Colt M1878 operated while wearing gloves, so "Alaskan Model" is a misnomer. Colt M1878 The Colt M1878 is a double-action revolver that was manufactured by Colt's Manufacturing Company from 1878 to 1907. It is often referred to as the "Frontier" or the "Double Action Army" revolver. A total of 51,210 Model 1878 revolvers were manufactured from 1878 to 1907, including 4,600 for the US Ordnance Department. These are known as the "Philippine" or "Alaskan" models. Samuel Colt experimented with double-action revolver systems, but he considered them to be unreliable. After Colt's patent expired in 1857, other manufacturers began producing double-action revolvers, but
Colt New Police Revolver Colt New Police Revolver The Colt New Police is a double-action, six-shot revolver (which can also be fired single action). This gun was chambered in the .32 New Police, which is dimensionally identical to a flat-nose version of the .32 S&W Long, except for the nose shape. In addition to the .32 New Police cartridge, the revolver was available in 32 Colt. The diameters of the two cartridges are not the same, with the 32 Colt being approximately 0.020 inches smaller in diameter than the New Police. Although the 32 Colt can be loaded and fired in the New Police