COLT DETECTIVE SPECIAL 3rd ISSUE 38 SPECIAL 2" BARREL NICKLE PLATED REVOLVER-USED
Checkered Wood Grips will show signs of wear and use
Nickle finish is worn and rough in some areas
SOLD AS-IS
The Colt Detective Special is a six-shot, carbon steel framed, 2" or 3" barreled, double-action revolver, and the first example of a class of firearms known as "snubnose revolvers". Made by Colt's Manufacturing Company, this model revolver, as the name "Detective Special" suggests, was intended to be a concealed weapon used by plainclothes police detectives.
Introduced in 1927, the Detective Special was the first short-barreled revolver produced with a modern swing-out frame. It was designed from the outset to be chambered for higher-powered cartridges such as the .38 Special, considered to be a powerful caliber for a concealable pocket revolver of the day. The Detective Special uses a slightly smaller frame than the Colt Official Police or Smith & Wesson Model 10 (K-Frame) revolvers, but is larger than the five-shot Smith & Wesson Model 36/Model 38/Model 42 (J-frame) revolvers.
Although the Detective Special proved to be an instant success when first introduced, lackluster sales saw the elimination of the Detective Special from the product line in 1995.
