
- #Did police departments ever use charter arms revolvers serial number#
- #Did police departments ever use charter arms revolvers manual#
- #Did police departments ever use charter arms revolvers series#
While a round butt was standard, early on a square butt was also available. The walnut grip panels were checkered with a silver Colt's medallion on each panel. The alloy parts were anodized and the steel parts were blued, with nickel being optional. The Cobra's cylinder remained steel, although the government opted for the Aircrewman with both an alloy frame and cylinder.
#Did police departments ever use charter arms revolvers serial number#
My specimen, serial number 198891LW, was manufactured in 1952 and is still unfired. An Sp3 showed me one and I knew that someday I would have to own one. I first saw one in the cadre room of a barracks in Fort Monmouth, N.J., in 1955. In essence, an alloy-framed version of the Detective Special, when equipped with a 2-inch barrel it weighed about 15 ounces. The Cobra was the first Colt Snubnose with an alloy frame. A hammer shroud was available as an option, beginning in 1950.īut 1950 saw another significant development in the history of Colt's snubnose revolvers. By 1970, an amazing 350,000 had been produced, the majority with 2-inch barrels, although 3-inch barrels were also available. My example, serial number 911664, which was made in 1966, was purchased by me in May of 1976, unfired in the factory box and with instructions for $140. 38 Spl., the caliber for which the majority of Colt's Detective Special revolvers were made. 38-44 S&W Special, and most important of all. 32 Police Positive, (also identical to the. It was available in a incredible number of calibers, including. The S&W Bodyguard series: the all steel and blued Model 49, the aluminum alloy framed Model 38 and the stainless steel Model 649.Ī year later, in 1929, Colt made a truly historic move in the area of snubnose revolvers and introduced what was to become the justifiably famous Detective Special. As we shall see, Smith & Wesson J-frame revolvers are quite different in several regards. In the early years the ejector rod was un-shrouded and completely exposed. The cylinder latch must be pulled back for the cylinder to be swung open for loading and unloading. A very small number, no more than 25 to 50, were manufactured in the Fitz-Gerald Special configuration, with cut-off hammer spurs, skeletonized trigger guards, and without ejector rod heads.Īll of these Colt revolvers have six-shot cylinders, which rotate clockwise. The standard grips were checkered walnut with the Colt medallion.
#Did police departments ever use charter arms revolvers series#
The first production series Banker's Special Models had square butts through 1933 with round butts starting in 1933. Today, because of its cartridges, it has value only to collectors. Production was ceased in 1943 with a total production in excess of 35,000. Post Office and a few police departments. It was used primarily by the railway mail clerks of the U.S. 38 centerfire cartridges its cylinder length is 1¼ inches. 22 Long Rifle rimfire and the rather anemic. It was advertised as "for easy carrying and quick access – especially adapted for use by bank employees, and others whose primary requirement is for a Revolver of small size, all around dependability and absolute safety. Colt introduced the Banker's Special Model Revolver with 2-inch barrel, a version of the Police Positive 38 series, in 1928. So-called snubnose revolvers, most often with 2-inch (or something close to that) barrels, dominated the pistols carried by law enforcement "plainclothes dicks" for a quarter century from 1930 to 1955. Today, among armed professionals they most often see service as backups to heavier, large-caliber pistols or as so-called "kit guns" to backpackers, fishermen and campers. The spate of concealed carry legislation throughout the country in recent years has increased the demand for reliable, small, lightweight, easily concealed revolvers. And, for those who care (such as government-sanctioned covert operators), no brass is left on the ground to tell any tales.ĭesigned to be an inexpensive version of the Detective Special, the Colt's Lightweight Agent had an ejector shroud added, but sales continued to spiral downward. Revolvers can be had in very small, compact envelopes. Revolvers are less ammunition-sensitive than semiautomatics.
#Did police departments ever use charter arms revolvers manual#
For the novice, a revolver remains by far the best choice as there is never a chance of a round being left in the chamber after a magazine has been removed.Īnd there are usually no manual safety mechanisms that must be manipulated. Ammunition can be stored for a long, long time in a revolver's cylinder.Ī semiautomatic pistol's magazine follower spring will take a set if not periodically relieved of its ammunition load. In the incredibly rare instance that a round fails to fire, just pulling the trigger will rotate another round into the firing position. I still frequently carry a Smith & Wesson J-frame revolver in one variant or another as backup to a larger pistol, or sometimes only that with speedloaders. They still have their aficionados and lethal applications. Double-action revolvers are a long way from moribund.
