Special Baby Dragoon

Fingers, you have posted this on several forums. Check the others. There are replies.

Jim

In the white? Curious as to why they would sell it that way. It’s a beauty, but I’m confused by it.

It has very handsome grips, the figure of the wood reminds me of burl.
The box is clearly marked blanco for in the white.
Too bad that there isn't a database to be able to research more information about Uberti's catalog items and limited editions to compare it against.

Many of the original Colt 1849's were very ornate.
This one even has silver plating on the trigger guard and grip frame. --->>> https://www.rockislandauction.com/detail/59/1060/factory-engraved-colt-model-1849-pocket-revolver

And this one is so highly decorated with engraving and gold inlay that Colt didn't bother to apply the roll engraving on the cylinder. --->>> https://www.icollector.com/Colt-Mod...on-barrel-custom-engraved-and-multi_i19847075

Hmm...ive never shot a .31, ive heard two different opinions on these. One is that they are mainly just a toy and have no power and the other is that with the right ball/bullet and high quality (swiss or old Eynseford) 4f powder you get a good performing gun. Im a huge dan of .36 cal and feel its very underrated. Can the same be said about the .31 or is it truely just a weak small caliber with no accuracy?

TheOutlawKid said:

Hmm...ive never shot a .31, ive heard two different opinions on these. One is that they are mainly just a toy and have no power and the other is that with the right ball/bullet and high quality (swiss or old Eynseford) 4f powder you get a good performing gun. Im a huge dan of .36 cal and feel its very underrated. Can the same be said about the .31 or is it truely just a weak small caliber with no accuracy?

Click to expand...

These guns were intended for close self defense; say, across a card table. I've read a story of one incident where a guy defended himself (this in recent times, with a repro) and the ball penetrated his assailant's sternum and punctured his heart. The guy was D. R. T. But this was at close range.

My experience with them is they aren't very accurate .... just "good enough" to get the job done.

For self defense .... I recommend modern guns.

TheOutlawKid said:

Can the same be said about the .31 or is it truely just a weak small caliber with no accuracy?

Click to expand...

There are .32 S&W conversion cylinder for them.

Cap and Ball Wound Ballistics --->>> https://www.thehighroad.org/index.p...l-concealed-carry.865106/page-2#post-11425934

Calibre
Firearm
Bullet
FFFg
Velocity
Energy
1 Shot Stop

.31 Pocket
Baby Dragoon
46gr RB
11gr
821 fps
69 ft lb
30%

.36 Navy
Colt 1851 Navy
70gr RB
22gr
1038 fps
189 ft lb
59%

Back then they did not have the same quality of science when it came to ballistics as today. Small, light weight, portable multi-shot revolvers were new and well liked. Unlike other "boat anchor weight" pistols these could be comfortably carried and easily hidden.

There were no state of the art surgical facilities and penicillin as well as other antibiotics were not yet invented.

People knew that getting wounded could easily kill someone by bleeding out slowly or dying even slower from and infection so I imagine the danger of being shot must have been a big deterrent to anyone faced with the possibility. Knowing this may be enough to halt any escalation of hostilities upon sight of a firearm in a lot of cases.

Even today the sight of a firearm ends most hostilities before they escalate despite having a better chance of survival with proper medical care. Knowing that getting shot with even the smallest bullet presented a good possibility of a death sentence down the road may have made this even more likely in the old days.

i am sure colt any many of the other firearms makers of pocket pistols did not market their firearms as being weak and ineffective.

Fingers;

The folks at VTI have always been very friendly on the phone and by necessity must keep in touch with the manufacturers. You might call them and see if they can provide any background, assuming you have not already done so.

I shot one at a junk tin shed and it bounced off. Thought may be good for squirrels but not accurate enough at any distance. I like the looks of the 1862 .36 so I got what I thought would be compatible to make it into a .36. To my surprise the arbor hole is smaller... They make alot of noise and smoke but would just piss off some one wanting to harm you. Maybe a neck shot?

A round ball fired from a .31 Baby Dragoon into ballistic gel penetrated 11 - 13 inches.
It was loaded with 15 grains of 3F Goex, and not 4F or 777.

The testers claimed that the .31's performance exceeded or surpassed the FBI 12-18-inch threshold for handgun effectiveness in 10 % ordnance gel. --->>> https://www.guns.com/news/review/gu...-revolver-calibers-get-the-ballistic-gel-test

They also fired conical bullets into the ballistic gel from a Colt .36 and a Whitney Dragoon which penetrated 26" and 29" respectively.
They made a video of the test and wrote the article.

Fingers

Very interesting find! Your probably right about being left in the white as a possible blank canvas for an engraver. Still a handsome looking revolver just as it is!