Colt Agent 38 Special Revolver Serial Numbers
Colt Model 1855 Side Hammer “Root” Pocket Revolver Colt Models 1 and 1A Serial #1-384 Colt Model 2 Serial #476-25000. Colt Agent L.W. 2nd Issue Colt Aircrewman Special Colt Courier Colt Trooper Colt.357 Magnum Colt Diamond Colt Viper Colt Python Colt Python Elite Colt Python.38 Special Colt Python Hunter Colt Metropolitan MK III Colt. Colt Cobra.38 Special CTG Revolver 9'. Serial number 4188LW. 4' barrel with original plastic grips. Overall excell. On Aug 29, 2019.
Either way I'm now the owner of a Blued Colt Agent in 38 Special. It has an unshrouded ejector rod. Agent is marked on the barrel. There is a hammer shroud on the gun with a rampant colt on the right side. Gun appears to be 99%+ in terms of finish. When my father in law opened the safe the gun was in there with a box of 38 special with 2 rounds missing. According to my father in law those were the only rounds he ever fired from the gun and he got it new. Based on the muzzle and the cylinder I believe him as there is no discoloration or powder residue that I can see. The gun looks basically unused. The grips appear to be factory. The lock up is tight with a crisp trigger and hammer. All in all short of not having a box or original papers with it the gun basically looks like a new gun.
So for all you Colt savants out there I could use some help. Firstly I know virtually nothing about Colts. I'm a Ruger revolver guy and never thought I would own a Colt primarily due to the perceived cost of ownership. So here are my questions:
1. How old is this thing? I looked up the serial number on Colts website and got nothing. I looked at Proofhouse and based on that I'm thinking 66-67? My serial number is 205XXX.
2. Guesstimate of Value? I'm not thinking of selling it so this is more of a curiosity thing and I guess to some degree will help me determine how to use the gun. I carry a Ruger LCR regularly and could easily see this slipping into my carry rotation. Again knowing nothing about Colts would I be making a mistake shooting and or Carrying one?
3. Any watch outs on this particular firearm?
4. Is the Colt Authenticity letter worth getting? It looks like a Colt Agent would cost $75. I did some research and seems like its 50/50 for and against the value of this process.
I will add pictures when I can. I ran out of the house this morning and left the memory card sitting on my table. I hopefully should be able to get some up by tonight or tomorrow.
Production 1927 - 1995
The Colt Detective Special morphed through four (4) variations (or series) in its almost seventy years;
- First series Detective Specials were manufactured from 1927 to 1946, with square butt grip frames through 1933 and round butt grip frames thereafter.
- Second variation Detective Special revolvers were manufactured from 1947 to 1972. Available calibers were .32 New Police, .38 New Police or .38 Special. Two or three inch barrels were available. Second variation grips were made of plastic from 1947 to 1954 and wood grips were used thereafter. Wrap-around wood grips were introduced in 1966.
- Third variation Detective Specials were manufactured from 1973 to 1986 in .38 Special only. These third variation models introduced the full shrouded ejector rod.
- Fourth variation Colt Detective Special revolvers were manufactured from 1993 to 1995.
1952 .32 Colt New Police
A derivative of the old Colt Police Positive, it was produced to meet the market demand for a gun that was easily concealed. The guns were produced in .32 and .38 caliber. My 1952 gun pictured here is a .32 Colt New Police.
Detective Special
The Colt Detective Special was first produced in 1927 and last produced in 1995. A derivative of the old Colt Police Positive, it was produced to meet the market demand for a gun that was easily concealed. The guns were produced in .32 and .38 caliber. My guns pictured here is a 1950 .32 (in my right hand) and a 1965 .38 (in my left hand).
Real Life 40 Year Historic Value
I bought this 1965 .38 gun on an online auction in 2005 for $900. It's condition is pristine, unfired, no cylinder turn mark, came with original walnut grips, box and papers.
The gun also came with the extra after-market real mother of pearl grips it's wearing, which did have some influence on my purchase. For purposes of the historic value graph, I put the value of the gun at $800, subtracting $100 for these extra grips. Sold on their own, the grips might bring $150-$300, but technically I might have paid the same price for this gun without them. So I split the difference.
We know the original price of this gun in 1965 to be $110 because the price sticker is still on the original box. I know what I paid for it in 2005 and I have attempted to reflect accurate value points in 1975, 1985 and 1995. I was only five years old when this Detective Special was new and I didn't begin collecting guns until 1980, which brings me to this proposition.
Otc genisys 3 0 manual treadmill. If any reader out there bought a similar gun between 1975 and 1995, please contact me through my Facebook page, link at the bottom of this page. I would like to share your story and adjust my price chart accordingly if need be.