My First Colt Revolver

i8mtm · #1 08-08-2009, 02:14 AM

Browsing at the local fun store....I found this gem. A Colt New Service Target that has been professionally cut to a snubby. Caliber .45 Long Colt.

I know this is a S&W forum, and S&W is what I focus on, but I just had to bring this puppy home.

It had arrived in the gun shop the same day I found it. The story is, a daughter was cleaning out the kitchen drawer of her elderly or deceased (?) mother and found the revolver. She didn't want it, so she sold it to the gun shop.

I have never seen a better fit of stocks to frame before. The stocks are so gorgeous, I was able to easily overlook the finish. The front target sight has been masterfully reattached to the barrel. I suspect the "conversion" was done a long time ago. Lock-up is excellent. Double action pull is heavy, but smooth. Single action pull is like snapping a glass rod! I am pretty sure this is the "Target" version of the New Service because of the bead sight and the checkered grip strap and trigger-face.

The bore cleaned up beautifully. I haven't shot her yet, but I intend to soon. Serial number is #317xxx with a large "N" underneath.

Best of all......I got her for $200 - "Out-the-Door." I know almost nothing about Colt Revolver's, and I realize the chopped barrel destroys collect-ability, but I was thrilled to pick up this "classic" for what I feel was a bargain.

So I thought I would share some pics, and I welcome any additional info on this model.

In particular, would this gun be safe to shoot commercial .45 Colt ammo out of? Anything to watch out for?

Thanks!

i8mtm

Here are some additional pictures:

http://i491.photobucket.com/albums/r...0388Medium.jpg

http://i491.photobucket.com/albums/r...0389Medium.jpg

http://i491.photobucket.com/albums/r...0390Medium.jpg

http://i491.photobucket.com/albums/r...0391Medium.jpg

http://i491.photobucket.com/albums/r...0393Medium.jpg

http://i491.photobucket.com/albums/r...0394Medium.jpg

http://i491.photobucket.com/albums/r...0396Medium.jpg

http://i491.photobucket.com/albums/r...0398Medium.jpg

http://i491.photobucket.com/albums/r...0399Medium.jpg

MR. IHC · #2 08-08-2009, 02:30 AM

nice gun, i think it was a great deal!

Cocked & Locked · #3 08-08-2009, 07:19 AM

Very Nice! Of course I kinda like Colt New Service snubs myself.

Joe Kent · #4 08-08-2009, 07:43 AM

Very neat, I would have bought it in a heartbeat. It would be interesting to know the history behind it. It was an expensive gun and as far as collectibiltyis concerned, it's worth way more than what you paid. Again, extremely neat find.

tabs · #5 08-08-2009, 08:02 AM

All the pics, but not the one I want to see, and that is the top of the barrel. Does it show patent dates?

By the SN it is a 1923 pistol.

I have 3 NS Targets, & a Shooting Master in 357.

Should have no problem in shooting commercial 45 LC.

TSQUARED · #6 08-08-2009, 09:02 AM

You purchased a nice revolver. One only wishes the barrel had not been chopped.

dkees · #7 08-08-2009, 09:09 AM

Good job!! Those grips are beautiful. That is a cool piece of machinery!!!

Hyperion · #8 08-08-2009, 09:16 AM

You stole it! You might check into the value of the grips alone. I bought a Colt Officers Model Target (reblued) last year and posted questions about it in the Colt Forum. Some said the grips were worth more than the revolver itself!

2152hq · #9 08-08-2009, 09:25 AM

Looks like a N/S Target that was cut down. The flat top frame, windage adj rear site, checkered grip straps and trigger, and the elevation adj front sight look to be all Target features/New Service.
The checkering pattern on the grips is a Colt pattern from the era but I can't be sure the checkering done is original,,maybe just recut.

Nice find! Certainly worth the price IMHO. I'd have grabbed that one in a heartbeat..can't ask for a better (Colt) caliber.

m657 · #10 08-08-2009, 09:42 AM

GREAT FIND!!!

Thanks for the photos. If you grow weary of it and want your money back....just call....*kaff*kaff*........

i8mtm · #11 08-08-2009, 05:39 PM

Well she shoots good, but the gunsmith that chopped the barrel way back when used the original target bead sight. It is too high for the snubby barrel.

I painted a sight line on the base of the front sight. I'll use that the next time I take her out.

And for those who asked here are some pics of the top of the barrel and my target.

Mickey D · #12 08-08-2009, 05:49 PM

Very nice conversion. The whole package looks sweet.

haggis · #13 08-08-2009, 06:29 PM

You probably don't want to know what that thing would be worth, unmodified. How about 10 to 20 times what you paid for it?

BTW, the stocks are correct for the period (Improved Model New Service Target) and are worth more than what you paid for the whole gun.

Buck

Iggy · #14 08-08-2009, 07:36 PM

That is a beautiful gun.

You did very well.

Duke426 · #15 08-08-2009, 08:34 PM

Very cool piece of fightin' iron!!!

jag312 · #16 08-08-2009, 09:25 PM

For $200, I would have pulled my wallet from my pocket so fast that I would have ripped my pants off. If it was my gun, I would start looking for a replacement barrel and then sending it to someone that knew how to restore the gun to its original configuration.

Wyatt Burp · #17 08-08-2009, 10:29 PM

Are you kidding me?! I used to have a Target Model and I finally got a cut down New Service recently. But you scored a cut down Target Model?! You now have the coolest cut down New Service and can be completely guilt free shooting and carrying it all you want. I'm really happy for you but not for the guy who sold it to you 'cause he won't be able to sit down for a month! Here's the same old pic. of my short 1917 .45. And again, congradulations.

i8mtm · #18 08-09-2009, 01:10 AM

Thanks Guys!

I guess even a blind squirrel finds a nut now and then!

I remember reading an article about how Elmer Keith had designed a front sight like an "E" and he used the 3 tines of the "E" for different elevation holds. I am going to use a painted white line (using sight paint) to see if I can figure out a "combat" zero using the sight that is on it.

I really enjoy the "retro" look and feel of this hunk of American steel.

Wyatt Burp · #19 08-09-2009, 08:22 AM

Here's a holster that unfortunatly isn't mine, and just what you need because of that front sight.

i8mtm · #20 08-09-2009, 11:21 AM

Hi Wyatt,

What make is that holster?

I have a Galco N-frame holster for a 4" barrel that the Colt will fit in to.

I am guessing it will be easier to find a used but serviceable "N-Frame" holster (even if I have to cut it down) then a Colt New Service Holster.

I like the Tyler-T grip you have on yours as well. I might have to track one down to try on this Colt.

Thanks

Wyatt Burp · #21 08-09-2009, 12:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by i8mtm

Hi Wyatt,

What make is that holster?

I have a Galco N-frame holster for a 4" barrel that the Colt will fit in to.

I am guessing it will be easier to find a used but serviceable "N-Frame" holster (even if I have to cut it down) then a Colt New Service Holster.

I like the Tyler-T grip you have on yours as well. I might have to track one down to try on this Colt.

Thanks

This is the great Berns-Martin open front holster Elmer Keith was so fond of, and that so many people on this forum except you and me own. This holster in my picture belongs to John Witty of this forum.

Wyatt Burp · #22 08-09-2009, 01:53 PM

I have a pachmyr grip adapter. You can have it if you want. It ain't perfect but it works. Here it is next to a mint but probably refinished .45 colt from 1932. E-mail me from my personal files if interested.

Wyatt Burp · #23 08-09-2009, 05:09 PM

Got your message and sent one back. Looks like your gun was made in 1923. Here's a picture of a N.S. Target Model vintage 1900 I used to have. 44 Russian bored out to 44 Special. It shot great but the rear sight came loose sometimes (mild loads, too). Dumbest thing I ever did was sell this thing.

BLACKHAWKNJ · #24 08-09-2009, 06:53 PM

I note that job was so professionally done that the lettering is centered on the barrel.

Wheelgunner840 · #25 08-09-2009, 07:12 PM

Fantastic find at that price. Do not dwell on what it was worth before being cut down. You have a very unique piece of history there. Enjoy!

WG840

i8mtm · #26 08-09-2009, 08:07 PM

Wyatt Burp,

I have a question about the New Service Target you posted.

I notice the stocks appear to have a similar "fleur-de-lis" pattern as my gun, but I don't see the "Colt" medallions. Was this the way the earlier stocks came?

The reason I ask is, I also posted pretty much the identical pictures on the "Colt Forum" and someone gave me the same date on my gun (1923) and everyone agreed that I got a good deal, but one person thought my stocks might be reproduction and not genuine Colt.

Being a newbie to Colt's he might well be right, but if they are reproduction stocks, they are OLD ones. I removed them to clean and wax. The grip screw was full of old grease and grunge, and the stocks fit the frame so tightly I had to use a razor blade to (carefully) break the seal to the frame. It was obvious to me they had not been off the gun in years and years.

Here is the link to the discussion on Colt Forum:
My First Colt Revolver - ColtForum

And attached is a picture of "real" New Service Target Stocks a member of the Colt Forum posted. He notes the medallions are more "cupped" on his originals.

Obviously, since my gun is chopped, it really doesn't have any "collect-ability" and I got a great deal, so I am happy.

Also, I am not really knowledgeable about Colt's so my stocks could very well be "fakes" or "reproductions." However, given the provenance of this gun, it just seems odd that a pistol that was cut down years ago and spent most of its life in a little old ladies kitchen drawer would have been outfitted with fake stocks.

Anyone here have any opinions on this? Did Colt make variations of their "fleur-de-lis" stocks?

Thanks again for all your help.

This is a great forum!

Wyatt Burp · #27 08-09-2009, 08:23 PM

I saw your post over on the Colt forum, too. Someone had a good point about the medallions. I "think" medallions of that period were all "deep dish" style. Nutmeg makes those now. Your's aren't like that. The gun I had had the same flour-di-lis checkering pattern but they didn't use any medallions then (1900 era). You're checkering gave me the impression some brilliant checkerer did it later. I don't know enough about this stuff that my opinion should have much credence. I haven't looked at your gun recently but the grips looked very sharp as I recall. Maybe that's why I wondered about them. My old target N.S. had well worn grips as you can see. The authenticy of your grips would just be an extra bonus to what I consider the best deal in a classic cool gun I think I've ever seen, based on my interests, of course.

Wyatt Burp · #28 08-09-2009, 08:33 PM

Hey,i8, check out the grips on this 1905 Colt first Model Officers Model .38 Special. Just for comparison. And I just looked at your latest close-up of your grips and they looked really good. Maybe they are real. Look at the old style medallions Nutmeg makes now and compare. They are in Conneticutt. Oh, here's my old elegant Officer's Model. Keep your eyes peeled. It will be on sale soon at a gun forum near you!

2152hq · #29 08-10-2009, 07:27 PM

There is a deep dish Colt medallion,,also the same but with the 'horse' facing forward on both sides of the gun (requires 2 different medallions, left and right),,& the flat faced style that are in these grips.
Some were some early grips made w/o medallions early on.
Different era's of manufacture can be layed out as to what style was used generally just like the S&W medallions.
In my orig post I stated that the checkering was of the correct layout/style of the period, but perhaps it had been a recut job.

Differences do appear in the pattern as different checkerers cut it and naturally altered it slightly, even if not intentionally.
A search of Colt history will turn up the correct style of medallion for the mfg period.

Personally I would not be that awfully concerned as that is all about the collectors angle of the gun. Great if they are original,,not a big deal if they're not IMHO.
But it is as it sits one of the neatest finds I've seen in quite a while.

i8mtm · #30 08-10-2009, 09:05 PM

Hi 2152hq,

Thanks for the info!

And I agree, it is not really that important if the grips are original - it is just the "gun nerd" in me that likes to know things. I have a lot of S&W revolvers and exactly ONE Colt - this one.

It *is* one cool bad-***** snubbie.....and definitely the best gun buy I have found in quite awhile.

I just need a Fedora and a period shoulder or belt holster and I will be all set!

i8mtm · #31 08-17-2009, 03:11 AM

I want to send out a big "THANK-YOU" to forum member Wyatt Burp for kindly sending me a Pachmayr grip adapter for my Colt New Service revolver.

I like the way the grip adapter feels. I think I might eventually get a Tyler-T for this gun, but the Pachmayr is good for now.

Thanks Wyatt!

I have attached pics of the gun with the grip adapter and also with my "front-sight modification" (i.e. a white line painted on the sight base to use as a modified aiming point).

Because the barrel on the gun was chopped and the gunsmith reattached the front target blade, she shoots low. I have taken a guess where my aim-point should be to match point-of-impact at 7 yards or so. I haven't tried it yet, but if I guessed wrong, it will be easy to remove the sight-paint and try again.

Cheers,

i8mtm

Wyatt Burp · #32 08-17-2009, 07:24 AM

Your welcome. I had a T-grip that I swear was on a Colt Police Positive that fit's my New Service too. It's on there now. You'll like the t-grip better I bet, when you get it. I think the Pach. adapter is more retro as I think they go back farther (formerly Mershon?). Don't get that front sight caught in your pants pocket!