Howdy all,
If you mine posts from years ago, you'll see that I'm well aware that there is no such thing as .45 Long Colt. We had a lively discussion about that years ago. The explanations for why Long Colt was correct were hilarious. Some argued that it was to differentiat between the Schofield round and the 45 Colt. Some even mentioned the 45 ACP being short. I think that the gummint did refer to a short and long 45, but not with the "Colt" added.
I only used that as an example of how cartridge naming sometimes gets bastardized. I would like to know whether the "dash" cartridges are also sometimes "slash" cartridges. examples: 44-40 or 44/40, 45-70 or 45/70. Anyone have a handle on this?
Reverend Chase
The Winchester dash calibers, let's use 44-40 for example. Started off 44WCF which stood for Winchester Center Fire. When Colt and others started chambering guns for these calibers, they didn't want a letter that stands for Winchester on their guns, so they changed it to 44-40. That's when the dash came in. Winchester continued using WCF. So both are "correct" depending on the firearm. I think the slash / is a bastardization.
And as far as 45 Colt, that is what I will always call it, but "45 Long Colt" is written on cartridge boxes by some well-known manufacturers, so I would say it is acceptable even if not the best.