Item:
ONSV23TGS40

Original U.S. Colt .45cal Single Action Army Revolver with 5" Barrel made in 1881 with Period Holster - Serial 67458

Item Description

Original Item: Only One Available. This is every School boy's dream! A real Cowboy six gun, complete with a fantastic "open top" period lightly tooled leather holster! This Colt SAA (Single Action Army) Revolver has a cowboy friendly 5 inch barrel with with lovely worn wooden grips. The original blued finish is now worn to a lovely aged gray patina that is simply impossible to replicate.

The revolver's serial number is 67458, which dates production to 1881. It has the serial number on the frame, trigger guard, and on the bottom of the grip, while the cylinder serial number has unfortunately worn away. Starting in 1883, the cylinders no longer had serials marked again until 1912. There is also assembly number 1650 marked on the loading gate. It is in full working order and condition, showing a gorgeous worn patina of age, sure to delight any "Old West" Americana collector.

The markings on the top of the barrel are still faintly legible in the light:

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

The left side of the frame has the Colt patent dates legible but worn:

PAT. SEPT. 19. 1871.
"   JULY. 2.  --72.
"   JAN.  19.  --75.

These are the early pattern markings made before the "Prancing Pony" logo began appearing on the frame. The markings are worn from frontier use, and the revolver does not look to have been refurbished at any time. The caliber marking 45 CAL is still present the trigger guard, and we also have checked the cylinder and barrel with real cartridges to confirm. 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 well-worn look that only years of use on the frontier can give. There is a bit of light pitting and wear near the muzzle of the barrel, and we cannot tell if the barrel was originally 5", or shortened later. The front sight however definitely has been replaced. The walnut wooden grips are in very good condition, with a lovely color, showing the expected wear from age and use. It looks like initials have been added to the right side, however we cannot quite them out.

Mechanically, the action is smooth, with a good cylinder lock up, and crisp dry fire. The action has all four clicks, and cycles correctly, with good indexing. We did not notice any of the usual finicky behavior we often see from these revolvers, despite all the exterior wear. 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 shows clear lands and grooves, but has an overall hazy oxidized finish, definitely showing that it saw significant use during its service life. The ejector door swings open easily, and the ejector itself work flawlessly. The cylinder arbor pin can easily be removed to break down the revolver.

The included holster is in very good shape, with a great look, having a nicely tooled decorative border on the obverse. Just perfect for this "Cowboy" revolver!

Pistols such as this are extremely difficult to find today at any reasonable price. This 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: 5 inches
Overall Length: 10 1/2 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.

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