Colt DA 41 Revolver Help/?'s (with Pictures!)

[XxWINxX94]

I have inherited this 41 Caliber Colt revolver and don't know much about it. It seems like an odd-ball caliber/gun. I believe its a Model 1877 Lightning, but I don't know how old it is or what its value could be. It seems like it is in very good condition for a 100+ year old revolver, so I'm thinking its a Repro but am not 100% sure about it. Any help with value, year or any other misc. info would be greatly appreciated.

-Thanks-





More pictures will be put up later.

P.S. Having a problem getting the cylinder back into its place. Hammer will not cock back properly and the ejector spring does not move. Taking it to a gunsmith at the moment.

 

[XxWINxX94]

the picture uploader is acting up on me will try to get more later.

 

[rcmodel]

There are two types of Colt Lightening revolvers.

1. Those that are broke.
2. And those that are going to break.

Yours is one of the former.

It is not a repro, as nobody has had guts enough to try to make a repro of them.

It may have been refinished, but I can't tell from the poor quality pictures.
It does appear that the frame & loading gate are blued, and they should be color case hardened unless it has been reblued.

It is very doubtful you can find a gunsmith that will even look at it, let alone no how to fix it properly.

Impossible to date it without you posting a partial serial number. (123xxx etc.)

Value with it broken & reblued would not be great.

rc

 

[Iggy]

If it is .41 caliber, it is called a Thunderer.

 

[XxWINxX94]

Heres a picture of the serial number and another view of the gun.

 

[Ron James]

The serial number falls into the 1902 range. Value, in good condition it is listed at 1,000$

 

[Jim K]

I agree that finding a gunsmith who can and will work on that gun is unlikely. They are one of the most complex and fragile revolvers ever made, and very few living people understand the mechanism. To make matters worst, parts are almost unobtainable, and the few repro parts available have to be fitted, a very time consuming (and expensive) process. Some folks have even bought a couple, trying to get parts to make a good one, only to find the same parts broken in both.

That gun has been reblued, which means its value may not cover the cost of repair if repair is even possible.

Good luck, but you may end up just keeping it as a non-functional oddity or selling it and making it someone else's headache.

(Don't mourn too much about shooting it; the .41's kick like hell and that knob on the grip tears the hand up.)

Jim