Colt's · Revolver
Colt Model 1861 Navy
Revolving · .36 Caliber Percussion (Cap and Ball) · introduced 1861
Also known as Colt M1861 Navy, Colt New Model Navy, Colt 1861 Round Barrel Navy
About the Colt Model 1861 Navy
The Colt Model 1861 Navy is a six-shot, single-action .36-caliber cap-and-ball percussion revolver produced by Colt from 1861 to 1873. It combined the elegant lines of the earlier 1851 Navy with the round barrel and 'creeping' ratchet loading lever of the .44-caliber Model 1860 Army. Roughly 38,000 were made, seeing service with Union and Confederate forces during the American Civil War and on the American frontier.
The 1861 Navy carried over Samuel Colt's classic .36-caliber Navy frame but modernized it with the round barrel and creeping loading lever pioneered on the 1860 Army, making it one of the most refined percussion revolvers of the Civil War era.
Colt Model 1861 Navy specifications
General
- Type
- Revolver
- Action
- Revolving
- Firing mechanism
- Percussion
- Trigger
- Single action
- Calibres
- .36 Caliber Percussion (Cap and Ball)
- Magazine capacity
- 6 rounds
- Magazine
- Revolving cylinder
Dimensions
- Barrel length
- 190 mm (7.5 in)
- Overall length
- 330 mm (13.0 in)
- Weight (empty)
- 1.17 kg (2.58 lb)
Barrel
- Rifling
- Right hand
- Grooves
- 7
Materials
- Barrel
- Steel
- Receiver / frame
- Steel
- Stock
- Walnut
- Finish
- blued
Performance
- Muzzle velocity (typical)
- 259 m/s (850 fps)
- Effective range
- 45 m
History
- Introduced
- 1861
- Discontinued
- 1873
- Production status
- Discontinued
- Country of origin
- US
- Designer
- Samuel Colt
Features
- Round barrel
- Creeping loading lever
- Brass trigger guard
- Silver plated backstrap
Safety
- Hammer safety notch
The Model 1861 Navy is sometimes called the 'New Model Navy' to distinguish it from the 1851 Navy. Standard finish featured a casehardened frame, blued barrel and cylinder, brass trigger guard and silver-plated backstrap. Surviving original examples are scarce, with estimates that fewer than 3% remain today.
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