Colt Brings Back the Python

[Jeff Higgins]

Things work a little different with Colt...

Go to the Colt website and use their "dealer locator" and find an "authorized dealer" near you. Place your order through them. My local "authorized dealers" will all accept an order, typically with a down payment of some kind, to hold your place in line. These authorized dealers do, in fact, have standing orders with Colt. You are, with your order and down payment, putting your name on one of those. If what you want is not a part of their standing order, they will place a special order for you.

I have personally done this many, many times over the years when ordering an "out of stock", hard to get Colt. Like I mentioned above, however, delivery times are unpredictable. Your dealer will have no idea when the gun will arrive. Could be as little as a few months, it could be more than a year. It can get frustrating.

Hopefully this newest iteration of "Colt" will be able to increase production so as to eventually eliminate, or at least mitigate, this problem. I wouldn't hold my breathe, but one can hope. They will never crank out guns at the volumes of Ruger, Glock, Kimber, et. al., but maybe they will at least pick it up to the point where they can give us realistic time frames for delivery. That would be a start. I haven't seen it in over 35 years of dealing with them but, hey, you never know...

[onewhippedpuppy]

There are quite a few on Gunbroker starting at over $1500 of course.

[Jeff Higgins]

Ugh!!! Typical Colt b.s. - reports already coming in that some of the first batch have been shipped with damaged crowns. Very noticeably damaged, with the damage extending an inch or so down into the muzzle, like the pilot on the counterboring tool used to recess the crown was damaged or off center.

I swear these guys are their own worst enemy. They had to know the world was watching. They had to know what we expected, that any new "Python" had damn well better be perfect. No apologies, no excuses. To have let these slip by is absolutely inexcusable.

Yes, Colt is scrambling to fix them as quickly as possible. Yes, this is literally one in a thousand. But it's out there. Kinda steals their thunder just a bit...

[JavaBrewer]

Yep wow that is a total quality control failure. Still tempted though...as long as Colt is there for customer satisfaction.

[KFC911]

Inexcusable is right .

That just sux....

[Jeff Higgins]

Well, at least we know what to look for. I will just about guarantee that the second run won't suffer from this. Makes we wonder, though, what may be lurking inside. I wonder how my local dealer would feel if I insisted on taking off the side plate before purchasing one...

I well remember buying SAA's in the '80's and '90's. Dealers would not allow prospective buyers to cock the hammers and work the actions, ostensibly because so many collectors wanted to be able to buy "unturned" (where the cylinder had never been turned) examples. Gimme a break - properly handling a single action will leave no indication that it had ever been cocked. The dealers, however, knew that the actions on those at that time well and truly sucked, so they were hiding behind this b.s. Boy, did I ever spend a lot of time working over SAA action parts in those days.

I hope they don't wind up having to hide behind a similar smoke screen with these new Pythons. Maybe I'm over reacting - all indications are, from the guys who were lucky enough to grab one of this first run is that they meet, or actually exceed, their expectations. I might just have to get in line... I could use a 4.25" example to compliment my 6"...

[jyl]

wow, that is an astonishing screwup. how could that possibly get past QC!

[on2wheels52]

I'd wager I could blindfolded pick an old one out of a pile of new ones (and vice-versa).

[greglepore]

Originally Posted by on2wheels52

I'd wager I could blindfolded pick an old one out of a pile of new ones (and vice-versa).

yes. As you could with Porsche or Mb or most significantly BMW. The pace of the world has changed.

Not that I disagree with sentiment.

[gr8fl4porsche]

Starting to see reports of the cylinder intermittently not turning when hammer is cocked.

See Hickok45's review.

https://youtu.be/7dO-lQEX49U

[Jeff Higgins]

Originally Posted by gr8fl4porsche

Starting to see reports of the cylinder intermittently not turning when hammer is cocked.

See Hickok45's review.

https://youtu.be/7dO-lQEX49U

Wow. Just wow. And to think I got all excited about Colt making this move. It looks like they really have some work to do. And maybe some heads to chop...

[Rick Lee]

I hope people ask them about this at SHOT next week.

[flatbutt]

Originally Posted by Jeff Higgins

Wow. Just wow. And to think I got all excited about Colt making this move. It looks like they really have some work to do. And maybe some heads to chop...

that is disappointing

[Jeff Higgins]

Originally Posted by Rick Lee

I hope people ask them about this at SHOT next week.

Oh, you know someone will. Lots of someones. I'll be very interested to hear how Colt responds.

[Rick Lee]

I took my dad's Series 70 Commander out the week before last and just loved it. It's one of the good ones, really good. I'll put it up against my Dan Wessons. It cost $150 at Ray's in Dallas when I was six years old and helped my mom pick it out for him. But the first Competition 1911 I fondled after Jeff got his and posted about it here felt loose and rickety. It was another one that shouldn't have made it past QC. I can't remember exactly what the issue was, but the hammer did not work or feel right. That's when I gave up. I bought a SIG 1911 that day and it is every bit as nice as the TRPs or Gold Cups I was also looking at and for $200-500 less. I want to like Colt, but their name is simply a tax I'm not willing to pay.

[targa911S]

Originally Posted by greglepore

Yeah, will wait for blue.

It would b e great (but doubtful) if they would do the Royal Blue they did on the originals.

[KFC911]

Originally Posted by targa911S

It would b e great (but doubtful) if they would do the Royal Blue they did on the originals.

I'm no longer even interested...

Colt really screwed the pooch on this

[jdlowery]

I sure hope they can solve their issues. I've always wanted a Python. It's probably almost impossible for me to buy one anyway, living in California.

[onewhippedpuppy]

Originally Posted by jdlowery

I sure hope they can solve their issues. I've always wanted a Python. It's probably almost impossible for me to buy one anyway, living in California.

Only six rounds, isn’t this one of the few they’ll actually let you have?

[KFC911]

The cylinder not turning is a "feature" designed for CA