The Pietta Python

while Colt is getting ready to go bankrupt......

I have owned and sold many, many Pythons over the years and IMHO the Big Snake is one of the biggest stroke jobs ever put out. While it's true than many early Pythons were beautifully finished I would prefer any K or L frame S&W with a high quality blue job over most any Python I've ever seen. Pythons were only for folks with quite big hands as the distance between the backstrap and the trigger is too long for most shooters; the cylinder hands were quite prone to wear out quickly (causing timing problems) and quality control on Pythons made after the early 1970s was quite spotty. The last Python I personally bought new was a 6 inch nickel in 1980. This gun out of the box had the front of the cylinder contacting the rear of the barrel, it had to be retimed after about 2500 rounds of lead wadcutters and the cylinders were bored so small that the empty wadcutter cases had to be beaten out of the cylinder with a wooden dowel and hammer.....so much for this being a hand-fitted gun. Give me a S&W any day all day long over a Python....
 
Fishinfool said:
I own a Pietta Colt Army cap & ball revolver copy. It is really very well made and finished. I think I paid about $175 for it a couple years ago. That would be a $500 - $600 revolver if made in the states.
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I bought one of those a couple years ago. I was very surprised at the quality for a sub $250.00 gun. Here is mine......NOT a real Colt......but it does look nice for the price paid. Who knows.....a replica Python might be possible.
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Budnjax said:
I have owned and sold many, many Pythons over the years and IMHO the Big Snake is one of the biggest stroke jobs ever put out. While it's true than many early Pythons were beautifully finished I would prefer any K or L frame S&W with a high quality blue job over most any Python I've ever seen. Pythons were only for folks with quite big hands as the distance between the backstrap and the trigger is too long for most shooters; the cylinder hands were quite prone to wear out quickly (causing timing problems) and quality control on Pythons made after the early 1970s was quite spotty. The last Python I personally bought new was a 6 inch nickel in 1980. This gun out of the box had the front of the cylinder contacting the rear of the barrel, it had to be retimed after about 2500 rounds of lead wadcutters and the cylinders were bored so small that the empty wadcutter cases had to be beaten out of the cylinder with a wooden dowel and hammer.....so much for this being a hand-fitted gun. Give me a S&W any day all day long over a Python....
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I've had the opposite problem with a couple of M-19's. They'd accept FIRED .38 S&W cases shot in a .38-200 revolver, and extraction was difficult with .357 ammo. All brands have had quality control problems. But too little has been written about these in the vaunted Python, a much overrated gun, in my opinion. BTW, I owned two of them. Nice, but both had timing problems, so I sold them and bought M-27's.

My hand is large enough to use the Colt .41 frame, but I can't get past those timing issues in all pre-MK III Colts. Colt should have had those sorted out in a re-design of all their DA revolvers by the 1920's, but never bothered.

BTW, neither Python shot better than an M-27 or 28. All would put six shots in a ragged hole at 25 yards, and I can't shoot better than that.
 
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I have a Pietta Colt SAA clone and it is very well done. The fit and finish on it is excellent.
 
There is a LOT of wailing and gnashing of teeth on the colt forums about this.... and a lot of crow eating as well. too funny.

I say - 80 percent of the quality of a "real" python and 100 percent of the utility.... for 25 percent of the cost?? Sign me up for a pre-order!!
 
Texas Star said:
Has the Python actually been discontinued? I don't keep up a lot with Colt. All they make that I want is a rather basic stainless .45 auto.
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Not too long ago, I looked at what may well have been one of the last Pythons made, or at least close to the end of the line.

The box had a test target in it dated mid-2000 if I remember right, which I think is about when the custom shop finally quit making them.

It was unfired, and surprisingly enough was under $2K-apparently the late production Pythons aren't as highly valued.

As to the subject of the thread-I have an Uberti Cattleman in 45 Colt(SAA clone) that I've shot the snot out of. I can't say enough good things about it. The gun is well built, reliable, accurate, and pretty darn good looking(the color case hardening on the frame is as good as anything I've seen coming out of Hartford, CT in recent years). The "bluing" is more of a matte black, although Uberti does make a higher priced version with more of a true, high polish blue(although the ones I've seen are a bit too blue for my taste). Mine was also about 1/3 or 1/4 the price of a real Colt. I looked at a used but unfired 3rd generation around the same time as I bought mine for $1100, and I honestly couldn't see a whole lot of difference in overall fit and finish.

The Colt I looked at was built on a black powder frame, which is interesting for a safe queen, but for a range gun the smokeless frame is a whole lot better since I do find myself occasionally pulling the cylinder at the range(especially when I shoot black powder). The only annoying thing about the Uberti is the "safety" built into the cylinder pin, which acts as a hammer block if the cylinder pin is pushed into too far(there are two grooves on the pin, one of which is designed expressly for this purpose)

I'll hold of judgement on the new Python until I see one in hand, but if it's anywhere near as good as my single action, I'll be in line to buy one.
 
Dennis The B said:
It does bear some resemblance to a Python, but...

IT AIN'T NO PYTHON!!
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The parts are interchangeable... so it IS a python.

Your statement makes as much sense as saying that if a 1911 doest say "Colt" on the side... it isnt a 1911.

Out of the box; It will lack the fit and finish, and the action smoothness of a "real" python.

So what? A trip to Frank Glenn for "Python Ultimate Action job" and to Fords for a "Master Blue Finish" and it will work better and look as good as any "COLT" Python ever made... for PEANUTS compared to what an equivalent condition Colt would run.
 
achijusan said:
The parts are interchangeable... so it IS a python.

Your statement makes as much sense as saying that if a 1911 doest say "Colt" on the side... it isnt a 1911.

Out of the box; It will lack the fit and finish, and the action smoothness of a "real" python.

So what? A trip to Frank Glenn for "Python Ultimate Action job" and to Fords for a "Master Blue Finish" and it will work better and look as good as any "COLT" Python ever made... for PEANUTS compared to what an equivalent condition Colt would run.
Click to expand...
Parts interchangeability doesn't make it a Python, just as Italian made parts may fit a Colt Single Action Army; but an Italian made SAA is still just a copy.

Not to put too fine a point on things, but if it's not a Colt, it's not a 1911. It may be a "1911 style" pistol, but a Kimber, Springer, or S&W will never be a genuine 1911.

Out of the box, the Pietta is not fitted and finished the way a Python was. You will have to pay extra to have the action and finish redone. In the end, you still have a Python look-alike, and it will never be a Colt Python.
 
Dennis The B said:
Parts interchangeability doesn't make it a Python, just as Italian made parts may fit a Colt Single Action Army; but an Italian made SAA is still just a copy.

Not to put too fine a point on things, but if it's not a Colt, it's not a 1911. It may be a "1911 style" pistol, but a Kimber, Springer, or S&W will never be a genuine 1911.

Out of the box, the Pietta is not fitted and finished the way a Python was. You will have to pay extra to have the action and finish redone. In the end, you still have a Python look-alike, and it will never be a Colt Python.
Click to expand...

No kidding...

I NEVER SAID IT WAS A "COLT" Python.

SO WHAT?

"Suppose you see a bird walking around in a farm yard. This bird has no label that says 'duck'. But the bird certainly looks like a duck. Also, he goes to the pond and you notice that he swims like a duck. Then he opens his beak and quacks like a duck. Well, by this time you have probably reached the conclusion that the bird is a duck, whether he's wearing a label or not." - Ambassador Richard Cunningham Patterson Jr.

Therefore, In actual FACT... It IS a PYTHON. Albeit a PIETTA PYTHON.

Yet AGAIN... SO WHAT??

A Kimber 1911 IS as much a 1911 as a COLT 1911 is. A Uberti 1860 Army is as much an 1860 Army as a COLT 1960 Army is. A DPMS AR-15 is as much an AR-15 as a COLT AR-15 is. A Cimarron SAA is as much an SAA as a COLT SAA.

Your distinction is very nearly meaningless.

If the ONLY difference are the rollmarks, If the parts are interchangable, and the gun is made from the same specs as a python, then it IS BY ANY MEASURE a Python. Again, as I said - it is a "Pietta Python"... not a COLT PYTHON.

As you said - and I agree; the polish and action will likely not be QUITE the equal of a NIB factory fired only "Colt" Python... but I wager it will be closer than you and many others like. And that's good enough for me!

Ever hear of the "second Gen" and "third Gen" Colt signature series black powder percussion pistols? You know - the ones actually made by uberti? Marked as a Colt BY Colt?

I wouldnt be TOO awful surprised - if the Pietta Python sells well; to see a similar deal resulting in a "second Gen" Python... or even "Python II" from Colt... Would it be more expensive than the box stock Pietta ? Sure. Would it be remotely near the price of an old mint condition Colt Python ?

I think we all know the answer to that.

Made by Pietta, imported and finished by Colt. Trigger jobs and a nice Polish are not - all naysayers to the contrary; all THAT difficult.

In any event - I look forward to owning a PYTHON that I can actually carry and shoot; and use as guns are intended to be used, without worrying about fingerprints, carbon buildup, and honest wear.
 
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I'll buy one in ultimate stainless if they make it.Hopefully they improved the lockwork over the feeble Colt design.Thats what kept me away from Pythons when they were selling for $500.00.
 
So, let's say it's "not a Python." Who cares?

I heard that when RIA started making 1911's. Those turned out to be pretty good.

RIA's Colt lookalike "detective special" revolvers are starting to get some good reviews these days. Not Colts, but "pretty good."

Maybe these "Faux Pythons" will be "pretty good" too.
 
achijusan said:
No kidding...

I NEVER SAID IT WAS A "COLT" Python.

SO WHAT?

"Suppose you see a bird walking around in a farm yard. This bird has no label that says 'duck'. But the bird certainly looks like a duck. Also, he goes to the pond and you notice that he swims like a duck. Then he opens his beak and quacks like a duck. Well, by this time you have probably reached the conclusion that the bird is a duck, whether he's wearing a label or not." - Ambassador Richard Cunningham Patterson Jr.

Therefore, In actual FACT... It IS a PYTHON. Albeit a PIETTA PYTHON.

Yet AGAIN... SO WHAT??

A Kimber 1911 IS as much a 1911 as a COLT 1911 is. A Uberti 1860 Army is as much an 1860 Army as a COLT 1960 Army is. A DPMS AR-15 is as much an AR-15 as a COLT AR-15 is. A Cimarron SAA is as much an SAA as a COLT SAA.

Your distinction is very nearly meaningless.

If the ONLY difference are the rollmarks, If the parts are interchangable, and the gun is made from the same specs as a python, then it IS BY ANY MEASURE a Python. Again, as I said - it is a "Pietta Python"... not a COLT PYTHON.

As you said - and I agree; the polish and action will likely not be QUITE the equal of a NIB factory fired only "Colt" Python... but I wager it will be closer than you and many others like. And that's good enough for me!

Ever hear of the "second Gen" and "third Gen" Colt signature series black powder percussion pistols? You know - the ones actually made by uberti? Marked as a Colt BY Colt?

I wouldnt be TOO awful surprised - if the Pietta Python sells well; to see a similar deal resulting in a "second Gen" Python... or even "Python II" from Colt... Would it be more expensive than the box stock Pietta ? Sure. Would it be remotely near the price of an old mint condition Colt Python ?

I think we all know the answer to that.

Made by Pietta, imported and finished by Colt. Trigger jobs and a nice Polish are not - all naysayers to the contrary; all THAT difficult.

In any event - I look forward to owning a PYTHON that I can actually carry and shoot; and use as guns are intended to be used, without worrying about fingerprints, carbon buildup, and honest wear.
Click to expand...

You wrote that it was a Python. The Pietta 1955 is not a Python. That is not a distinction without a difference. Words mean things. It will always be an Italian interpretation of a Colt Python. And please note, that Pietta does not use the words "Colt" or "Python". Ergo, it's not a "Pietta Python", regardless your rant to the contrary.


We're not discussing ducks.

All the Italian reproductions are very careful in their naming conventions. None of them use the term Colt "1851 Navy", "1860 Army", "1873 Single Action Army"; or among S&W knockoffs, "Smith & Wesson Model 3 Russian (American), etc. The AR-15 name is still a copyrighted name owned by Colt. How they protect that copyright is up to them. That Uberti uses model designations in which the copyrights have expired is of no consequence.

The Pietta copy will be a copy, forever. I have no desire to own an Italian knockoff of a Colt Python. I own three, and they all get fired regularly.

And yes, I'm well aware of the Uberti revolvers made under license from Colt's Manufacturing.

You're living in a dream world if you believe that Colt will import a Pietta knockoff, and set up manufacturing to finish the action. Part of the allure of the Python is the superiority of the basic metal finishing. Colt no longer manufactures any revolvers. Colt is barely able to maintain it's 1911 pistol, AR-15 rifle, and Custom Shop businesses. Just where do you think the money will arise?

And I will be carrying and shooting my real Colt Pythons; and loving every minute of pleasure.

PS - I've also read and heard the same arguments about Seiko v. Rolex/Breitling/Omega.
 
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Nice! If I wanted a 357 the practical side of me would get a new 66 but the unpractical side wants the "PP".
Go to jay Leno's garage and watch him having a blast driving Argentine made copies of a Bugatti and an Alfa.
 
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