Old Colt revolver - model?

Maybe a Colt Navy Revolver?

Those are fun.. they have the rear sight notch on the hammer, to use when its cocked :cool:
 
Looks like a Colt 1849 Pocket Model. Can't read the markings in the pictures, I am not an expert to interpret them anyhow. But if the gun and casing are all authentic, it is worth a ton of money and you need a real expert for evaluation and appraisal.
 
I don't have any reason to think it's not authentic. Sometimes you can just tell that a piece is very old.

By the way, I should have mentioned a few things that the pictures don't tell. the rifled, hex barrel is about 4-1/2" long, the cylinder is 1-7/16ths long. Overall it is 10" long. The cylider has what looks like a stagecoach hold-up scene.

The markings on the top of the barrel says:

ADDRESS SAM L COLT
HARTFORD CT.
The "L" looks smaller than the rest of the letters.

On the cylinder it says:
COLTS PATENT
No. 181637

On the right side, there is another "COLTS PATENT" -if you look close at pic 4 you can see it on the frame beneath the cylinder. Directly in front of that (on the barrel frame) there is a number 7 laying on it's side.

The rest are just frame numbers as far as I can tell.
 
"Just frame numbers"???
The frame serial number is the key to the age of the gun. SN 181367 was made in 1860, so you know the age of the cylinder. The stagecoach scene is correct. Barrel address is correct for the period. I can see the trigger guard number ends in 838 so it is not a matching gun. But the ivories are sure nice. It doesn't have a front sight. Is there a place where one was installed? 4 1/2 inches is not a standard barrel length for the model, according to Blue Book, so it may have been cut from 5 or 6 inches.

It is still a very nice set and you need somebody who knows more than me.
 
Sorry Jim, didn't mean to belittle the importance of the numbers, just thought they were visible enough in the photos. :)

Thanks much for your info! Since you asked, it does have (or did have) a front sight. Looks like a worn post now, perhaps brazed to the barrel.
 
I would hesitate to value it without a up close and personal view. The fact is though, everything is proper except for the brass frame as mentioned. I strongly suggest you consult a good appraiser such as Jim Supica in Kansas. I think you could have $4-5,000.00 sitting in that case. Google for armchair gun show and/or old town station dispatch. I will keep my fingers crossed for you!
 
Thanks Sir W., I sure will. Do you have any additional contact info for Supica? I'm in Indy and that might be a trip worth making. Unless someone knows his equal closer to me.

Also, if you look at the numbers, the brass actually matches the main frame, it's the barrel that is off by 9799 units. Could that perhaps explain the short barrel?
 
Most of those had 5.5" barrels. The older black powder was hot and hard on muzzle crowns. Many were cut off to remove damage or simply to conceal better. The front sight is a non-issue too. Many were simply knocked off or removed for an easier draw from concealment. I have seen many mismatching barrels. It isn't that big an issue considering the fairly complete cased Colt revolver. I am unaware of any qualified appraiser in Indiana.
 
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