December 14, 2025, 03:30 PM
mojojojoColt Model 1860 Army - Richard's Conversion revolver
I was fortunate to be able to pick up this post-Civil War revolver recently. As some of you know, I like to share the history and background of some of these pistols in the hopes that others may find it informational, and perhaps spark an appreciation for the evolution and development of today's more modern pistols.This pistol is a Colt Model 1860 Army (44 caliber) revolver, a design that was originally a percussion sidearm during the Civil War and converted to use cartridges in the early 1870s.
Some background from Tim Prince at College Hill Arsenal:
With the end of the American Civil War many American firearms companies found themselves in a quandary regarding their future. The immediate demands for arms had come to an end, and with it had come the apparent end to the percussion era. The large numbers of various patent firearms utilizing self contained metallic cartridges had proved their worth during the war, and for most companies it was obvious that their future lay in the production of metallic cartridge arms and not percussion ones.
During 1862, 1863 and 1864, Colt had produced between 60,000 and 65,000 Model 1860 Army Revolvers per year, however between 1865 and 1870 Colt only produced a total of 32,000 M1860 revolvers; about half the output of a single war year, over the course of five years! It was not just the cessation of hostilities that had brought America’s premier handgun manufacturer to its knees, but the reduced demand for percussion revolvers.
Cartridge firearms had worked well during the war and had shown the distinct advantages of loading and unloading much quicker. They also utilized ammunition that was not likely to become damaged when it was handled or useless if it became wet. The US military had clearly shown its preference for cartridge arms and was looking for an inexpensive way to upgrade its large inventory of percussion revolvers (primarily Colts & Remingtons) to cartridge as well.
Colt was stymied by the fact that Smith & Wesson owned the rights to the Rollin White patent on the bored through cylinder. This effectively prevented Colt from producing a metallic cartridge revolver that loaded and operated the way we expect a revolver to function today. They were forced to come up with an alteration process that could convert existing percussion revolvers to metallic cartridge, without violating White’s patent.
They found their solution in the design of Alexander Thuer, who came up with the first of the Colt cartridge alterations. Thuer’s design worked, but was hardly simple or popular, and in the end only about 5,000 Colts of all patterns were altered by the Thuer method. However, with the expiration of White’s patent protection in 1869, the company moved forward with the Richards Conversion system. Richards altered Colt Armies were produced from 1871 to 1878, with about 9,000 guns being altered or produced from a mixture of newly made and previously unused parts on hand.
The Richards system introduced the loading gate on the right hand side of the cylinder, and a spring retained ejector rod on the right side of the barrel. The guns also used an improved (over the Thuer design) conversion plate or ring at the rear of the cylinder, and used a firing pin in the conversion ring for ignition. The loading lever was removed and the hole the frame through which the plunger passed was filled. The guns were typically refinished at the factory after the alteration process, so the altered revolvers came out looking brand new. The downsides to the Richards system were the complicated machining of the conversion ring with the captive firing pin, and the overly complex and in some ways delicate ejector rod. These shortcomings were eliminated with the Richards-Mason conversions.
The Colt 1860 Army Richards conversions is found in five basic categories:
1) The "US Richards" were the altered by converting in-service percussion revolvers to metallic cartridge for the US Ordnance Department.
2) The 1860 "first model original" cartridge Richards were those made at the Colt factory as cartridge revolvers rather than converted from percussion.
3) 1880 "first model Richards converted percussion" were those made up from leftover percussion parts in the Colt factory inventory.
4) The "12 cylinder stop Richards" conversions had 12 locking slots on the cylinder rather than usual six.
5) The "1860 transition Richards" or "second model Richards" retains the cartridge ejector of the first model but has the center fire hammer and less cumbersome conversion ring of the Richard-Mason design.
This example falls in the third category. It is a Colt Model 1860 Army revolver that was converted to the Richards conversion by utilizing leftover or unused percussion revolver parts from the factory. The serial number range for these models is generally 190,000 to 200,000.
This is a 44-caliber centerfire pistol with an 8 inch barrel. Early models have the Colts pattern stamp on the left side of the frame; later models have a two line patent date on the left side. Finish was either blued or plated steel, with steel backstraps and brass triggerguards. Grips are varnished walnut.
The Colt conversion revolvers served the US military in limited numbers, but also afforded the general public ability to move from the percussion era to that of the cartridge revolver. Following rapidly on the heels of the conversion pistols was Colt's "Open Top" model and then the infamous Colt Single Action Army revolver.
I'm very proud to have been able to acquire this historic transitional and relatively limited revolver to add to my collection. I hope you find this information helpful.
Left side:
Right side:
Loading gate - first found on Richard's conversions
Hammer - note lack of firing pin on hammer
Firing pin built into conversion ring
Comparison - 1860 Army percussion top, Richard's conversion bottom
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