Colt Single Action Army Factory Class C Engraved

Here's a third-generation Single Action Army that left Hartford already dressed for a collection, not a holster. The Colt historian letter does the heavy lifting on this one. It documents the gun as factory Type "C" engraved, chambered in .45 Colt with a 7.5 inch barrel and a blue and case hardened finish, shipped August 24, 1978 to Pacific International Merchandising in Sacramento as one of just six guns in that shipment. That kind of paper trail is exactly what separates a real factory engraving job from aftermarket work, and it travels with the gun.

The engraving is American scrollwork laid across nearly every surface. Frame, barrel, cylinder, ejector housing, trigger guard, and backstrap all carry the same flowing cut, with the deeper scrolls breaking up the long 7.5 inch barrel and tighter work filling the cylinder flutes. The contrast is what makes it. Blued steel sits dark against the bright engraved lines, while the case hardened frame throws blues, purples, and straw tones that shift as you turn it under light.

The grips are smooth ivory wearing the gold rampant colt medallions. They've taken on a warm tone against the dark frame, and the fit at the backstrap and frame is clean. Worth noting: the topstrap and recoil shield show that classic Colt color case, and the four-click action works as it should.

The barrel address reads Colt's PT.F.A. MFG. Co. Hartford, and the patent dates sit ahead of the trigger on the left frame. The full 7.5 inch length is the original cavalry barrel, and on an engraved gun it gives the scroll room to breathe.

The package is complete. It comes in the red Colt presentation case with the historian letter, the original owner correspondence, instruction manuals, repair station listing, and the ejector rod tool. For a Colt collector who wants factory art with the documents to back it, this is the kind of complete picture that rarely comes together.