colt 1860 army

FACTORY CASED COLT 1860 ARMY REVOLVER

This is a magnificent example of a Civil War Production Period Colt Model 1860 Revolver and Shoulder Stock with the following special order factory embellishments: Gustave Young Engraved, Silver Plated, Relief Carved Mexican Eagle Grip and Rosewood Cased, that collectively, would be difficult to improve upon in both condition and rarity.

The streamlined Colt Model 1860 Army replaced the Colt Dragoon and Model1851 Navy revolvers as the standard Cavalry handguns in 1860. During the Civil War, these revolvers were the primary sidearm of the Federal Cavalry during the war as well as being extremely popular among officers and enlisted alike. Given the demand for wartime use and production, special order factory engraved examples which fall into the wartime production years are the rarest and likewise most desirable of all factory engraved percussion Colts and usually show the typical use and condition associated with issued or “used” 1860’s of the period. This special order Model 1860 was manufactured in 1863 with an eight inch barrel and matching Shoulder Stock and is the exception and remains in excellent condition. A very limited number of eight inch civilian models were cut for a shoulder stock.

The top of the barrel is roll-stamped “ADDRESS COL. SAM COLT NEW YORK U.S, AMERICA” in a single line, “COLT”S PATENT” is roll stamped in two lines on the left side of the frame and the cylinder is roll-engraved with the Texas Navy Battle scene. The serial number, 140,684E, matches throughout both the revolver ( barrel lug, barrel wedge, frame, cylinder pin, trigger guard and back strap ) and shoulder stock ( yoke and Butt plate tang ). The block “E” stamped above or below the serial number indicates the revolver was designated by Colt for engraving and/or special finish. The cylinder is not numbered which Wilson notes in Steel Canvas is a feature observed from time to time in a number of highly finished deluxe Colt arms of the 1860’s and early 1870’s.

The engraving on the top sides of the barrel, the frame, the trigger guard bow, the back strap and the lower hammer sides consists of mainly distinctive intricate acanthus scroll patterns along with some floral and shell patterns and punch dot backgrounds which matches other early Colts revolvers that came out of Master engraver Gustave Young’s shop.  Gustave Young’s engraving is further characterized by use of a wolf’s head profile on each side of the hammer. The shoulder Stock yoke, upper and lower tang and butt plate are engraved ensuite. Young was Colt’s chief engraving contractor from 1852 to 1869.  The revolver also has period factory ivory grips with a highly detailed, relief carved Mexican Eagle, Rattlesnake and Cactus motif from the coat of arms and flag of Mexico in an oval on the left side.

The Revolver and Shoulder Stock are set in a scarce factory Rosewood case with six compartments lined with burgundy velvet. The case also contains a “COLTS/PATENT’ fixed charger powder flask embossed with cannon and banner motif on both sides, a silver plated double cavity, bow leg bullet mold stamped “COLTS/PATENT” in two lines on the spruce cutter and .44H and a C on the right bock, and a sealed pack of six cartridges made of Hassard’s powder expressly for Colt’s patent revolving holster pistol in 44 -100 calibre. 

The revolver retains 95+% of the original silver plating. All markings are clear and the engraving is impeccable, typical of Young’s work. The cylinder scene is crisp. The Shoulder Stock is excellent retaining 98% of the original silver plating and the stock has very few minor handling marks and retains 98% of the original varnish. The period relief carved ivory grip is excellent, showing just one small chip at the bottom on the left hand side.. The bore is FINE. The action is excellent. There is no flash pitting on the percussion nipples or the face of the cylinder and all safety pins are intact. The exposed brass on the trigger guard has a natural untouched aged patina. The rosewood case is extremely fine as are the interior partitions with only normal high spot wear evident on the burgundy velvet lining.

oldguns.ca, virtual museum collection.

Officially know as the Colt 3rd Model Derringer this pistol is more commonly referred to as the Colt Thuer Derringer after the weapon's designer, Alexander Thuer. The pistol has a brass frame which was either bare or nickel plated and a nickel plated or blued steel barrel. 

oldguns.ca virtual museum collection.  

The M1911 pistol originated in the late 1890s as the result of a search for a suitable self-loading (or semi-automatic) pistol to replace the variety of revolvers then in service.  The United States was adopting new firearms at a phenomenal rate; several new pistols and two all-new service rifles (the M1892/96/98 Krag and M1895 Navy Lee), as well as a series of revolvers by Colt and Smith & Wesson for the Army and Navy, were adopted just in that decade. The next decade would see a similar pace, including the adoption of several more revolvers and an intensive search for a self-loading pistol that would culminate in the official adoption of the M1911 after the turn of the decade.  Hiram S. Maxim had designed a self-loading rifle in the 1880s, but was preoccupied with machine guns. Nevertheless, the application of his principle of using cartridge energy to reload led to several self-loading pistols in 1896. The designs caught the attention of various militaries, each of which began programs to find a suitable one for their forces. In the U.S., such a program would lead to a formal test at the turn of the 20th century.   M1911 designer John Browning During the end of 1899 and start of 1900, a test of self-loading pistols, including entries from Mauser (the C96 "Broomhandle"), Mannlicher (the Mannlicher M1894), and Colt (the Colt M1900), was conducted.  This led to a purchase of 1,000 DWM Luger pistols, chambered in 7.65mm Luger, a bottlenecked cartridge. During field trials, these ran into some problems, especially with stopping power. Other governments had made similar complaints. Consequently, DWM produced an enlarged version of the round, the 9×19mm Parabellum (known in current military parlance as the 9×19mm NATO), a necked-up version of the 7.65 mm round. Fifty of these were tested as well by the U.S. Army in 1903.  American units fighting Tausūg guerrillas in the Moro Rebellion in Sulu during the Philippine–American War using the then-standard Colt M1892 revolver, .38 Long Colt, found it to be unsuitable for the rigours of jungle warfare, particularly in terms of stopping power, as the Moros had high battle morale and often used drugs to inhibit the sensation of pain. The U.S. Army briefly reverted to using the M1873 single-action revolver in .45 Colt caliber, which had been standard during the late 19th century; the heavier bullet was found to be more effective against charging tribesmen.   The problems prompted the Chief of Ordnance, General William Crozier, to authorize further testing for a new service pistol.  Following the 1904 Thompson-LaGarde pistol round effectiveness tests, Colonel John T. Thompson stated that the new pistol "should not be of less than .45 caliber" and would preferably be semi-automatic in operation. This led to the 1906 trials of pistols from six firearms manufacturing companies (namely, Colt, Bergmann, Deutsche Waffen und Munitionsfabriken (DWM), Savage Arms Company, Knoble, Webley, and White-Merrill).  Of the six designs submitted, three were eliminated early on, leaving only the Savage, Colt, and DWM designs chambered in the new .45 ACP (Automatic Colt Pistol) cartridge.  These three still had issues that needed correction, but only Colt and Savage resubmitted their designs. There is some debate over the reasons for DWM's withdrawal—some say they felt there was bias and that the DWM design was being used primarily as a "whipping boy" for the Savage and Colt pistols,  though this does not fit well with the earlier 1900 purchase of the DWM design over the Colt and Steyr entries. In any case, a series of field tests from 1907 to 1911 were held to decide between the Savage and Colt designs. Both designs were improved between each round of testing, leading up to the final test before adoption.  Among the areas of success for the Colt was a test at the end of 1910 attended by its designer, John Browning. 6000 rounds were fired from a single pistol over the course of 2 days. When the gun began to grow hot, it was simply immersed in water to cool it. The Colt gun passed with no reported malfunctions, while the Savage designs had 37.   

As for Canada's involvement with the 1911, after the start of Mobilization in 1914, the (corrupt) Minster of Militia Sam Hughes decided to kit out the entire Canadian Military with Colt 1911's. However due to the neutrality act of the time, the Americans could not sell us military kit. So we had one or two procurement officers buy 5000 Commercial Models for themselves. They were delivered over a period of time and they are not all sequentially numbered. He was only able to really equipe the first two contingents and officers had to buy their own from the already bought lots. NCO's had their issued. Ultimately, it was found that it would be two expensive, so the government moved to the Webley Mk 6, Colt New Service and the Smith and Wesson .455 in 1917.

oldguns.ca, virtual museum collection.

The Colt Model 1903 Pocket Hammer was a short-recoil, semi-automatic pistol, designed by the American arms designer John Browning. It was a compact version of the Colt Model 1902 Sporting Model pistol derived from the original Colt M1900. The Colt M1902 Sporting Model and 1903 Pocket Hammer model have significant differences to the military-inspired Colt 1902 Military Model although they fire the same cartridge. Its design is in no way related to the Colt Model 1903 Pocket Hammerless or the FN Model 1903 pistol.   At a glance, this pistol is visually more similar to the later Colt 1911 than to the Colt 1902 Sporting Model from which it evolved. However, a cursory inspection will show many differences to the Model 1911: the lack of any safety as well as the lack of a slide lock, the magazine release is at the bottom of the grip rather than a button on the side, and a wedge retaining the slide. The locking system uses two links vs. the single link of the later M1911. The two links (one near the muzzle, the other under the chamber) unlocked the barrel in a motion identical to that of a parallel ruler. The drawback to this design was the need for a cross-wedge in the slide near the muzzle, for assembly and dis-assembly. If the slide cracked or the wedge came loose, the slide could exit the frame to the rear, injuring the shooter. The design limited the strength of the cartridge that could be used.   It was chambered for the .38 ACP, which is stamped on the slide as "Calibre 38 rimless smokeless". The .38 ACP was a slightly less powerful cartridge than the 9×19mm Parabellum and it is now considered obsolete as there are no new firearms being chambered in .38 ACP. While using a locked breech, the pistol's locking design was not very strong, and was superseded in 1929 by an M1911A1-pattern pistol chambered in .38 Super.  The .38 ACP (aka .38 Auto) and the .38 Super use cases with identical dimensions, the only difference being the maximum operating pressures of each. It would be unwise to use new, factory .38 Super ammunition in any pistol based on the M1900 series Colts. (1900, 1902, 1903.) .38 Super pistols, on the other hand, can often work well with .38 ACP (or .38 ACP pressure-level) ammunition. They may require a slightly less-powerful recoil spring to function normally.  Initially popular, the sales of the .38 ACP models dropped off with the introduction of the M-1905 in .45, and then the M-1911 caused sales of the .38 to essentially cease. Colt listed it in their annual catalog until existing parts were used up in the early 1920s.   Production of the Model 1903 Pocket Hammer Model, basically just a short barrelled 1902 Sporting Model, began in earnest in 1904 (only one hundred pistols seeing production in 1903) with production varying from about 1,200 to 2,300 each year until 1917 when production curtailed sharply due to World War I. Up to late 1907, rounded stub hammers were used, but Colt, with the interest of the military and apparently the public now set on low profile spur hammers (due to that requirement on the Model 1907 US test pistols, these being modified Model 1905s with grip safeties), started phasing in low profile spur hammers on all their exposed hammer automatics that they were continuing in production: the 1903 Pocket Hammer Model, the 1902 Military Model, and the 1905 Model .45 ACP.  Therefore, the rounded hammer Colt 1903 Pocket Hammers can help date those pistols at a glance to 1903-1907.  Unlike the Sporting Model from which it was derived and the 1902 Military Model, that had milled slide grooves and checkered slides respectively, the 1903 Pocket Hammer featured slide grooves at the rear of the slide. The first pistols featured the milled pattern similar to the 1902 Sporting Models, but Colt transitioned to rear cut slides around the spring of 1905, apparently for all their automatics. This would indicate that only about 1,700 or so 1903 Pocket Hammers had the rear milled slides, making them the earliest and hardest to find of the type.  Serial numbers of the 1903 Pocket Hammers started at 19999 in 1903 and went backward to 16000 into 1906. After that, serials resumed at 20000 and went up to 47227 ending in 1927 when production discontinued. An approximate total of 29,237 were produced which just about equaled the production of the Colt 1900 and 1902 .38 automatics. Prior to World War I, the pistol filled a niche by providing a relatively more powerful cartridge in a lighter and smaller pistol. However, the Colt 1903/08 Pocket Hammerless in .380 ACP (a lower power cartridge to the .38 ACP, but suitable to smaller simple blow-back pistols) appeared in 1909. The .380 Pocket Hammerless overwhelmed the Pocket Hammer model's sales but the 1903 persisted, possibly because the .38 ACP was still a more powerful cartridge than the .380 ACP. However, World War I clearly slowed production and after production surged to 3,200 in 1920 (probably to fill dealer back orders built up during the war), sales became very slow and the 1903 Pocket Hammer faded out of use, while the smaller 1903 .380 and .32 ACP Pocket Hammerless pistols thrived. Only a scant handful of 1903 Pocket Hammers were used by the military, and then only as secondary arms purchased not pursuant to contract. However, the Model did see significant sales in Mexico prior to and possibly during the chaos of the Mexican Revolution (1910–1920) so many of these found their way into military and para-military hands. Additionally, some were purchased for the Philippine Constabulary in the 1920s.

oldguns.ca, virtual museum collection.