Colt Trooper III.. Opinions?

B

BeornLS

New member
Hello everyone,

I recently acquired a 4" blued Colt Trooper III in .357 magnum.

What is the general consensus on these older Colts nowadays? I've also had the pleasure of owning a mint 6" version since the late 70's or early 80's. I've always enjoyed shooting it.

The 4" I just got could stand to be re-blued, having a lot of holster wear (I think it belonged to a LEO). Is it worth me paying to have this done? Anyone know how much Colt would charge or if I could even send it in to Colt?

Thanks in advance,

Jeff
 
You can send it back to Colt and have it refinished any way you want, actually. I sent in a Python at the beginning of the year to be re-nickeled and it came out great. The cost of work can be from $150 to $200 depending on the finish. You have to call Colt first on their toll free number, get the exact shipping address, and then use Fed-ex overnight to send the gun in. Include a detailed letter as to what you want done, and they will send you a written estimate for the work. I called before getting the estimate to speed things up, and used my credit card to pay over the phone. It took a few weeks because they send it out for the nickel finish, but I was in no rush and it was well worth it. They also give the gun the once over replacing any springs or parts as needed, and didn't even charge for that. As to the gun, lots of knowledgible people on this and other boards love the Trooper III and think it will only go up in value. Go to the Colt forums and do a search for Trooper mark III, you gett a load of good, sage info from the likes of Defariswheel and others. I picked up a Trooper mark V after reading a few posts because I liked some of the features better. Enjoy the gun, its really great, like most of the older Colts.
 
I owned a 6" Trooper MK III for many years before trading it. It was always a great shooter. Mine had the Coltguard finish and that finish wore like iron. I'm not sure if it was a hard chrome or a brushed nickel, but evidently Colt had the patent for it. I finally traded it for a Smith, but I am sort of looking out for another one.
 
You'll be surprised now Jeff but they are selling for $400 or more in mint condition, they have gotten expensive fast. I bough the Mark V because it's bascially a Cobra in Troopers clothing, thus a few dollars less at the time. I do favor Colt revolvers, they just feel better to me then most others, although I have a S&W 686-2 and 66-2 and 27-2 that are really great shooters. As you can tell by my handle, the Python has always stood out for me in looks, feel, balance, and the good feeling I get shooting and collecting them. Just my personal preference, to me there are no bad guns, they all interest me in some way.
 
I couldn't agree more. I'm down to just two Colts right now (Official Police and 3rd generation Detective Special), but I plan on keeping both of them. Actually the Detective Special is my BUG/CCW. You should see the looks I get form other officers when I qualify with it. Everyone else carries either a 32 Kel-Tec, 5 shot S&W, or some type of 380 semi-auto. I'm now called Dinasour Cop, but a few have asked where they can get one.
 
Thanks for the replies guys! I think I am definitely going to hold onto this one. Before it was strictly utility, since I wasn't interested in it being pretty, but I recently put a set of Jim Badger's grips on it, now it has beautiful grips and they are making the wear on the blueing look bad!! :) I was looking around over at Fords website as well, they seem to do some pretty nice refinishing work, but I think I would rather have Colt themselves do it, especially if they will give it a quick once over.

Thx again,

Jeff
 
Personal philosophy: Never refinish a handgun. It reduces the value of anything collectable, or is a bad investment on a non-collectable gun since you spend more than it returns, or you wind up with something that looks worse than when you started. If I have a pistol that is just too ugly I sell it and buy a better example. It has always been cheaper in the long run and I am happier with the results.

Your gun, your call.
 
The Mark III is a fine revolver. It is very under rated. My 357 has such a smooth trigger and is hands down smoother than a Smith without a trigger job. I wouldn't bother getting it refinished. Shoot it and enjoy it. You can probably get a cheaper blue job done by a gunsmith as once it is reblued it will have marginal future value for the forseeable future...
 
A refinish job done by the factory is not a negative to most buyers - may even be desirable.

Save the paperwork from Colt if you have it refinished there.
 
One of my favorites is my Trooper MKlll, 4". I bought it like new (MINT) a few months ago for $300.00. I also have a Lawman MKlll, 4" in MINT condition that I paid $269.00 for. They are allot of gun for the money, and there is nothing quite like a Colt...:D
 
I like my Trooper 4 inch has one of the nicest triggers of any of my revolvers,and is dead on accurate one nice shooting revolver.Still kicking my butt could have gotten a 6 or 8 inch barrel trooper but goofed off and let to much time lapse before I called and he had sold them both:eek:
 
Mark III vs. Border Patrol

Hey Guys:
I just read with much interest the opinions about the Mark III. What is the groups opinion about the refinishing of a blued 4" Border Patrol? Thanks for the help. :)
 
Depends on whether it's an original 1950's Border Patrol, or the later 1970's version which is really just a Trooper Mark III with a different barrel stamp.

If it's a 60's version, which was based on the Official Police, DO NOT refinish it, since it's a valuable collector's item.

The Mark III-based model is more common, but still a somewhat rare Colt.

I guess this depends on you, but remember, a refinish has NO collector value at all.
 
I still have a 4 in. Colt Trooper Mark III that I bought almost 20 years ago used for $ 225. It is easily 95% condition. They are nice revolvers.
 
I just purchased a Colt Trooper III off of Gunbroker. I was thinking about it and, thanks to the positive remarks on this thread, hit the bid button. I was surprised that I won the auction actually. I figure at 280 bucks, there isn't too much risk.

I didn't really want a collectable, preferring something I could carry. I've become disenchanted with new double action revolvers and love the lines of the older Colts. I'm not really a revolver guy. I have a Freedom Arms Premier Grade, a Colt Anaconda and, now, a Colt Trooper. Hopefully I'll receive my new baby by this weekend and get in some quality range time.
 
Litework, you got a very good price on the Mark III. When they were offered by the factory back in the day, I pretty much scoffed at them as being second rate as I liked the Diamondbacks and the Python a lot more. When you compare them to current production revolvers, they really are a fine value for the price and everyone that I have ever known have said they shoot very well (smooth trigger, accurate, comfortable to shoot). They were simply over shadowed by the other Colt offerings at the time. I would take them over a current production Smith just about any time in 357. I do prefer the pachmayr grips over the factory stocks for general shooting as they don't slip in your hand when you shoot. But, that's me. Always keep the original stocks for later resale if it ever happens. You may just turn into a revolver guy with this gun!
 
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