Thoughts of life and Colt

[KY DAN]

I am in my 28th year of life and the government at both state and federal has taken away my employment, I was a tool and die maker before due to COVID-19. I have been a drift for three months wondering the USA and searching for places to relocate where life maybe better. In my driftings I find gun shops and pawn shops with items of intrest and in doing so I acquire stuff and in my latest find it is a new production COLT PYTHON 357 Mag 4 inch barrel.

I have been lead to believe Colt is the name brand of quality and accuracy and why should it not be when the base price is $2500 a item. That quality and accuracy ends at the name on the box. The reality of this new "COLT" if you can really call it that is a redisened turd whose fit and finish is right up there with Rock Island Armory revolvers. The accuracy is dismal as well. If I wanted accuracy I would have chossen a proven winner Dan Wesson model 15 in any barrel length obtainable. This colt will not shoot better than 6 inch groups a 25 yards. I mean come on 6'' groups why not buy a shotgun and do better. Colt at this moment is just a term for look what I can afford to buy and nothing else, I simply can't understand why people would buy this crap. Its always interesting to notice Colt's buying dempgraphic are the elderly and such who will argue you to death that that Colt is an investment and you'll see in ten years when you sell which is worth more. I will let this colt go back to the fold and hope to regain a $1000 and in ten years when Grandpa is dead and I have my $1000 back I guess I will feel a right smart silly. Bottom line stay away from Colt

 

[NorthBorder]

Well... at least, did you find a better place to relocate?

 

[Alec]

At the risk of sounding like a Colt apologist, if it was new you should send them back and give them a chance to make it right. If it’s a pawn shop find and you bought it used, there’s no way you can know that it wasn’t tinkered with, and that’s not necessarily on Colt. Heck, I’d even try to send a used one in to Colt too, and see if they won’t try to correct it.

Also, I hate to say it but at $2500 for a new model, you have vastly overpaid. For slightly more you could have had an old model. MSRP on the new model is $1500.

 

[jamesinalaska]

Sounds like you are going through a rough patch and dealing with the same problems that many, many, many others are struggling with also.

Colt Firearms is tanking. All of their products of late have been problmatic, including the Cobra. If you do not see immediate changes inside that organization, starting with the termination of their CEO and President (if those are seperate offices), my guess is that Colt will be filing bankruptcy within two years. This may be what they want.

As for your unemployment, I suggest you offer you talent to Korth America. They are a rising star. Tell them you want to make the best pistols in the world -no exceptions- and I guarantee you will have a good paying job for the rest of your life.

 

[Steve S.]

Life is hard and very unfair but I am having a great time. I own one Colt - a Series 70 of 2018 manufacture. It is of decent fit/ finish - no different than the one I carried at the end of Vietnam - I like it. If your expectations and your reality do not match, you will have a conflicted life - always out of balance. I have learned that our planet is imperfect and I accept that - with that understanding behind me, I can now enjoy the place while I am here. “For some people, this life will never be right.”

 

[mnrivrat]

That's a lot of $ to lay out for an unemployed guy. Particularly for a gun that doesn't perform well at all. I have personally owned 3 Colt wheel guns over the years. I was unhappy with all three. Those were all bought and re-sold back in the 70's .Sorry to hear you got a bad one as well. If sending it back to Colt is an option I would certainly do so. I have owned a number of S&W guns with no complaints, and the Dan Wesson 8" I had was in fact a very accurate firearm. Hopefully there is another job in your near future, and a better gun as well.

 

[magyars4]

For that price you could have picked up two pre safety S&W revolvers and enough ammo for a weekend shoot extravaganza!

 

[bannockburn]

I have owned a number of Colt revolvers in the past (Trooper Mk.III, a couple of Troopers Mk.V, Detective Special and with the exception of a poorly built Agent during their labor problem years), all have been very serviceable guns. Even so I would be tempted to try out one of these newer Colt offerings if only to see for myself if they live up to their expectations or are just over hyped shadows of well built Colts of the past.

 

[bdickens]

No offense, but if you are unemployed, you should probably be doing other things with your money than overpaying for revolvers that are overpriced to begin with.

 

[ColtPythonElite]

I would question the shooter if 6" groups at 25 yards are the best a new Python produces.

 

[bassjam]

Contact Colt. That being said, I don't understand why people pay a premium for a firearm that doesn't seem any better than a S&W.

 

[reddog81]

I’m waiting to buy mine until they drop below MSRP and are closer to half that. By then I hope they have any of the bugs worked out.

if you’re planning on selling, I’d do it sooner rather than later. Once supply catches up with demand the price will drop by $1,000

 

[CraigC]

I smell a rat. Firstly, I am not a Colt apologist, elderly or prone to being duped. I have historically been very critical of Colt, their guns and their policies. They have had to earn my respect. I buy guns and I buy them to shoot and/or hunt with. I don't buy names, myths or legends. I don't buy them as investments and not as play-pretties with no regard for function. In my personal opinion and that shared by many others, the new SAA's are the best they've ever been and their current 1911's are also excellent. So these generalizations you are making about Colt buyers is bordering on offensive and tells us more about your own experience, or lack thereof, and lack of respect for your fellow shooter than anything. With that out of the way, the new Pythons are $1500, not $2500. If that's what you paid, then you got hosed. If you really think the fit & finish is akin to RIA, then I would wager you really don't know what "fit & finish" is. Those I have seen are better fitted and finished than virtually any current production revolver. Many Colt's of the recent past (~40yrs) were not so well done. Their revolvers of the `70's and `80's were particularly bad. So with all that in mind, I place no credibility whatsoever in the claim of 6" groups.

 

[KY DAN]

I did not pay 2500 hence the 1000 return. I just looked over gunbroker to see what prices could be. The gun is the problem not me. My Ruger Sec 6 and Dan wesson have no issues hitting 6 inch plates at 100 yards at local gun club.

 

[TEKoken813]

If you're interested in Tampa my employer is looking for a CNC machine operator.

 

[KY DAN]

I smell a rat. Firstly, I am not a Colt apologist, elderly or prone to being duped. I have historically been very critical of Colt, their guns and their policies. They have had to earn my respect. I buy guns and I buy them to shoot and/or hunt with. I don't buy names, myths or legends. I don't buy them as investments and not as play-pretties with no regard for function. In my personal opinion and that shared by many others, the new SAA's are the best they've ever been and their current 1911's are also excellent. So these generalizations you are making about Colt buyers is bordering on offensive and tells us more about your own experience, or lack thereof, and lack of respect for your fellow shooter than anything. With that out of the way, the new Pythons are $1500, not $2500. If that's what you paid, then you got hosed. If you really think the fit & finish is akin to RIA, then I would wager you really don't know what "fit & finish" is. Those I have seen are better fitted and finished than virtually any current production revolver. Many Colt's of the recent past (~40yrs) were not so well done. Their revolvers of the `70's and `80's were particularly bad. So with all that in mind, I place no credibility whatsoever in the claim of 6" groups.

Never saw a colt of current MFG not owned by the stated demographic, your experience is different and thats ok however I will not recant my statement about ownership or the poor quality Colt seems to offer. I think the Colt 1917, colt Commando ww2, Colt officers Target 38, Colt official police from Federeal Reserve bank of New york (ALL OF WHICH I OWN AND HAVE SPREAD around 50,000 rounds through)all speak of Colt's quality at one time.

The current Colt products are crap in my humble opinion

 

[CraigC]

And yet you own one? Problem with generalizations is that they are generally wrong 95% of the time.

Your opinion is not humble or congruent with reality.

 

[AustinTX]

As for your unemployment, I suggest you offer you talent to Korth America.

There‘s no such thing as “Korth America.” All current-production Korths are made in Lollar, Germany.

 

[PapaG]

I'm down to four Colts, a 1903, a Sport Model Woodsman, a Scout and a New Frontier. All are just fine. None are later than the late 70s. Colt lost me when they dropped most of the stuff sportsmen wanted. Sorry for your bad experience but at least you aren't alone.

 

[MaxP]

Never saw a colt of current MFG not owned by the stated demographic

This hasn’t been my experience. I would send it to Colt and let them make it right.

 

[brunowbe]

KY Dan needs some KY Jelly if he paid $2500 for that! I’m not understanding his pricing numbers and return numbers at all. That being said, I have experience with only 2 Colts (almost 3, but I declined on a new Python and bought something different). My 2 Colts have been superb. One is Competition 1911 in 9mm, it’s the pistol I shoot the best with. The other is a King Cobra Target that has run flawlessly so far for the short time I have had it (it does much better than 6 inch groups at 25 yards) and has a great trigger. Were they a bit higher priced? That’s subjective. One was basically free (thanks US government and Covid19 for the King Cobra Target) and the other was on sale a few years ago when I got it. Having to redo it, I would still get both of them. Are they the best ever? Probably not, I mean they are not Kalashnikovs, which are my all time favorite firearms to shoot.

Just my 2 cents, it’s not worth much. Oh, and I’m only 41, so I don’t know if that qualifies me as being elderly.

 

[mnrivrat]

Back in the 70's I had two Colts with bad barrels. A 6" that would not hold onto a 8X11 piece of paper at 15 yards, and a 4" that had an area just beyond the forcing cone where the rifling was missing from about 7 to 11 O'Clock for over an inch. The OP is talking about one example of the new Python. I can certainly believe that Colt is very capable of producing a bad gun. My Diamond Back was a 4 inch .22LR . An internal part broke within the first 1000 rounds. I owned a nice SA Colt in .22LR/.22 Mag with the steel frame. No complaints at all on that gun. I did own 2 of their .22 caliber Scout models with alloy frames that wore out faster than they should have.
My point is simple. Colt CAN make a bad gun. So can pretty much any manufacture. I do not question the validity of the OP's complaint as it is far from being impossible.

 

[ColtPythonElite]

Please post some detailed pics of the fit and finish issues?

 

[shoebox1.1]

My new KC 3 inch is the finest fit and finish of any gun I’ve ever owned. It did go to colt twice for light hammer strikes and is now fixed and I’m off the disgruntled train. I’m very pleased with it. I paid way less than msrp for it too. I’m 48.

 

[.38 Special]

I’m 48.

To a 28 year old, that makes you "elderly".