Marshall Reuben J. "Rooster" Cogburn (John Wayne) keeps a Colt Single Action Army or "Peacemaker" with a 4 3/4" barrel, known as the "Quick Draw" model as his sidearm of choice throughout the film. "Lucky" Ned Pepper (Robert Duvall) also keeps a Quick Draw Peacemaker which he uses when facing Rooster during the film's climax. While watching Rooster load his Peacemaker, Mattie Ross (Kim Darby) asks him why he keeps one chamber empty, to which he replies, "So I won't shoot my foot off." At one point in the film, Rooster tells Mattie about how when he was in the Civil War, he did the same dual wielding guns method while on horseback, which he claims he fired two "Navy '60s" with the reins in his mouth, despite the fact that the Colt 1860 was the Army revolver, not the Navy. The 1851 and 1861 models were the Navy guns.
Rooster Cogburn (John Wayne) keeps a Winchester 1892 "Saddle Ring Carbine" with a large lever loop chambered in .44-40 as his rifle of choice throughout the film and is most notabley seen using it during the film's climax when he fires it akimbo style along with his Single Action Army, twirling the rifle with the large lever loop to cock it with one hand. (This action most likely inspired the same technique used by Arnold Schwarzenegger with the Winchester Model 1887 shotgun in T2).
The Winchester 1892 Saddle Ring Carbine with large lever loop used by John Wayne in the film True Grit. Serial #501892. Pictured with .44-40 shells. (Source: Photocopied from book "The Peacemakers: Arms and Adventure in the American West" written by R.L. Wilson.)Error creating thumbnail: File missingRooster unloads prisoners from the Indian territory with his Winchester '92 carbine under his arm. Note large lever loop.Error creating thumbnail: File missingRooster takes aim with his Winchester '92 carbine at Moon (Dennis Hopper) and his partner in their house.Error creating thumbnail: File missingRooster points his '92 carbine at Moon.Error creating thumbnail: File missingRooster fires his '92 carbine at Ned Pepper and his gang.Error creating thumbnail: File missingRooster flip cocks the '92 carbine with one hand during the climax.Error creating thumbnail: File missingRooster fires his '92 carbine akimbo style with his Single Action Army, with the reins in his teeth when facing Ned Pepper and the Parmalee brothers.Error creating thumbnail: File missingRooster's '92 carbine becomes out of reach when Pepper shoots his horse Bo, who traps his leg under his dead body.
Colt Walker 1847 (cartridge conversion)
Mattie Ross (Kim Darby) inherits her father's civil war handgun when he dies, which is a Colt Walker 1847 revolver with a cartridge conversion (although it is said to be a percussion gun to stay true to the novel). Mattie uses it when she encounters Tom Cheney (Jeff Corey) and is knocked down by the recoil of the gun (which is a bit unrealistic) and manages to shoot him in the gut with it. He then manages to charge her and take the gun do to several misfires (which were at fault of Rooster because he a had previously loaded it wrong while drunk, and also overloaded the chambers with powder which cause such great recoil.) The gun manages to fire once more in the hands of Mattie and manages to graze Cheney's head though the recoil knocks her into a snake pit. When Mattie first shows the gun to Rooster, he calls it a Colt's Dragoon but it is clearly too large and lacks a loading lever latch like all of the Dragoon models had.
