Talk:Colt Detective Special

Jack Webb and Dragnet

Jack Webb did not use a Detective Special in Dragnet. He used a 5 shot S&W snub nosed revolver.

Jack Webb did use a Colt DS when the show was first on in the 1950's. --Jcordell 21:22, 11 April 2012 (CDT)

Second Generation

Was there ever a commercially available second generation Detective Special? And if so, what features differentiate it from the other generation models? -Anonymous

Is this a 2nd gen? In the last shot, it looks like it says "Colt .38 DS-II." You can also see the first few digits of the serial number, which, according to this, would make it 2nd gen. --Funkychinaman 20:15, 11 April 2012 (CDT)

Colt brought the DS back for a few short years in the mid-90's. They made no engineering changes to it and it went under in the late 90's when Colt stopped making revolvers - with the exception of the SA's and Pythons from their custom shop. --Jcordell 21:24, 11 April 2012 (CDT)

An MDPD officer removes the revolver from the bodyguard's waistband. (S06E14)

An MDPD officer removes the revolver from the bodyguard's waistband. (S06E14)

Calleigh processes the revolver in the lab. (S06E14)

Depends

The subject of Colt Detective Special generations depends on which collector you're talking to.

Some say the 1st Gen ran from the late 20's (when it was introduced) until the early thirties when Colt changed the grips design. Giving it more flare and rounding it at the bottom. They consider that the 2nd Gen and then they count the changes (mostly cosmetic) made after WWII to be the 3rd Gen. The 4th Gen is the totally redesigned frame (heavy barrel, full lug protecting the ejector rod along with the shorter grip frame, wrap around wood grips and a ramped front sight) to be the 4th Gen or the Post-1971 Model. The changes made after WWII were a mix of cosmetic and engineering. For awhile Colt replaced the wooden grips with plastic grips which the company called "Colt wood". Eventually the wood grips returned. The checkering on the trigger face and cylinder latch were dropped. The ejector rod was lengthened almost to the end of the barrel to aid with more efficent ejection of empties and the front site was flattened towards the rear (doing away with the half circle design) and serrated to cut down on glare. That's one classification system.

There are some who call all the Colt DS models up until 1971/72 to be the "First Issue" and everything after 1971/72 to be "Second Issue". Pretty broad, but simple.

Then, finally, we have the classification system that we here at imfdb have choosen to go with. All Colt DS revolver made up to and through WW II are considered 1st Generation. Believe it or not Colt made a small number of Detective Specials during the war. Supposedly for use by O.S.S. agents. The Second Generation is the Post-WWII Detective Special up until 1971/72.

None of them are wrong or right. Just different. --Jcordell 19:19, 29 September 2011 (CDT)

Additional Variants

F.B.I. issued Colt Detective Special with hammer shroud. Photo courtesy of the N.R.A.

Colt Detective Special with 3" barrel

Colt Detective Special - .38 special

The actual screen-used Colt Detective Special .38 special from Jackie Brown. This weapon was actually handled by Robert Forster and Pam Grier.

Pre-War Colt Detective Special used on Public Enemies

Colt Detective Special with 3 inch. Barrel - .38 Special

File:MOPFitz.jpg

Colt Detective Special - "Fitz" Special with Mother of Pearl grips

Colt Detective Special. Post 1972 with 3" barrel. Mfd. 1982

.44 Special

I never knew that the Detective Special was made in .44 Special. Was that a very limited run or was the .44 version callled by a different name? -Anonymous

Ah yes the things you learn from being on IMFDB ;) LOL. The gun says Detective special on the flip side. So it is definitely a CDS. :) MoviePropMaster2008 20:16, 6 November 2009 (UTC)

In that case is the .44 version very rare, because in alot of articles I've read in magazines and on websites about the Colt Detective Special .44 special is never listed as one of the calibers it was offered in. I'm not contending the fact that the weapon was made in .44, I'm simply curious as to why sources such as Wikipedia do not list it as among the calibers it was made in. -Anonymous

Never mind it appears the picture was simply mislabled -Anonymous

No, it was not mislabeled. Look at the image blown up. It clearly says .44 special on the barrel. I changed the info back. MoviePropMaster2008 20:55, 24 February 2010 (UTC)

In that case was this a rare version chambered in .44 special or is that a common chambering that some sources simply fail to mention? -Anonymous

Well you are right that Colt did not make a production version in .44 however being that I manage to photograph some of the weirdest one offs (usually I don't realize how weird they are when I take their pics) on the planet. I get guns from large private collections, movie armories (and of course my own large private collection and movie armory LOL ;) ) But this gun was not mine but from a gun museum collection. I don't argue with anyone re production types. The only beef I had recently regarding this was the accusation that I photoshopped the .44 special into the pic (which is something I would not do since I would much rather have a production gun than a custom one off for the page). :) MoviePropMaster2008 05:07, 25 February 2010 (UTC)

BREAKING NEWS

I finally found another nickel .38 Special CDS 3rd Gen and I photographed it and replaced that .44 Special one of a kind custom revolver, which is useless on IMFDB. From now on I won't upload any one of a kind guns or special factory gift or gunsmith one offs, since they aren't of much use to IMFDB. Thanks everyone for your patience. Finally!!! MoviePropMaster2008 06:39, 12 May 2010 (UTC)

- Shame, I kinda liked the exceptionally rare, almost unheard-of .44 DS. Oh well, as you say, it's a extraordinary one-off and ain't good for reference. Still was neat to see though. StanTheMan 02:59, 21 May 2010 (UTC)

The revolver you say was used in 77 Sunset Strip is a Bankers Special. The cylinder is shorter than that in the Detective Special. The Bankers Special (rare and valuable now) was made in .38 Colt (not .38 Special) and .22 Long Rifle. As I was informed, the Bankers Special was used by Zimbalist because, as he was not a large guy, the smaller revolver made him look larger.

I believe it was actually a Colt Pocket Positive with a modified front sight. --Jcordell 21:57, 6 September 2011 (CDT)

Division

Should we divide the entries on the page into different categories for first and third generation models? -Anonymous

It being in the table format, an additional section could be added to note what gen is used. Most table formats already have it before year. --Predator20 18:54, 21 December 2010 (UTC)

A Question

What exactly is a 2nd generation Detective Special and how does it differ from the 1st and 3rd generation models?--Jackbel 11:48, 11 January 2011 (UTC)

An Answer

Colt changed the grip between the 2nd and 1st generations. Notice that the 2nd Gen has a rounded and shorter grip and they also changed the angle of the grip somewhat. Notice on the 1st generation that it's more severe. More like the old Bisley grip design found on the Colt SAA Bisley model.

The 3rd generation changed the grips. The grips themselves are longer on the 3rd gen and of a different design. Also the 3rd generation added a underlug to protect the ejector rod and instead of the half moon front sight they changed to a ramp front sight.

There are other differences I believe but those are the ones that come to mind off the top of my head. --Jcordell 15:26, 9 February 2011 (UTC)

Intro text

"First offered in 1927, the Colt Detective Special is a 6-shot double-action Snubnose revolver manufactured by Colt until 1986. Chambered originally in .32, the most common versions use the .38 Special cartridge. It features a swing-out cylinder, fixed blade front sight and notch-style rear sights and a full length ejector rod."

Additional info on the differences between the First, Second and Third generations needed. Something on the .44 model would be nice, too. Still has a long way to go before it can be put onto the page. I based it mostly on http://www.snubnose.info/docs/detective_special.htm --Milkovich 14:59, 9 February 2011 (UTC)

ID possible CDSs at Hennessy?

Can someone look over these pics and maybe help ID these? I think they're Colt revolvers: Hennessy#Colt_revolvers. Thanks! REPLICAwrittendowntheside (talk) 13:58, 21 October 2012 (EDT)

I can say without much doubt that they are .38 specials, that ought to narrow it down a bit. --Sangheili1155 (talk) 14:41, 21 October 2012 (EDT)