In House Shipping:
Make: Colt
Model: Single Action Army
Serial Number: 339543
Year of Manufacture: 1920
Caliber: .32-20 Winchester Center Fire (.32 WCF)
Action Type: Single Action Revolver with Side Loading-Gate Cylinder
Barrel Length: 5 1/2”
Sights / Optics: The front sight is a fixed blade. The rear sight is a “V”-notch in the top strap.
Stock Configuration & Condition: The grips are two-piece checkered hard rubber with Rampant Colts in ovals at the tops. The right panel has gone to a brown color, the left panel is mostly black with some discoloration around the edges. The grips have light wear with some nicks, scuffs, and scratches. The checkering is well defined. There are no chips or cracks. The fit of the panels to the frame likely indicates replacement. Overall, the grips are in about Very Good Condition as not original to the gun.
Type of Finish: Blue & Case Color
Finish Originality: Original
Bore Condition: The bore is gray with well defined rifling. There is light erosion and pitting scattered through the bore. In this writer's opinion, the bore rates 6 out of 10.
Overall Condition: This handgun retains about 70% of its metal finish. The finish is thinning at all edges. Most of the balance is finish wear from aggressive scrubbing. This is likely due to minor surface erosion or oxidation, most prevalent on the left of the frame. There are some minor nicks and scratches. The action shows operational wear including light turn-wear on the cylinder, mostly in the lead-in grooves. The screw heads range from sharp to tool marked with strong slots. The markings are clear. Overall, this revolver is in about Very Good Condition.
Mechanics: The action functions correctly. We did not fire this handgun. As with all previously owned firearms, thorough cleaning may be necessary to meet your maintenance standards.
Box, Paperwork & Accessories: This revolver comes with a Colt Archives letter indicating it was shipped on April 26, 1920 to the Simmons Hardware Company in St. Louis, Missouri.
Our Assessment: The expiration of Smith & Wesson's patent on the bored-through cylinder in 1869 led Colt to design the revolutionary M-1873 Single Action Army, which soon earned the moniker the "Peacemaker", "Equalizer", and "gun that won the West". Carried by soldiers, cowboys, ranchers, rustlers, lawmen and outlaws alike, the Colt SAA quickly became synonymous with the untamed wilds of the American West. While Colt originally introduced the revolver chambered only in .45 Long Colt, they soon offered the SAA in many of Winchester's cartridges, allowing the use of the same round in both a revolver and a rifle.
This Colt 1st Gen Single Action Army Revolver was made in 1920 and is in Very Good Condition. It features a 5.5” barrel, 70% of its original blued and case colored finish, with some vibrant case coloring on the frame, loading gate, and particularly on the hammer, and some deep bluing on the remainder, a pair of period original but replacement two-piece checkered hard rubber grips with Rampant Colts in ovals at the tops, a gray bore with well defined rifling (there’s light erosion and pitting scattered throughout), and a Colt Archives letter indicating it was shipped on April 26, 1920 to the Simmons Hardware Company in St. Louis, Missouri. Simmons was one of the largest hardware stores in the country during the late 1800s and into the early 20th century, and with their prime location in the “Gateway to the West”, they sold a huge number of Colt firearms to westering men and their families “lighting out for the territories”. Simmons eventually merged with Winchester Repeating Arms in 1922. This is a beautiful old 1st Gen Single Action Army.