Original Item: Only One Available. This is a particularly attractive early Colt Open Top Pocket Model revolver, serial number 6522, manufactured in 1873. Chambered for .22 rimfire and apparently configured for the shorter .22 Short cartridge, it features the standard 2 3/8" barrel together with extensive scroll engraving, a well retained nickel plated finish, mother of pearl grips, and matching serial numbers throughout the principal numbered components. It is accompanied by a more recent fitted case and a reproduction Colt marked leather holster.

This is an antique black powder firearm manufactured before 1899. Under federal law, it may generally be owned within the United States without a special license or permit and does not require transfer through a Federal Firearms Licensee. However, state and local laws may vary. This firearm is sold solely as a historical collector’s item and has not been test fired or inspected for firing safety by a professional gunsmith. Any mechanical or bore observations provided below describe only its present condition and should not be interpreted as confirmation that the firearm is safe to load or fire. The purchaser is solely responsible for complying with all applicable federal, state, and local laws.

The Colt Open Top Pocket Model was introduced in 1871 and was one of Colt's earliest purpose built metallic cartridge revolvers. Alongside the Colt House or Cloverleaf revolver, it represented the company's first major move into small rear loading metallic cartridge handguns after the expiration of Rollin White's bored-through cylinder patent. The little Open Top retained several features reminiscent of Colt's percussion revolvers, including an open frame, fixed cylinder arbor, and barrel assembly retained by a transverse wedge, while using a seven shot cylinder loaded from the rear.

Colt manufactured approximately 114,200 Open Top Pocket revolvers between 1871 and 1877. They were chambered in both .22 Short and .22 Long and were produced in several variations, including different barrel lengths, ejector arrangements, hammer profiles, finishes, grip materials, and engraved configurations. Early examples were produced with 2 7/8" barrels, while the more familiar later configuration used the shorter 2 3/8" barrel seen on this revolver.

Serial number:

6522

is found on the bottom of the grip frame, underside of the barrel lug, rotating barrel locking wedge, and rear of the cylinder. The consistent numbering across these components makes this a very desirable all matching example based upon the numbered parts inspected.

Published Colt serial tables place number 6522 within 1873 production, making this a relatively early example of the Open Top Pocket series.

The top of the barrel retains its Colt address between the characteristic cross pattée ✠ ornaments:

COLT'S PT. F.A. CO.
HARTFORD CT. U.S.A.

The revolver has a 2 3/8" barrel and a seven shot cylinder. The cylinder measures approximately .832" in overall body length excluding the rear ratchet extension. That short cylinder is consistent with .22 Short chambering and is too short to accommodate the later .22 Long case dimensions cited in period and modern cartridge references. We therefore identify this revolver as chambered for .22 Short.

The revolver is extensively engraved with flowing acanthus and scroll motifs over punched or stippled backgrounds. The frame receives the greatest coverage, while additional engraving continues onto the barrel and cylinder. The left side of the frame does not carry a separate 22 CAL marking, with the decorative engraving occupying that area instead.

Factory engraved Open Top Pocket revolvers are known, as are examples with nickel finish and pearl grips. However, without a Colt Archive Letter or other period documentation tying those features to serial number 6522 when it left Hartford, we would not claim conclusively that the engraving, nickel finish, or mother of pearl grips are factory original. They are entirely appropriate to the type and period, but should be regarded as present configuration unless documentation establishes otherwise.

The nickel plating is very well retained overall. The frame shows relatively minor loss concentrated around the bottom of the grip frame and adjacent to the cylinder, while the barrel and cylinder likewise retain strong plating with localized loss around the front of the cylinder and rear of the barrel where black powder residue and handling commonly attack the finish. The remaining nickel gives the revolver a particularly striking appearance and provides excellent contrast with the engraving.

The mother of pearl grips are especially attractive, displaying strong natural iridescence and color variation. Their polished surfaces complement the nickel and engraved metalwork particularly well and give the revolver the upscale appearance associated with better appointed pocket arms of the period.

The barrel assembly remains removable in the traditional Colt manner. The rotating or transverse wedge moves correctly and permits the barrel to be withdrawn from the cylinder arbor for disassembly and cleaning.

Mechanically, the revolver functions very well during careful manual inspection. The hammer operates normally, the cylinder indexes accurately, lockup is firm, and the action produces a crisp dry fire. We did not encounter the inconsistent timing or indexing problems sometimes seen on small revolvers of this age.

The bore is in very good condition, with a mostly bright interior and clearly defined lands and grooves. There is evidence of old oxidation and powder fouling that has since been cleaned away, but the rifling remains strong and readily visible.

The revolver is accompanied by a custom wooden case measuring approximately:

10 3/8" wide x 5 1/2" deep x 2 1/2" high

The case is lined in forest green felt and divided internally into compartments for the revolver and holster. Its construction incorporates older style flat head screws, but it has clearly undergone substantial more recent modification and should be considered an associated display case rather than an original Colt casing.

Also included is a modern reproduction leather holster displaying a gold highlighted Colt logo and Rampant Colt motif. It is included as a display accessory only and is not represented as a period holster.

With its early 1873 manufacture date, matching serial number 6522, seven shot .22 Short configuration, extensive engraving, strong nickel finish, mother of pearl grips, very good mechanical condition, and attractive display case, this is an especially eye catching example of one of Colt's first purpose built metallic cartridge pocket revolvers. Its combination of early production, matching components, decorative treatment, and strong condition makes it particularly appealing for a collection of early cartridge Colts, spur trigger pocket revolvers, engraved American handguns, or transitional firearms of the 1870s.

Specifications:

Year of Manufacture: 1873
Maker: Colt's Patent Firearms Mfg. Co.
Model: Open Top Pocket Model .22
Serial No.: 6522
Caliber: .22cal Short
Ammunition Type: Rimfire Cartridge
Barrel Length: 2 3/8 inches
Overall Length: 5 5/8 inches
Action: Single
Feed System: 7 Shot Revolver
Federal Classification: Pre-1899 Antique

History and Design of the Colt .22 Open top Revolver:
Designer : William Mason and Charles Brinckerhoff Richards
Designed : 1871
Manufacturer: Colt's Patent Firearms Manufacturing Company
Produced: 1871-1877
Number built: 114,200

The Colt Open Top Pocket Model Revolver was a single action pocket revolver introduced by the Colt's Patent Fire Arms Manufacturing Company in 1871. Introduced a year before the Colt Open Top (a model from 1872) and two years before the Colt Peacemaker and the Colt New Line (both introduced in 1873), the Colt Open Top Pocket Model Revolver was, alongside the Colt House Revolver, one of the two first metallic cartridge rear-loading revolvers manufactured by Colt's. It also was one of the first pocket metallic cartridge revolvers made by the company.

When the Rollin White patent for metallic cartridges firearms manufacture expired (c. 1870) the Colt's Patent Fire Arms Manufacturing Company started working on its own metallic cartridge revolvers (Colt had previously been manufacturing the so-called Richards-Mason conversions). Thus, Colt introduced its first rear-loaders in 1871: the Colt House/Cloverleaf and the Colt Open Top Pocket Model Revolver.

In the 1870s the firearms market was awash with cheaply made knockoffs of the .22 caliber Smith & Wesson Model One which sold for about $2. Colt's president Richard Jarvis decided it would not compete directly with the knockoffs; that its .22 would be of Colt quality. The Open Top Pocket was priced at $8.

The frame was brass and sometimes silver or nickel plated. The barrel and cylinder were either blue or nickel plated. Rosewood or walnut grips on a bird's head style frame made for a comfortable pistol to shoot.

Loading was accomplished via a groove in the frame rearward of the cylinder and early models incorporated an ejector rod until 1874. After that, a shooter would need to remove the cylinder to empty the brass casings.

Cheap copies imported from Spain and Belgium drove down the demand for these revolvers and Colt stopped manufacturing them by 1877.

Calibers
The Open Top Pocket Model was chambered in .22 Short and .22 Long, both using black powder as the propellant. It was equipped with a 7-shot non-fluted cylinder and two different barrel lengths: 2 3⁄8 in (60 mm) and 2 7⁄8 in (73 mm). NOTE: It is highly questionable that any modern .22 ammunition would be safe to use in antique firearms.

IMA considers all of our antique guns as non-firing, inoperable and/or inert. Title 18, U.S. Code, Section 921(a)(16) defines antique firearms as all guns made prior to 1899. This law exempts antique firearms from any form of gun control or special engineering because they are not legally considered firearms. No FFL, C&R or any license is required to possess, transport, sell or trade Antique guns. All rifles and muskets sold by IMA that were manufactured prior to 1899 are considered Antiques by the US BATF (United States Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco & Firearms). Therefore, all of IMA's Antique guns may be shipped to most US States and most U.S. territories.

These antique guns are not sold in "live" condition, and are not tested for the ability to feed or load any type of cartridge. They are sold as collector's items or as "wall hangers" not for use, and we make no guarantees regarding functionality aside from what is stated in the description. Any attempt at restoring an antique gun to be operational is strongly discouraged and is done so at the risk of the customer. By purchasing an antique gun from IMA you thereby release IMA, its employees and corporate officers from any and all liability associated with use of our Antique guns.

Pre-1899 Manufacture, no licenses required, allowed to ship to most addresses within the United States.