shooting iron

a firearm, especially a pistol or revolver.

Origin of shooting iron

An Americanism dating back to 1780–90

Then, as Purdee's laughter still jarred the air, he drew a "shooting-iron" from his pocket.

The Riddle Of The Rocks |Charles Egbert Craddock (AKA Mary Noailles Murfree)
But first I want that shooting-iron; it might go off by accident and hurt some one badly.'

The Golden Butterfly |Walter Besant
But if you'll take your hand off me and put down that shooting-iron, I'll help you hunt it, if there is one.

The Biography of a Prairie Girl |Eleanor Gates
The actual fact was that, although every man of us had some sort of a "shooting-iron," they were not formidable.

Crossing the Plains, Days of '57 |William Audley Maxwell

I asked him if he used the shooting-iron to keep his landlord in order.

Ireland as It Is |Robert John Buckley (AKA R.J.B.)

shooting iron

US slang a firearm, esp a pistol