Good reminders goucho1,

Indeed, as the Police Positive Special, and, the Detective Special, were in the same Serial Numbering...it is not possible to tell at a glance, if one is seeing a Police Positive Special, which was later re-Barrelled with a Detective Special Barrel of the same period as it's Frame...or, if one is looking at a normal and intact Detective Special.

No doubt this re-Barreling was done at times, and can be done today also, using old orphan DS Barrels elected to match the time poeriod of the PPS Frame.

A Colt 'Letter' would likely solve that question of course.

I myself do not know what a factory Cut-Away would be expected to bring on say Gunbroker, if this Revolver 'lettered' as having left the Colt Factory this way.

As you correctly point out, this is possibly not the same as, nor should be spoken of as, being a 'Fitz Special', since that phrase usually has come to denote a Bobbed Hammer and also a Cut-Away Trigger Bow which can actuall ybe attributed, one way or another, to the actual Hand of Mr. Fitzgerald.

But all this is a little vague or imperfect, since at least my understanding is, that such mods were done by Colts without Mr. Fitzgerald having touched them, as well as that Mr. Fitzgerald himself at times only did the Cut-Away and left the Hammer be as-is, or did a 'Hammer Bob' and left the Trigger Bow intact, and did either to Revolvers sent in for it which had already been in use a while and hence would never 'Letter' as having shipped that way, so...I guess we live with these vagueries of what to call these old variations for now, and even how to decide if a candidate is a Colt modification or a Modification done by someone else.

If it has the "VP" where it belongs to be a Colt Factory item, probably we would be alright to call it a "Fitz Special", if it in fact 'Letters' as having shipped that way, when it falls within the period when Mr. Fitzgerald was known to have been active at Colt...or if there is a chain of provenance which specificially mentions the modification or term, in cases where a Revolver was sent in for the mods, rather than having been ordered that way.

Where, Revolvers sent in for the modification some time after they had been bought and carried a while, to have the modifications done by Colt or done by Mr. Fitzgerald, would never 'letter' as having shipped that way...and might not have gotten a little 'Star' stamped on to them either, so, it is all a little messy! And, those s-h-o-u-l-d have the "VP' at the rear, but they may not.




So I am out of my depth on the aspect of proposing an evaluation for Value, as for whether on a gamble it would be a good investment or not at whatever the present Seller's price is.


I myself like old 'period' Cut Downs and Modifieds, whether done privately or by Colt's...so I would be happy, regardless.

I made a tribute to 'Fitz' out of a 1960s S&W Model 36 many years ago for Pocket Carry when I was riding my Motocycle a lot.

Does not work as well of course with the '5 Screw' era S&Ws...