Colt Cobra finally got to the range ...

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Old Dog

Old Dog

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Although I didn't want to drive an extra hour to get to my preferred outdoor range, so we went inside. First time the Cobra has been fired although I've had it a few weeks now.

Fit and finish on this piece is superb. I'm kinda growing fond of the low-key matte finish. Lock-up is extraordinary. This gun fits my hand better than any J-frame, points naturally and just feels great.

An assortment of .38 SPL was used: Some Ultramax re-man 158 gr LSWC, some R-P Golden Saber 125 gr +P, some R-P green box 158 gr SJHP +P, a buncha 158 gr LSCW of unknown origin, some WWB 130 gr FMJ, and a handful of Winchester 125 gr +P JHPs. All told, I only put about 96 rounds through the revolver.

The trigger pull on this piece in SA is absolutely amazing. In DA, about as smooth as my best, most-shot older Model 15 and a a tuned Model 19. Not being a Colt revolver guy, I quickly discover that the full trigger return from DA on these bad boys is a long, crunchy process involving four distinct clicks ... As a autoloader shooter who usually chases the reset when attempting precision shooting I had to get used to letting the trigger go all the way forward, but the DA pull is so smooth, it was easy to get good groups on follow-up shots firing a cylinder fairly quickly at 10 yards ...

Took me a few minutes to figure out that I needed to rest the red fiber optic dot all the way in the sight trough -- started shooting a little high -- and just align the sights using a convention POA. Fiber optic sights are great outdoors, but indoors, just not that noticeable to these aging eyes.

Accuracy was excellent. No issues whatsoever, and the revolver handled the lighter weight plus-Ps very well. With 158 grain LSWCs, was just a pussycat.

Don't have a holster for this yet, but it fit pretty well in a Kramer Belt Scabbard made for a Model 66 snubby. This gun's a keeper.

Cobra.jpg target.jpg
CobraX.jpg
 
Good shootin ill say that, but I have not been a fan of the newer Colt Cobras, I feel that if they were to make it in an all steel gun it should have been an updated Colt Magnum Carry, an all steel named the Cobra isnt what the original gun was about. Just my .02
 
The Evangelist Cowboy said:
Good shootin ill say that, but I have not been a fan of the newer Colt Cobras, I feel that if they were to make it in an all steel gun it should have been an updated Colt Magnum Carry, an all steel named the Cobra isnt what the original gun was about. Just my .02
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Well you'll have to get over it. OP, that is a fine gun and the name is the least of it. Congrats. I saw one at the LGS the other day and was heavily tempted.
 
Cooldill said:
Well you'll have to get over it. OP, that is a fine gun and the name is the least of it. Congrats. I saw one at the LGS the other day and was heavily tempted.
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That's a strange statement, as to say that it truly bothers me to the point that would "need to get over it" Are they good guns? Yes they are, just stating the name and even the caliber for the material was offputting.
 
I just added one of the new Cobras to my EDC rotation. Great shooter. Waiting on my LGS to get one of the Night Cobras in for me. Want it for town carry. Love this gun...smoother than my old Agent, better sights. Can’t wait for Colt to bring one out with a 4” barrel and adjustable rear sight and call it a “Viper”. Always wanted one of the originals but they were out of my price range back then. Would be a great trail gun. This one takes the J-Frames to the woodshed. I prefer the small guns in 38+P over 357 Magnum. My J-Frames are Magnums but I carry 38’s for antipersonnel use. Recoil is too much and recovery too slow with the Magnums. 38 is plenty good enough in these light guns.
 
Crowman said:
I just added one of the new Cobras to my EDC rotation. Great shooter. Waiting on my LGS to get one of the Night Cobras in for me. Want it for town carry. Love this gun...smoother than my old Agent, better sights. Can’t wait for Colt to bring one out with a 4” barrel and adjustable rear sight and call it a “Viper”. Always wanted one of the originals but they were out of my price range back then. Would be a great trail gun. This one takes the J-Frames to the woodshed. I prefer the small guns in 38+P over 357 Magnum. My J-Frames are Magnums but I carry 38’s for antipersonnel use. Recoil is too much and recovery too slow with the Magnums. 38 is plenty good enough in these light guns.
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It's simply a neat gun; the trigger is what astounded me, but then it fits my hand so well and points wonderfully ... yeah, I sure didn't expect to like this gun as much as I do ... "takes the J-frames to the woodshed" -- pretty much agree with everything you're saying!
 
Same here, I like mine better than my J frames. :thumbup:
I sure hope Colt can keep it rolling, a 4" adjustable-sighted .38+P (or even better a .327!!) would certainly sneak in front of a few others I would like to own ;)
 
I'm having posting gremlins again... stuff keeps double posting.
 
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Now that I’ve Got a standard Cobra for my daytime EDC, I want to add a DAO Night Cobra to the stable for town carry. Got my LGS looking for me, plus going shopping at an upcoming gun show. Colt hit this one outta da park.
 
Handled one the other day. Nice fit and finish. Very nice trigger. Lockup was very solid. If I had $700 sitting around I didn't need I would have bought it. I have no Colt guns, and would like to.
 
OP, I see your point about naming conventions, but after all its a brand new design using an old designs' name. There is always room for history. I like the revolver and wouldn't mind giving the new Colt a go.
 
It's a steel gun, which does not seem to be practical for ankle or pocket carry, even more so with the hammer spur. I have not seen the Nite version available yet. Am I right or do a lot of people carry SP101, K6S, and Model 60's that way? As a belt gun, it's a handy size. It fits my hand better than a j frame, but if it won't work well on the ankle or in the pocket, it seems very easy to accommodate a larger gun that will chamber .357 magnum on the belt or in a shoulder harness. The earlier Colt Cobras and Agents were aluminum alloy framed. This one is more like a King Cobra or snub nosed Trooper, but I'm skeptical it has the quality of those guns.

Don't get me wrong, I am very interested in this Cobra or the Nite version. I recently bought a j frame and I am very disappointed in present-day S&W quality. It's going back to S&W and I need something while they take up to 6 weeks to resolve the problem. Back in the day, 25 years ago, I was a Colt fan and never came across a S&W I cared for. But when I recently started carry after that long, Colt didn't seem like an option unless I wanted to pay $4000 for a used Python that would probably need smith work sooner or later.

I had a gun store salesmen dismiss the new Cobra in his display case. He said it reminded him of a Taurus. The matte finish may or may not be to one's liking, but it is positively cheap compared to the polishing that went into Pythons. It has all the appearances of a $500 gun with a $700 price. Sales appear to be sluggish compared to Kimber's also relatively new entry, which is not too good considering how fine a reputation Colt was re-entering the revolver market with compared to Kimber. I've heard things like, Colt is just being run at a loss for a tax write-off, etc.
 
I looked at this new Colt about a week ago and it handled nice, but heard some guys in the shop talking about that this new Colt was actually just a brand-labeled product and was actually being made by someone else. Any truth to that or was that just another "rumor ? It does seem like Kimbers are selling much better, even with their pricing above comparable sized S&W's.
 
labnoti said:
It's a steel gun, which does not seem to be practical for ankle or pocket carry, even more so with the hammer spur. I have not seen the Nite version available yet. Am I right or do a lot of people carry SP101, K6S, and Model 60's that way? As a belt gun, it's a handy size. It fits my hand better than a j frame, but if it won't work well on the ankle or in the pocket, it seems very easy to accommodate a larger gun that will chamber .357 magnum on the belt or in a shoulder harness. The earlier Colt Cobras and Agents were aluminum alloy framed. This one is more like a King Cobra or snub nosed Trooper, but I'm skeptical it has the quality of those guns.

Don't get me wrong, I am very interested in this Cobra or the Nite version. I recently bought a j frame and I am very disappointed in present-day S&W quality. It's going back to S&W and I need something while they take up to 6 weeks to resolve the problem. Back in the day, 25 years ago, I was a Colt fan and never came across a S&W I cared for. But when I recently started carry after that long, Colt didn't seem like an option unless I wanted to pay $4000 for a used Python that would probably need smith work sooner or later.

I had a gun store salesmen dismiss the new Cobra in his display case. He said it reminded him of a Taurus. The matte finish may or may not be to one's liking, but it is positively cheap compared to the polishing that went into Pythons. It has all the appearances of a $500 gun with a $700 price. Sales appear to be sluggish compared to Kimber's also relatively new entry, which is not too good considering how fine a reputation Colt was re-entering the revolver market with compared to Kimber. I've heard things like, Colt is just being run at a loss for a tax write-off, etc.
Click to expand...
Did someone say snubnosed trooper...
C9AE2767-0C13-4441-A247-D73B897E1B14.jpeg
 
The new Cobra is largely MIM and entirely outsourced for all parts.
It is assembled by Colt.

It is a Colt design, it's not made by another gunmaker, it just uses Colt-specced parts sourced outside the company.
Denis
 
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