Colt Cobra Finish

[JustinL]

A while ago I purchased a 1953 Colt Cobra and am confused about its finish. The barrel, cylinder and lateral aspects of the frame have a deep, rich blue. The other surfaces, however, appear more worn than you would expect given the blueing elsewhere. Not only that, the worn finish is confined only to certain surfaces with a very distinct border between deep blue & a worn appearance.

I was wondering if this is only due to wear or did Colt produce its early Cobras with different finishes on different surfaces? I have attached some pictures to show you what I mean. Any and all help is appreciated.

 

[bayouboy]

Nice gun. Your Cobra has the correct finish. Colt called it the "dual tone" finish and used it on the post-war guns into the early 1950's. If you get a chance, go over to http://www.coltforum.com. You will find anything you want to know about your gun. Here's a 4 inch Cobra from 1952 with the same finish.

 

[bigjohnson]

Actually, Colt Cobra frames were not blued. They were anodized. In the early guns (1950s), the flat sides of the frames were highly polished before anodizing, and the lateral surfaces had a matte finish. Later guns had all surfaces with the high polish.

 

[Cocked & Locked]

Later guns had all surfaces with the high polish.

Like my 1973 vintage Cobra. However, there is still an obvious color difference between the steel parts (barrel, cylinder, and crane) as compared to the aluminum alloy frame.

 

[rklessdriver]

You can see the same finish on my Cobras as well.

1959


1972

 

[mnw42]

I cheated and got a nickel one....

 

[JustinL]

Wow, thanks for the information everybody, I appreciate it. The pics are nice too.

 

[jetman]

It's hard to see in these pics but my Colt Agent is the same basically as your Cobra. In a good light there are subtle differences between the finish of the blueing on the alloy frame and the steel cylinder and barrel.