Original Item: Only One Available. Just purchased at a military auction! Here is a very rare and unusual Colt Pocket Percussion Revolver, commonly referred to as the M-1855 Root. It features an external side hammer on the right side of the frame, with a 5 shot .28 caliber cylinder. We have only had a few of these previously, with relatively equal numbers of .28 and the larger .31 calibers. These are exceedingly rare, as their delicate action would often break, and the revolvers were then disposed due to the high cost of repair. Like many Colt revolvers, they were available with several barrel lengths, and this example is fitted with a 3 ½" barrel.

As this is an early production example, it is fitted with a smooth sided cylinder, which originally would have had a cylinder scene and markings, however these are now completely worn away. Very late production examples would move to a fluted cylinder. The top of the barrel retains numerous markings, including Colt's "Pointing Hand" trademark all the way to the left, and next to this is the patent marking:

COLT'S PT.
1855

To the right of this is the Colt two line address marking, which in this case is the "Hartford" address, often used when guns were being sold to slave states, which were not fans of New York, often regarded as the heart of the abolitionist movement:- 

ADDRESS COL. COLT
HARTFORT CT. U.S.A.

These markings are surrounded by small "✠" cross pattée dingbats, which is correct for some years of production on the "Root" revolvers. We also noted that the right side of the frame over the cylinder has been personalized, reading J. McKinney, though we do not know when this was added. It could possibly be a Civil War era marking, and a great avenue of future research.

These revolvers are definitely small and always suffered from being so very delicate, with the action easily damaged due to the minimized size. It was a great favorite with women and for those interested in carrying a concealed piece of "artillery". The serial number of our example is # 8719, which is present on the bottom of the grip frame, under the barrel, and on the side of the cylinder. This dates its manufacture to 1856, only the second year of production, and we have seen these referred to as "Model 1" revolvers.

The revolver displays a worn patina from use and cleaning, however there is still a good amount of the original Colt high gloss blued finish present in the recessed areas of the revolver, and even some on the octagonal barrel, particularly the bottom. There are some marks from wear, and a bit of past peppering, but no major oxidation present. The walnut grip is in very good condition, still retaining most of the original "piano varnish finish". It does have wear around the bottom, and there are small chunks missing on both sides of the rear, and a chunk missing from the front toe.

The action on this example is actually still fully functional, without any of the usual finicky behavior we see with these! It indexes correctly with a strong cylinder lockup and crisp dry fire, though there definitely is slop in the mechanics, as the cylinder wobbles a bit on the arbor pin. These are very rare to see in fully functional condition, so it should be handled with care to avoid excessive wear to the action. The release for the cylinder arbor pin on the left side is fully functional, allowing the cylinder to be removed for cleaning. We checked the bore, and it is in very good condition. showing a mostly bright finish with crisp lands and grooves. There is some past oxidation and fouling, but for a pre Civil War black powder percussion revolver, it's in exceptional condition. The cap nipple cones on the cylinder are all clear, but do show some oxidation and fouling from powder residue, as well as a bit of deformation from hammer strikes.

A great example of a rare early Colt revolver, which are VERY rare to see in such fine condition as this. This will make a great addition to any collection!

Specifications:

Year of Manufacture: 1856
Caliber: .28cal
Ammunition Type: Cap and Ball
Barrel Length: 3 ½ inches
Overall Length: 8 inches
Action: Single Action
Feed System: 5 Shot Revolver

History of the Colt "Root" Model 1855 Percussion Pistols:

The Colt Model 1855 Sidehammer, also known as the Colt Root Revolver after engineer Elisha K. Root (1808–1865), was a cap & ball single-action pocket revolver used during the American Civil War and made by the Colt's Patent Fire Arms Manufacturing Company in two calibers: .28 and .31.

In the revolver configuration of the patented revolving mechanism, only one model of revolver was produced. The only two available calibers for the revolver were .28 and .31. The production of the revolver started in 1855 and lasted until 1870. In spite of the complexity and ambition of its patented design, the Sidehammer revolver never reached the status of a popular gun. It was however very influential on later colt designs, and the revolving mechanism was used in all of colt's revolving rifles.

In 1855 the Sidehammer was the first Colt's revolver to use the "creeping" loading lever. This loading mechanism was used again in 1860 in the design of the Colt Army Model 1860, the Colt Navy Model 1861 and the Colt Police Model 1862.

In 1855 the Sidehammer was the first Colt's solid-frame spur-trigger gun. This anatomical characteristic was taken again when the three models of the Colt Derringer started production in 1870. For the two first models production lasted in 1890, and the third model ended in 1912 (until it was re-released in the 1950s for western movies, under the name of fourth model Colt Deringer). But in the Colt Deringers the solid-frame spur-triger design was still present in the patent when Colt's purchased the National Arms Company in 1870. Actual original Colt models subsequent to the Sidehammer and inheriting a solid frame and a spur trigger were the Colt House (1871) and the Colt New Line (1873)

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