Item:
ONJR23HRAN17

Original U.S. Nickel-Plated Colt .45cal Single Action Army Revolver made in 1884 with 4 3/4" Barrel, Stag Grips & Period Holster - Matching Serial 106046

Item Description

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 "gunfighter friendly" original short 4 3/4" barrel and lovely aged stag horn grips. It was most likely originally blued, but at some point during the late 1800s it was refinished in lovely Nickel Plate, with some traces of past oxidation visible underneath. The revolver comes in a very nice period open top "Mexican Loop" style brown tooled leather belt holster, with some fantastic hand embossed designs. This is an outstanding set from the days of the old west!

The revolver's serial number is 106046, which dates production to 1884. It has the serial number on the frame, trigger guard, and grip frame, making this a very nice "ALL MATCHING" example, without any parts swapped out over the years. This revolver was made after 1883, when Colt stopped marking the cylinders, which they did not do again until 1912. There is also assembly number 3507 marked on the loading gate. It is in full working order and condition, with a great patinated look, sure to delight any "Old West" Americana collector.

The top of the barrel still shows a partial original double line address, which is correct for the shorter barrel, indicating that it has not been shortened:

[COLT'S PT. ]F. A. MFG. CO.
[HART]FORD. CT. U.S.A.

The left side of the frame has the Colt patent dates mostly legible, with some wear from past oxidation before the refinish:

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 all relatively clear, so this revolver does not look to have been refurbished at any time, which would have worn down the markings during refinishing. The caliber marking 45 CAL is still present on 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 worn look that only use in service can give, which would make it a welcome part of any collection. The stag horn grips show staining and some rounding round the edges, resulting from use and age, giving them a fantastic "broken in look". There are no major scratches, chips, or cracks that we can see.

Mechanically, the action is smooth, with a firm cylinder lock up, and a strong mainspring. The action has all four clicks, and cycles correctly, with very little slop that we can detect. As with all revolvers of this age we recommend being somewhat gentle with cycling it, so we do not recommend "fanning" or "fan firing". The bore is in very good condition, showing clear rifling with a mostly bright finish. There is definitely some light wear and past fouling / oxidation, so this is definitely a revolver that saw a light to amount of action, and was properly cleaned afterwards. The ejector door swings open easily, and the ejector itself works great. Overall this is a great pistol!

The included "Mexican Loop" holster is in great shape, with intact stitching and lovely embossed designs throughout. It shows evidence of past conditioning and oiling, so some areas are darker than others. The back is marked 35E / 45 / 6, which are most likely markings from the maker indicating the size and type of revolver it is for. We were not able to find any markings indicating who made the holster.

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, especially with the fantastic holster. A great collector's revolver with a matching holster, ready to display!

Specifications:

Year of Manufacture: 1884
Caliber: .45 "Long" Colt
Ammunition Type: Centerfire Cartridge
Barrel Length: 4 3/4 inches
Overall Length: 10 1/4 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.

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