Colt M1889 "Navy", .41 Long Colt Antique Revolver $4600

Please text anytime 6476871484. Fully functional double action revolver in perfect condition. No PAL required. Comes with FRT paperwork. Reloadable ammo is available but sold separately. Colt M1889 "Navy", .41 Long Colt Revolver This one is in excellent condition. It bears about o 99% of its original nickel plating. The nitre blue on the trigger, hammer and screw heads is well visible. The action is smooth and accurate, and the cylinder indexes and locks properly. The bore of the 4.5 inch barrel is fine and bright, with sharp rifling. The markings are sharp and defined throughout. The assembly numbers match on the cylinder, crane, barrel and frame. The grips are excellent and undamaged, showing no wear.SN 20959, rated excellent overall.​​ History & Background This model is an important milestone in Colt handgun development, as it is the first American revolver with a swing-out cylinder mounted on a crane, a development which would become the standard for modern revolvers to this day. The 1889 cylinder mechanism was already "on the books" as early as 1880, based on designs of Colt engineers William Mason, C.J Ehbets and Horace Lord. It would take almost ten years for Colt executives to give the green light to manufacture this gun, and once it was available, the US government quickly took notice and ordered several thousand for the Navy. Colt adopted the name "New Navy" in honor of this order. The gun has an interesting counter-clockwise cylinder rotation and a locking mechanism which relies entirely on the two-pronged hand. This would prove to be a weakness in the design, and by 1892 locking lugs on the outside of the cylinder were introduced. The 1889 model would remain in production for 18 years, with significant improvements in 1892, 94, 95, 96, 1901 and 1903. When it was first introduced in 1889, it met with no competition from the other major makers - Smith & Wesson were still heavily engaged in manufacturing top-break revolvers, and Remington only had their solid frame revolvers with removable cylinders to offer. It would take S&W another ten years before they had a viable alternative to Colt's design.