help restoring Colt saa

G

gunrunner

New member
ok, i have done some searching but dont come up with much. I have just purchase this old colt ,and i swear who ever shot it didnt clean it in over 75 years. now its finish is nickle plated, an old 45 peacemaker, and i would like to bring here back to original as possible, here are my big problems, finish is not bad maybe 85% with some small chips , seems to work well, but havent shot it yet. the barrel does have some pitting, can this be fixed if not is it still safe to shoot they look very minor nothing really deep. by the lead and powder build up i would say someone shot this alot. mayb billy the kid or sundance. the cyclinders have some buildup but not bad. any help in break down and restoring would be helpful. i guess i would entertain the idea of someone else doing the hard part if price is reasonable. i dont know about completely refinishing just repairing the finish and stop any advancing damage.
 
My first thought is it was shot with black powder. I absolutely would NOT use Hoppes #9 on a nickel finish. To be honest, I would use a soft toothbrush and Arm & Hammer baking soda toothpaste and warm water to scrub it clean first. When it is as clean as you can get it, pour rubbing alcohol over and through it to dry it out. I usually then blow air through and over the revolver. The cylinder can be cleaned with a phosphor bronze brush, soap and water and then the alcohol/air drying. At this point, you need to make an investment in the proper screwdrivers. www.cylinder-slide.com Small parts can be found at www.dixiegunworks.com How much do you really want to invest? Doug Turnbull or just your time? SAAs are worth quite a bit, even in poor condition. You run a risk of REDUCING the value by restoring a SAA. Go slow. If you have questions, feel free to e-mail. You should also ask on the Smithy forum here at TFL. SAAs are interesting revolvers. My own experience is that they are fairly expensive to repair but, they are simple to repair.
 
great, i just cleaned the whole thing with outter nitro solvent and ran out ,so i just started to clean the barrel again with hoppes # 9, why should this be used. i have used it in the past and havent heard of the problem with nickel finish. it may well have been shot with lots of BP and lead bullets as the build up is thick and difficult to remove. i am currently soaking the barrel plugged with hoppes #9 should i stop now. thanks
 
STOP! Hoppes #9 removes copper. Ammonia. If the nickel has spots, freckles, bubbling or pinholes, the Hoppes #9 will take your nickel off. How? I lifts and delaminates the copper. Copper is applied to the polished bare metal first, before the nickel plate. DO NOT use Hoppes #9 on a nickel finish.
 
I stopped and cleaned the gun outside completely with my alcohol and reoiled all over., so now i am starting from scratch, is the outers nitro solvent ok. i think all the newer cleaners clean lead, powder and copper fouling. the barrel fouling seems the most difficult, the gun finish is prettty good outside the few spots on barrel tip, and hammper , backstrap spots.
 
Just a question...

...about that SAA Colt. Have you considered requesting a letter from
Colt's detailing the history of that gun? From what I understand it may
cost a hundred, or maybe two hundred, to get Colt's to research your pistol
and send you a letter of "provenance". But if the gun is really old, it
might be worth it. And if the gun is worth anything as a "collectable",
you probably shouldn't clean it at all.

Just my 2 cents

Walter
:)
 
Outers is probably NOT ok, it is most likely just a clone of Hoppe's.

I deep clean my black powder gun with M-Pro 7 which is a detergent cleaner. (Windex at the range while it is warm.)

Do be careful, you can clean harshly and rough that old gun up and hurt its value. Like Sir W said, toothbrush and soap or detergent outside, bronze brush and an ammonia free cleaner in bore and cylinder. BE CAREFUL taking out screws, a buggered head is bad, a stripped or broken screw is worse. Or leave them in until you can get knowledgeable help.

An 85% gun is NOT a candidate for restoration. Depending on age it is probably worth a good deal of money as is, although Blue Book says nickel is worth less than blue.

What is the serial number? It can be dated closely.
Barrel length, grip material, everything matters.
 
i will switch over to a mild cleaner. the serial number is in the 190,XXX range and really seems ok. the grips are pearl look alike from what i can tell not original. cost was 700.00 which i thought was a good deal for the gun in its decent shape. other than some cylinder end play it seems tight and works smooth. i would like to shoot it and continue to care for it. i was more in the lines of taking the 85% gun up to like 95% for occassional use. i would agree a 95% better gun would be a safe queen but this isnt what i would call collector item. I havent taken it apart but would like to make sure its clean and oiled to stop or keep any rust or deterioration from worsening. i will try to be very gentle with the screws and not damage them. i have repaired old watches in the past so i understand how soft some of the metal is and the need for proper screwdrivers. the few spots in the finish i would like to get some protective layer or coating to keep it from expanding. any ideas.

thanks
 
That is an 1899 or 1900 gun, right on the dividing line between black and smokeless powder. Be careful, think of preserving it as is, I doubt you can upgrade it in condition without making it look messed with. Blue Book value on an 85% factory nickel smokeless gun is around four grand, which tracks pretty well with prices on Gunsamerica.com, and is definitely of collector interest if you have described it accurately. These days $700 will not buy you a working first generation Colt from anybody who knows what he has. Have I got your attention?
 
In my e-mails exchange, I believe he has a parts revolver with a non-original nickel finish. It is not a black powder frame. I still believe it is definitely worth $700.00. I do suggest Chicoines or Kuhhausens books for reference. I would go slow and be patient. I suggest cowboy ammunition for it ONLY after a gunsmith has looked it over and OKd.
 
Well, you have information not posted here, but Colt changed from the diagonal base pin screw to the cross pin latch some years and many thousand numbers before they would authorize smokeless powder. It doesn't have to have a "black powder frame" to be a black powder gun. The frame serial number governs, and if it is 190,xxx it is a black powder gun, according to Blue Book SN charts.

Obviously, if the numbers are mixed and it is an aftermarket nickel plate, value is a good deal less; but any working first generation gun is pretty valuable these days.
 
Yes Jim you have my attention, I purchased this from an older man who was getting rid of all his old gun collection. the colt was the only thing i saw that jumped out at me. I sent Sir William a few other details via email since he so kindly offered his knowledge . here is what he enlighten me of. the revolver has the push pin style cylinder rod release in front. i did notice the very light serial number on the bottom of the back strap had some numbers but these dont match the frame number , its 15211 i guess it could be a 16211 but you can see 5 distinct numbers.right under that number is 1P stamped. the frame number is a little harder to call on the second digit. he called it an 185,xxx i looked and would call it 195,XXX to be exact . also, here are the others numbers on the gun, the little right side (flap) sorry dont know the name of it . where you load and unload the ammo. has the number 387. i thought i read somewhere that there were 3 numbers on the gun but i dont see a 3rd now. from what i found i dont know how the back strap number could be this low compared to the frame number. this suggest the backstrap is 1875 range from the only list of SN i can find. as to the finish , if i would be harsh i would say worst case is 50-55% if you count all the tiniest wear. scuffs, some of the wording is rubbed away from holster use, the trigger guard is showing some brass from under the nickel finger rubbing locations. i got the grips off and all the finish on the handle are plated but not buffed to a mirror finish like the rest of the visible parts. yes this could be a refinish since he was the second owner but didnt think so. it looks appropriate wear and tear for a 100 year old gun. i see only one screw that may have been turned since it has a slight dimple all other screws look untouched. as far as Value i was thinking more along the lines of 1500.00 , i guess if its really worth 4000.00 i would just stop and put it up after cleaning. but that would be bitter sweet, i really wanted to shoot her. i can get you some pics but then it starts to look 90% due to all the shiny nickel. thanks guys, i will start more slow cleaning today.
 
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