motored on thru the midst of alot of angry and perturbed faces like I owned the place, smiled and waved as I went by, got down the road about a mile and there sat a Pima County sheriff deputy blocking the road when he seen me he jumped out of the car and held his hand up so I stopped and he said where did you come from, I told him my story, he said there wasn't suppose to be anybody in the area while they were filming, I told him I guess somebody forgot to tell me and that there is three other roads that should should be covered if they want to be guaranteed not to be interrupted while filming, as I got ready to leave he asked me what is trapping so I popped the hood on the bug and showed him my days catch and a few traps, he was dumb struck, this man was about 30 years old at the time.

Have fun

[Barcelona Rick]

Okay men....what was the caliber ?? How can you tell it is a '73 and not a '76 ?? BTW....Hud was great....

jumbeaux

[Buck Elliott]

Okay men....what was the caliber ?? How can you tell it is a '73 and not a '76 ?? BTW....Hud was great....

jumbeaux

Because it IS a '73.

Receiver profile & sideplates tell the story.

My guess about caliber would be .44 WCF...

[Buck Elliott]

Watched HOMBRE again, last night.

Too bad no one ever showed David Canary how to hold a sixgun -- but then, I never liked him anyway... Cameron Mitchell could have used some tutoring too, in that department.

At least Newman and Richard Boone handled their guns like they knew what they were doing.

[KCSO]

If I remember right an article on Stembridge a few years back told about how they got a bunch of 73's with the button mags and they used them in lieu of Spencers in several movies. The guns were suppose to be 44-40,s. The way you can tell a 73 from a 76 in any photo is by comparing hand size to the action size. lay a transparent graph paper over the photo and it is easy to see the action is too small for a 76. I had a 73 just like Hombre's one time and was sorry to see it go.

In the book he carried a Spencer carbine and that may be why they went with a 1/2 mag rifle as the indians in the picture are carrying 92's. The stoy itself is from the late 50's and was contemporary with 310 to Yuma, The book versions were written as more thinking storys than as shoot 'em ups. and this is where the modern version of 3:10 falls short. I hope they never remake Hombre.

As to what if's and why nots, he's 1/2 Apache, why not just sneak down and shoot 'em all? If movie heros were practical folks most movies would be 10 minutes long. 3:10 to Yuma, "sorry Chief he tried to escape and I shot him dead".

[Birdman]

He was a good actor, and a good driver. Once he started talking politics I decided I didn't need to watch his movies.

[winchester1886]

He should have shot the woman and then the baddie, ain't it funny we all love Hollywood endings where the hero rides off into the sunset singing "Just my rifle my pony and me"..................And we know there is a pretty girl down the line waiting for our hero. we're all so tough.

[buckeyeshooter]

Got high noon on TCM right now! another good one!

[Ben_Rumson]

Newman's physical stature is what mainly contributes to making that 73 look like a 76..

[w30wcf]

Posted by "yobtaf" on another forum....

Most of the mystery surrounding the Hombre rifle is over. Last week I was given the opportunity to inspect, photograph, and shoot it. It is owned by Caravan West Productions in Aqua Dulce, CA. I visited them last week to gather data on an article on the rifle I am writing for The Winchester Collector magazine. Caravan West Productions acquired the rifle in the 1980s in an auction hosted by 20th Century Fox. The bottom of the rifle is stamped, "20th Fox."

Is it without a doubt a '73 Winchester in .44-40, and has a heavy barrel. Factory records only state that it has a round barrel.

It did not originally have a button magazine as evidenced by a groove for a full-length magazine which runs underneath the heavy barrel all the way to the muzzle. This means that it is not one of the rifles with button magazines used in Rio Conchos.

The fabricated button magazine has a wooden forend that is shorter than one for a standard button magazine. As a result the forend tip tenon is missing and the dovetail slot for it in the barrel is totally exposed. In order to secure the button magazine to the barrel both sides of the end cap have been welded to the barrel!

Also missing is the lever locking latch.

I have examined a Blu Ray version of Hombre. Using freeze frame and zooming have been able to determine irrefutably that it is the same rifle owned by Caravan West Productions

I was given the opportunity to shoot the rifle twice using Cowboy Action Loads. Video can be seen at
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1FsfFTloS-8

[M. M. Wright]

Barcelona Rick asks a question and gets a definitive answer, complete with video. Isn't this forum amazing? All this talent and expertise, I'm in awe to be allowed to hang around with you guys.

[saw whet owl]

I always wondered about that rifle; now I know! Thanks for posting that.

[FWiedner]

Barcelona Rick asks a question and gets a definitive answer, complete with video. Isn't this forum amazing? All this talent and expertise, I'm in awe to be allowed to hang around with you guys.

Only took 7 years.

What a team!

[jd45]

I also enjoyed this movie. There are so many lines of dialogue that I remember from it between Paul & the others that show excellent script writing. I'll have to watch it again. Thanx for bringing it up. jd45

[Rusty]

Barcelona Rick asks a question and gets a definitive answer, complete with video. Isn't this forum amazing? All this talent and expertise, I'm in awe to be allowed to hang around with you guys.

Only took 7 years.

What a team!

Yep, they never quit.

[Hombre]

Love it too even if I should have prefered a different end....

/Hombre