Colt Single Action Army Sheriff's Model Factory Engraved

Start with the factory letter, because that's where this Sheriff's Model earns its place. Colt's Office of the Historian confirms a third generation gun chambered in .44-40 with an extra .44 Special cylinder, a 3 inch barrel, nickel finish, smooth rosewood stocks with silver rampant Colt medallions, and Class B factory engraving that covers the spare cylinder as well. The letter records where it went next. It shipped to Don Wilkerson, the author of The Post-War Colt Single Action Army Revolvers 1976-1986, on Colt Custom Shop order number 2616. The gun is pictured on page 250 of his book.

That provenance matters because Wilkerson is the recognized authority on exactly this era of Colt production. A gun that passed through his hands and into his published record sits inside the documented history of the modern Single Action Army, not on its edge.

The engraving runs deep across the frame, barrel, cylinder, trigger guard, and backstrap, with tight scrollwork and beaded backgrounds that catch light against the bright nickel. The shortened barrel carries the Colt Sheriff's Model address, and the frame keeps the rampant colt and patent dates struck clean. There's no ejector rod housing, the configuration that gives the Sheriff's Model its stubby, purposeful stance. The collector notes accompanying the gun place it as one of 21 made and the first year for the .44-40 chambering in third generation production.

Smooth rosewood grips fill the hand with warm grain that plays against the shine of the metal. The four click action works as Colt intended. The bore shows strong rifling.

The package is complete. It comes in a glass top wood presentation case with the original Colt carton, the factory letter, the Sheriff's Model instruction manual, the authorized service station list, and a copy of the Wilkerson page that features it. For a collector of post-war Colt single actions, this is documentation and craftsmanship in one box.