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LOT 3136
Rare and Highly Desirable Black Powder Frame
Colt .22 RF Single Action Army Revolver with
Factory Letter - Serial no. 1870, 22 RF cal., 7 1/2 inch round bbl., blue/casehardened finish, hard rubber grips. Per R.L.
Wilson in the “Book of Colt Firearms” only 107 .22 caliber standard frame First Generation Single Action Army revolvers were
manufactured. They first left the factory in 1883, and .22 was officially added to the line in 1889 but was not popular. Many of
these revolvers were subsequently altered or destroyed. A .22 Rimfire SAA is a prize for any Colt collector. According to “The
Official Records of the Colt Single Action Army Revolver 1873-1895” by Wilkerson and Hoyt, only 79 Colt Single Actions in .22
caliber were produced in the .44 RF serial number sequence (page 389). These revolvers are in a special serial number block
between serial number 1689 and serial number 1892 and does not account for the .22 caliber revolvers numbered in the standard center
fire sequence. This example was one of the original 110 .44 rimfire revolvers Colt shipped to Wexell & De Gress in May 1879. Its journey to .22 RF
is explained in “The Official Records of the Colt Single Action Army Revolver 1873-1895”: “It is not known just when Wexell & De Gress returned
the revolvers or even if they were returned in one large shipment or two or more smaller shipments. At any rate 8 of the returned .44 Rimfire
revolvers were shipped to other dealers in 1884. Of the remaining 72 returned revolvers, 71 were converted to .22 Rimfire and one to .32 Rimfire...
These revolvers may have been converted from .44 Rimfire revolvers in stock or, more than likely, may have been assembled on incomplete frames”
(page 387). A great majority of .22 caliber revolvers show two shipping dates: one as chambered in .44 RF and the other chambered in .22 caliber.
Unfortunately, that is not the case with no. 1870. The accompanying factory letter states the revolver was shipped to Wexell & De Gress with dealer locations
in Mexico City, Mexico and New York City in a .44 rimfire configuration with a 7 1/2 inch barrel, blue finish and wood stocks. This was a 50 gun shipment. The authors to the aforementioned
book speculated that the shipment was delivered to the retailer’s Mexico location. Its consecutively serialized mate no. 1871 was sold by RIAC in the Premier Firearms Auction #56, lot 219.
This revolver has the distinctive rimfire frame with rectangular firing pin aperture used on .44 RF and .22 RF revolvers and special hammer with rimfire firing pin. The ejector rod has the “oval”
head introduced around 1885. The barrel is stamped with the one-line Hartford address on top. The left side of the trigger guard is stamped “22 CAL.” The left side of the frame has the three-line
patent dates. The cylinder is numbered to the gun with the last two digits of the serial number (“70”) on the rear cylinder face. Matching full serial numbers appear on the frame, trigger guard,
back strap, and both grip panels.
CONDITION: Fine. The barrel and ejector rod retain 80% original blue finish, the cylinder retains 50% original blue finish, and the triggerguard retains 50% original blue finish with brown and
gray patina on the balance. The backstrap is refinished on the butt and rear, top retains remnants of original blue. The frame retains 40% plus original case colors. The grips are fine with some
handling marks and some softened checkering. Mechanically excellent. It is not often we get an opportunity to catalog a .22 black powder Colt SAA, so don’t miss your chance on acquiring the
caliber absent in most or nearly all Colt Single Action Army collections!
Provenance: The TTT Collection.
Estimate: 20,000 - 30,000
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