A couple of years ago I had a strong yearning for some finely made old Colt handguns and ran across these two, which fit the bill nicely. About once a year I get them both out for a bit of exercise and put a box of ammo through each before I clean them thoroughly, re-oil the barrels and put them away. The Pocket Hammerless .380 pistol (1921) was a Gunbroker find and the .38 special Army Special (1922) was waiting for me some time later at the LGS.
The .380 Hammerless is as slim and sexy as the day she was made, with matching serial numbers (these were hand fitted frame/slide guns) and a bright smooth finish with barely a mark visible. My mild 95 gr. LRN handloads (2.5 grains of AA#2) recoil very little and throw the brass barely a couple of feet, but she never hiccups even with these powder puff loads. She shoots a bit high (3-4" at 15 yards) but runs like the proverbial Swiss watch. She's an amazing feat of engineering from an era when fine craftsmanship was more greatly practiced and appreciated.
The Army Special has a few scuffs here and there, and isn't quite as fun to shoot as a good S&W revolver due to the stacking nature of her action and her small grips, but she gets the job done and loves my mild wadcutters. She shoots low (but consistently), which could be corrected by filing the front sight, but I would never do that to her. When I found her she had some funky target grips, but a search on the Bay yielded what I believe are original Colt grips that fit her like a glove and are correct for her year of birth.
Happy New Year to everyone, thanks for reading about a bit of fun I had the other day with these two dear old girls... they just don't make them like they used to.
