Howdy Again
I said this somewhere at the beginning of this thread. You are not going to find a modern made SAA replica that is exactly the same in every detail as a very early Colt. Nobody is producing one. Nobody.
Besides three separate generations of Colts, there have been many subtle engineering changes within each generation. Subtle things like the shape of the ratchet teeth on the rear of the cylinder, shape of the firing pin, method of attaching the firing pin, barrel threads, shape of the hand, presence or lack of a removable cylinder bushing, shape of the screws, shape of the ejector rod housing, method of attaching the ejector rod housing, shape of the ejector rod, shape of the ejector rod handle, shape of the hammer, shape of the sights, and shape of the bolt, to name just a few. I have my copy of Kuhnhausen open right now and he shows no less than six different shapes of the hand over the years.
And then there are all the changes in metallurgy over the years too.
Of course a modern 3rd Gen Colt is not identical to an early 1st Gen. These were military and commercial products, not static museum pieces. The design evolved over time, as it does with any product that has been produced for a long time. The SAA has been produced for over 140 years, production only stopping from 1940 until 1956. What other product has been produced for that amount of time without undergoing engineering changes? Changes that were made to either make the product better, or more efficient to produce.
I sometimes wonder why folks are so hell bent on getting a firearm that is an exact replica of something made over a century ago. I have a very nice Uberti manufactured replica of the 1860 Henry rifle. It is a pretty good reproduction of the originals. Not exact, there are some subtle differences, but it is still a pretty good replica of the original Henry rifle. Except for the fact that the ammunition the Henry used, the 44 Henry Rimfire round, has not been produced for many years. So all the modern replica Henrys are chambered for 44-40 or 45 Colt, and the frame has been stretched a bit to accommodate a longer carrier for the longer cartridges, and all modern Henry rifles have a centerfire firing pin rather than the split rimfire firing pin of the originals. Does this bother me? Not one bit. It is a compromise the manufacturer had to make in order to produce a rifle that could be fired with ammunition that is commercially available today.
Same thing with the SAA replicas. They are nice guns, but the manufacturers have drawn a line in the sand with the specific models and built replicas that are pretty good representations of the old guns, but they are not exact copies, for a variety of reasons.
If you really want to learn about the SAA and its variations over the years, examine some. Lots of large gun shows have antique gun dealers who are happy to let you handle an original and show you the subtle differences if you show genuine interest. Haunt the gun shops. You never know what will show up. I stumbled onto my first Colt at a local shop. I just happened to be at the right place at the right time, and it was a parts gun, so it was affordable.
And by the way, Colts really are better than the Italian replicas. It may not show up with the cosmetics on the outside, but take them apart and it becomes obvious. One of the reasons Ubertis are less expensive is Uberti runs their CNC machines at very high feed rates to grind out lots of parts per hour. This shows on the fit and finish of the parts inside. Uberti parts tend to have rough machined surfaces, burrs, and sharp edges. Colts, at least the ones produced when they were assembled and fitted by craftsmen, usually had parts that were finished properly. It only makes sense. Run the machines fast to make as many parts as possible per hour because time is money. Slow the machines down for a better finish, and you have to charge more. And some of the parts in an Uberti are castings while Colt still machines everything. Castings are less expensive to make.
Uberti hammer in front with cast in knurling, Colt hammer at the rear, knurling applied by a separate knurling tool. Which one looks to be better quality?