Original Items: Only One Set Available. This is it! Every young "Old West" fans dream: A real Colt Cowboy Six-shooter! This very nice Colt Frontier Six Shooter SAA (Single Action Army) Revolver has a "gunfighter friendly" shortened 4 3/4" barrel, with the a nickel plated finish, and fantastic well aged and cracked ivory grips!

The revolver's serial number is 79132, marked on the frame and trigger guard, built in 1882, and the loading gate is marked with assembly number 3918. The serial number on the grip frame has been worn away, as has the number on the cylinder. As it was made in 1882, it should have had a number on the cylinder, but as this was close to when they stopped that marking, it is possible that it never had one. The revolver is in very good condition, sure to delight any Americana Collector.

The revolver came to us with a printed copy of a Colt Factory letter from the office of the Colt Historian. It is dated December 7, 2015, and has had the address of the person who ordered it covered up for privacy. It shows that the revolver was originally quite different in configuration, with a blued finish and most likely a 7 1/2" barrel and standard rubber grips. However, the gun was shipped on January 8, 1883 to Hartley & Graham in New York City, a very prestigious outfitters founded in 1854. They were also well known for customizing guns in house, as it was cheaper and often more expedient to have standard revolvers shipped from the factory, and then altered locally. This may explain why the gun differs so much from the original configuration.

The revolver is in full working Order and Condition, showing a gorgeous worn patina. Due to the refinishing, the markings on the top of the barrel completely gone. The left side of the frame has the Colt patent dates still faintly legible:

The trigger guard is stamped 44.CF. on the side, with 44 stamped under the barrel, indicating the .44-40 WCF caliber. The "Frontier Six Shooter" model was almost identical to the .45 "Long Colt" chambered Single Action Army model, except that it was designed for Winchester .44-40 ammunition, also called .44 W.C.F., which was and is a popular "cowboy" ammunition. While some may question why colt made guns chambered for a competitor's cartridge, having a repeating rifle and revolver that took the same ammunition was a big selling point.

As this revolver was manufactured in 1882, it never had an etched panel that read "Colt Frontier Six Shooter", as the serial number range for such marked revolvers was between 45000 and 65000. Revolvers like this were marketed to the civilian frontier market, as the U.S. Cavalry issued the identical model finished in blue.

With the nickel plated finish and aged ivory grips, this revolver really looks great. The plating is well retained, with some flaking on the usual wear points. The Grips have matured to a beautiful color, with checking and cracking only seen after decades of use. Mechanically, the action is smooth, with a good cylinder lock up, and crisp dry fire. The action has all four clicks, and we did not notice any finicky behavior during cycling.

The bore is in very good condition, with clear lands and grooves and a partly bright finish, showing light fouling and oxidation. The ejector door swings open easily, and the ejector itself works great. Overall this is a great pistol with loads of patina and history.

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: 1882
Caliber: .44-40 Winchester
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.