Happy 150th Anniversary, the Colt SAA

[Jeff Higgins]

No doubt one of the most recognizable, most copied firearms of any kind. Or modern mechanical implements of any kind, for that matter. The ubiquitous Colt Single Action Army revolver. Hard to believe it is still in production, 150 years after its introduction. I'm not sure we are still manufacturing anything that is that old.

Lots of "better" handguns have come and gone in that 150 years. More capacity, more power, easier to load and unload, all of that. So how does this old Colt soldier on?

For me, it has always been "just right", or maybe "familiar". A lot of people to whom I have introduced them find them immediately "comfortable" and, like me, "familiar" - even if they have never held a handgun in their lives.

The most popular chambering, the .45 Colt, has enough power to serve any purpose a readily carried sidearm would ever need to fulfill. A 250 grain bullet at 1,000 fps is "enough" for even most of North America's big game. I've killed my share with it.

It's relatively small, and completely snag free. Very easy to carry, and deploy. Probably not "ideal" for concealed carry, but the shorter version "hides" very well. And they just glide from the holster, or waistband, or even oversized coat pocket.

This would be, if push came to shove, my "one gun". Not the best at any one thing, but at least adequate for most things. Here's to another 150 years!

[jyl]

I’ve never had one. The only single action I’ve had is my childhood Ruger Single-Six. I’ve actually been thinking about getting a Ruger single action in centerfire, like a Blackhawk in .357. What would the difference be if I got a Colt SAA instead? In feel, aiming, quality, etc?

[GH85Carrera]

It was the original point and click interface. Much like it much younger, only 112 year old, venerable 1911 automatic, it simply works, and it works well for the intended task.

[Jeff Higgins]

Originally Posted by jyl

I’ve never had one. The only single action I’ve had is my childhood Ruger Single-Six. I’ve actually been thinking about getting a Ruger single action in centerfire, like a Blackhawk in .357. What would the difference be if I got a Colt SAA instead? In feel, aiming, quality, etc?

I love my Rugers as well. I have several of them in different configurations. There are two different sizes of centerfire single actions, the original size Blackhawk and the larger Super Blackhawk. Ruger discontinued the former in the early '70's, and put even the smaller chamberings (like the .357) into the Super Blackhawk sized frame. This made them unnecessarily big and heavy, shooters complained, and somewhere in the early 2000's they brought back the smaller Blackhawk.

The Vaquero, which is no more than a Blackhawk with Colt style fixed sights, has two sizes as well. They originally just built everything on the Super sized frame which, like the Blackhawk, resulted in too big of a gun for most chamberings other than .44 mag. So they brought out a down sized New Vaquero, which is very close to the Colt in size. If you want one in .357, get either the new "Flat Top" Blackhawk, which is the small frame, of get the New Vaquero.

Colts run about triple the price of the Rugers. Colts are very rugged guns, but most would say the Rugers are "more rugged". How much of that we really need in these modern times is up to the individual. I don't spend months at a time on the open range, unable to take the best care of my guns, and I rather suspect you do not either.

Colts are much prettier. Far better machine finishes, better bluing, and the case colors are superb. The actions are much better fitted, so much smoother. Rugers are kind of "clunky", or "mushy" in comparison. Colts are just much more pleasing to handle. Three times as pleasing? I dunno... but I do like my Colts.

Functionally, they are very different. Ruger "modernized" their lockwork in the early '70's. Most notably, they are safe to carry with the cylinder full (all six rounds) where the Colts are not. While Colts are "six shooters", they are really only safe to carry with an empty chamber under the hammer. How important that is is, once again, up to the individual.

Here is a Colt and a New Vaquero. Hard to tell the difference, really.



This shows what makes the Ruger safe fully loaded and the Colt not. Notice the Colt has a very simple hammer mounted firing pin, coupled with an equally simple hole through the frame. With the hammer at rest, that firing pin would be resting on the primer of any round in that chamber. The Ruger, however, has the firing pin in the frame. There is a transfer bar that is only held up between the hammer and the firing pin when the trigger is held all the way back. Let go of the trigger and it drops out of the way, leaving the hammer to rest on the frame. Unfortunately, all of this extra "commotion" can be felt through the trigger. Colts have much better trigger pulls.



They also load and unload differently. The Colt has four distinct clicks that are audible and tactile as the hammer is drawn to full cock. The hammer can be left in position at any one of these clicks, which are actually notches on the hammer where the sear grabs it. The first notch merely lifts the firing pin off of the primer, serving as a "safety" notch. Don't believe it - these are easily broken, which is why we only load five rounds. The second notch is the load/unload position, freeing the cylinder to rotate. Rugers have none of this - the hammer is either at rest or fully cocked. Opening the loading gate frees the cylinder to rotate.



So, they are very similar, but also very different. Nothing to choose between them accuracy-wise, that's pretty much a wash. More "pride of ownership" with the Colt, but what is that worth? It's worth something to me, probably little to others.

[jyl]

Originally Posted by Jeff Higgins

I love my Rugers as well. I have several of them in different configurations. There are two different sizes of centerfire single actions, the original size Blackhawk and the larger Super Blackhawk. Ruger discontinued the former in the early '70's, and put even the smaller chamberings (like the .357) into the Super Blackhawk sized frame. This made them unnecessarily big and heavy, shooters complained, and somewhere in the early 2000's they brought back the smaller Blackhawk.

The Vaquero, which is no more than a Blackhawk with Colt style fixed sights, has two sizes as well. They originally just built everything on the Super sized frame which, like the Blackhawk, resulted in too big of a gun for most chamberings other than .44 mag. So they brought out a down sized New Vaquero, which is very close to the Colt in size. If you want one in .357, get either the new "Flat Top" Blackhawk, which is the small frame, of get the New Vaquero.

Colts run about triple the price of the Rugers. Colts are very rugged guns, but most would say the Rugers are "more rugged". How much of that we really need in these modern times is up to the individual. I don't spend months at a time on the open range, unable to take the best care of my guns, and I rather suspect you do not either.

Colts are much prettier. Far better machine finishes, better bluing, and the case colors are superb. The actions are much better fitted, so much smoother. Rugers are kind of "clunky", or "mushy" in comparison. Colts are just much more pleasing to handle. Three times as pleasing? I dunno... but I do like my Colts.

Functionally, they are very different. Ruger "modernized" their lockwork in the early '70's. Most notably, they are safe to carry with the cylinder full (all six rounds) where the Colts are not. While Colts are "six shooters", they are really only safe to carry with an empty chamber under the hammer. How important that is is, once again, up to the individual.

Here is a Colt and a New Vaquero. Hard to tell the difference, really.



This shows what makes the Ruger safe fully loaded and the Colt not. Notice the Colt has a very simple hammer mounted firing pin, coupled with an equally simple hole through the frame. With the hammer at rest, that firing pin would be resting on the primer of any round in that chamber. The Ruger, however, has the firing pin in the frame. There is a transfer bar that is only held up between the hammer and the firing pin when the trigger is held all the way back. Let go of the trigger and it drops out of the way, leaving the hammer to rest on the frame. Unfortunately, all of this extra "commotion" can be felt through the trigger. Colts have much better trigger pulls.



They also load and unload differently. The Colt has four distinct clicks that are audible and tactile as the hammer is drawn to full cock. The hammer can be left in position at any one of these clicks, which are actually notches on the hammer where the sear grabs it. The first notch merely lifts the firing pin off of the primer, serving as a "safety" notch. Don't believe it - these are easily broken, which is why we only load five rounds. The second notch is the load/unload position, freeing the cylinder to rotate. Rugers have none of this - the hammer is either at rest or fully cocked. Opening the loading gate frees the cylinder to rotate.



So, they are very similar, but also very different. Nothing to choose between them accuracy-wise, that's pretty much a wash. More "pride of ownership" with the Colt, but what is that worth? It's worth something to me, probably little to others.

Thanks!

I’m a little surprised Colt hasn’t figured out a solution for the sixth round. Product liability alone would seem to be a motivation.

[Jeff Higgins]

They have a very well done solution implemented on their double action revolvers, the basic designs of which originate in the late 19th century. My Python uses a transfer bar, is entirely safe with six rounds, and has the best action of any revolver I own. So they know how to do it. I'm afraid, however, the old SAA is so steeped in tradition that implementing such a change would be roundly rejected. As far as liability, I think with a 150 years long history and body of knowledge associated with it, that might be a tough fight in which to beat them. I do believe, however, that there are several states in which they cannot be sold because they fail their drop tests and whatnot.