Rye Miles #13621 Posted January 14, 2016 Posted January 14, 2016 http://www.colt.com/Media/PressReleases/tabid/252/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/141/COLT-DEFENSE-EMERGES-FROM-CHAPTER-11-RESTRUCTURING--Iconic-American-Brand-Looks-to-Future-with-Stronger-Capital-Structure-and-Enhanced-Liquidity.aspx
Blackwater 53393 Posted January 14, 2016 Posted January 14, 2016 It's a shame that they couldn't escape from the adversarial atmosphere of Hartford!!!
El Hombre Sin Nombre Posted January 14, 2016 Posted January 14, 2016 Good deal. I have been trying to place a custom order, but can't seem to get the ball rolling. Maybe all hands were on deck to get this restructuring back in order. Now maybe I can get that order going. It's only an 18-24 month wait.
The Wichita Southpaw Posted January 14, 2016 Posted January 14, 2016 A two year wait on a order. I can't figure out why they went bankrupt.
Tex Jones, SASS 2263 Posted January 14, 2016 Posted January 14, 2016 I don't think this will change much as far as the production of SAAs is concerned. It has been a niche market for years and the price is off putting for many. Hope that they improve.
El Hombre Sin Nombre Posted January 14, 2016 Posted January 14, 2016 A two year wait on a order. I can't figure out why they went bankrupt. Well they went bankrupt because they got in bed with a private equity firm that basically raped them of any value and then headed off into the sunset. But a two year wait on a custom order certainly didn't help, I'll concede that point. For what it's worth, I have almost as long of a wait on an order for a Shiloh Sharps as well, and they aren't bankrupt yet.
Rye Miles #13621 Posted January 14, 2016 Author Posted January 14, 2016 I don't think this will change much as far as the production of SAAs is concerned. It has been a niche market for years and the price is off putting for many. Hope that they improve. You're absolutely right! They're concentrating on their 1911's and their AR's. They've lowered the prices on the 1911's. Wish they would start making their "snakes" again!!
Larsen E. Pettifogger, SASS #32933 Posted January 14, 2016 Posted January 14, 2016 Colt has been in and out of bankruptcy for the past 25 or 30 years. Let us all hope this one is successful. Key language in the press release, (Sorry, that's the way it copied from their press release.) In addition, the Company has executed a long-term lease for its West Hartford Facility and has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with the United Auto Workers that reaffirms its strong relationship with the union and its workforce. Draw your own conclusions as to what staying in Connecticutt and keeping a contract with the United Auto Workers means for a small gun company.
El Hombre Sin Nombre Posted January 14, 2016 Posted January 14, 2016 Colt has been in and out of bankruptcy for the past 25 or 30 years. Let us all hope this one is successful. Key language in the press release, (Sorry, that's the way it copied from their press release.) In addition, the Company has executed a long-term lease for its West Hartford Facility and has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with the United Auto Workers that reaffirms its strong relationship with the union and its workforce. Draw your own conclusions as to what staying in Connecticutt and keeping a contract with the United Auto Workers means for a small gun company. I don't know much about Connecticut, but I hope you aren't trying to blame the union workers for Colt's predicament. It was the PE firm that came in, used the Colt name, assets, and government contracts to leverage huge amounts of debt in order to pay off the hedge fund managers and then leave the company in a financial mess. The workers didn't do that. I believe it is the highly skilled union workers that are the reason a Colt SAA is far and above anything else out there and in my opinion worth every dime. Now if only they would make enough of them for me to be able to actually walk into a store and buy one rather than have to scour gunbroker looking for a deal, deal meaning only a few hundred above MSRP.
WillDearborn Posted January 14, 2016 Posted January 14, 2016 Whelp, I talked to a nice gent the other day, checking on the status of my custom order of 3 years ago, and putting in a new SASS SAA custom order. That was on Friday of last week, he said he'd call me Monday of this. I'm still waiting...
Sixgun Shorty, SASS #35717 Life Posted January 16, 2016 Posted January 16, 2016 Good deal. I have been trying to place a custom order, but can't seem to get the ball rolling. Maybe all hands were on deck to get this restructuring back in order. Now maybe I can get that order going. It's only an 18-24 month wait. As a former Direct Colt Custom Shop dealer I sold many dozen custom Colt SAAs to SASS clients and friends as some of you may remember Waiting time from when your order is confirmed by Colt (and paid for) these days, Current waiting time could well be 24-36 months easily depending on options ordered About 12 years ago I was receiving them anywhere from 6-9 months About 2006 began taking well over a year then up to two years or more One reason I stopped ordering and selling custom Colt SAAs was the waiting time And having to constantly explain to clients that I had no control over how long Having their Colt built would take BUT..As soon as you do receive it you won't even remember how long it took!
The Wichita Southpaw Posted January 16, 2016 Posted January 16, 2016 No hidden agendas here, I just have an honest curiosity. Lots of knowledgeable Colt folks on the Wire it seems. Haven't ever owned a Colt but own several tuned Ubertis. They all run like sewing machines. What exactly is the difference at 4X the cost? Better steel? Better, longer lasting parts? Brand name? Difficulty of being a small business in the U.S.? Uberti obviously makes enough of them to turn a tidy profit. Of course I've heard enough about Colts to realize they are the gold standard but why so expensive?
Yellowhouse Sam # 25171 Posted January 16, 2016 Posted January 16, 2016 Still looks like its .45LC and .357 only for the peacemaker.
Rye Miles #13621 Posted January 16, 2016 Author Posted January 16, 2016 No hidden agendas here, I just have an honest curiosity. Lots of knowledgeable Colt folks on the Wire it seems. Haven't ever owned a Colt but own several tuned Ubertis. They all run like sewing machines. What exactly is the difference at 4X the cost? Better steel? Better, longer lasting parts? Brand name? Difficulty of being a small business in the U.S.? Uberti obviously makes enough of them to turn a tidy profit. Of course I've heard enough about Colts to realize they are the gold standard but why so expensive? I'm not a gunsmith but the ones I talked to that work on Colts say the parts are made of better steel, they do seem to last longer and yes it's probably the name and labor costs in the USA as opposed to Italy. You're right on all counts!
West Fargo SASS # 1910 Life TG Posted January 16, 2016 Posted January 16, 2016 Mornin to ya Sixgun Shorty, Ask about ya last month to see how ya are Nice to see ya on here again, miss your post. See Ya Friend West Fargo, SASS #1910 Life
El Hombre Sin Nombre Posted January 16, 2016 Posted January 16, 2016 No hidden agendas here, I just have an honest curiosity. Lots of knowledgeable Colt folks on the Wire it seems. Haven't ever owned a Colt but own several tuned Ubertis. They all run like sewing machines. What exactly is the difference at 4X the cost? Better steel? Better, longer lasting parts? Brand name? Difficulty of being a small business in the U.S.? Uberti obviously makes enough of them to turn a tidy profit. Of course I've heard enough about Colts to realize they are the gold standard but why so expensive? All good questions. I'll try to answer to the best of my limited knowledge. The materials are certainly better. If you take both apart you can see side by side the difference. Colts are also hand fitted so there's more attention to detail. And if you're not sold, just hold a real Colt and you will feel the difference in your hand. If you don't, then it's probably not worth the money. One thing I do like to point out when people talk about the price being three times that of a ruger is that it's true for stock guns, but how much is a jimmy Spurs short stroked half cock slicked up ruger? I think after all the work the prices end up pretty comparable.
Colorado Coffinmaker Posted January 16, 2016 Posted January 16, 2016 Let's start a pool. How long it will be before anyone sees an actual Colt Single Action on a Dealer's shelf available for purchase. Coffinmaker
WillDearborn Posted January 16, 2016 Posted January 16, 2016 Put me down for $10 on "never". Wish it weren't true, but that's just my opinion. I just came from a gun show, and didn't see a single one there. Not new, not used, nada. It's an uphill battle they'll never meet, unless they make a concerted effort to. For the record, for anyone reading my former posts: It's now 1 week since I called and they were supposed to call me back. Anyone want to start a pool on how long it'll be before they do? Put me down for $10 on "never".
El Hombre Sin Nombre Posted January 16, 2016 Posted January 16, 2016 Let's start a pool. How long it will be before anyone sees an actual Colt Single Action on a Dealer's shelf available for purchase. Coffinmaker I'm assuming new right? I haven't see one in about 5 years. I have had plenty of dealers tell me "they just sold one yesterday, but X gun is just as good". I haven't idea if that's the truth or not.
Sixgun Shorty, SASS #35717 Life Posted January 16, 2016 Posted January 16, 2016 Mornin to ya Sixgun Shorty, Ask about ya last month to see how ya are Nice to see ya on here again, miss your post. See Ya Friend West Fargo, SASS #1910 Life w Howdy to you too Amigo! It has been a very long time Sorta went into seclusion when Dee passed away Nearly two,years now and coming to grips with it Dave keeps me informed about ya! Ride easy My Friend
Sixgun Shorty, SASS #35717 Life Posted January 16, 2016 Posted January 16, 2016 I'm assuming new right? I haven't see one in about 5 years. I have had plenty of dealers tell me "they just sold one yesterday, but X gun is just as good". I haven't idea if that's the truth or not. Howdy As one that's pretty informed about Colt as a retired custom shop dealer The answer is NEVER!!!! Only possible way to buy one from Volt is through the Custom Shop And finding an FFL. Willing to do it Will take upwards of 3+ years to receive and Colt doesn't like. To be frequently asked "When Can I expect to receive my gun" Once you do get it,you won't regret the wait! Colt is making the. Best SAAs ever IMO and feel qualIfied to say it. But be prepared to wait... A loooong time! Used market is your best bet Not May people want to sell their SAAs anymore! Too hard to replace and will always appreciate As liquid am AN investment as gold....even better in fact! I Things may possibly bebetter at Colt now that my old pal Joe Canali is running things! He's a great guy And gets things done!
Major E A Sterner #12916 Posted January 16, 2016 Posted January 16, 2016 I read somewhere that about 1/3 of the Colt price is for lawsuit insurance so they don't have to put a transfer bar or other type safety into the SAA. Made sense at the time.
Rye Miles #13621 Posted January 16, 2016 Author Posted January 16, 2016 Put me down for $10 on "never". Wish it weren't true, but that's just my opinion. I just came from a gun show, and didn't see a single one there. Not new, not used, nada. It's an uphill battle they'll never meet, unless they make a concerted effort to. For the record, for anyone reading my former posts: It's now 1 week since I called and they were supposed to call me back. Anyone want to start a pool on how long it'll be before they do? Put me down for $10 on "never". There's a couple gun shows in this area that the "Colt" guy shows up. He has probably about a dozen SAA's in different barrel lengths, calibers and finishes. He asking top dollar for them too, which is why he probably always has 'em!
Red Cent Posted January 16, 2016 Posted January 16, 2016 Around 2002, I had a local ffl holder to order me two 45 Colt SAA 4 3/4 nickel with fire blued screws. I believe the price was around $1200.00 each. A dealer on Shotgun News supplied them in about a month. Around 2004, Stinky Jim and Del Rio Donna talked to a rep at EOT (Calif.) about making some 38 Specials for some cowboys. I believe around 20-25 of us ordered around 50 Colt SAA blued and nickel and I believe the cost was around $1000.00 each. Took 2-3 months to get them.
El Hombre Sin Nombre Posted January 16, 2016 Posted January 16, 2016 There's a couple gun shows in this area that the "Colt" guy shows up. He has probably about a dozen SAA's in different barrel lengths, calibers and finishes. He asking top dollar for them too, which is why he probably always has 'em! What's top dollar?
Larsen E. Pettifogger, SASS #32933 Posted January 16, 2016 Posted January 16, 2016 I have had (and still have) quite a few Colts at different times. The last new pair I ordered directly from the factory was when I was at the SASS convention in Vegas four or five years ago. Colt had a display across the street from the Riveria (the location of the SASS convention) at the Cowboy Christmas. They even had them on sale at really good prices. I ordered a pair in .38 Special (not .357s) with the hard chrome finish and wide spur hammers. I had called Colt several times asking about the wide spur hammers and they keep telling me they didn't make them even though I knew they did. Fortunately the lady at the Cowboy Christmas that took my order was a CMSA shooter and knew what hammers I was talking about. Didn't take two years, didn't take even one full year to get them. A craftsman could chisel a SAA out of a solid block of steel in far less than two years. Things have changed periodiccally and sometimes quite rapidly with Colt over the past decade. They were outsourcing the cylinders and barrels and any finish like hard chrome or nickle was/is farmed out. Same with engraving and ivory grips. Colt for the past three years has been averaging around 100 SAAs per month. They are not hand made by any stretch of the imagination. They are hand assembled and some fitting done on the internals. No one can keep open a production line only making 100 of a $1,500.00 item (and that is retail so Colt gets less) per month. I suspect a big part of the wait time is that Colt waits until they have enough orders to justify the expense of running off a batch of SAAs. My one big regret with Colt is that about ten years ago Colt produced (or discovered some old stock) a small batch of screwless frames. I have always salivated at the thought of owning one of these but just didn't have the cash at the time and couldn't order one. (Still don't have the cash if one ever comes up on the market.)
El Hombre Sin Nombre Posted January 16, 2016 Posted January 16, 2016 Screwless frames? That I would love to see. I can't even picture it in my head
Larsen E. Pettifogger, SASS #32933 Posted January 16, 2016 Posted January 16, 2016 Screwless frames? That I would love to see. I can't even picture it in my head This one was being worked on so the backstrap and trigger guard aren't perfectly aligned. However, note that there are no screws in the frame like on a normal frame. The screws are replaced by pins and installed from underneath.
Rye Miles #13621 Posted January 17, 2016 Author Posted January 17, 2016 What's top dollar? $1400-1600 for used, 1800-2200 new, he has some 1st and 2nd gens that are in the 3000-4000 range.
The Wichita Southpaw Posted January 17, 2016 Posted January 17, 2016 All good questions. I'll try to answer to the best of my limited knowledge. The materials are certainly better. If you take both apart you can see side by side the difference. Colts are also hand fitted so there's more attention to detail. And if you're not sold, just hold a real Colt and you will feel the difference in your hand. If you don't, then it's probably not worth the money. One thing I do like to point out when people talk about the price being three times that of a ruger is that it's true for stock guns, but how much is a jimmy Spurs short stroked half cock slicked up ruger? I think after all the work the prices end up pretty comparable. So an interesting point. Am I to understand that a new Colt out of the box will be just as fine to handle as a Uberti slicked up by a great smith? If it is that would be a great selling point.
Lead Friend, SASS #53635 Posted January 17, 2016 Posted January 17, 2016 As a former Direct Colt Custom Shop dealer I sold many dozen custom Colt SAAs to SASS clients and friends as some of you may remember Waiting time from when your order is confirmed by Colt (and paid for) these days, Current waiting time could well be 24-36 months easily depending on options ordered About 12 years ago I was receiving them anywhere from 6-9 months About 2006 began taking well over a year then up to two years or more One reason I stopped ordering and selling custom Colt SAAs was the waiting time And having to constantly explain to clients that I had no control over how long Having their Colt built would take BUT..As soon as you do receive it you won't even remember how long it took! Bought a coupla pairs of consecutive Colt's from Sixgun Shorty back in the day when I was young and handsome. Sold one pair to my great regret. His word is good. He is the Colt Whisperer in my experience. Glad to see him back on the wire. LF
WillDearborn Posted January 17, 2016 Posted January 17, 2016 $1400-1600 for used, 1800-2200 new, he has some 1st and 2nd gens that are in the 3000-4000 range. GeeeZUS!! That is definitely "Top Dollar"!! It's getting harder and harder to get the exact specs you want, but you can still get NIB on GB.com for $1700-1800. BTW, didn't want to impinge on forum rules, could I have actually spelled out GB.com w/o breaking any??
Sixgun Shorty, SASS #35717 Life Posted January 17, 2016 Posted January 17, 2016 You think SAAs are outrageously priced take s look at what Pythons are selling for! NIB 21/2" Pythons unfired in original box are bringing upwards of $7500-15,000! And selling at those prices! Any NIB Python is easily worth $5k and up Good condition used Pythons are selling for $2500 and up... Way up depending on configuration Colt wheel gun prices are through the roof!
El Hombre Sin Nombre Posted January 17, 2016 Posted January 17, 2016 $1400-1600 for used, 1800-2200 new, he has some 1st and 2nd gens that are in the 3000-4000 range. Yeah that's about the same as I see on gb and the used ones that occasionally come through my dealer
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