Boston Corbett stood prepared, Colt 1860 Military revolver in hand, and had a split-second choice to make that may decide whether or not his fellow troopers would dwell or die. After a lifetime of sin, he can be the one to render judgement. It was an extended climb up after discovering faith and his approach into the Union Military on the outbreak of the Civil Warfare. Warfare’s finish discovered Sgt. Corbett and the boys of the sixteenth New York Cavalry Regiment in Northern Virginia. However inside days of Lee’s give up at Appomattox Courthouse, the sixteenth was placed on excessive alert and despatched to patrol the countryside, milling round roads teaming with civilians and paroled insurgent troops in quest of one man.
That search got here to an finish within the early morning hours of the twenty sixth of April 1865, with their goal held up in an outdated tobacco barn. The person they had been in search of was John Wilkes Sales space, the nice thespian who had been on the run for 12 days after assassinating President Abraham Lincoln. Sales space was joined by co-conspirator, David Herold.
With torches lit and pistols drawn, the sixteenth New York surrounded the barn and demanded Sales space’s give up. As flames consumed the construction, Sales space allowed Herold to offer himself up. However Sales space himself was ready to shoot his approach out. Via slats between the boarded partitions of the barn, silhouetted towards the glare of the flames, Boston Corbett noticed Sales space drop his crutch and lift a Spencer carbine. In that second, Corbett leveled his pistol between the slats and fired.
Sales space dropped to the bottom and was dragged out of the barn. Sales space died a number of hours later from a shot by the neck, which had severed his backbone. Corbett claimed he meant to disarm sales space with a shot to the arm, however he had made earlier statements about desirous to avenge the fallen president.
As what had marked the ultimate hours of Lincoln’s life, memento hunters stalked the sixteenth for any tangible piece to historical past within the making. Pages from Sales space’s diary went lacking. In a matter of days, Corbett’s Colt 1860 Military revolver additionally disappeared, however it doubtless was not missed.
Colt’s 1860 Military revolver, in any other case often known as the New Military revolver, was the most typical sidearm issued in the course of the American Civil Warfare. The U.S. Cavalry adopted it readily in 1860 and it remained the Military’s customary difficulty handgun till it was changed by the well-known Colt Peacemaker in 1873. It by no means gained the gross sales standing of the sooner Colt 1851 Navy mannequin, and it lives completely within the shadow of its successor. I all the time most well-liked the Navy, however I made a decision to buy a brand new Cimarron Colt 1860 to see if I may very well be persuaded.
How the U.S. Military Arrived on the Colt 1860
Within the mid 1850s, Samuel Colt and the Colt Manufacturing Firm had been dealing with the issues of getting old designs and an expiring patent that enabled competitors in a market Colt had created from the bottom up. Colt invented his first revolver in 1835 and after the Mexican Warfare, the U.S. Military was a dependable purchaser of .44-caliber revolvers.
The .44 caliber was deemed highly effective sufficient to cease a horse at 75 yards, whereas the smaller .36-caliber weapons proved missing. Sadly, the .36-caliber Colt 1851 Navy was mild sufficient to hold on a belt. The prevailing .44-caliber Walker and Dragoon pistols had been designed to be carried in holsters on a horse.
Colt spent the 1850s making an attempt to chop down the Dragoon, when an answer was discovered to easily upscale the Navy. The Colt 1860 Military mannequin that handily received the cavalry trials that yr featured a Navy body and inner lock work, however the cylinder body is relieved for a flared cylinder that would accommodate six rounds of .44.
The hinged loading lever and octagonal barrel of the Navy had been switched for a lighter and extra economical rack and pinion loading lever and an 8-inch spherical barrel. The Colt 1860 was additionally manufactured from the most recent silver metal alloys made attainable by the brand new Bessimer course of that made metal manufacturing cheaper. Though Colt had points getting the brand new alloy initially, the ultimate product was as mild and pointable because the Navy however was stronger and had the hitting energy the Military wished.
The primary Colt 1860 revolvers hit arsenal cabinets on each side of the Mason Dixon line simply because the succession disaster reached its fever pitch. In the end, greater than 127,000 models had been delivered to the Union Military earlier than a hearth put Colt’s plant out of fee at some point of the struggle. By the top of its whole manufacturing run in 1873, over 200,000 had been made, making it an everyman’s gun in its personal time. Samuel Colt, nevertheless, wouldn’t dwell to see it as he died in January 1862, making the Colt New Line the final handguns Colt himself labored on. However his final revolver can be the mainstay of the Union by the Civil Warfare and see the post-war Military by till the Colt Peacemaker was adopted in 1873 on the top of the Indian Wars.
Cimarron’s Colt 1860 Military Revolver
Cimarron calls their Colt 1860 Military revolver a “civilian” mannequin due to its brass set off guard and grip body, however most 1860s have this. However the casehardened loading lever and cylinder body, in addition to the laser engraving on the blued cylinder are refinements you doubtless received’t discover on navy contract handguns.
In any other case, Cimarron’s 1860 is functionally similar to an authentic right down to the dimensions and shaping of the lock work as much as the essential options. It wears a one-piece walnut grip that’s comparable in form to the Navy’s grip, however longer for larger palms. The 1860 options an 8-inch spherical barrel with a set brass entrance sight to pair with a rear sight that consists of a notch within the hammer face.
Like most Colt cap and ball revolvers, it’s an open high design and makes use of a captive wedge to retain the barrel or take away it for cleansing. The 1860 is a single-action revolver and is a six-shot .44-caliber revolver. There isn’t any security on the 1860 apart from a set of pins that mean you can safely decrease the hammer in between cylinders so you may carry the revolver absolutely loaded.
Traditionally, Colt transformed a few of their 1860s to fireside .44 Colt cartridges within the 1870s, however nearly all originals and replicas, together with this one, is within the authentic percussion configuration that requires powder and ball to be loaded from the entrance of the cylinder and percussion caps put in from the again. Because it occurs, Kirst and Howell produce ready-made conversion cylinders to shoot .45 Colt ammunition.
Fast Specs
Mannequin: 1860 Military
Caliber: .44
Capability: 6
Barrel Size: 8 in.
Total Size: 13¾ in.
Weight: 2 lbs., 11 oz. (unloaded)
Loading the Colt 1860
Cap and ball revolver replicas have a tendency to return out of the field as a package gun in additional methods than one. Though completed and able to shoot, many require some minor work or modifications to run easily and reliably. However Cimarron appears to vet the revolvers that are available. Out of two Cimarron 1860s I’ve owned, neither required work to get onto the vary. This explicit 1860 has gone over 2 hundred rounds with sparce cleansing and no malfunctions of any form. However taking pictures percussion revolvers is simply as a lot of the journey to that spherical rely than the top end result.
Percussion revolvers had been typically sighted to hit to the purpose of goal at 75 yards. However for many of us, we will probably be taking pictures at a lot nearer ranges so, these revolvers are inclined to shoot fairly excessive. After taking some offhand photographs to get reacquainted, I arrange a goal at 20 yards and settled in on the bench to place the gun on paper.
The U.S. Military loaded the 1860 nearly completely with flamable paper cartridges that included powder and bullet in a single package deal that was rammed wholesale into the chamber. However nearly all of those replicas require the loading port below the loading lever to load in such a approach. So, I loaded like most fashionable shooters do, with free powder and ball.
Loading begins by thumbing the hammer to half-cock so the cylinder will spin for loading. Then you may introduce a measure of powder, adopted by the bullet. Rotate the bullet below the loading lever and push it house. In the event you plan to shoot a lot or are going for greatest accuracy, some grease over the bullet or a wad between bullet and powder will assist preserve the fouling smooth for extended taking pictures. With the cylinder loaded, you may then place a percussion cap on the cones, or nipples, behind the cylinder. With all that out of the best way, you may shoot.
On the Vary
I shot my first group utilizing 25 grains of FFFg blackpowder and a 143-grain .454-inch spherical ball. The balls had been straightforward and quick to load and recoil was minimal, though there was loads of smoke. I put 5 rounds right into a 3-inch cluster about 4 inches above my level of goal. Utilizing the identical cost, I converted to a solid 200-grain Lee conical bullet. These longer bullets needed to be began into the chamber mouths, however in any other case seated simply as simply. Recoil was extra pronounced and these heavier bullets struck about 8 inches excessive, however all inside a good 2-inch group. Each hundreds additionally shot about an inch and a half to my proper. That is shut, which is lucky as a result of there isn’t a solution to alter the sights for windage.
I later upped my powder cost to 30 grains, which is the prescribed Military load utilizing a conical bullet. I shot the spherical ball and conical over my chronograph and received a median velocity of 764 ft per second with the spherical ball and 728 ft per second with the conical. Though there was a achieve in energy, my teams and accuracy with each rounds inverted. Nonetheless, a six-o’clock maintain on any goal gave me successful as began taking pictures offhand. Whether or not I used to be taking pictures 8-inch plates at 10 yards or ½ measurement metal silhouettes at 35, the hits got here straightforward so long as I remembered my maintain.
The sights are low profile, however discovering the entrance brass blade is simple sufficient to do shortly, though lining it up with the rear notch does take an extra break up second. Happily, the 1860 is likely one of the extra balanced weapons Colt made, and it factors like a finger would. The set off, though skinny on the shoe, was mild, breaking at simply over 3 kilos. All of this mixed to make the 1860 a extra shootable gun than it must be by fashionable requirements.
The Colt 1860 Military Revolver: An Underrated Six Shooter
The Colt 1860 Military revolver was a paradox of its time. It represents the top of Colt’s cap and ball revolvers alongside the Colt 1861 Navy and 1862 Pocket Police that got here out in the identical yr. It took benefit of the most recent steels and was wholeheartedly adopted by the Cavalry. However it lacked the strong body that fashionable shooters have since change into conversant in on the up to date Remington New Mannequin Military and the Colt 1873. It was additionally a percussion revolver adopted simply as cartridge handguns had been coming onto the scene.
Nonetheless, it served hero and villain alike amongst those that might get one and preserve one from the earliest days of the Civil Warfare for many years onward, effectively after the cartridge gun turned actually viable. It was protected to hold with all six rounds loaded, had the proper energy to measurement ratio and was as pointable as a finger—and it nonetheless is. Though an genuine cartridge conversion would possibly ship plenty of the satisfaction, on the subject of reliving the Civil Warfare taking pictures expertise, there may be nothing fairly like a Colt 1860, and Cimarron is bringing a superb one to our mitts.
