Here's a couple pics of a nice Colt I'd like to identify with some help please...

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As the barrel says correctly, it's a Colt Police Positive Special, acc. to Colt's website from 1962. First introduced in 1908, it was the first successful small frame .38 Special, later the basis for the Detective Special.

It looks to be a good shooter and solid, Is it worth keeping ?

Yeah I read all that on the googlenet, just looking for any input from personal use...

An old gun guru & holster designer of the 50's/60's, Chic Gaylord, felt those were fantastic carry pieces. It's simple, comfortable to carry w/ the smaller frame & round butt, and packs the punch of a .38 Spc ctg. Plus, he felt the 2" snubnoses should be left to the pro's who shoot at least a 100 rounds of practice shots a week (too much chance for hitting innocent by-standers otherwise). In his 1960 book, Handgunner's Guide - Including the Art of the Quick-draw and Combat Shooting, he referred to the 4" round butt Police Positive Special as "The most practical personal defense weapon for all-around use."

As long as the timing checks out okay, that is most definitely worth keeping. (imo)

Your's looks like a post-WWII version. It is essentially a 4" Detective Special, as already mentioned. It just has the longer barrel & different scrolling on the barrel.

I own 5 Detective Specials, a couple from that era, and they are all great guns as shooters & carry pieces.

The Colt's Police Positive (w/o the "Special") from before WW II came in the weaker and older .38 S&W, and had a slightly smaller frame & cylinder as a result (I have 2), but I would be happier w/ the .38 Special Police Positives ("Police Positive Special") because you can actually carry and affordably practice with a proven self defense load.

As far as +P's in yours, I'd rather not speculate. I think some would say yes, others no.

I have a Colt Police Positive .38 Special made in 1939 and it shoots great. I won't be shooting +P in mine.

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It appears to be from the late '50s maybe early '60s.

Definitely worth hanging onto if the price is right. Assuming the gun is still tight and mechanically sound, it would be worth about $400 bucks to me. Just about everyone else gets all gaga when a gun has the pony on it, but I price stuff realistically for what they are. If one really wants it, I guess $500 won't hurt, but anything over that and you would really have to have an attraction to it. Don't let anyone blow smoke up you know where because the pony on the side plate.

Always liked the look of the PPS, they just always felt a bit puny in my big paw. OP was more my speed.

Larry

Thanks for the input guys, I can get her for a very good price.

Yes! "Good shooter and solid," what more can you ask of a revolver? This one dates from 1915. It's not pristine but still shoots and carries very well.

Thanks old tanker...mind if I ask about your tag "old tanker" ? were you in tanks ?

Yes, I was in tanks. From 1968 until I retired in 1988.

Good simple revolver. I have one from 1935. Condition looks like it's been at war since 1935 but functions fine.


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If you want to use +P loads, they will be safe to use in your PPS. Colt advertised both the OP and the PPS as satisfactory for use with .38-44 loads (which are hotter than +P .38 Special). Personally, I never recommend using +P loads for any purpose and I follow my own advice.

I had a PPS that I bought from another HS kid for five bucks. My mother paid to have it re-blued and I put Jay Scott "pearl" grips on it. It was the only gun I owned that Mother thought was attractive.


I sold it rather than fix it after it went out of time, which Colts do far more easily than do Ruger or S&W guns. But if the cylinder times okay, the guns are reliable and accurate. BUT many need the barrel turned very slightly to align the sights right. Col. Askins told me that he had to do this to amost all of the New Service .38's when he bought them for the USBP when he was their chief firearms officer. He was then also the US Natl. Pistol Champion.


I knew that about Colts and asked why he didn't just buy S&W .38-44's if he wanted a .38 that large. He said it was because the Colt men were nicer to him; the S&W salesmen were snobs.


I think that round butt four-incher in the OP would be a good buy if it's in time and if the buyer is willing to pay a gunsmith to regulate the sights if need be. Some come okay. I had a NS .45 that shot dead-on when I got it. Of course, a prior owner might have had the barrel turned, for all I know.


That .45 Colt shot right along with my S&W M-29 and that's saying something.

The round butt four-inch gun with walnut stocks as in the OP here is my favorite form of the PPS.

The issue of Plus P ammo is complex and is often discussed in the ammo forum here.


All I'll say now is that in the 1970's, Colt advised sending steel frame guns of this size back for factory exam after 3,000 rounds of Plus P. The light alloy Cobra and Agent were to be factory examined after each 1,000 rounds.


One thing they checked for was frame stretching.


DWalt is correct that Colt at one time did "list" the .38-44 ammo as suitable in these small guns. See Haven & Belden's, The Colt Revolver, 1836-1940.


BUT I think this was ad hype to sell guns. Yes, the small Colt .38's would safely fire those Hi-Velocity loads. But recoil was heavy and much use would cause excess wear to the guns.

I was also in TANKS, Camp Lejune, 2nd TANKS till '87.

"DWalt is correct that Colt at one time did "list" the .38-44 ammo as suitable in these small guns. See Haven & Belden's, The Colt Revolver, 1836-1940."

Not only that, but the Remington ammunition catalogs of the 1930s (when the .38-44 cartridge was introduced), state that the .38-44 could be used in any .38 Special revolver (presumably including even those from the turn of the 20th century), the only downside caution given being that lighter-frame revolvers will have heavier recoil. I have yet to see any actual peak chamber pressure measurements of the .38-44 cartridge, but by calculation using Quickload, it must be at least 25K psi, substantially greater than that of the +P .38 Special.