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colt bisley 38-40

tthan43
I have a colt bisley model 38-40 that has been in my family for generations now. I originally got it from my grandfather and he was born in 1895 in Willow Point, TX. He had gotten it from his father who had used it in the Okla. land rush. It has all the original finish and there has never been a thing done to it. The metal is sort of shiny/dull steel gray, there is not one nick or chip in the black handle and is in excellent condition. The serial no. is stamped in 3 places and they all match. The serial no. is 203185. I could not find the gun on any of the professional forums and was wondering if anyone could help with the year it was made. The barrel is one of those mentioned on the internet as 4 3/4 inches I think was the figure given. I used to shoot it in high school but even back then the shells cost about .25 each and besides, it would not make a hole in the local stop sign like the .22 would. Kicks like a damn mule and I did not have the headset to tone down the noise.
thanks for any and all help.
tony
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Comments

3 comments

Date Votes
  • perry shooter
    Pistol made 1901.
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  • Justjump
    Thats oldddd
    You should probably just send it to me!!!
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  • Old-Colts
    As perry shooter noted, it was probably shipped from Colt in 1901. It's one that falls near the transition from 1900 to 1901. Based on Colt Archive Letters I have on Single Actions I'd say your gun would probably letter between October 1900 and February 1901.

    Also, you might consider getting a Colt Archive Letter for your Bisley. It will confirm the configuration of the gun as it was shipped from Colt's factory, when it was shipped, and the store it was shipped to. Sometimes, if the gun was a special order, it will have sold to information, but that is rare. You might have one that was actually shipped to Oklahoma; although a lot of the guns that went into Oklahoma were originally shipped to Sherman, Texas. An Oklahoma or Texas shipped gun is very desirable. However, the downside is, it was probably shipped to Simmons Hardware in St. Louis!
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