Colt 1860 Army Model, Civil War-Era Inspector Marked Blue & Case Colored 8” 6-Shot, Single Action Revolver, MFD 1863 Antique
Sold For: $2,022.00
LSB#: 161004RK09
Make: Colt
Model: 1860 Army
Serial Number: 137375
Year of Manufacture: 1863
Caliber: .44 Caliber Ball
Action Type: 6-Shot, Single Action, Cylinder Loaded Percussion Revolver
Markings: The top of the barrel is marked “ADDRESS COL. SAML COLT NEW-YORK U.S. AMERICA”. The underside of the barrel lug, underside of the frame, trigger guard plate and butt of the grip frame are marked with matching serial number “137375”. The back of the stock is marked “7375”, found again on the underside of the cylinder pin, barrel wedge and cylinder; the cylinder is marked “COLT’S PATENT / PATENTED SEPT 10th 1860”, with the famous Naval battle scene roll engraved, the front is marked “D”, found again twice on the outside and once on the right of the barrel; the left by the wedge appears to be marked “D1”. The left of the frame is marked “COLT’S / PATENT”. The right of the fore strap of the grip frame is marked “3”. The back of the stock has an “M” cartouche, the right side has a faded inspector mark in rectangle that could be “HBT” which would be correct for this serial number range. The underside of the fore strap appears to be marked “C”.
Barrel Length: 8”, Round
Sights / Optics: The front sight is a brass blade, fixed to the barrel. The rear sight is a small “V” notch in the hammer.
Stock Configuration & Condition: The grips are a one piece smooth walnut stock with a right side rectangle cartouche. The stock has a generally nice fit to the grip frame but some wood is bowed away from the grip frame on the upper front strap portions. The stock has some chip losses at the toe portions, along with scrape and compression marks. There are no visible cracks. The grips rate in about Good overall condition.
Type of Finish: Blue with Case Colored Frame & Hammer
Finish Originality: All Original
Bore Condition: The bore is dark and the rifling is worn but still defined. There is light to moderate erosion in the bore.
Overall Condition: This handgun retains about 5% of its metal finish, seen as a faint patch on the underside of the barrel and on a couple of the screw heads. The surfaces have developed light to dark mottled patina with spots of pitting and pin prick erosion. The barrel has heavy marks, the barrel wedge leaf is disconnected from the piece but provided. The brass trigger guard / fore strap of the grip frame has developed spots of dark patina with general handling marks. The wedge retaining screw and mainspring screw appear to be modern replacements, please see our pictures. Most of the screw head slots are strong with minimal tooling, the grip frame screws are slightly buggered. The markings are faded in areas, most are legible. Overall, this handgun rates in about Fair to Good condition.
Mechanics: The action functions correctly. The hammer has a strong mainspring, the cylinder produces moderate side to side and back play in full lockup of all 6 chambers. We did not fire this handgun. As with all used firearms, a thorough cleaning may be necessary to meet your maintenance requirements.
Box, Paperwork & Accessories: None.
Our Assessment: The Colt Model 1860 Army revolver was easily the most popular army revolver on both sides of the conflict during the American Civil War. Approximately 127,000 of these revolvers were purchased for use by Union forces and several of the Confederate states had obtained a few thousand before the start of the hostilities as well. The Model 1860 Army was the successor to the Third Model Dragoon and ranks third in total number produced of the various models of percussion Colt handguns. This revolver was made in 1863, dead heat in the middle of the American Civil War, with inspector markings and is all parts matching. The revolver certainly looks to have ‘been there and done that’, with a lot of character in its surface marks and overall look. This revolver represents an important piece of history, and it is not often that we see an original 1860 Army Model. This rare pistol is sure to catch the eyes of the Colt and U.S. small arms collectors. Please see our pictures and good luck.
