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Action,andabout51,200were
madebeforeproductionstopped
in1905—and41,000ofthose
weremadebefore1900.Ithad
thesamebarrel-lengthoptions
asthePeacemaker.
Swinging ig
Colt’s product line didn’t see
another major change until 1889,
but that change was seismic. As
the 19th century drew to a close,
Colt redesigned its entire revolver
line around the swing-out cylin-
der. Colt was the first to utilize the
swing-out cylinder, a characteris-
tic common to virtually all revolv-
ers since. It allowed for simultane-
ous ejection, like S&W top-break
revolvers, but with the advantage
of a much stronger solid frame.
In 1889, “Colt’s New Navy,” a self-
cocking double action in .38 Short
or Long Colt was accepted by the
U.S. Navy. Civilians could
buy it in either .38 or .41
Colt caliber. An amazing
31,000 were sold by 1894.
The seminal 1889
design had no bolt to
secure the cylinder in
alignment with the barrel.
Instead, it used dual pro-
jections on the revolver’s
hand to grasp one tooth
on the enlarged ratchet
at the rear of the cylin-
der. Clever in concept, it
wasn’t particularly solid.
Continuous improvements
were made to the basic
design throughout the
1890s, as well as Army sales, which resulted
in a name change to the “Colt’s New Army
Double Action Revolver” (Models 1892
and 1895). About 115,000 of these new
medium-sized revolvers were sold by1900,
chambered in .38 or .41 Colt.
In 1893, Colt introduced its New Pocket
Double Action Revolver (Model 1895
Pocket) in .32 Long or Short Colt, which
themselves were new smokeless-powder
loadings. These guns were offered with 2½-,
3½- or 6-inch barrels. The basic lockwork in
this revolver proved the basis for all subse-
quent Colts until 1969. In total, 30,000 were
made before production ended in 1905, with
11,900 being completed before 1900.
In 1896, Colt changed the grip
frame of the New Pocket Double
Action to a square butt and cham-
bered it in the company’s new,
more powerful .32 Colt New Police
cartridge. This pistol was christened
the New Police Double Action and
was selected by New York City
Police Commissioner (and future
president) Theodore Roosevelt as
the duty pistol for his officers. The
pistol was manufactured until 1908,
with a total of 49,500 made, 7,300
of them before 1900.
The trend with Colt’s new
swing-out cylinder double actions
was leaning toward smaller calibers
until the company introduced the
large-frame New Service Double
Action in 1898. Chambered in .45
Colt, .44-40 Winchester and similar
heavy calibers, it was rugged, reli-
able and more than a worthy suc-
cessor to the Peacemaker. The New
Service stayed in produc-
tion, with some improve-
ments, until 1944, with an
astonishing 356,000 pistols
made. However, coming late
to the party as it did, only
250 were made before 1900.
As you can see from
the comparatively huge
numbers of double actions
produced before 1900, they
quickly found acceptance
with late 19th century con-
sumers and were a fairly
common sight in the West
at the turn of the 20th
century. It is ironic that
Colt should finish out the
19th century as the company began it, with
a single-action revolver. In 1897, a target
version of the old Peacemaker was finally
introduced with a more vertical grip frame
and a lower, broader hammer. It was named
the Bisley Model Colt, after the famous
English shooting competitions, and 44,350
were made from 1897 to 1912. ✪
GUNS OF THE OLD WEST 73
