Why didnt the double action army catch on?

[timothy75]

Just wondering why the Colt double action army didnt replace the 1873 as it seems to be a big improvement?

 

[somerled]

Are you asking about the 1878 Double Action that was also chambered in .45 Colt and .44-40?

 

[Jim Watson]

A tough DA trigger pull is the physical reason. The huge trigger guard and long trigger you see on the "Alaskan" model is not to make room for a gloved hand, it is to give more leverage on the DA. A lot of commercial conservatism, too, I guess.

 

[Sir William]

Poor timing, long trigger pull and fragile action parts. The Colt DA 38 was an improvement but, not much. The grip prawl was uncomfortable for most shooters also. The quick switch from BP to smokeless also assured the early demise as they couldn't handle the pressures. The Colt DA 38s fared no better with smokeless.

 

[mete]

Jim, the 'Alaskan' is a popular misconception even E Keith was wrong.. There was an article in one of the gun magazines [American Rifleman ?? about 15 years ago ??] which explained it .I wish I could remember all the details. In any case there was a lot primers that were very hard and rather than discard them they made the revolver with a very heavy mainspring to get ignition.To avoid an unacceptably heavy trigger pull they put a long trigger on it .