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RICHARDS CONVERSION, MODEL 1860 COLT ARMY PISTOL –
.44 CALIBER COLT CENTER FIRE - AN EXCELLENT SPECIMEN – ALL
MATCHING NUMBERS - STAMPED "US" AND ORDNANCE INSPECTED:
Originally manufactured in
1862 during the Civil War, this Model 1860 Colt Army
Revolver was one of those 1,000 plus Colts selected by
the U.S. Army for application of the Richards Conversion
to alter the pistols to fire the .44 caliber metallic
center fire cartridges.
While Colt eventually produced a number of these
Richards Conversions specifically for the civilian
marketplace, the first 1,000 conversions were completed
to fulfill the contract for the army. As the original
parts were refurbished and the conversion parts were
added, the government inspectors on scene at the factory
applied their initials to each major component as it
passed inspection, and at some point in the assembly
process the government “US” was applied to the left side
of the barrel boss. Once the conversions were completed
and ready for delivery, each was subjected to a
comprehensive examination by Ordnance Department
Inspector Ainsworth and he applied his cartouche to the
left side of the grip on those pistols which he accepted
to fill the contract.
A significant number of these completed pistols – each
bearing the sub-inspector initials on the major
components, and in apparently in some cases already
stamped with the “US” on the barrel boss – were rejected
for any one, or combination, of a number of reasons.
Something as minor as a flaw in the pistol’s finish
could disqualify it from acceptance. These rejected
pistols were retained by Colt, stamped on the left side
of the front trigger guard post swell with “.44 CAL”,
some, if not all, were nickel plated at some point, and
they were sold on the commercial market. Well into the
late 1870’s, until the production of Model 1873 Single
Action Colts met the requirements of the U.S. Army
contracts, and Colt could begin offering the new pistol
in significant numbers on the commercial market, the
Richards Conversions continued to sell quite well to
civilian buyers anxious to acquire a fixed cartridge
pistol.
Such was the case with this Richards Conversion. It is
one which was produced under the initial contract and
altered from one of the Model 1860 Colts in the
inventory of the U.S. Army Ordnance Department. The
matching serial numbers on the trigger guard and back
strap confirm that these two pieces were salvaged from
the same pistol that had been produced in 1862. The
left side of the barrel boss bears Ainsworth’s small “A”
inspector’s stamp, applied immediately to the rear and a
little above the wedge slot. On the same side of the
boss, a faint, but legible “US” was stamped immediately
in front of and a little above the wedge slot. The
cylinder is stamped “A” and “P” immediately below the
serial number banner, indicating Ainsworth inspected it
and the cylinder had survived the proofing test.
Another small Ainsworth’s “A” is stamped on the trigger
guard between the serial number and the bow. While
these government ownership and inspector stamps indicate
this pistol was altered for the army, the caliber
designation on the trigger guard bow identifies it as
one of those rejected at the time of the final
inspection, later marked with the “.44 CAL” designation
by Colt, nickel plated, and sold on the civilian
market.
The mechanics are excellent, with the cylinder indexing
properly and locking up tight at full cock.
The metal finish is
generally very smooth with some light scattered pitting
concentrated on the rear top of the barrel – perhaps
where it rested in a holster. The nickel plating is
very strong overall, showing minor points of wear on the
back strap and concentrated around the trigger guard
bow. The cylinder scene is still legible, and the
barrel address and frame stamping are clear and
legible. The exposed brass of the trigger guard where
the nickel plating has worn has a nice mellow patina.
The barrel measures 7 13/16” long – the muzzle having
been faced during the conversion process - and the
muzzle retains a sharp edge without any excess wear.
The rifling in the bore is very strong with only minor
areas of frosting. The screw heads have sharp edged,
distinct slots with no sign of abuse or wear by means of
the exception of the extractor housing retention screw
which shows minor wear.
The matching Richards assembly/serial number stamp –
“178” – is legible and present on the frame, backstrap,
cylinder, trigger guard, barrel, extractor lug,
conversion ring, loading gate, and wedge, and this same
matching serial number is written in the grip channel
under the backstrap. The trigger guard and back strap
also bear the additional matching serial number of 71557
applied when the pistol was first manufactured in 1862.
The grips are in excellent condition, retaining the
original varnish, having no wear at the toe, none of the
wear to the sides of the panels normally encountered,
and no cracks or breaks.
This Richards Conversion is a very attractive specimen,
and a historically significant example of the process of
altering these pistols for the early Indian Wars army.
While not one that passed the final inspection to be
eventually issued to the soldiers in the field, this
pistol was produced in the early contract and it bears
the desirable inspector’s stamps and the “US” government
ownership stamp. Quite a scarce piece, this is one of a
very small original number of pistols which were
involved in this conversion project – some estimates
placing the number at just over 1100 pistols being
converted to meet the 1000 pistol contract. Having
survived in very nice condition, this Richards Colt
offers the collector the opportunity to own a credible
example of a scarce early Indian Wars pistol at much
less than a cartouched example in commensurate condition
would cost. SOLD
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