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Author Topic: Colt New Service  (Read 1013 times)

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Offline Cleburne

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Colt New Service
« on: November 13, 2011, 01:45:29 PM »
My  friend has a Colt New Service revolver in .44 Russian. It has a windage adjustable rear sight and an elevation adjustable front sight. Odd thing is it appears to be a smoothbore. Any Colt experts out there? I'd like to find out if the factory produced these handguns without rifling, and for what purpose.
 
Thanks,
 
Cleburne
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Offline tacklebury

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Re: Colt New Service
« Reply #1 on: November 13, 2011, 03:49:37 PM »
Quote
The most common New Service calibers are .45 Colt, .455 Eley and .45 ACP. The list doesn’t end there though. They were also offered in .38 Special, .357 Magnum, .38-40, .44 Russian, .44 Special, .44-40, .450 Boxer and .476 Eley. There were also a few made with smoothbore barrels, all of which are considered short-barrel shotguns under NFA regulations unless a Curio and Relic exemption has been granted by BATFE.

From here: http://www.allaboutguns.net/Colt_New_Service_455_Eley.html  ;)
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Tacklebury --}>>>>>    Multi-Barrel: .223 Superlite, 7mm-08 22", .30-40 Krag M158, .357 Maximum 16-1/4 HB, .45 Colt, .45-70 22" irons, 32" .45-70 Peeps, 12 Ga. 3-1/2 w/ Chokes, .410 Smooth slugger, .45 Cal Muzzy, .50 Cal Muzzy, .58 Cal Muzzy

also classics: M903 9-shot Target .22 Revolver, 1926 .410 Single, 1915 38 S&W Break top Revolver and 7-shot H&R Trapper .22 6" bbl.

Offline Cleburne

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Re: Colt New Service
« Reply #2 on: November 14, 2011, 01:54:28 PM »
Thank you sir!
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Offline Mike A.

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Re: Colt New Service
« Reply #3 on: January 02, 2012, 08:05:12 AM »
Smoothbored New Services are rare but known.  Most of them are .44-40s, not .44 Russian.  It would be even more unusual to find a New Service Target (which is what your friend has unless the sights aren't factory--.44 Russian was a common chambering for NSTs) with a smoothbored barrel; doesn't make much sense to order target sights without rifling. 

Either your friend has a special-ordered gun (and ANYTHING is possible with those!) or he has an uncommon NST that somebody made into a "snake gun."  Many of the special-ordered smoothbore Colts were ordered by Wild West Show performers so that they could safely shoot aerial targets for the crowd.  Most common loading was a .44-40 case loaded with a frangible paper capsule full of #12 "dust shot" which wouldn't make holes in the "big top."  That shell with heavier shot was also used by .44-40 owners to shoot snakes and small game.  It's one of the many ancestors of the .410 shotgun shell.

It would be very interesting (at least) and possibly quite profitable (at best) to get a factory Colt letter and find out if this gun is original and who it was shipped to.
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Offline Cleburne

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Re: Colt New Service
« Reply #4 on: January 02, 2012, 09:47:07 AM »
Thanks Mike. I was considering getting a factory letter, but my friend wanted to sell it as part of an entire group of over forty pistols. I managed to get the whole group sold for her so I no longer have the New Service in my possission. In fact, I think the person I sold the guns to found another buyer for the Colt shortly afterwards.
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