Here:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B6Fh3F6hufhDMWZiNjBkMWItZDhkNS00MTlhLWE4YzMtOTdmN2YwNmY4NzM2/view

 

Thank you for this! I used some of these procedures when I bought my S&W m17. I used them again to look at this Colt Trooper 357.

 

I had one years ago. My only complaint was a very heavy double action trigger pull. I think it was designed that way because the pistol was made for LE use.

After shooting S&W revolvers years before I got it, the opposite rotation of the cylinder took a little time to get used to when doing reloading drills with only one or two rounds in the cylinder.

 

I have 3 Troopers, I believe the build quality is better than my S&W revolvers (I have over 20 S&W revolvers). I prefer the double action trigger on the S&Ws over the Colts. It is kinda hard to find a gunsmith that will work on Colts, not so much with S&W. If you plan on shooting it very much I'm not sure the Colt is a good idea.

 

I too had one many years ago, a Mk 3. Nice gun, large and heavy. Traded it in on a S&W 19 which I still have. As already stated, Colts are tricky to work on. S&W's action is much easier, and superior to Colt's in my opinion.
At one time, HP Troopers had their choice of Colt or S&W .357s. One evening a Trooper came in to my office with a paper bag. Help he said. In the bag was his Colt Mk.3, totally disassembled, and he could not get it back together. I can assemble a S&W action blindfolded.
Not a Colt.

 

The original Trooper had the same action as the Python. The Mark III had much simpler parts and not very light or smooth pull. They can be improved a bit and are still nice revolvers.

 

So I went ahead and purchased the revolver. Using a booklet entitled "Colt's Dates of Manufacture" by RL Wilson, we found out it was made in 1969, the last year of this Trooper 357 (open shroud). I believe the Mk IIIs then were produced after that (I am still researching this).
The photo above is Not the gun I bought, just one that looks very similar. The one I bought does have a 6" barrel and the stock Colt grips (in great shape). No recessed cylinder. The cylinder did feel nice and secure with little play. Bore was also clean and no signs of pitting.
The finish is nice and blue-but not shiny deep blue like some of the S&W revolvers I have handled. A nice polish should help out plenty. No pitting on barrel of the rest of the gun either.

I will post pics as soon as it gets out of gun jail. I will clean it up, oil as necessary and go shooting! Price paid-$650.00

 

Those are still very nice revolvers.

 

Those are really nice guns. Same action as a Python. Remember, this type of Colt action doesn't completely lock up until the trigger is pulled. I have had people say there was something wrong with their Colt because when they cocked the hammer back, there was a little play in the cylinder rotation wise. When the trigger is pulled, the hand pushes the cylinder just a little more and it locks up solid. With the gun unloaded, cock the hammer. You can feel a little rotation back and forth in the cylinder with just your thumb and forefinger. Then ease the hammer down while continuing to hold the trigger back. Now there will be very little or no play in the cylinder rotation.

 

I had a MK III in the early eighties. It had an action job and was chrome plated. Traded it in for S&W 39. I still miss the Colt.

 

I had the Trooper V and it was essentially a python. The absolute smoothest action I have ever felt. You could literally cock the hammer 5 yards from a whitetail and the deer wouldn’t hear it.

Sold to my brother who then traded to someone for an older mint condition 45-70 Winchester lever action. Wish I still had that pistol. Sucker was insanely loud though!

 

I was first issued a Colt Trooper when I joined the Fla Highway Patrol. The gun was probably 25 years old when I got it. The revolver had been rebuilt quite a few times. It was a very accurate revolver. The Colt action will go out of time with use. The trick is when you detect any play in the cylinder with the trigger pulled and hammer all the way down is to get it corrected right then. A good gunsmith can easily correct it. Left alone it will get worse very quickly. The problem is there are very few gunsmith's left that know how to work on a double action Colt. While the Colt Trooper is a lovely handgun it does not compare to a good Smith & Wesson mod 27 or 28 for sustained hard use.

 

I have a .357 Trooper in there somewhere. It's a great shooter, I shot the best group I've ever shot with a revolver with the Trooper. Congratulations , you're going to like it.

 

The only Trooper I like is the original. Not a fan of the III or V

 

Then I did good.

 

So I went ahead and purchased the revolver. Using a booklet entitled "Colt's Dates of Manufacture" by RL Wilson, we found out it was made in 1969, the last year of this Trooper 357 (open shroud). I believe the Mk IIIs then were produced after that (I am still researching this).
The photo above is Not the gun I bought, just one that looks very similar. The one I bought does have a 6" barrel and the stock Colt grips (in great shape). No recessed cylinder. The cylinder did feel nice and secure with little play. Bore was also clean and no signs of pitting.
The finish is nice and blue-but not shiny deep blue like some of the S&W revolvers I have handled. A nice polish should help out plenty. No pitting on barrel of the rest of the gun either.

I will post pics as soon as it gets out of gun jail. I will clean it up, oil as necessary and go shooting! Price paid-$650.00

The Mark III actually was introduced in 1969, so yours is one of the last of the first models.

 

I was first issued a Colt Trooper when I joined the Fla Highway Patrol. The gun was probably 25 years old when I got it. The revolver had been rebuilt quite a few times. It was a very accurate revolver. The Colt action will go out of time with use. The trick is when you detect any play in the cylinder with the trigger pulled and hammer all the way down is to get it corrected right then. A good gunsmith can easily correct it. Left alone it will get worse very quickly. The problem is there are very few gunsmith's left that know how to work on a double action Colt. While the Colt Trooper is a lovely handgun it does not compare to a good Smith & Wesson mod 27 or 28 for sustained hard use.

Great points.
If I need work done on this particular gun, I will call Cylinder & Slide to see what they can do. If there is other gunsmiths out there that can work on a Trooper, that would be great to know.

As for ammo, I am not sure how sturdy these guns are. This one was born in 1969. So I would have not problem shooting Underwood 38 Special out of it all day long. But my concern would be shooting "full house" 357 magnum ammo out of it like what Underwood or Doubletap offer. I am not sure how long this gun would hold up. Maybe it would be fine (I would keep an eye on the action of course), but I think I would not do a steady diet of Underwood 357 mag ammo through it. I'll probably stick with American Eagle, Winchester or other.

 

I was first issued a Colt Trooper when I joined the Fla Highway Patrol. The gun was probably 25 years old when I got it. The revolver had been rebuilt quite a few times. It was a very accurate revolver. The Colt action will go out of time with use. The trick is when you detect any play in the cylinder with the trigger pulled and hammer all the way down is to get it corrected right then. A good gunsmith can easily correct it. Left alone it will get worse very quickly. The problem is there are very few gunsmith's left that know how to work on a double action Colt. While the Colt Trooper is a lovely handgun it does not compare to a good Smith & Wesson mod 27 or 28 for sustained hard use.

We still had a few Colt revolvers in service when I came out of the academy in 1995. I didn’t get one but the old heads had a mix of Colts and SW and 5906s for people up to my class.
I later bought a Highway Pattolman, well, because it only seemed right, but haven’t run up on a good deal on a Trooper yet.

 

We still had a few Colt revolvers in service when I came out of the academy in 1995. I didn’t get one but the old heads had a mix of Colts and SW and 5906s for people up to my class.
I later bought a Highway Pattolman, well, because it only seemed right, but haven’t run up on a good deal on a Trooper yet.

Bama I was issued a stainless steel Colt Python in 1990. I thought I was in very high cotton. I was also a three digit Trooper.

 

I have a 6" MK3 (79ish) and like the way it balances and shoots, it has top notch accuracy.

I also have a number of Smith K,L, and N-frames. In the early 70s we were issued Smith 28s/4" and then 19s. I still carry Smiths, not often, for nostalgia reasons, but will carry them on the property in hopes of bagging feral hogs.

A major reason for carrying Smiths is their faster and shorter DA resets, compared to Colts. A 27-2, 5" (1973) is my favorite wheelgun, split times can be pushed shooting .357mag ammunition, factory and handloads.

The Trooper is a very nice model Colt, enjoy shooting yours and post your range impressions, including pictures.

 

Everyone should have a 6" 357 Magnum revolver.

 

Does anyone here know if it’s safe to shoot hot 357 through a colt trooper 357

 

Unless it’s over SAAMI standards, it should be fine. In my opinion, no ammo should ever be loaded above standards.

 

I found my MkV Trooper in a pawn shop with a bubbad trigger job that Frank Glenn set right. If you need/want work done on your Trooper, I found Frank to be amazing to work with.

glenncustom@centurylink.net

Beautiful finish on the Trooper, silky DA and SA, but for me, even with Frank returning my trigger to stock, SA is lighter than I like. Sights are spot-on for me to 15 yards.

A medium frame revolver, IMHO, the steady diet for mine is 38 Spl. 357 will buck the Trooper quite a bit, but then my other 357s are Smith N frames.

As you know by now, the Trooper was the poor man’s Python, and to me is everything I need or want in a classic revolver.

Congrats on your acquisition! You will be very, very pleased with it, I imagine.