Original Item: Only One Available. This is it! Every young "Old West" fans dream: A real Colt Cowboy Six-shooter! This is a lovely "frontier worn" example of the Remington M-1875 Single Action Army Revolver in the popular .44-40 Winchester caliber, complete with an 1890s style custom leather holster. It is in full working order and condition, with a great lightly patinated look, sure to delight any "Old West" Americana collector.

This model of revolver was introduced to compete with Colt's own Single Action Army, introduced in 1873. Unfortunately the two year advantage Colt had been well used by Colt to secure virtually all the U.S. Government Contracts leaving Remington to find additional and different markets. Still, it's a very well made revolver, and has a solid place in U.S. firearm history.

This example has had the barrel shortened from the original 7 1/2" to be just over 5 1/2", and had a new front sight fitted. This was a very popular "Cowboy" style modification, as the shorter barrel was preferred as it was lighter and quicker on the draw. A lot of these were modified during the 1890s to fill the demand in the Western Frontier for firearms. Remington even developed the Model 1888 and 1890 with 5 3/4" as a standard option to meet this, but with so many people modifying the very similar model 1875, the new models barely found a market.

The Model 1875 "Improved Army" was the first military sized, cartridge revolver to be produced by Remington that was not a conversion of one of their earlier percussion models. The gun is a six shot, single action revolver that competed directly with the Colt Single Action Army. The gun had a fluted cylinder and was produced in three center fire calibers, .44 Remington, .44 WCF (44-40) and eventually .45 Colt. There are no markings left on this revolver that would indicate the caliber, however we tested the cylinder, and it is definitely for .44, not a .45 Colt, as the latter will not even fit in. It takes a .44 WCF cartridge perfectly, which should be slightly too big for a revolver chambered in .44 Remington. We also measured the base of the cylinder ratchet, which should be .550" on a .44 Remington revolver. The ratchet on this cylinder measures at .504" with precision dial calibers, which would mean .44-40 or .45cal, so it is without a doubt chambered for .44-40 Winchester.

The majority of the revolvers produced had 7 ½" barrels, although a very few were produced with 5 ¾" barrels and are considered very scarce today. The revolvers were produced with both blued and nickel finishes. Oil finished, two-piece walnut grips were standard, but other options were available on special order. Remington produced the M-1875 revolver from 1875 until 1889, with a total production of only between 25,000 and 30,000; a very small production run when compared with Colt's M-1873 Single Action Army.

There are still traces of the original markings on the top of the barrel, which would originally have read:

The serial number 59 is present on the edge of the left grip frame, underneath the grip. Unfortunately this does not really give much information about when the pistol was made, as at about serial number 12,000, Remington started the serial numbering for the Model 1875 back at 1. This was also around the time they moved from a rectangular firing pin, to a cone-shaped one. As this revolver is in .44-40, this is the second revolver to have this serial number.

Our example here is in fine patinated condition, showing lots of age consistent with long service on the Western frontier. The walnut wood grips are in very good shape. considering what they must have been through, and do not show any major cracks or repairs, just the usual wear and staining from use. There also is a lanyard loop fitted to the bottom of the grip. Unlike many we see, the revolver still functions very well, with good indexing and a crisp dry fire. It also has a usable loading position where the cylinder can be spun freely. The cylinder lock inlets are worn, so there is one position that it does not hold on, but considering the amount of use this revolver saw, it's quite surprising. The bore is in good condition, showing clear rifling and having an overall gray oxidized finish, but without any major pitting or more serious damage present.

The included holster is just lovely, made from brown leather that is still quite supple. It is a standard open top belt holster, most likely custom made, and is completely unmarked. There was originally a piece of leather at the bottom as seen with most US holsters, but it has had the stitching rot out and was lost. Of interest is the loop on the top of the holster, which both helped keep the revolver in the holster, and also kept the hammer from accidently getting caught on somethin and cocking the pistol. It fits the revolver well.

A very nice U.S. Revolver with loads of frontier patina, complete with an original holster and ready to display!

Specifications:

Years of Manufacture: 1875–1889
Caliber: .44-40 Winchester
Ammunition Type: Centerfire Cartridge
Barrel Length: 5 1/2 inches
Overall Length: 11 1/2 inches
Action: Single Action
Feed System: 6 Shot Revolver

The Remington Model 1875 Single Action Army (a.k.a. Improved Army or Frontier Army) was a revolver by E. Remington & Sons. It was based upon the successful New Model Army (Remington Model 1858), with both revolvers having the same size, appearance, and the removable cylinder. The new 1875 Remington differed mainly from the older 1858 percussion model by having a bored through cylinder chambered for metallic cartridges. Thus, in 1875, Remington entered the cartridge revolver market with this big-frame, army style revolver, intended to compete with the Colt Peacemaker. Ordinary citizens and Old West lawmen alike recognized the sturdy quality of the new Remington revolvers

Introduced to compete with Colt's single-action Army revolvers, this Remington design failed to meet with the commercial success made by Colt's model due to the Hartford firm's two-year head start in production and sales.

Also known as the "Improved Army" or "Frontier Army" revolver, this single-action was a competitor to Colt's popular Single Action Army line. By the time of its introduction, however, Colt had already secured contracts with the U.S. Army, and Remington was forced to seek other markets. The U.S. government purchased fewer than 650 for use by Indian police, and another 1000 were sold to the Mexican government circa 1880. The Egyptian government contracted for delivery of 10,000, but few were produced and delivered due to significant unpaid debts owed by the Egyptians for Rolling Block rifles.

Between 25,000 and 30,000 were manufactured during the years 1875–1889 in three different chamberings: .44 Remington Centerfire; .44-40; and .45 caliber. These were not optional; rather, the caliber of production models was determined by their date of manufacture. .45 caliber cylinders were slightly longer to prevent accidental insertion into a .44 frame. Standard features included a fluted cylinder, walnut grip panels, blued or nickel-plated finish with case-hardened hammer and loading gate, and a lanyard ring. Standard barrel length was 7 1⁄2 inches (190 mm), although very few revolvers were produced with 5 3⁄4-inch (150 mm) barrels.

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 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.

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