Python

The Colt Python is widely regarded as the finest production revolver ever manufactured in the United States and is among the most respected and sought-after revolvers in the world, a .357 Magnum double-action revolver produced by Colt from 1955 to 1999 and subsequently revived in 2020. During its original production run, the Python was Colt’s premium offering, built to exceptional standards of fit and finish on the company’s large I-frame, featuring a ventilated rib barrel, full-length ejector rod shroud, fully adjustable rear sight, and a hand-fitted action of legendary smoothness that set the standard for double-action revolver trigger quality.

The Python’s action, tuned by Colt’s craftsmen to a standard significantly above the production norm, produced a double-action pull of exceptional smoothness and consistency—the hallmark by which Colt Python revolvers have always been identified and the attribute that most clearly distinguishes a genuine early production Python from lesser revolvers. The timing and lockup of a well-maintained original Python is immediately apparent to any experienced revolver shooter, and the pistol’s accuracy—facilitated by its excellent sights, quality barrel, and tight cylinder-to-barrel gap—is commensurate with its mechanical refinement.

The Python was available in barrel lengths of 2.5, 4, 6, and 8 inches, in blued and nickel finishes, and in stainless steel in the production’s later years. The 6-inch blued Python is generally considered the quintessential configuration, representing the pistol in its most balanced and visually impressive form.

Original production Pythons in excellent condition have appreciated substantially in value, particularly examples from the 1950s and 1960s with very high original finish percentages. The revived 2020 Python, produced with modern CNC machining, has been well received but is generally considered distinct from original production examples by collectors.