Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Handguns Your One, and Only One, Handgun

According to Davis, he thought Python internals were weak for many rounds of shooting. Problems with timing ,etc. These were built for PPC competition shoots, lotsa rounds fired.
Dont know if there's truth to it or not. I have had this revolver for 30 plus years, and it gets shot alot, no problems. I have had a few Pythons, didnt shoot them much, too much profit to be made !

Yep, when I could get $1,800.00 for my Python, I couldn't resist the temptation to sell it. I kept my Colt Model .357, though, which was the precursor to the Python, and made to exactly the same level of refinement. Just no vented rib or full underlug.

Yeah, thats a good looking revolver. Predecessor to the Trooper ??

That's awesome!

Also as I recall. Colt was the first to come out with the full underlug barrel. Some enterprising individuals made up the cougers and also what they called smolts or smith and colt combos.
Soon the manufacturers came on board and introduced the L frame, the gp100 and other fully lugged barrels.
All history now and nobody uses these obsolete old wheel guns. 🙄

Oh wait! Cept some of us old contrarians. I just bought another Smith wheel gun and waiting anxiously for it to arrive. 🤩
Les

The Model 357 was the Cadillac Colt .357 Magnum revolver till they came out with the Python. Built to the same standard. Same gun, apart from the barrel contour.

Nobody ??

Yes. IIRC, Colt came out with the .357 Mag. after Smith and Wesson introduced it in their "Registered Magnum" which later became the model 27. Colt's first 357's were the New Service and SAA. The 357 came out in a "41 frame" and evolved into the Trooper and MkII Trooper. The 357, Trooper and Trooper MkII are all essentially the same frame and lockwork as the Python. MkIII and later Troopers have a re-designed lockwork similar to the King Cobra and new Python revolvers.

"While the Trooper was to be a lower cost model, the new 357 was to be Colt's premium model holster revolver with a more carefully fitted and tuned action and a better external finish." - Colt Forum

To sell them as Python's to the younger Glock fans.

I have the exact revolver with the same grips, sanded the thumb hump off the left side so my speedloaders would work efficiently, great guns, I love mine, loads with 125gr XTP's and Barnes HP's as well as a super pentrator buzzsaw load with 140gr Barnes' at 1450 fps.

Mine's a great shooter in my hands.

I have a few of the same choices as have been mentioned here, several in fact.
But I have in bound, a Smith & Wesson model 25-7 that may become my “1”. For those not familiar, that is an N frame, 5” barreled, non fluted cylinder 6 shot revolver in 45 Colt.
I believe it will cover a lot of issues..

My favorite old uncle, now deceased, had a nice 6" Colt 357 with the full checkered target grip. It had a sweet SA trigger and hot as well as any 357 revolver I ever picked up.

I've always had a soft spot for the Lawman MKIII and have found them to be excellent shooters as well.

Dang right Hawk and Sarge, and not to deflect much, but my old Colt Trooper as well as a S&W pre-27 357 mag and 1955 model S&W 45 ACP, those triggers are so nice, break like frozen thin glass, and the revolvers feel so well made, a no handgun shooting heretic like me doesn't even deserve to own them. they really built some nice handguns back in the day, sadly those old Craftsmen must be long gone and dead by now.

Yes, that is a shame. Those skills are largely gone. Every part is made by machines now, ready for assembly by low skill labor.

Indeed a shame Sir, not to ramble, but know personally a great many Craftsmen that are leaving this spinning rock we're stuck too, their knowledge and talent is beyond genius, the shlt I see coming up from the low end is more than disappointing, it aint going to fly for us as a nation, too much good leaving, being replaced with pure spoiled entitlement shlt!

This '72 Colt Trooper MKIII I picked up a couple months ago is dry firing like a real sweetheart now that I got the new Wolff spring kit in it. Been practicing with spent brass with spent primers in front of the tv. Haven't had it to the range with live ammo yet, but the trigger is 1000% better now than it was when I got it.

Damn that's nice LD, I love those grips, mine came with a set of custom Moose antler grips, slicker than a greased doorknob.