Handled some new Colts

[Slamfire]

The local gunstore had a new 44 Mag Anaconda, a new 4" 357 Python, and a new 3" Cobra in the 357. Got to play with them all.

With all of them the double action trigger pulls were exceptionally smooth without stacking. I don't know how Colt did that. Single action triggers were crisp. I tested the timing on all of them. This is a good test on a revolver, you slowly cock the hammer, slowly enough not to free wheel the cylinder. What you want to see is that the bolt drops into the cylinder notch before full cock on single action. Or before the hammer falls in double action. All the pistols passed. Colt locks up on double action just as the hammer falls, which makes the action more likely to get out of time with wear. That has always been an issue with Colt revolvers.

The fit and finish were all outstanding. Everything was shiny and pretty, lockup was tight. The price for the Anaconda and the Python were enough to give a person cardiac arrest: both $1500 each. The Cobra was around $850.

I asked the counter guy about any problems customers might have had, and he said, the typical customer that buys one of these never shoots it. They simply put it in the safe and wait for the thing to appreciate.

Shame...

 

[ColtPythonElite]

I don't see these new guns appreciating much, if any, unless Colt quits making them.

 

[gunlaw]

Shoot it and enjoy it. Really not an investment.

 

[gunlaw]

Just picked up a new Smith 610. It’s going bang this weekend.

 

[NIGHTLORD40K]

The local gunstore had a new 44 Mag Anaconda, a new 4" 357 Python, and a new 3" Cobra in the 357. Got to play with them all.

With all of them the double action trigger pulls were exceptionally smooth without stacking. I don't know how Colt did that. Single action triggers were crisp. I tested the timing on all of them. This is a good test on a revolver, you slowly cock the hammer, slowly enough not to free wheel the cylinder. What you want to see is that the bolt drops into the cylinder notch before full cock on single action. Or before the hammer falls in double action. All the pistols passed. Colt locks up on double action just as the hammer falls, which makes the action more likely to get out of time with wear. That has always been an issue with Colt revolvers.

The fit and finish were all outstanding. Everything was shiny and pretty, lockup was tight. The price for the Anaconda and the Python were enough to give a person cardiac arrest: both $1500 each. The Cobra was around $850.

I asked the counter guy about any problems customers might have had, and he said, the typical customer that buys one of these never shoots it. They simply put it in the safe and wait for the thing to appreciate.

Shame...

Adjusted into 2020 dollars, $1500 now is a decent value for a quality all-steel gun.
Vintage Pythons are still going to set you back $2500+.

 

[Ru4real]

…all of them the double action trigger pulls were exceptionally smooth without stacking.

That’s good news. Shot an original anaconda in 44 Mag last week at bowling pin shoot. Absolutely horrible in double action. Owner said, “Oh, I’ve never tried double action before.”

 

[Griffen]

Shooting double action is a skill to be learned and requires practice. The new Python and the Kimber K6S DASA both have excellent double and single action triggers. Most folks don’t practice the discipline to gain proficiency with a double action trigger. Until recently, I was a single action shooter, but after acquiring a couple of double action revolvers, I see the huge value in learning the skill. Both of the above have excellent triggers.

 

[Slamfire]

I don't see these new guns appreciating much, if any, unless Colt quits making them.

Given the number of times Colt has dropped product lines, and gone bank rupt, buying assuming it will appreciate, because Colt will repeat the cycle, might be a good bet.

 

[Madcap_Magician]

Shooting double action is a skill to be learned and requires practice. The new Python and the Kimber K6S DASA both have excellent double and single action triggers. Most folks don’t practice the discipline to gain proficiency with a double action trigger. Until recently, I was a single action shooter, but after acquiring a couple of double action revolvers, I see the huge value in learning the skill. Both of the above have excellent triggers.

Shooting a nice double action revolver trigger is a real fine feeling, though. I've shot DA revolvers in the past, but only ugly ones, really. Either J-frames or rough Rugers. Then I shot my 6" Python, and now I'm sold on Colt's new DA/SA revolvers.

 

[dickydalton]

I bought a new Cobra about 8 months ago. Still haven't shot it. Not because it will appreciate just because I have others to shoot.

 

[CoalCrackerAl]

Isn't CZ now making the colts?

 

[Targa]

People were paying $3000 and more not to long ago for the Python and Anaconda. Now you can get them at the $1500 MSRP. If I was one of the early buyers of the newly released snake guns at those prices I would get sick every time I looked at it.

 

[.38 Special]

That’s good news. Shot an original anaconda in 44 Mag last week at bowling pin shoot. Absolutely horrible in double action. Owner said, “Oh, I’ve never tried double action before.”

The DA trigger has been my chief complaint with Colt. I could have adapted to the backwards cylinder release, but the Colt trigger turned me into an S&W man in my teens and I never looked back.

In 2022, $1500 seems like a fair price for a good revolver. Guess I'll be giving them a hard look, if any ever turn up around here.

 

[Slamfire]

Isn't CZ now making the colts?

I don't know just how much US content is in these pistols. And I don't know how much money CZ has put into modernizing the production line. Not that any of that matters if subsequent Colts are as nice as the ones I handled.

I do remember the Anaconda was drilled and tapped for scope mounts, and given that I can no longer see the sights and the target clearly, that is something that is important to me. I can continue to shoot a handgun well if I mount an Ultradot on top.

 

[Griffen]

The Colts are 100% US made and sourced. The CZ connection is a holding company only. Colt is still Colt and these new models are designed and built here in the USA.

 

[dh1633pm]

Thanks for the input Slamfire. I wanted one of each. Can afford both, but my Dad is signing over his collection to me which includes some nice S&W and Rugers. So I have held off. I did buy a King Cobra and very happy with it. 4227 clogs it up, but I will work on that problem. It has been a really nice shooter.

 

[CraigC]

Colt still makes Colts. CZ owns them and I doubt there will be another bankruptcy in the foreseeable future. Go price a new Ruger or S&W and that Anaconda will look like a bargain with the level of fit & finish present. MSRP on new Super Redhawks is over $1400. I've got my eye on the new big bore snake.

 

[westernrover]

I came close to selling all my S&W and buying a new Python a couple weeks ago. I might have done it if there was a 6" available, but they seem to have dried up and everyone has the 4" and the 3" are coming in now.

I know the Colts had some QA issues at the introduction, the most notable of which was due to loose side-plate screws and since the side plate supports the hand, the hand would subsequently slip off the ratchet and fail to rotate the cylinder when the trigger was pulled. I believe all that to have been addressed by Colt and it doesn't concern me anymore. S&W continues to be plagued by QA issues. I've never bought one that I didn't send back and some as many as three times. They're still good revolvers when everything's been made right, but the prospect of buying a new one has become daunting enough to me to consider alternatives.

I was able to handle a new 4" Python and compare it side-by-side with a classic blued Python (offered at $2500 with dull and worn blueing but no pitting, and not glossy Royal blue). The most regrettable thing about the new Pythons is that they don't offer them in anything but polished stainless steel. Can you say bling?

The triggers on Pythons old and new absolutely stack. They feel identical to me between new and classic. The spring pressure on the trigger increases progressively as the trigger is pulled until it breaks. A S&W trigger's spring pressure will increase initially and then level off for the remaining travel until it breaks. Stack or no stack, I don't think I care. The Colt's are specified to be between 7 and 9.5 pounds. A factory S&W K/L/N trigger will be heavier. I've measured mine at 10.5 pounds (j-frames about a pound heavier). The Performance Center guns or guns the PC has done action jobs to will have a weight of 7 to 8 pounds.

I'll digress a little bit from Colt here. The Performance Center uses the Power Rib style mainsprings lately. I had a production PC gun come with the full-power spring, and an aftermarket PC job come back from S&W with the low-power spring. There's a pound difference. Both of them will absolutely reliably fire any brand of primer. However, S&W was apparently shipping guns with short firing pins for a while. One unconfirmed source indicated it was to pass a California drop-test. I don't know, but those 0.490" firing pins will fail even with full-power mainsprings. A correct length factory pin (at least 0.495") will solve the problem. Aftermarket extended pins are not necessary unless going to an even lighter spring. TK Custom for example offers an extended firing pin for use with their 11 pound rebound spring. Another common problem with S&W is shortened strain screws. They ship guns from the factory and the PC with short (ground-down) strain screws. These can cause misfires even with full-power mainsprings, especially with the Power Rib style that has an indentation. Unfortunately, S&W uses the same part number for strain screws of various lengths (unground or pre-ground). The difference between 8 and 7 pounds on the S&W with a low-power mainspring is the trigger return spring. A full-power (18lb) trigger rebound spring will yield 8 pounds with the low-power mainspring. A lightened (16lb) rebound spring with a low-power mainspring will yield 7 pounds. They're both totally reliable provided the firing pin hasn't been neutered, but the lighter rebound spring can be over-run if you're Jerry Miculek.

We all know that a light double action trigger isn't our true desire. Smoothness is what counts. 7 to 9.5 pounds is fine with me and I would not change the Colt. This is an important consideration in the price. S&W's start at about $900 right now, but a good action job will add at least $200 (plus shipping both ways in most cases). PC guns start closer to $1300 and are more comparable to a $1500 new Python except that even the Performance Center S&W will have to be carefully inspected and most likely several issues addressed. If it's just changing screws and firing pin, it can be done yourself, but if the barrel/cylinder gap has to be reset, I send them back.

To buy a revolver, I test the timing, the chamber alignment with a Brownell's range rod, the gap with a feeler gauge, and I test the trigger for smoothness. I might use my Lyman electronic trigger pull gauge but the weight is not so important as it is diagnostic. It's the easiest way to tell what main and rebound spring weights are in there. The pull weight can be measured, and then the gauge reset and the rebound pressure let against it to measure that. Good rebound pressure will be about 3 pounds. If it's only 1 or 2 pounds, it's been lightened. Factor that into the pull weight and the mainspring weight can be determined.

The Colts are nice guns, old and new. I still might get one and then decide whether I want to keep it and sell the Smiths. I have to send one back to the factory first to fix defects before I sell it. Hopefully by then some longer barrel Pythons come into stock.

 

[wanderinwalker]

Glad to read and hear the new Colts are finally trickling out in enough numbers to sell for MSRP.

Go check out some more technical articles on the new Colt double-action lockwork. While they feel pretty similar to the old actions in use, internally they're quite a bit different. Which is a Very Good Thing in my opinion. It should be a more robust system over time versus the traditional Colt V-spring action found on the classic models.

As for the classic polished Royal Blue, I'm afraid that will never be available from a mass production factory ever again. The metal prep work takes too much time to be cost effective. And the environmental, health and safety reforms from the 70's and 80's make the chemical processes involved too costly on a large-scale. A lot of what is sold as "blued" (*cough* Ruger *cough*) today barely deserves to be in the discussion when stood next to some of the old products from brands like Smith & Wesson, Colt, Winchester, etc.

 

[NIGHTLORD40K]

We had a thread not long ago about a new Python that received a black Diamond-Like-Coating (DLC) from, IIRC, the Colt Custom Shop and it looked fantastic.
If it becomes a regular production model, it will be a worthy modern successor to Royal Blue.

 

[halfmoonclip]

Westernrover, thanks for the tip about Smith firing pins.
A 3" Python does look pretty neat.
Moon

 

[Riomouse911]

Nice! I think one or two snakes may be coming home with me someday.

I hope!

Stay safe.

 

[airfoil]

I do remember the Anaconda was drilled and tapped for scope mounts, and given that I can no longer see the sights and the target clearly, that is something that is important to me. I can continue to shoot a handgun well if I mount an Ultradot on top.

New Colt Cobra Target with red dot... (I've since changed the Holosun to a Trijicon RMR for aesthetic reasons) The piece had no drilling, just used the target sight holes already there.

 

[cfullgraf]

A year or so ago, I bought a new 6" Python and have been pleased with it. Early this year, I bought a 6" Anaconda.

For the past decade, I've been smitten by the 8-3/8" S&W revolvers, I have eight of them now, so I decided I needed an 8" Anaconda as well.

Both Anacondas operate well with nice triggers and generally good handling features.

They have not been shot yet. My daughter married a Brit and lives in the UK. I decided to wait for them to come visit at Thanksgiving and let the son-in-law break in the new Anacondas.

 

[sevt_chevelle]

I've got two snake guns, a 6 inch Anaconda and the 2 inch king cobra, I can assure you they ain't staying inside the safe.

Saw a Taurus 44 revolver, raging bull maybe don't know, it was priced at 1100. I'll take a 1500 dollar colt any day of week over that.