Original U.S. Colt Frontier Six Shooter SAA .44-40 Revolver Made in 1883 with 7 1/2 Barrel - Matching Serial 96296

Original Item: Only One Available. This is every School boy's dream! A real Cowboy six gun! The Colt Single Action Army Revolver, often referred to as the SAA or M1873, was the first Colt cartridge revolver to see wide acceptance and use, having been developed to meet the needs of the U.S. Government. Dubbed the "Peacemaker", the design is a famous piece of Americana and the American Wild West era, due to its popularity with ranchers, lawmen, and outlaws alike. It was available in several chamberings, including the famous .45 "Long Colt", as well as those made for the very popular Winchester .44-40, known as "Frontier Six Shooters". While Colt has fielded many other designs since its introduction, none have been able to capture the same type of romance, resulting in the design being reissued several times since originally being discontinued.

This very nice "frontier worn" Colt Frontier Six Shooter SAA (Single Action Army) Revolver has a full length long 7 1/2" barrel, with a lovely worn gray peppered patina on the metalwork and an aged walnut grip. This definitely looks to be an example that saw long use on the frontier and was cleaned repeatedly, giving it an impossible to duplicate look! The revolver's serial number is 96296, which dates production to 1883. It has the serial number on the frame, trigger guard, grip frame, and even 6296 on the cylinder AND underside of the barrel. During 1883, Colt would stop marking the cylinders until 1912, making this a rare treat as a confirmed "ALL MATCHING" revolver. There is also assembly number 2878 marked on the loading gate. It is in working order and condition, with a great "frontier used" patinated look, sure to delight any "Old West" Americana collector.

The original single line address marking on the top of the barrel, correct for this length of barrel, is still clear:-

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

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

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

The trigger guard is clearly stamped 44.CF. on the side, indicating the .44-40 WCF caliber, and there is also a faint 44 on the bottom of the barrel in front of the base pin. 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. We have checked the cylinder with a real cartridge and confirmed the caliber.

As this revolver was manufactured in 1883, 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.

The revolver presents beautifully, and really has the look of a sidearm that was "really there" in the old west. The gray peppered patina is lovely, showing much use, servicing, and cleaning during its life. It looks to have had light surface rust on the exterior that was cleaned away, but no major pit rust or scaling. The walnut grip has a lovely dark color, and is still firmly inside the frame. It does show wear on the lower sides, and the right side is missing a chunk on the front toe.

Mechanically, the action is smooth, with a good cylinder lock up, and a strong mainspring. The action has all four clicks, however the loading position is a bit to far forward for the ratchet to disengage completely. We also noted that if cycled fast, the cylinder can overshoot slightly before the lock engages. 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 is in very good condition, still showing clear rifling and a mostly dull finish. There is definitely wear and past fouling and oxidation overall, but overall it's definitely in very good shape for a frontier used black powder revolver. The ejector door swings open easily, and the ejector itself works great as well. 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: 1883
Caliber: .44-40 Winchester
Ammunition Type: Centerfire Cartridge
Barrel Length: 7 1/2 inches
Overall Length: 13 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.