Page 177 - 4095-BOOK1

LOT 169
Excellent Pre-War/
Post-War Colt Single Action Army Revolver Shipped to Prominent Colt Figure Alfred DeJohn
with Factory Letter - Serial no. 357733, 45 Long Colt cal., 5 1/2 inch round bbl., blue/casehardened finish,
plastic grips. Having its frame serial number factory applied in 1940, this is a scarce example of a pre-World
War II Colt Single Action Army revolver that was subsequently factory assembled and specially finished after
the war and kept at the factory. The accompanying factory letter states the revolver was shipped to Alfred DeJohn, Colt’s Patent
Fire-Arms Mfg. Company, Hartford, Connecticut, on September 30, 1960, in .45 caliber, with a 5 1/2 inch barrel, blue finish, and hard
rubber grips, and the letter further elaborates, stating, “It is of further interest to note that Al DeJohn was a valued Colt employee
and founder of the Colt Custom Shop. He retired from the company in 1989 after 43 years of service. After his retirement, Colt retained
him as a consultant for the Custom Shop until 1998.” This was a 2 gun shipment, and the other included gun in this shipment with serial number 357530 is also in the
previous lot. The Pre-War/Post-War Single Action Army revolvers are found in the 356000-357000 serial number range, and many were known to have been used by Colt
for advertising and public relations purposes. According to “Colt’s Single Action Army Revolver Pre-War Post-War Model” by Don Wilkerson on page 19, there were only
338 pre-World War II manufactured Colt Single Action revolvers assembled after World War II, which comprise the group of revolvers referred to as Pre-War/Post-War
by collectors. This is one of 116 of these Pre-War/Post-War revolvers reportedly manufactured in this specific configuration, being in .45 Long Colt caliber, with a 5 1/2
inch barrel, and blue/casehardened finish, per page 28 of Wilkerson’s aforementioned book. The production line restarted for the Second Generation Colt Single Action Army revolvers in 1956
and continued until 1974, with the 1960 shipment date of this First Generation revolver being four years into the timeline of Second Generation production. The last Pre-War/Post-War revolver was reportedly sold by the factory at
auction in 1980. Alfred DeJohn, the recipient of this revolver, is a prominent figure at Colt who was directly involved with assembly of the last of the Pre-War/Post-War revolvers, and he likely assembled this highly finished example
for himself. Page 3 of Wilkerson’s “Colt’s Single Action Army Revolver Pre-War Post-War Model” book is dedicated to him, “Al came to Colt in 1946 after serving in the Navy in WWII. He soon became a ‘Class A’ revolver assembler and
assembled the last of the Pre-War Post-War revolvers. In the early 1950’s he was instrumental in the development of Colt’s famed Python revolver. In 1970 he established the Custom Engraving Department and in 1976 founded
Colt’s Custom Gun Shop. Al served as superintendent until his retirement in 1989. He enjoys international acclaim as a designer of engraved firearms. The deluxe revolvers engraved under his direction are among the world’s finest.”
The barrel is marked with the one-line Hartford address on top and “COLT SINGLE ACTION ARMY .45” on the left side. The left side of the frame has the two-line patent date markings followed by a Rampant Colt. The left side of the
trigger guard has the Colt factory triangle “VP” proof and a number “3” stamp, with the letter “N” on the right side. Assembly number “509” marked on the loading gate.
CONDITION: Excellent overall, retains 99% plus original high polish blue finish and 98% plus vivid original case colors, with crisp grip checkering. Mechanically excellent.
Provenance: Alfred DeJohn; The Charles Marx Collection.
Estimate: 6,000 - 11,000
LOT 168
Excellent Pre-War/Post-War
Colt Single Action Army Revolver Shipped to Prominent Colt Figure Alfred DeJohn with Factory
Letter - Serial no. 357530, 45 Long Colt cal., 5 1/2 inch round bbl., blue/casehardened finish, hard rubber
grips. Having its frame serial number factory applied in 1940, this is a scarce example of a pre-World War II
Colt Single Action Army revolver that was subsequently factory assembled and specially finished after the war and
kept at the factory. The accompanying factory letter states the revolver was shipped to Alfred DeJohn, Colt’s Patent Fire-Arms Mfg.
Company, Hartford, Connecticut, on September 30, 1960, in .45 caliber, with a 5 1/2 inch barrel, blue finish, and hard rubber grips,
and the letter further elaborates, stating, “It is of further interest to note that Al DeJohn was a valued Colt employee and founder of
the Colt Custom Shop. He retired from the company in 1989 after 43 years of service. After his retirement, Colt retained him as a consultant
for the Custom Shop until 1998.” This was a 2 gun shipment, and the other included gun in this shipment with serial number 357733 is in the following lot. The Pre-War/
Post-War Single Action Army revolvers are found in the 356000-357000 serial number range, and many were known to have been used by Colt for advertising and
public relations purposes. According to “Colt’s Single Action Army Revolver Pre-War Post-War Model” by Don Wilkerson on page 19, there were only 338 pre-World War II
manufactured Colt Single Action revolvers assembled after World War II, which comprise the group of revolvers referred to as Pre-War/Post-War by collectors. This is one of 116 of these
Pre-War/Post-War revolvers reportedly manufactured in this specific configuration, being in .45 Long Colt caliber, with a 5 1/2 inch barrel, and blue/casehardened finish, per page 28 of
Wilkerson’s aforementioned book. The production line restarted for the Second Generation Colt Single Action Army revolvers in 1956 and continued until 1974, with the 1960 shipment date of this First Generation revolver being
four years into the timeline of Second Generation production. The last Pre-War/Post-War revolver was reportedly sold by the factory at auction in 1980. Alfred DeJohn, the recipient of this revolver, is a prominent figure at Colt who
was directly involved with assembly of the last of the Pre-War/Post-War revolvers, and he likely assembled this highly finished example for himself. Page 3 of Wilkerson’s “Colt’s Single Action Army Revolver Pre-War Post-War Model”
book is dedicated to him, “Al came to Colt in 1946 after serving in the Navy in WWII. He soon became a ‘Class A’ revolver assembler and assembled the last of the Pre-War Post-War revolvers. In the early 1950’s he was instrumental
in the development of Colt’s famed Python revolver. In 1970 he established the Custom Engraving Department and in 1976 founded Colt’s Custom Gun Shop. Al served as superintendent until his retirement in 1989. He enjoys
international acclaim as a designer of engraved firearms. The deluxe revolvers engraved under his direction are among the world’s finest.” The barrel is marked with the one-line Hartford address on top and “COLT SINGLE ACTION
ARMY .45” on the left side. The left side of the frame has the two-line patent date markings followed by a Rampant Colt. The left side of the trigger guard has the Colt
factory triangle “VP” proof and a “P” inspector’s stamp, with the number “5” on the right side. Assembly number “352” marked on the loading gate.
CONDITION: Excellent overall, retains 99% plus original high polish blue finish and 98% plus vivid original case colors, with crisp grip checkering. Mechanically excellent.
Provenance: Alfred DeJohn; The Charles Marx Collection.
Estimate: 6,000 - 10,000
Historic Note
Al DeJohn gained recognition from Colt though
his early work in the development of the Colt
Python revolver, as well as being the founder of
Colt's Custom Shop in 1976, where he served as
the superintendent until his retirement in 1989.
According to "Colt's Single Action Army Revolver Pre-War Post-War Model"
by Don Wilkerson, of the 338 Pre-War/Post-War Colt Single Actions produced,
only 116 revolvers were in the configuration of these revolvers.
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