Riomouse911
Member
I bought a new Colt Cobra about three weeks ago, paying just over $720.00 OTD. The following is a brief range review.
Fit and finish:
The revolver is a matte stainless, and since a magnet sticks to the frame, cylinder and barrel, it is all steel. The gun has a nice 25 oz unloaded weight to it, not as nose-heavy as my Ruger SP 101 .38, but not as pocket-carry light as my S&W 642. The synthetic grips cover the backstrap, and fit my average-sized hands well. They feel sized in between the bulkier-feeling factory grips of the SP 101 (which also covers the backstrap) and the very compact “factory boot grips” of the 642 that leave the backstrap bare. They will possibly print a bit more than the compact “boot grip” style of the 642, but they are also more hand-filling and make the gun easier to shoot, IMHO.
I saw no machining marks on the exterior of the gun, as the entire exterior appears to be bead-blasted. The sideplate finish was very good, with just a hint of a fingernail-snag if I ran it over the upper seam near the release latch. The release latch pulls to the rear, and is easy to reach and operated without issue. Even the interior of the frame was matte finished, and no machine marks were visible. The only polished areas were the inside of the crane and the corresponding space on the front of the frame. This is only visible with the cylinder open. The barrel has a shrouded ejector rod, which seems to have enough length to pull empties without too many cases sticking in the cylinder.
The gun came with a lockable large blue “Colt” hard case that could probably fit a 1911, with a “Colt” padlock, instruction manuals, orange empty-cylinder insert, and a sample of Lucas gun oil.
Sights and trigger:
I will state up front; I have never liked the external appearance of “Hi-viz” style sights. To me they seem to be too big and look too fragile, and I have just never liked them. That being said, the front sight of the Cobra was excellent! In full daylight the red insert glowed like a hot BBQ briquette, and it was very easy to pick up. Obviously the lower the ambient light the less this sight will be able to absorb and then transmit to the shooter, but I will state that in anything but total darkness this sight does show better against dark backdrops than an all-black target style sight does. The rear sight is the usual groove set into the topstrap, with the topstrap having a slightly rounded radius. Up close and at arm’s length the front sight fits very well into the rear sight notch, and the front left just enough on either side to make side-to-side adjustments easy to do. I will state that my opinion has changed, and these sights are easier to use than those on the S&W or Ruger due to the glowing red dot.
The trigger spec’s at 7 to 9 lbs in DA, and 3-4 lbs in SA modes. I don’t have a trigger pull gauge, but if this gun’s trigger was any more than 7 lbs I will be surprised. The trigger press is a smooth arc, with just a hint of stack in the last ¼” or so of travel. One thing I could not do is “stage” the revolver, whereupon you pull through the arc until the cylinder-stop drops into the notch and the gun is aligned with the bullseye for the final bit of travel. This gun’s cylinder stop dropped (it seems) right at the point of the trigger breaking. No matter, the DA was so smooth I was able to keep it on target from the start of the press until it fired.
Shooting observations:
Obviously the main difference is the 6-shot cylinder of the Cobra vs the other two comparison revolvers sporting 5-shots each. I fired the first 12 shots at 7 yards into the upper 4" sighting circle, with the first shot hitting a bit high. I realized I had the orange dot on the top of the rear sight, so I lowered it flush and the gun hit right in the circle with a mix of my reloaded 148 gr wadcutters and 158 gr semi-wadcutters powered by mid-range charges of Unique. Recoil was not bad with either, feeling to be a bit more noticeable than the all-steel SP 101, but a LOT less than the very light, alloy-framed 642.
I then shot a 30-round qualification course with the 158 gr semi wadcutters, with 6 shots fired starting at 15, 12 10, 7 and then 5 yards. As you can see I am no match-grade shooter, but the DA pull was smooth enough to keep all of my shots in the scoring box for all 30.
Draws from concealment are a bit tougher than with a bobbed, shrouded, or enclosed hammer revolver, requiring me to place my shooting-hand thumb over the hammer spur (with my trigger finger ALONGSIDE the frame) while drawing to keep it from snagging on my shirt. The 642 is much easier to draw, but with practice the shooter can remember to keep the shooting-hand thumb in a position like this until the gun is clear and the thumb can drop down into position.
Closing:
This is a great CCW gun! The pro’s are a good trigger, 6 shots in roughly a 5 shot package, well made, great sights, accurate, and good factory grips. The con’s are a pretty steep price when compared to the 442/642 style S&W alloy revolvers, and (for me) an underlying fear that Colt may just fold up sooner rather than later, making any warranty useless.
Despite owning (and really liking!) some S&W snubs, (currently a 642 and a nickel 49 Bodyguard, and I previously had a 640 Centennial .38) along with the Ruger SP 101 .38, I think the Cobra is a better gun for the off-duty or concealed carry role because of the extra round and the better overall feel. I must also admit that this is my first Colt-branded handgun, and I will say that I think they did do a very good job bringing back the Cobra. I just hope it’s the start of other new stuff from Colt.
Stay safe!
Fit and finish:
The revolver is a matte stainless, and since a magnet sticks to the frame, cylinder and barrel, it is all steel. The gun has a nice 25 oz unloaded weight to it, not as nose-heavy as my Ruger SP 101 .38, but not as pocket-carry light as my S&W 642. The synthetic grips cover the backstrap, and fit my average-sized hands well. They feel sized in between the bulkier-feeling factory grips of the SP 101 (which also covers the backstrap) and the very compact “factory boot grips” of the 642 that leave the backstrap bare. They will possibly print a bit more than the compact “boot grip” style of the 642, but they are also more hand-filling and make the gun easier to shoot, IMHO.
I saw no machining marks on the exterior of the gun, as the entire exterior appears to be bead-blasted. The sideplate finish was very good, with just a hint of a fingernail-snag if I ran it over the upper seam near the release latch. The release latch pulls to the rear, and is easy to reach and operated without issue. Even the interior of the frame was matte finished, and no machine marks were visible. The only polished areas were the inside of the crane and the corresponding space on the front of the frame. This is only visible with the cylinder open. The barrel has a shrouded ejector rod, which seems to have enough length to pull empties without too many cases sticking in the cylinder.
The gun came with a lockable large blue “Colt” hard case that could probably fit a 1911, with a “Colt” padlock, instruction manuals, orange empty-cylinder insert, and a sample of Lucas gun oil.
Sights and trigger:
I will state up front; I have never liked the external appearance of “Hi-viz” style sights. To me they seem to be too big and look too fragile, and I have just never liked them. That being said, the front sight of the Cobra was excellent! In full daylight the red insert glowed like a hot BBQ briquette, and it was very easy to pick up. Obviously the lower the ambient light the less this sight will be able to absorb and then transmit to the shooter, but I will state that in anything but total darkness this sight does show better against dark backdrops than an all-black target style sight does. The rear sight is the usual groove set into the topstrap, with the topstrap having a slightly rounded radius. Up close and at arm’s length the front sight fits very well into the rear sight notch, and the front left just enough on either side to make side-to-side adjustments easy to do. I will state that my opinion has changed, and these sights are easier to use than those on the S&W or Ruger due to the glowing red dot.
The trigger spec’s at 7 to 9 lbs in DA, and 3-4 lbs in SA modes. I don’t have a trigger pull gauge, but if this gun’s trigger was any more than 7 lbs I will be surprised. The trigger press is a smooth arc, with just a hint of stack in the last ¼” or so of travel. One thing I could not do is “stage” the revolver, whereupon you pull through the arc until the cylinder-stop drops into the notch and the gun is aligned with the bullseye for the final bit of travel. This gun’s cylinder stop dropped (it seems) right at the point of the trigger breaking. No matter, the DA was so smooth I was able to keep it on target from the start of the press until it fired.
Shooting observations:
Obviously the main difference is the 6-shot cylinder of the Cobra vs the other two comparison revolvers sporting 5-shots each. I fired the first 12 shots at 7 yards into the upper 4" sighting circle, with the first shot hitting a bit high. I realized I had the orange dot on the top of the rear sight, so I lowered it flush and the gun hit right in the circle with a mix of my reloaded 148 gr wadcutters and 158 gr semi-wadcutters powered by mid-range charges of Unique. Recoil was not bad with either, feeling to be a bit more noticeable than the all-steel SP 101, but a LOT less than the very light, alloy-framed 642.
I then shot a 30-round qualification course with the 158 gr semi wadcutters, with 6 shots fired starting at 15, 12 10, 7 and then 5 yards. As you can see I am no match-grade shooter, but the DA pull was smooth enough to keep all of my shots in the scoring box for all 30.
Draws from concealment are a bit tougher than with a bobbed, shrouded, or enclosed hammer revolver, requiring me to place my shooting-hand thumb over the hammer spur (with my trigger finger ALONGSIDE the frame) while drawing to keep it from snagging on my shirt. The 642 is much easier to draw, but with practice the shooter can remember to keep the shooting-hand thumb in a position like this until the gun is clear and the thumb can drop down into position.
Closing:
This is a great CCW gun! The pro’s are a good trigger, 6 shots in roughly a 5 shot package, well made, great sights, accurate, and good factory grips. The con’s are a pretty steep price when compared to the 442/642 style S&W alloy revolvers, and (for me) an underlying fear that Colt may just fold up sooner rather than later, making any warranty useless.
Despite owning (and really liking!) some S&W snubs, (currently a 642 and a nickel 49 Bodyguard, and I previously had a 640 Centennial .38) along with the Ruger SP 101 .38, I think the Cobra is a better gun for the off-duty or concealed carry role because of the extra round and the better overall feel. I must also admit that this is my first Colt-branded handgun, and I will say that I think they did do a very good job bringing back the Cobra. I just hope it’s the start of other new stuff from Colt.
Stay safe!
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