Colt's · Pistol

Colt Model 1862 Police

Name: Colt Model 1862 Police
Brand: Colt's

.36 Caliber Percussion (Cap and Ball) · introduced 1861

Also known as Pocket Police, New Model Police, Police Model

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About the Colt Model 1862 Police

The Colt Model 1862 Police was a .36 caliber percussion (cap-and-ball) revolver introduced by Colt in 1861. A compact, five-shot single-action belt revolver, it featured a rounded barrel, a creeping rack-and-pinion loading lever, and a distinctive rebated, half-fluted cylinder. Despite its name it was a commercial pocket and belt revolver rather than an issued police arm, and it was among the last percussion revolvers Colt designed before the transition to metallic cartridges.

Colt died in January 1862, so the Model 1862 Police was effectively one of the last percussion designs to leave his shop, and ironically the vast majority were torn apart years later and rebuilt as cartridge guns.

Colt Model 1862 Police specifications

General

Type: Pistol
Firing mechanism: Single action
Trigger: Single stage
Calibres: .36 Caliber Percussion (Cap and Ball)
Magazine capacity: 5 rounds
Magazine: Rotary magazine

Dimensions

Barrel length: 165 mm (6.5 in)
Overall length: 279 mm (11.0 in)
Weight (empty): 0.68 kg (1.50 lb)

Materials

Barrel: Steel
Receiver / frame: Steel
Stock: Wood
Finish: blued

Performance

Muzzle velocity (typical): 259 m/s (850 fps)
Effective range: 58 m

History

Introduced: 1861
Discontinued: 1873
Production status: Discontinued
Country of origin: US
Designer: Samuel Colt

Features

Percussion cap and ball
Creeping loading lever
Rebated half fluted cylinder
Round barrel
Roll engraved cylinder
Silver plated brass backstrap

Safety

Safety pins between nipples

Around 70% of the roughly 28,000 percussion examples produced were later converted to metallic cartridge in the 1870s, making surviving unconverted originals comparatively scarce. Barrel lengths of 3.5, 4.5, 5.5 and 6.5 inches were offered.