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Well, the first of four of these critters finally reached my door yesterday. This wil be my only "fix" for a few weeks, as the other three will arrive after I leave today for a 3 week business trip. Oh well...
In any event the thing is a beauty, and is definately "different" than the Italian copies. Case coloring is rich, the wood is excellent quality with beautiful grain, finish is excellent, contours on the loading lever area, etc., are slightly different and look more like the original, knurling on top of the hammer is quite a bit sharper, arbor length is correct, wedge pushed out with finger pressure and reseated with ease, etc. I'd say it meets exactly what I expected.
This particular example was obviously a shooter. The area where you load the caps has been marked a bit, the cylinder notches have just a bit of wear, overall condition shows it's been shot, and the entire thing is loaded with heavy grease (including the inside of the cylinders). The nipples are missing, leading me to think that it was deliberately used for dry-firing on a routine basis, possibly for a movie production or similar. When I get back I'll strip the grips, disassemble it, pull the grip frame off, degrease the entire thing, reassemble, and lubricate. Need to figure out what the nipple size is, I know that the Germans sell them mail order but Treso must have nipples that will fit. This will make a great shooter, and a decent example for a collector.
Three more to go! I'm glad this one is in the condition it is in... the new in box ones will never be shot. Sometimes things can be "too nice" to really enjoy.
Willie
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