This revolver was manufactured in 1848 and falls into the reported 2001 to 3000 serial number range for the "Walker Replacement Dragoons" identified by researcher John J. Fluck in 1956. He estimated 300 were made to replace the Walker revolvers that had failed and indicated they were made for the U.S. military using original Walker parts and reworked parts. They are also known as "pre-First Model Dragoons" and "Second Contract Dragoons" and are among the rarest of the roughly 19,000 Colt Dragoon revolvers. More recent research by Dick Salzer, David Basnet, G. Maxwell Longfield, and others has changed our understanding of this model and shown that they were not replacements for broken Walkers or made from recycled or repaired Walker components as Fluck had theorized. In "Debunking the Fluck Myth: Colt Legends Die Hard" by Salzer for the American Society of Arms Collectors in 2019, the author notes that these revolvers are actually the first Dragoons sold to the government, and "The obvious conclusion is that Colt, for reasons of completeness perhaps, chose to number the guns made for the second government contract in a closed, out-of-sequence series, beginning with 2001 and continuing to 3000. That left him with a gap in his civilian production between 1340 and 2000 which he subsequently filled with later production guns." He also notes that the tiny serial number numerals were stamped with the same dies as the civilian Walker revolvers, the Whitneyville Dragoons, and on the early "pre-First Model Dragoons" until the dies are presumed to have worn out around serial number 2650. The revolver has the distinctive First Model style oval cylinder stops and brass square-back trigger guard. The top of the barrel flat has a nickel-silver blade front sight and is marked "ADDRESS SAMl COLT, NEW-YORK CITY" reading from the breech to the muzzle, and a "P" is stamped above the wedge screw on the left. "P" is also marked on the arbor pin, left side of the hammer, and cylinder. "COLT'S/PATENT/U.S." is marked on the left of the frame. The cylinder is has the Indian and Texas Rangers battle scene and "MODEL U.S.M.R./COLT'S PATENT." The complete matching serial number is marked on the barrel, frame, cylinder, trigger guard, back strap, and arbor pin. The wedge is not numbered, and the loading lever has "66" or "99." The grip has traces of cartouches visible on the the bottom left and right. The butt has a faint handwritten marking that appears to be "PA/S3."

Fine with 40% original blue finish remaining on the cylinder and barrel, traces of original case colors and visible casehardened patterns, well-aged gray and brown patina on the balance, minimal minor oxidation, attractive aged patina on the brass, mild overall wear, and generally only age and storage related wear. The cylinder rotation components are absent, but the hammer retracts. This is why the revolver is in exceptional condition! The grip is fine and has moderate wear on the lower edges, some scratches and dings, and moderate handling wear. This is a very rare early Colt revolver and part of Colt's famous line of large "horse pistols" that started with the famous Colt Walkers used in the Mexican-American War.