in a 1965 four-part color saga starting with "off to hollywood", film producers plan a "fictionalized" feature film about andy's sheriffing activities and the taylors travel to hollywood to witness the proceedings. the premise of the movie is that andy taylor was "the sheriff without a gun," however a 1963 episode "high noon in mayberry" mentions that andy has been a sheriff at least since 1952—an occasion when he had to use a gun to wound a robber. in three first-season episodes, "the manhunt," "a feud is a feud," and "barney gets his man," and in one second-season episode, "aunt bea the warden," andy wears a regular gunbelt. also, the sixth-season episode, "aunt bee takes a job" with co-star jack burns, andy fires a gun (which he borrows from deputy warren ferguson) to disable a car in order to capture some criminals. andy did have an issued sidearm (a colt official police revolver), but rarely saw cause to carry the weapon. he kept it unloaded on top of a shelf in his house. on the rare occasion he needed a weapon fast, he would grab a rifle or shotgun from the rack in his office or from his car.