Wayne,
It was great that...back in the day....we had gun manufactures actually competing to build better, more competitive guns. This does not happen today. When shooting competitive trap, Winchester, Remington, Federal, and maybe more, than I cannot remember, were all represented at the big shoots....not today. People that you knew, and people that were there to advance their product....Colt and Smith went head to head, to build the most accurate firearm...now, its the after market gunsmiths that are doing just that....today, Colt is going to give you a good product, however, if you want it to shoot better, you are going to have to go to an after market source.
guess that's it...still, few factory made guns today are in the class of the 52. wad cutter or not, if you want a gun that shots, right of the box, a 52 will take you there!!
:-)Rocky