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Colt Detective Special

• moderate
• Shop tier 3
• high confidence
• Revolver
• revolver
• double action
• concealed carry
• sideplate
• historic
• six shot snub

field strip ~3 min · reassembly ~4 min · detail strip ~40 min

Specifications

Model-specific safety

• Colt's instruction is blunt: do not field strip this revolver. The 2020 Python manual adds that doing so voids the service agreement. Anything beyond cleaning goes to a competent gunsmith or back to Colt.
• Colt cylinder latches are PULLED REARWARD, where Smith & Wesson thumbpieces are pushed forward. The Colt sideplate is on the LEFT side of the frame, where the S&W is on the right. Both differences matter every time you handle one.
• A revolver is not cleared by opening the cylinder. Look through every chamber and count them.
• Older Colt V-spring lockwork is intricate and wears differently from S&W coil-spring actions. Sideplate work is for a gunsmith who specifically knows Colts.
• Never flick the cylinder closed.

Under spring tension

• Mainspring
• Rebound and hand springs (sideplate removal)
• Cylinder bolt spring

Easily lost parts

Yoke screw · Sideplate screws · Cylinder bolt · Hand

Tools

Shop difficulty

Shop tier 3 Tier 3 — hardest among revolvers, for the full job: strip to the parts that get coated and put it back together working. Colt D-frame with the same V-mainspring, rebound lever, hand and safety-lever lockwork as the Python (55 line items in Colt’s list); parts are installed by Colt repair stations and the timing interactions decide it.

No sourced part count yet.

Bench time: about 45 min to strip, 75 min to rebuild (estimate). Estimated for a tech experienced on Colt V-spring guns; slightly shorter than the Python (fixed sights, smaller frame). Rebuild driven by the mainspring/rebound lever/hand step and the timing check.

What comes off for coating

• Crane and cylinder: crane lock screw and crane lock assembly (detent and spring), cylinder and crane forward out of the frame, ejector rod, ratchet and spring only if the cylinder is coated (gunsmith step per American Rifleman) — fitted hollow-ground screwdrivers
• Sideplate (left side): stock screw and stocks, sideplate screws, sideplate (tapped free), latch, latch spring and guide from the sideplate — wooden tool handle / nylon mallet
• Lockwork: V-mainspring (pressed off the stirrup), hand, rebound lever (pin driven out), trigger, hammer with strut, strut spring and stirrup, safety lever and safety, bolt, bolt screw and bolt spring, latch pin — pin punches / drift
• Frame: fixed front sight is part of the barrel; ramp/blade pins where fitted, barrel, firing pin, recoil plate, hammer and trigger pins left in place — pin punch

Special tools

• Fitted hollow-ground screwdrivers — Crane lock, sideplate, bolt and stock screws
• Pin punches / drift — Rebound lever pin, hammer strut and stirrup pins
• Small screwdriver as a mainspring lever — Pressing the V-mainspring off the stirrup and back onto the rebound lever

Known pain points

• Colt says even available spare parts should be installed at a Colt Authorized Repair Service Station. (both)
  Source: Colt Double Action Revolvers Owner's Manual (Detective Special, Commando Special, Diamondback, Police Positive, Agent, Cobra, Viper) — Colt's Manufacturing Company LLC colt.com [1] — “Those parts which are available should be installed at a Colt Authorized Repair Service Station.”
• The V-mainspring has to be slid onto the stirrup and then levered onto the rebound lever, with the hand seated by pressing the rebound lever up (same Colt DA lockwork layout as the Python). (reassembly)
  Source: Colt Python Revolver (exploded view and disassembly) — American Rifleman (NRA) americanrifleman.org [2] — “When the stirrup and mainspring have been engaged, lift the bottom of the spring onto the rebound lever (44) with thumb of right hand.”
• Timing depends on the bolt riding the rebound lever cam and is easily upset on Colt V-spring guns. (reassembly)
  Owners report: Colt V-spring Adventures: Fixing my dad's 357 trooper — Colt V-spring Adventures (blog) coltpython.blogspot.com [3] — “Removing metal from the rebound cam has to be done extremely carefully --- remove too much material and the bolt won't be able to touch this cam”
• The bolt spring is small and loose once the bolt screw is out. (disassembly)
  Source: Colt Python Revolver (exploded view and disassembly) — American Rifleman (NRA) americanrifleman.org [2] — “Remove the bolt screw (3) and remove the bolt (2), using care not to lose the bolt spring (4).”

Fit or check on rebuild

• Timing: hand carry-up, bolt drop and bolt pickup on the rebound lever cam, in single and double action — Colt V-spring actions are hand-fitted; the bolt rides the rebound lever cam and small changes upset timing.
  Source: Colt V-spring Adventures: Fixing my dad's 357 trooper — Colt V-spring Adventures (blog) coltpython.blogspot.com [3] — “Removing metal from the rebound cam has to be done extremely carefully --- remove too much material and the bolt won't be able to touch this cam”
• Hand seated in the trigger with the rebound lever pressed up — The hand only seats fully with the rebound lever held up.
  Source: Colt Python Revolver (exploded view and disassembly) — American Rifleman (NRA) americanrifleman.org [2] — “Replace hand (27) in its hole in the trigger and press upward on the rebound lever (44) to allow the hand to be fully seated.”
• Safety and safety lever operate smoothly and the safety is fully up with the trigger forward — American Rifleman’s reassembly test for the Colt hammer-block safety.
  Source: Colt Python Revolver (exploded view and disassembly) — American Rifleman (NRA) americanrifleman.org [2] — “The safety lever (47) should be placed back on its pivot with the slot in its short end engaging the stud on the safety (46).”
• Cylinder gap, end shake and crane lock — Standard check after the crane has been out.

This is Pew-Takedown's rating, not the manufacturer's. How tiers are rated. Forum reports are owners' experience, not specifications.

Procedures

Torque specifications

No sourced torque values from the manufacturer are recorded for this firearm. Where a fastener has a specified torque — action screws, scope bases, muzzle devices, barrel nuts — get it from the manufacturer or a gunsmith rather than estimating it.

Function check

• Verify every chamber is empty before each check.
• Cock the hammer slowly and confirm the cylinder locks up at each chamber before full cock.
• With the hammer at full cock, confirm the cylinder is locked with minimal play.
• Press the trigger in single action and confirm a clean hammer fall.
• Cycle the action in double action through every chamber.
• Confirm the cylinder latches closed securely.
• On older Colt actions, confirm the cylinder locks up tight at the instant the hammer reaches full cock.

Maintenance

Lubrication points

• Yoke barrel where the cylinder rides
• Ejector rod
• Hammer and trigger pivots
• Cylinder bolt

Cleaning notes

Clean the cylinder face and forcing cone. Keep lubrication sparing — revolver lockwork does not want to be wet.

Suggested inspection interval: roughly every 2000 rounds. This is a general guideline, not a manufacturer specification.

Wear parts to inspect

Hand · Cylinder bolt · Ejector rod tightness · Forcing cone · Mainspring

Common issues

Also covers

The procedures above are reported to apply to: Colt Cobra (alloy frame) · Colt Agent · Colt D-frame revolvers generally. Verify against the manual for your specific model.

Similar manual of arms

• Colt Python
• Smith & Wesson Model 642

Sourcing