Hey All, first post! I'm seeking info on my original 1861 Colt. The strange thing is, it has the barrel and loading lever assembly of a 1861, but the frame and the rest are numbered to a 1851! Could this be a factory thrown together "Franken-Colt"? I know they did a lot of weird things with spare parts to get guns out to the soldiers during the war, and maybe this is one of them? The 141xxx SN comes back as a 1851 made in 1863.vThanks for your input! Brandon
Mixed Parts 1861/1851 Quiestion
- Thread starter BrandonB
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Tommygunn
Member
Don't the 1851 and 1861 use the same frame? I thought so.....but I could be wrong.
My understanding is that everything aft of the barrel assembly is the same.
Fingers McGee
Member
That is correct. The 1861 was originally called the Improved Belt Pistol of Navy Caliber. The improvements being the barrel, loading lever & catch.
Ephraim Kibbey
Member
Is the serial number on the bottom of the barrel different from those on the frame, trigger guard and the grip butt?
Crawdad1
Member
I found nothing in my limited library on Colt percussion revolvers.
Has this revolver been in your possession or your family's possession long? It could be a field repair or any number of things.
Has this revolver been in your possession or your family's possession long? It could be a field repair or any number of things.
AlexanderA
Member
From the pictures that looks like a legit 1861. I would question the source that says the serial number is a 1851. Mistakes were often made in the records. You have the uncontrovertible physical evidence.
Crawdad1
Member
I have a total of 38,843 1861 Navy revolvers were produced between 1861 to 1873. On the 1861 frames should be mark on its left side COLTS/PATENT in 2 lines which is not present on your revolver.
An archive letter will clear things up for you.
An archive letter will clear things up for you.
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Crawdad1
Member
There's no COLTS/PATENT marking on that frame. There isn't even a remnant of that marking on your frame. But all of the cylinder engraving is gone also so that may not be a big deal.
A factory archive letter is the first place I would start.
A factory archive letter is the first place I would start.
Crawdad1
Member
For value you would have to bring it to a collector and have him look at it closely.
Do you have something like this,
http://bulletin.accurateshooter.com...ver-sells-for-record-977500-price-at-auction/
I don't think you do. But you do have a nice original Colt and they usually command a pretty nice hunk of change.
Do you have something like this,
http://bulletin.accurateshooter.com...ver-sells-for-record-977500-price-at-auction/
I don't think you do. But you do have a nice original Colt and they usually command a pretty nice hunk of change.
BSA1
member
Collecting or Collector's value is a whole another world way beyond any information in this forum.
You do have a nice looking Colt. You probably already know this but do NOT CLEAN your gun or refinish the grips. The value of many old guns has been lost when well-meaning owners remove the original finish (called patina) thinking it helps to make the gun look newer. Just give your gun a light coat of gun oil.
You do have a nice looking Colt. You probably already know this but do NOT CLEAN your gun or refinish the grips. The value of many old guns has been lost when well-meaning owners remove the original finish (called patina) thinking it helps to make the gun look newer. Just give your gun a light coat of gun oil.
Ephraim Kibbey
Member
This web site is Colt's serial number lookup:
http://www.colt.com/Customer-Services/Serial-Number-Lookup
BrandonB's number comes back as almost everything but an 1861.
http://www.colt.com/Customer-Services/Serial-Number-Lookup
BrandonB's number comes back as almost everything but an 1861.
Ephraim Kibbey
Member
It would be interesting to see if Colt records contained information about the barrel being replaced on this gun (as an 1851) with the newer 1861 style and it being numbered accordingly.
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