Original Item: Only One Available. This is every School boy's dream! A real Cowboy six gun! This great frontier-worn Colt SAA (Single Action Army) Revolver has a full length original long 7 1/2" barrel and lovely worn walnut grips. Original blued from the factory, it now shows a worn oxidized patina overall, with traces of past peppering in areas. This definitely looks to be an example that saw long use on the frontier, giving it an impossible to duplicate look!

The revolver's serial number is 65370, which dates production to 1881. It has the serial number on the frame, trigger guard, grip frame, and even shortened number 5370 on the cylinder AND underside of the barrel! In 1883, Colt would stop marking the cylinders until 1912, making this a very rare treat as a confirmed "ALL MATCHING" revolver! We have very rarely had Colt Single Action Army revolvers that were fully matching, so this is definitely a great find! There is also assembly number 162 marked on the loading gate. It is in full working order and condition, with a great lightly patinated look, sure to delight any "Old West" Americana collector.

The revolver came to us with a Colt Factory letter from the office of the Colt Historian Beverly Jean Haynes. It is dated May 8, 2023, and indicates it is a COLT SINGLE ACTION ARMY REVOLVER, with the caliber listed as .45/c and finish listed as Blue. The barrel length and stocks are not listed, which for the time period indicates the standard 7 ½" long barrel and walnut stocks, so this revolver is still completely in the original configuration as shipped from Colt.

The gun was shipped on June 3, 1881 as part of a shipment of 50 similar guns to the Simmons Hardware Company in St. Louis, Missouri. The dealer was a well-known retailer and hardware manufacturer founded in 1874, which at its peak had 6 locations. They often would buy up their suppliers to ensure the best quality merchandise, and purchased the Walden Knife company based in Walden New York. The company actually merged with Winchester Repeating Arms Co. in the early 20th century for a time.

The original single line address marking on the top of the barrel definitely worn, but still legible in the light:

The left side of the frame has the Colt patent dates still fully legible as well, showing less wear:

PAT. SEPT.19.1871.
 "  JULY.   2.  --72.
 "  JAN.   19. --75.

These are the early 2nd pattern markings, and this was made before the "Prancing Pony" logo began appearing on the frame. The markings are definite a bit worn from the cleaning and polishing the revolver has seen over the years to remove past oxidation. The trigger guard is faintly marked with a partial [4]5CAL on the left side, and we have checked the cylinder and barrel with real cartridges to confirm the chambering. This revolver is definitely chambered for .45 Colt, also known as .45 "LONG" Colt, one of the most legendary handgun cartridges of the old west. When you hear people talk of a "Colt 45", this model gun is the reason why.

The revolver has the great worn look that only use in service can give, showing evidence of peppering on the exterior, as well as some significant oxidation and rust in areas, now cleaned away. This revolver looks to have been used out in the inclement weather, and probably wasn't cleaned properly during the period. The walnut grip has a lovely aged look, with overall wear, but no major chips or cracks that we can see.

Mechanically, the action is relatively smooth, with a good cylinder lock up, and strong mainspring. The action has all four clicks, and cycles correctly, with just a bit of slop in the lockup. It is also a bit stiff at times, but we did not notice any of the finicky behavior we often see. As with all revolvers of this age we recommend being very gentle with cycling it, so we do not recommend "fanning" or "fan firing".

The bore on the revolver definitely shows some significant oxidation, particularly on the inch closest to the muzzle, which shows scaling and pit rust. After that, we can see clear rifling with a partly bright finish, and some oxidation near the breech end of the barrel. I may be that the holster for the revolver left the end of the barrel exposed, allowing oxidation to occur. The ejector door swings open easily, and the ejector itself works great, with the original copper spring still present.

Pistols such as this are extremely difficult to find today at any reasonable price. This honest worn example is just ideal for any Wild West Collection. A great collector's revolver, ready to display!

Specifications:

Year of Manufacture: 1881
Caliber: .45 "Long" Colt
Ammunition Type: Centerfire Cartridge
Barrel Length: 7 1/2 inches
Overall Length: 12 3/4 inches
Action: Single Action
Feed System: 6 Shot Revolver

History of the Colt Single Single Action Army

Bound by the Rollin White patent (#12,648, April 3, 1855) and not wanting to pay a royalty fee to Smith & Wesson, Colt could not begin development of bored-through revolver cylinders for metallic cartridge use until April 4, 1869. For the design, Colt turned to two of its best engineers: William Mason and Charles Brinckerhoff Richards who had developed a number of revolvers and black powder conversions for the company. Their effort was designed for the United States government service revolver trials of 1872 by Colt's Patent Firearms Manufacturing Company and adopted as the standard military service revolver. Production began in 1873 with the Single Action Army model 1873, also referred to as the "New Model Army Metallic Cartridge Revolving Pistol".

The very first production Single Action Army, serial number 1, thought lost for many years after its production, was found in a barn in Nashua, New Hampshire in the early 1900s. It was chambered in .45 Colt, a centerfire design containing charges of up to 40 grains (2.6 g) of fine-grained black powder and a 255-grain (16.5 g) blunt roundnosed bullet. Relative to period cartridges and most later handgun rounds, it was quite powerful in its full loading.

The Colt Single Action Army revolver, along with the 1870 and 1875 Smith & Wesson Model 3 "Schofield" revolver, replaced the Colt 1860 Army Percussion revolver. The Colt quickly gained favor over the S&W and remained the primary US military sidearm until 1892 when it was replaced by the .38 Long Colt caliber Colt Model 1892, a double-action revolver with swing-out cylinder. By the end of 1874, serial no. 16,000 was reached; 12,500 Colt Single Action Army revolvers chambered for the .45 Colt cartridge had entered service and the remaining revolvers were sold in the civilian market.

The Colt .45 is a famous piece of American history, known as "The Gun That Won the West". The Single Action army is a very popular firearm, even today, and it continues to be produced in various configurations.