SQUARE BACK TRIGGER GUARD, 2 ND MODEL
Screw above barrel wedge. Serial numbered #1001 to #4200
SMALL ROUND TRIGGER GUARD, 3 RD MODEL
Serial numbered #4201 to #85000.
Martially-Inspected Model 1851 Navy.
LARGE ROUND TRIGGER GUARD, 4 TH MODEL
Serial numbered #85001 to #215000.
MARTIAL MODEL
“U.S.” stamped on the left side of frame; inspector’s marks and cartouche on the grips.
SHOULDER STOCK VARIATIONS
1st and 2nd Model Revolver cut for stock only. Expert appraisal is recommended prior to a sale of these very rare variations.
STOCK ONLY
3 RD MODEL CUT FOR STOCK.
REVOLVER ONLY.
STOCK
LONDON MODEL 1851 NAVY
These revolvers are physically similar to those made in the U.S. with the exception of the barrel address, which reads “ADDRESS COL. COLT LONDON” and British proofmarks are stamped on the barrel and cylinder. Approximately 42,000 were made between 1853 and 1857 with their own serial number range from #1 to #42000. There are two major variations of the London Navy, and again a serious purchaser would be well advised to seek qualified appraisal as fakes have been noted.
NOTE: At an auction at the Center of New Hampshire Holiday Inn, in Manchester, New Hampshire in October, 2006 James D. Julia Auctions sold an “Outstanding cased engraved Colt Model 1851 London Navy Revolver in the English Series serial number #194 for $27,000.
This very contrasting – at least in price – advertisement appeared in the Spring of 2007 at AntiqueGunList.com:
London Model 1851 Navy.
“Colt Percussion 1851 Navy, 36 cal., SN 13XXX manufactured in 1855. This is one of the 1851 Navies ordered by the British government for the Army in the Crimea in 1855. It has the WD under Broad Arrow stamped on the left side of the barrel with NO British proof stamps on the cylinder. The numbers all match including the rammer and wedge and are sharp and readable. This Navy was used and did not sit in a drawer or Military locker. The cylinder scene on all London Navies is lighter than the US manufactured Navies. Due to use, this one has 30% remaining with a sharp serial number. The patent stamp and barrel address are crisp and all readable. It has the domed screws heads as all London Navies should have with all being in good condition except for the wedge screw, which has the bottom potion of the head missing. There are small areas of salt and pepper pitting on the cylinder. The barrel has some thin blue and some stronger blue in protected areas. The frame, trigger guard and back strap appear to have been cleaned at some time. The action is tight and correct; the bore has strong rifling and is a 7-8. The original grips have no cracks, one medium dent in the middle of the left side and fit well. The holster is NOT part of the sales price. Overall condition very good. $2,895.”
1 ST MODEL
Serial numbered #1 to #2000 with a small round brass trigger guard and grip frame. Squareback guard is worth a 40 percent premium.
2 ND MODEL
Serial numbered #2001 to #42000, steel grip frame, and large round trigger guard.
HARTFORD MANUFACTURED VARIATION
Serial numbers in the #42000 range.
SIDE HAMMER HANDGUNS
Sometimes a practical and farsighted innovation makes the grade and sometimes it does not, for no special reason other than it does not catch the eye or the imagination of the public. Although they featured a uniquely new solid frame with screw-in barrel, spur trigger, hammer on the right side and E.K. Root’s new creeping loading lever, Sam Colt’s percussion Side Hammer Pocket Revolvers, manufactured from 1855 to 1870, were never extremely popular.
Although the civilian market was apparently becoming saturated with handguns, when Colt’s extended patent expired manufacturers such as Remington quickly entered the market. Smith and Wesson, a true competitive thorn in Colt’s paw since its inception in the mid-1800s, was not far behind.
Development of the Side Hammers – there were both pistols and long guns – is often linked in time to the dramatic expansion of the Colt factory in Hartford. (The famous blue dome with its inlay of gold stars, rebuilt after the disastrous 1864 fire, can still be seen today.)
Model 1855 Colt-Root pocket revolver.
MODEL 1855 “ROOT” POCKET
The “Root,” as it is popularly known because of the “creeping loading lever” patented by long time Colt engineer and friend E.K. Root, was the only solid frame revolver ever produced during Colt’s lifetime. It has a spur trigger, walnut grips and the hammer is mounted on the right side of the frame. The standard finish is a case colored frame, hammer and loading lever, with the barrel and cylinder blued. It is chambered for both .28 cal. and .31 cal. percussion. Each caliber has its own serial number range: #1 to #30000 for the .28 cal. and #1 to #14000 for the .31 cal. Although only 40,000 of these pistols was produced, the model nevertheless consists of seven basic variations, and the serious student should avail himself of publications that deal with this particular model in depth. Colt produced the Side Hammer Root from 1855 to 1870.