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Earlier this week I wrangled a deal on a current production (one year old) Colt Single Action Army. 4 3/4" blue with color case frame, and Colt Eagle grips. I don't have a photo, but it's essentially identical to the one on their web site.



So I thought I'd give my impression on how well they're made. All in all, I'd have to give it very high marks.

Fit - There isn't a detectable line between the grip frame/trigger frame and the revolver frame at all; perfect fit. Cylinder end play is exactly as it should be. Cylinder alignment is straight up perfect; it accepted a "match alignment rod" in all 6 chambers.

Finish - Polishing of the steel is just plain first rate, there are zero polishing ripples anywhere to be found. I will say, the level of polish on the frame could be better. It looks like they polished to a 320 grit on the frame, and a 500 grit on all the blued parts. Case hardening is nice, but nothing special. It's real bone charcoal CCH, but the lack of 500 grit polish gives the frame a rather subdued look. Colors are very much like in the above photo, leaning toward the blues in color with dark browns and very little rust color to it. Polishing the flats of the hammer is a little on the coarse side when compared to older Colts, but not enough that it looks out of place...Again, I'd estimate at a 320 grit.

Overall, it's VERY pleasing to the eye.

Sights - Sights are typical 3rd generation with a square notch at the rear.
Sight regulation - Nearly perfect... Shooting light Cowboy loads, bullets dropped just a little low, and she regulated perfectly with what I would call a "standard" .45 Colt load. So I'm absolutely delighted about that.

Grips - Modern polymer versions of the original Gutta Percha "Colt Eagle" grips. My grips are expertly fit to the gun, and serial numbered on the inside. I have always loved the Colt Eagle grips, so I doubt I'll be making a change anytime soon.

Trigger - 4.6lbs with noticable creep...that will have to be addressed. Still, the creep wasn't enough to hamper good shooting, just annoying to someone who is used to good triggers.

How does she shoot?
First 4 rounds offhand at 10 yards all went through the same hole, and then I completely shanked the next shot. I later managed to put all 6 in the same hole, and it was very satisfying. So, she shoot's alright. At 25 yards my one and only 5 shot group was under 2"; again, delighted!


Overall thoughts - I'm thoroughly delighted.

Thanks for the heads-up. I wouldn't mind having a new 3rd gen gun.
Bob

In April I walked into a small gun shop in Green Valley, AZ, where I spend my winters, and there in the display case was a brand new Colt SAA 4 3/4" in .45 Colt. I gathered all my strength and walked out. The next day, I wimped out and went back. It was still there, so I bought it. Mine is also superbly built and finished. The only fly in the ointment was that it shot about 3" to the left at 25 yards. I called Colt and they sent me a shipping label. They have had it now since late June, and I hope to get it back soon. I almost didn't return it, but I am a fairly serious shooter and I knew it would bug me if I didn't get the issue resolved.

It is on the bottom left in this picture:

I've heard that the ones they make nowadays are as good as they've ever made them.

Wyatt Earp seemed to like colts

1st - Nice sixguns my friend!!

2nd - That's kinda how it went down for me. Saw the gun, price was downright reasonable, and after some pissing & moaning on my part; I decided I had to have it.

3rd - Good call on sending it back to Colt. Correcting that problem is a good piece of work when you don't have a stack of barrels to choose from. The barrel needs to be turned, and when you do that, you have to make sure you still have enough resistance that the barrel doesn't work its way loose in the future. Colt can do it better than most anyone else. With that "Royal Blue" finish, its just way too easy to mar up the finish while trying to get it right.

Thank you, Mr. Geek! My first Cowboy Gun Stage occurred about 30 years ago. I am in the climax of my second Cowboy Gun Stage as we speak. It's a disease, but not a painful one. They will have to tighten the barrel to move the POI, and I also felt that Colt was the best place to send it. If some gunsmith Bubba'd it up, I would be up a creek. But if Colt messes it up, I would still wind up with a new SAA.

The guns on the left in the photo are all Colts; top to bottom they are a 3rd Gen. .44 Spl, a 2nd Gen. .38 Spl and the .45. On the right are a USFA .38 Spl., and two AWA Peacekeepers in .357. I had to get the barrels turned on the Colt .44 and the USFA to get them zeroed as well, and I had to file the front sights on the AWA's down a great deal to bring them to POA. They both shot about a foot low at 25 yards when I got them. They are nice guns too, with case colors done by Turnbull.

Maybe. Latest talk has him armed with a Smith and Wesson at the OK Corral alley turkey shoot. Opinions on which one vary, but a #3 single action of one model or another.

So, how much are ya'll paying for a new Colt SAA? I'd love to have one.

From what I've read the S&W theory has been debunked.

I paid a bit over $1,200.00 for a like-new, early 21st Century, example in .45 Colt (5.5" barrel) earlier this year. I made sure it had the removable cylinder bushing, as that's a mark of the better made 3rd Gen Colts. Shoots dead on.

There really isn't any debunking it. The only thing left are opinions of dead folks on what was used. Newspaper articles of the time period seem to be about as accurate as current ones "the robber used an AR-14" and the like.

What do you think Wyatt Earp at the OK Corral and why? How do you think the "S&W theory" has been debunked?

“The myth that Wyatt Earp used a Smith & Wesson during the 1881 shootout was perpetuated by the late Earp historian John Gilcrease, who owned an engraved Smith & Wesson American Model revolver with homemade wood grips that he claimed was the gun Wyatt used in the shootout. But two other early Wyatt Earp historians saw this Smith & Wesson when Gilcrease first bought it from descendants of the John Clum family, when the gun had original pearl grips presentation-inscribed to John Clum. This evidence establishes the gun belonged to Clum not Earp. By 1881 the American Model and its ammunition were obsolete, and it is doubtful Wyatt Earp would have trusted his life to such a gun. Based on the description by butcher Apollinar Bauer of the gun Earp used to buffalo (hit over the head) Tom McLaury on the morning of the shootout, the gun was probably a 10-inch-barrel Colt Single Action.”

http://truewestmagazine.com/wyatt-earps-pistol/

I read it when it came out in True West. First, I wouldn't call the current iteration of True West much of a source. Secondly, the first part of the argument is compelling, but the latter isn't. The American really can't be called "obsolete" by 1881, IMO. Certainly there were better weapons available, but it wasn't really that old. More than likely the gun used by Earp to hit McLaury wasn't necessarily the one he later used in the shootout. For instance, the lore is that Virgil have Doc his shotgun in exchange for Doc's cane. Plenty could have happened but, it was probably the same gun. I don't necessarily trust the description of one witness on the gun. Personally, I highly doubt it was a 10" barreled Colt. I think it much more likely that it was a Smith and Wesson, regardless of whether the Gilcrease gun was it, or not.

Back to which S&W...I've read all sorts of things about which model #3 it was, not just the American.

I've always wondered how Wyatt, and all the friends of Doc Holliday, avoided catching consumption from him. I thought that was an extremely contagious disease. Curable today, with massive doses of various antibiotics, but not at that time, so we would have heard about them coming down with it.

Figure on about $1,750.00 plus tax.

They didn’t kiss each other. 😜

I guess I got a good deal. Are you talking new from the factory?

I know, but as I understand it, you can get it just from a little spittle contact, like hand to hand, then hand to face. Maybe, though, it isn't nearly as contagious as I thought.

PS Did his girlfriend come down with it?

Never heard or read what caused the demise of “Big Nose” Kate. Most whores back than had Tuberculosis and VD. Most didn’t live very long.

Big Nosed Kate lived to be 90 and didn't die of TB.

Really ? That’d be a major miracle back then !

Isn't it? Strange things happen sometimes.

For instance, Winston Churchill's father, Randolf, apparently died of syphilis but neither his wife nor his two sons seem to have contracted it. Draw your own conclusions.


But this is rather far afield from the OP. Kevin, grats on a great revolver.

The 'Report' and 'Email Post' buttons, at the bottom of each post, should be replaced with Like and Go to Hell buttons.

You would definitely have gotten the Like button for that one.

lol

Yes, brand new 2020 production from the factory. Better prices can be had on older guns if you look. The new guns appear to be equal to the best of the older guns, as far as I can tell.

I would be dubious of True West magazine. I only say this due to one of their top “researchers”/ writers residing here for a good stretch of time.
He was a preacher/author/old west historian. He got on the pain pills and then onto the meth, robbed the church blind and fled out of state. After this took place I’d still see his byline in the magazine occasionally. Not what I’d call a trustworthy source.

Anyway, nice Colts guys. I passed up a CC/blue 7 1/2” 38 Special 3rd gen that I could have had for a great price and kick myself every time this subject comes up.

Upwards of 80% of the population was exposed to TB (widely known as consumption) back then. Most people developed natural immunity. Some people caught it but recovered, some people caught it, got sick and eventually died.

Sounds strangely familiar.

As a dentist Holliday would have been exposed on a regular basis.

You can clearly see in this rare footage of the shootout, Wyatt has a Colt SAA

Clear proof! LOL.

I was shocked at how small the OK Corral actually is when I visited it about 10 years ago.

That settles it, then. He had a 10" barrel Colt SAA.

PS That movie had great casting.

Doc fired the shotgun 3 times without reloading and I'm not sure how many rounds he fired from his revolvers but it was more than 12 without reloading

And he only had to cock each revolver once per 2 shots !

You only saw him shooting, not reloading.

Count the shots from the revolvers at Ike there was no reloading

Well of course! Belt fed Hollyweird revolvers. 😜

Always a critic. I posted the newsreel and still you need to pick it apart. Were you there?

I stand corrected. Funny, there are multiple "newsreels" of the shootout that I neglected to consult. Not only this one but My Darling Clementine, Gunfight at the OK Corral, Hour of the Gun, Doc, and Wyatt Earp ALL show Wyatt using a Colt, although the barrel does shrink and grow between some of them.

Doc does fire his shotgun three times. I wasn't aware there were triple barrels.

In movie parlance, that is what is called "literary license."

L.W.

One of those new Tri-Star Shotguns ! 😜

Perhaps.

Drilling..........

There was a video about the guns used in the movie and, yes, to my shock they actually did have a triple barrel shotgun that was used. It was set up like a drilling IIRC and looked normal until they broke the action. Wish I could remember where I saw it but it did exist.

Triple barrel shotguns did exist back in the day, but they were EXTREMELY uncommon...To the point to where even today there's only a handful in the US. John Dickson famously made a 3 barrel gun, and an aquantance of mine actually made a second one for the John Dickson company some 130 years later; so we know there are at least 2 that wear the Dickson name, but those are three barrels all side by side.

As for other 3 barrel guns, most were made on the Continent; and most were made in Germany. Based on a Drilling frame, they were special order guns and it was a VERY RARE special order at that. Interestingly, what you'll find with those guns is...The top two barrels typically have NO CHOKE, and the barrels are regulated for round ball, making them a "Ball & Shot" gun. The bottom barrel is almost always choked Full, but in rare cases can even be a different gauge.

So while not wholly impossible to have a 3 barrel gun, its unlikely in the extreme.

SAA's and Python's are typically going for over MSRP, so finding a new one for MSRP would be a real find. I paid $1,600 for mine and it was one year old, but appeared to NIB unfired. If you shop for new SAA's you tend to find them right around the $2,200 range for brand new in the box...It sucks, but that's just the way it is.

Of course, if you're patient and shop around you can certainly beat the hell out of that price, as I certainly did.

Is it worth it?

Considering the SAA is basically a semi-custom pistol... Meaning, they're made in very small batches, hand assembled and finished by the most senior assemblers, and the overall general fit and finish is considerably higher than most out of the box revolver; I'd say $1,700- $1,800 is a pretty fair price. My revolver is perfect in every way except for the trigger which did have a little creep. I quickly fixed that.

While I have only owned a few Colt SAA's, I have to say I'm VERY impressed with the workmanship on mine; it's unusually good. Perhaps all are made just as well, probably so; I just have a sample of one. What I can say is... Over the entire span of production, this is the most accurate SAA I have ever picked up. What's more, sight regulation on my particular Colt is perfect, and that's RARE in my personal experience. Most don't really shoot to point of aim, but most do shoot pretty darned accurate. This one is wicked accurate (best group so far is 1.7" at 25 yards) and sight regulation is perfect...Yee-haw!!!

My "guess" is, my experience is probably typical for newly manufactured SAA's; and why shouldn't it be? The tools available for manufacture and quality maintenance are beyond the wildest dreams of Samuel Colt. It's not the accuracy that surprises me...yeah mine is a bit more accurate than average. It's the sight regulation...I'd love to know how they're doing it these days because this one is DEAD ON!!

I have also noticed the newly produced Uberti's and Ruger Vaquero's almost always shoot either dead on point of aim, or so close that few bother to mess with it. I'd love to know how they're getting it so perfectly right these days. I mean, it sounds so easy, but it's not.

Kevin, this Cimarron of mine shoots point of aim, too.

My only complaint with the Cimarrons (made by Uberti of Italy) is that they go the cheap route with the hammer spur checkering. It's not hand checkered. Some kind of machined process that just doesn't look right compared to a real Colt. Otherwise, they are amazingly nice SAA clones.

For the past 10 years or so Uberti has switched to laser for cutting the hammer checkering; I agree, it looks like crap. Considering the cost, they give you a LOT of value for the money, but they do cut some corners to bring you that cost. Regardless, I personally think very highly of Uberti and I'm V E R Y happy with the one I bought my son (I may have to tempt him with a trade some day:)

I would love to understand their CCH process. It's not a bone charcoal process, it's a chemical process. But of the chemical processes, Uberti's look WAY better than everyone elses. Compare newer Uberti's to the faux CCH on a Ruger. Look at the CCH on Uberti's 1873 Wincheters; it's really nice. I'd love to know how they do that with a chemical process. Probably involves Eye of Newt, and a Virgin Sacrafice.

I’ve seen a video of the Uberti color case hardening process. It involves super heating and dipping. They are actually red hot when dipped. I don’t recall what they are dipped in. Of course it’s not the traditional process.

Here’s the video.

I recently acquired a 4 1/2" Standard Manufacturing "SAA" in 45 Colt. It is easily the equivalent of my USFA Flattop Target 44 Special/Russian and I would actually place it better. I have just put together loads using the 270 SAA over 4227 but have yet to get it out. Hopefully next week.

Yeah, I've seen that video too, and that's what's peaking my interested. The "normal" way the faux CCH is done is to heat the metal and dab it with different types of bluing solutions (this gives you blues, blacks, and rust colors...but mostly blues and blacks). I've done that a couple of times and I can clearly see if I practiced it enough, it would start to look downright decent. But Uberti's dipping chemical process is next level slick.

When it comes to gunsmithing & gunmaking, I'm always dying to "look behind the curtain" to understand how its done... Just fascinating to a guy with my particular sickness.

Oh that's just gorgeous!!!

Hey correct my memory here... Did I hear Standard has stopped making their SAA clones? If so that's really sad; they are SUPER nice! So any chance I can talk you into posting a photo of your flattop target? I have a thing for those.

Very nice. Great color case hardening job. Yeah, Standard Manufacturing SAAs are at least the equivalent to the USFA SAAs, and might even edge out the Colts in quality.

But are they four times better than my 4.25" SAA clone? Perhaps more like 25% better.

What you’re seeing in the video is simply liquid carburizing. It’s a method of case hardening that consists of soaking the parts (usually a fairly low carbon steel like 1018 or 1020) in a cyanide salt bath at critical temperature until the desired depth of case is obtained, then quenching in a brine solution. The colors obtained are just a byproduct of the process. This is a process that’s been common for more years than any of us have been around. The other, coloring, processes you reference are not really case hardening processes. They’re just ways to fake the appearance of case hardening on pieces that have (probably) obtained their hardness via the investment casting process.

OMG you’re right!!! It’s the same process that Stevens used over 100 years ago...how did I not recognize that?

Dude, you da man!!!

Hard for me to have missed it, Kevin, what with having done quite a bit of it myself. I've also done a bit of pack carburizing and individual small parts with an acetylene torch adjusted to a carburizing flame. It's all good!