Title: 2 Coonan 357 Magnum Pistols for Full-Size and Compact Carry – Ballistic Magazine
Headings: 2 Coonan 357 Magnum Pistols for Full-Size and Compact Carry
2 Coonan 357 Magnum Pistols for Full-Size and Compact Carry
David Bahde
Coonan the Conquerer
A Resurrection
Coonan 357 Magnum Shootout
Coonan Classic Testing
Coonan Compact Testing
Coonan 357 Magnum Mates
Coonan Classic Specs:
Coonan Compact Specs:
Sign-up today!

Content: Out of that interest and skill base came the Model A, which possessed a linked barrel. Rather than reinvent the wheel, and without the CNC machining utilized today, the rest of the pistol used mostly 1911 parts. Eventually the barrel used a welded lug before one was machined into it, making it “linkless.” The resulting pistols hit the market in 1981, with only a couple thousand made. Dan Coonan then sold his company to Bill Davis in the late 1980s and left it altogether in 1990. Coonan Arms filed for bankruptcy in 1994 and was eventually incorporated into JS Worldwide, but both were dissolved in 1998. For some, that would be the end of it, but fate and some hard work intervened. A Resurrection
In 2009, the pistol was resurrected. Parts from the original pistols surfaced at an auction, and Dan was able to acquire them. Then he acquired more parts and some barrels from former investors, providing the base for a few guns.