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=About= | =About= | ||
..... | '''Colt's Manufacturing Company''', often referred to as simply '''Colt''', is an American firearm manufacturing company founded in 1855 by Samuel Colt, the culmination of Samuel Colt's earlier firearms manufacturing business ventures. The first forerunner to the modern Colt company was known as the '''Patent Arms Company''', established in 1836 in Paterson, New Jersey, shortly after Samuel Colt was granted patents for his improved revolver mechanism. The Patent Arms Company gained recognition for producing the earliest successful revolver design, the [[Colt Patterson 1836]]. While the Colt Patterson was met with praise for its innovative design, the early revolver was marred by quality issues. Samuel Colt started to find true success after production began on the [[Colt Walker]] series of revolvers and in 1855, a new corporation, '''Colt's Patent Fire Arms Manufacturing Company''' was established in Hartford, Connecticut. | ||
= | The 1850s and 1860s saw huge success for Colt, with revolvers like the [[Colt 1851 Navy]] and [[Colt 1860]] gaining enormous popularity in the United States and Europe, with sales booming with the onset of the American Civil War in 1861. The post-Civil War era saw Colt branching into the new-fangled metallic cartridge market, eventually resulting in the creation of the [[Colt Single Action Army]], arguably one of the most iconic and instantly recognizable revolvers in popular culture. Colt's success is partly owed to its embracing of new manufacturing techniques like interchangeable parts and the assembly line. | ||
'''Founded: ''' | |||
The 20th century bought continued success for Colt, with its revolvers being used by military forces the world over and the venerable [[Colt M1911]] being introduced in 1911. World War I and World War II saw a massive surge in business as had occurred during the American Civil War decades earlier. Following the Second World War, Colt was faced with bankruptcy due to years of mismanagement and labor disputes- the company produced nothing at all between 1945 and 1947. The company's next windfall came with the Vietnam War, where they would be contracted to produce the [[M16 rifle series]]. While not the original designers of the AR-15/M16, Colt would become the company most heavily associated with the M16 rifle. The 1980s saw Colt attempting to innovate on its aging handgun designs to compete with the increasingly popular "Wonder Nines" like the [[Glock 17]], but efforts like the [[Colt Double Eagle]] and Colt 2000 were met with tepid sales (or complete failure, in the case of the Colt 2000). Colt's problems compounded in the 1990s, as the fall of the Soviet Union and end of the Cold War affected the entire arms industry. In 1998, Colt CEO Ron Stewart voiced favorable opinions for gun control, leading to a massive boycott by American gun owners. This boycott petered out by 2002, when new Colt CEO William M. Keys, a former United States Marine Corps Lt. General, managed to salvage the company's reputation and save it from bankruptcy. | |||
Continued failed bids at contracts throughout the 2000s bought on more financial woes. Following a 2002 restructuring, Colt Defense, LLC was founded to fulfill military, law enforcement and security orders while Colt's Manufacturing Company, Inc continued to make weapons for the commercial market. Another blow to the company came in 2013, when Colt lost its contract to manufacture [[M4 carbine]]s for the US military due to persistent reliability issues. Colt restructured again in 2016. Following this restructure, Colt began introducing new variants of the M1911 pistol and began reintroducing its classic double-action revolvers, including a new run of the iconic [[Colt Python]] revolver starting in 2020. | |||
Colt, along with Colt Canada (formerly Diemaco), was acquired by [[CZ]] on February 11, 2021, a deal which was officially completed on May 24th. | |||
=Information= | |||
'''Founded: ''' 1855 | |||
'''Country: ''' USA | '''Country: ''' USA | ||
| Line 20: | Line 28: | ||
!align=center bgcolor=#D0E7FF width="250"|'''Variants''' | !align=center bgcolor=#D0E7FF width="250"|'''Variants''' | ||
!align=center bgcolor=#D0E7FF width="200"|'''Image''' | !align=center bgcolor=#D0E7FF width="200"|'''Image''' | ||
|- | |||
|[[CZ 75|Colt Z40]]||.40 S&W||10||1997-1998||||[[File:Coltz40.jpg|200px]] | |||
|- | |- | ||
|[[Colt Double Eagle]]||.45 ACP<br>10mm Auto<br>.40 S&W<br>9x19mm<br>.38 Super||10||1989-1997||[[Colt Double Eagle Officers]]||[[File:Colt_DoubleEagle.jpg|200px]] | |[[Colt Double Eagle]]||.45 ACP<br>10mm Auto<br>.40 S&W<br>9x19mm<br>.38 Super||10||1989-1997||[[Colt Double Eagle Officers]]||[[File:Colt_DoubleEagle.jpg|200px]] | ||
|- | |||
|Colt M1971 SSP||9x19mm Parabellum<br>.45 ACP||15<br>9|| 1971<br>(50 prototypes only)|| ||[[File:Coltssp.jpg|200px]] | |||
|- | |- | ||
|[[Colt Junior]]||.22 Short<br>.25 ACP||6||1958-1971|| ||[[File:ColtJunior.jpg|200px]] | |[[Colt Junior]]||.22 Short<br>.25 ACP||6||1958-1971|| ||[[File:ColtJunior.jpg|200px]] | ||
|- | |- | ||
|[[ | |[[Colt Model 1902]]||.38 ACP ||7, 8|| 1902–1928||[[Colt Model 1902|Colt Model 1902 Military Model]]<br>[[Colt Model 1902|Colt Model 1902 Sporting Model]]||[[File:Colt1902Military.jpg|200px]] | ||
|- | |- | ||
|[[Colt Model 1903]]||.32 ACP <br> .380 ACP|| 8<br>7||1903–1945||[[Colt Model 1908]]||[[File:Colt_Model_1903.jpg|200px]] | |[[Colt Model 1903]]||.32 ACP <br> .380 ACP|| 8<br>7||1903–1945, 2016-present||[[Colt Model 1908]]||[[File:Colt_Model_1903.jpg|200px]] | ||
|- | |- | ||
|[[Colt Model 1903 Pocket Hammer]]||.38 ACP ||7||1903-1927|| ||[[File:Colt1903pockethammer.jpg|200px]] | |[[Colt Model 1903 Pocket Hammer]]||.38 ACP ||7||1903-1927|| ||[[File:Colt1903pockethammer.jpg|200px]] | ||
| Line 33: | Line 45: | ||
|[[Colt Model 1908 Vest Pocket]]||.25 ACP||6||1908-1945|| ||[[File:ColtVestPocket1908.jpg|200px]] | |[[Colt Model 1908 Vest Pocket]]||.25 ACP||6||1908-1945|| ||[[File:ColtVestPocket1908.jpg|200px]] | ||
|- | |- | ||
|[[Colt Mustang]]||.380 ACP||6||1986-1997||[[Colt Government Model 380]]||[[File:CM1.jpg|200px]] | |[[Colt Mustang]]||.380 ACP||6||1986-1997, 2012-present||[[Colt Government Model 380]]<br>Colt Mustang Lite||[[File:CM1.jpg|200px]] | ||
|- | |- | ||
|[[Colt Pony]]||.380 ACP||6||1997-1998|| ||[[File:ColtPony.jpg|200px]] | |[[Colt Pony]]||.380 ACP||6||1997-1998|| ||[[File:ColtPony.jpg|200px]] | ||
| Line 49: | Line 61: | ||
|[[Colt Woodsman]]||.22 LR||10||1915-1977||[[Colt Woodsman Match Target]]<br>[[Colt Challenger]]||[[File:Woodsman.jpg|200px]] | |[[Colt Woodsman]]||.22 LR||10||1915-1977||[[Colt Woodsman Match Target]]<br>[[Colt Challenger]]||[[File:Woodsman.jpg|200px]] | ||
|- | |- | ||
| | |Colt SCAMP||.22 SCAMP||27||1971-1992||||[[File:Coltscamp.jpg|200px]] | ||
|- | |- | ||
|[[Colt M1911]]||.45 ACP<br>10mm Auto<br>.40 S&W<br>9x19mm<br>.38 Super||7||1911-present||[[Colt M1911A1]]<br>[[Colt MK IV Series 70]]<br>[[Colt MK IV Series 80]]<br>[[Colt MK IV Series 80 Combat Elite]]<br>[[Colt Gold Cup National Match]]<br>[[Colt XSE]]<br>[[Colt Commander]]<br>[[Colt Officer's ACP]]<br>[[Colt Defender]]||[[File:COLTM1911_1913.jpg|200px]] | |[[Colt M1911]]||.45 ACP<br>10mm Auto<br>.40 S&W<br>9x19mm<br>.38 Super||7||1911-present||[[Colt M1911A1]]<br>[[Colt MK IV Series 70]]<br>[[Colt MK IV Series 80]]<br>[[Colt MK IV Series 80 Combat Elite]]<br>[[Colt Gold Cup National Match]]<br>[[Colt XSE]]<br>[[Colt Commander]]<br>[[Colt Officer's ACP]]<br>[[Colt Defender]]||[[File:COLTM1911_1913.jpg|200px]] | ||
| Line 68: | Line 80: | ||
|[[Colt 1849 Pocket]]||.31||5||1849-1873|| ||[[file:1849.31cal.jpg|200px]] | |[[Colt 1849 Pocket]]||.31||5||1849-1873|| ||[[file:1849.31cal.jpg|200px]] | ||
|- | |- | ||
|[[Colt 1851 Navy]]||.36||6|| | |[[Colt 1851 Navy]]||.36||6||1850-1873||[[Colt 1851 (Cartridge Conversion)]]<br>[[Colt 1851 Navy (Richards-Mason Conversion)]]<br>[[Colt 1851 "U.S. Marshal"]]||[[File:1851Navy.jpg|200px]] | ||
|- | |- | ||
|[[Colt 1860 Army]]||.44||6||1860-1873||[[Colt 1860 (Richards Conversion)]]<br>[[Colt 1860 (Richards-Mason Conversion)]]||[[File:1860Army.jpg|200px]] | |[[Colt 1860 Army]]||.44||6||1860-1873||[[Colt 1860 (Richards Conversion)]]<br>[[Colt 1860 (Richards-Mason Conversion)]]||[[File:1860Army.jpg|200px]] | ||
| Line 74: | Line 86: | ||
|[[Colt 1860 Army|Colt 1861 Navy]]||.36||6||1861-1873||||[[File:1861 navy civil brass lg.jpg|200px]] | |[[Colt 1860 Army|Colt 1861 Navy]]||.36||6||1861-1873||||[[File:1861 navy civil brass lg.jpg|200px]] | ||
|- | |- | ||
|[[Colt 1862 Navy]]||.36|| | |[[Colt 1862 Navy]]||.36||5||1862-1873||[[Colt 1862 Navy|Colt 1862 Navy Cartridge Conversion]]||[[File:Colt1862Navy.jpg|200px]] | ||
|- | |- | ||
|[[Colt | |[[Colt 1862 Police]]||.36||5||1862-1873||Colt 1862 Pocket Police||[[File:Colt 1862 police.jpg|200px]] | ||
|- | |- | ||
|[[Single Action Army|Colt 1873 Single Action Army]]||.45 Colt<br>.44-40 WCF<br>.32-20 WCF<br>.38-40 WCF<br>.44 Rim Fire<br>476 Ely<br>.38 Special<br>.357 Magnum<br>||6||1873-1941||[[Single Action Army|Biseley Special]]<br>[[Colt Frontier Six Shooter]]<br>[[Single Action Army|Buntline Special]] ||[[File:ColtSAALongBarrel.jpg|200px]] | |[[Colt 1871-72 Open Top]]||.44||6||1872-1873|| ||[[File:Colt 1871-72 Open Top.jpg|200px]] | ||
|- | |||
|[[Single Action Army|Colt 1873 Single Action Army]]||.45 Colt<br>.44-40 WCF<br>.32-20 WCF<br>.38-40 WCF<br>.44 Rim Fire<br>476 Ely<br>.38 Special<br>.357 Magnum<br>||6||1873-1941, ????-present||[[Single Action Army|Biseley Special]]<br>[[Colt Frontier Six Shooter]]<br>[[Single Action Army|Buntline Special]] ||[[File:ColtSAALongBarrel.jpg|200px]] | |||
|- | |- | ||
|[[Colt Lightning|Colt 1877 Lightning]]||.32 Colt<br>.38 Long Colt<br>.41 Long Colt||6||1877-1909|| ||[[File:3669 0.jpg|200px]] | |[[Colt Lightning|Colt 1877 Lightning]]||.32 Colt<br>.38 Long Colt<br>.41 Long Colt||6||1877-1909|| ||[[File:3669 0.jpg|200px]] | ||
| Line 84: | Line 98: | ||
|[[Colt 1878 Double Action]]||.45 Colt<br>.44-40 WCF<br>.38-40 WCF<br>.44 Russian<br>.476 Ely<br>.41 Colt<br>.38 Colt<br>.32-20 WCF<br>||6||1878-1907|| ||[[File:1878_colt.jpg|200px]] | |[[Colt 1878 Double Action]]||.45 Colt<br>.44-40 WCF<br>.38-40 WCF<br>.44 Russian<br>.476 Ely<br>.41 Colt<br>.38 Colt<br>.32-20 WCF<br>||6||1878-1907|| ||[[File:1878_colt.jpg|200px]] | ||
|- | |- | ||
|[[Colt Anaconda]]||.44 Special<br>.44 Magnum<br>.45 Colt||6||1990-1999|| ||[[File:Colt_Anaconda_HQ.jpg|200px]] | |[[Colt Anaconda]]||.44 Special<br>.44 Magnum<br>.45 Colt||6|| 1990-1999, 2021-Present || ||[[File:Colt_Anaconda_HQ.jpg|200px]] | ||
|- | |- | ||
|[[Colt Cobra]]||.22 LR<br>.38 S&W<br>.38 Special||6||1950-1981||[[Colt Agent]]||[[File:Cobra_38spl.jpg|200px]] | |[[Colt Cobra]]||.22 LR<br>.38 S&W<br>.38 Special||6||1950-1981, 2017-present||[[Colt Agent]]<br>[[Talk:Colt_Cobra#Colt_Viper|Colt Viper]]<br>Colt Combat Cobra<br>Colt Night Cobra||[[File:Cobra_38spl.jpg|200px]] | ||
|- | |- | ||
|[[Colt Detective Special]]||.32 New Police<br>.38 New Police<br>.38 Special||6||1927-1995|| ||[[File:Colt_Detective_Special.jpg|200px]] | |[[Colt Detective Special]]||.32 New Police<br>.38 New Police<br>.38 Special||6||1927-1995||[[Colt Bankers Special]]||[[File:Colt_Detective_Special.jpg|200px]] | ||
|- | |- | ||
|[[Colt Diamondback]]||.22 LR<br>.22 Magnum<br>.38 Special||6|| | |[[Colt Diamondback]]||.22 LR<br>.22 Magnum<br>.38 Special||6||1966-1988|| ||[[File:ColtDiamondBack.jpg|200px]] | ||
|- | |- | ||
|[[Colt Dragoon]]||.44||6|| | |[[Colt Dragoon]]||.44||6||1848-1860|| ||[[File:Colt1stDragoon-44Cal.jpg|200px]] | ||
|- | |- | ||
|[[Colt King Cobra]]||.357 Magnum<br>.38 Special||6||1986-1998|| ||[[File:ColtKingCobra.jpg|200px]] | |[[Colt King Cobra]]||.357 Magnum<br>.38 Special||6||1986-1998, 2019-present|| ||[[File:ColtKingCobra.jpg|200px]] | ||
|- | |- | ||
|[[M1917 Revolver|Colt M1917]]||.45 ACP||6||1917-1920||||[[File:ColtModel1917.jpg|200px]] | |[[M1917 Revolver|Colt M1917]]||.45 ACP||6||1917-1920||||[[File:ColtModel1917.jpg|200px]] | ||
| Line 104: | Line 118: | ||
|[[Colt New Frontier]]||.44 Special<br>.45 Long Colt||6||1961-1982|| ||[[File:P4870.jpg|200px]] | |[[Colt New Frontier]]||.44 Special<br>.45 Long Colt||6||1961-1982|| ||[[File:P4870.jpg|200px]] | ||
|- | |- | ||
|[[Colt New Service]]||.45 Colt<br>.455 Webley<br>.44-40<br>.44 Special<br>.38-40<br>.357 Magnum||6|| | |Colt New Pocket||.32 Colt||6||1893-1905|| ||[[File:Colt New Pocket.jpg|200px]] | ||
|- | |||
|[[Colt New Service]]||.45 Colt<br>.455 Webley<br>.44-40<br>.44 Special<br>.38-40<br>.357 Magnum||6||1898-1946|| ||[[File:ColtNewService1917.jpg|200px]] | |||
|- | |- | ||
|[[Colt Official Police]]||.22 LR<br>.32-20<br>.38 Special<br>.41 Long Colt||6||1927-1969||[[Colt_Official_Police#Colt_Commando|Colt Commando]]||[[File:ColtOP4.jpg|200px]] | |[[Colt Official Police]]||.22 LR<br>.32-20<br>.38 Special<br>.41 Long Colt||6||1927-1969||[[Colt_Official_Police#Colt_Commando|Colt Commando]]||[[File:ColtOP4.jpg|200px]] | ||
| Line 114: | Line 130: | ||
|[[Colt Police Positive]]||.32 Long/Short Colt<br>.32 Colt New Police (.32 S&W Long)<br>.38 Colt New Police (.38 S&W)||6||1907-1978|| ||[[File:Second_Colt_Police_Positive.jpg|200px]] | |[[Colt Police Positive]]||.32 Long/Short Colt<br>.32 Colt New Police (.32 S&W Long)<br>.38 Colt New Police (.38 S&W)||6||1907-1978|| ||[[File:Second_Colt_Police_Positive.jpg|200px]] | ||
|- | |- | ||
|[[Colt Python]]||.357 Magnum||6|| | |[[Colt Python]]||.357 Magnum||6||1955-2004, 2020-present|| ||[[File:ColtPython6In.jpg|200px]] | ||
|- | |- | ||
|[[Colt SF-VI/DS-II]]||.38 Special||6||1995-2000|| ||[[File:Colt Detective Special SF-VI.jpg|200px]] | |[[Colt SF-VI/DS-II]]||.38 Special||6||1995-2000|| ||[[File:Colt Detective Special SF-VI.jpg|200px]] | ||
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|- | |- | ||
|[[Colt Walker]]||.44 Ball||6||1847|| ||[[File:1847ColtWalker.jpg|200px]] | |[[Colt Walker]]||.44 Ball||6||1847|| ||[[File:1847ColtWalker.jpg|200px]] | ||
|- | |||
|} | |||
==Shotguns== | |||
{| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 95%;" border="1" style="border: 1px solid #D0E7FF; background-color:#ffffff; text-align:center; font-size: 95%" | |||
|-bgcolor=#D0E7FF | |||
!align=center bgcolor=#D0E7FF width="200"|'''Weapon''' | |||
!align=center bgcolor=#D0E7FF width="100"|'''Caliber(s)''' | |||
!align=center bgcolor=#D0E7FF width="100"|'''Capacity''' | |||
!align=center bgcolor=#D0E7FF width="100"|'''Produced''' | |||
!align=center bgcolor=#D0E7FF width="200"|'''Variants''' | |||
!align=center bgcolor=#D0E7FF width="300"|'''Image''' | |||
|- | |||
| [[Colt Model 1878]] || 10 gauge <br> 12 gauge || 2 || 1878 - ? || || [[File:Colt Model 1878 Shotgun.jpg|300px]] | |||
|- | |||
| [[Manufrance Rapid|Colt Coltsman]] || 12 gauge <br> 16 gauge <br> 20 gauge || 4+1 || 1961 - 1965 || || [[File:Manufrance Rapid.jpg|300px]] | |||
|- | |||
| Colt Defender Mark I || 20 gauge <br> 20 gauge / ??mm tear gas grenade (on some models) || 8 / 1 || 1967 - 1971 <br> (prototypes only; never produced) || Multiple prototypes w/various features || [[File:Defender MkI.jpg|300px]] | |||
|- | |- | ||
|} | |} | ||
| Line 150: | Line 184: | ||
!align=center bgcolor=#D0E7FF width="300"|'''Image''' | !align=center bgcolor=#D0E7FF width="300"|'''Image''' | ||
|- | |- | ||
|[[Colt 1895 Automatic Machine Gun]]||6mm Lee Navy<br>7x57mm Mauser<br>.30-40 Krag<br>.30-06 Springfield<br>.303 British<br>7.62x54mmR||Belt Fed||1895- | |[[Colt 1895 Automatic Machine Gun]]||6mm Lee Navy<br>7x57mm Mauser<br>.30-40 Krag<br>.30-06 Springfield<br>.303 British<br>7.62x54mmR||Belt Fed||1895-1919|| ||[[File:Colt3.jpg|300px]] | ||
|- | |- | ||
|[[Colt Mk 12 cannon]]||20x110mm USN||Various||1950s-Present|| ||[[File:ColtMk12.jpg|300px]] | |[[Colt Mk 12 cannon]]||20x110mm USN||Various||1950s-Present|| ||[[File:ColtMk12.jpg|300px]] | ||
| Line 165: | Line 199: | ||
!align=center bgcolor=#D0E7FF width="250"|'''Variants''' | !align=center bgcolor=#D0E7FF width="250"|'''Variants''' | ||
!align=center bgcolor=#D0E7FF width="300"|'''Image''' | !align=center bgcolor=#D0E7FF width="300"|'''Image''' | ||
|- | |- | ||
|[[Colt Lightning Carbine]]||.44-40||15||1884-1904|| ||[[File:Coltlightningrifle.jpg|300px]] | |[[Colt Lightning Carbine]]||.44-40||15||1884-1904|| ||[[File:Coltlightningrifle.jpg|300px]] | ||
| Line 173: | Line 205: | ||
|- | |- | ||
|[[M16_rifle_series#M16_Rifle|Colt M16]]||5.56x45mm NATO||STANAG||1960-Present||[[XM16E1 Rifle]]<br>[[M16A1 Rifle]]<br>[[M16A2 Rifle]]<br>[[M16A4 Rifle]]<br>[[Colt AR-15 Sporter-1]]<br>[[Colt Match Target]]<br>[[Colt AR-15 Sporter Carbine]]<br>[[Colt Model 715]]<br>[[Colt Canada C8 Carbine]]<br>[[Colt XM177/CAR-15/Commando Series]]<br>& [[Colt AR-15 Identification Guide|MORE]]||[[File:M16-SP1.jpg|300px]] | |[[M16_rifle_series#M16_Rifle|Colt M16]]||5.56x45mm NATO||STANAG||1960-Present||[[XM16E1 Rifle]]<br>[[M16A1 Rifle]]<br>[[M16A2 Rifle]]<br>[[M16A4 Rifle]]<br>[[Colt AR-15 Sporter-1]]<br>[[Colt Match Target]]<br>[[Colt AR-15 Sporter Carbine]]<br>[[Colt Model 715]]<br>[[Colt Canada C8 Carbine]]<br>[[Colt XM177/CAR-15/Commando Series]]<br>& [[Colt AR-15 Identification Guide|MORE]]||[[File:M16-SP1.jpg|300px]] | ||
|- | |||
|[[Colt CM901]]||5.56x45mm NATO<br>6.8x43mm SPC<br>7.62x39mm<br>7.62x51mm NATO||STANAG||2000s-present||[[Colt SP901]]||[[File:CM901.jpg|300px]] | |||
|- | |||
|[[Colt Sub Compact Weapon]]||5.56x45mm NATO||STANAG||2005-Present|| ||[[File:Colt SCW.jpg|300px]] | |||
|- | |||
|} | |} | ||
| Line 185: | Line 222: | ||
!align=center bgcolor=#D0E7FF width="200"|'''Image''' | !align=center bgcolor=#D0E7FF width="200"|'''Image''' | ||
|- | |- | ||
|[[M203]]||40x46mm||Single Shot||1969 – Present||||[[File:M203.jpg| | |[[M203]]||40x46mm||Single Shot||1969 – Present||M203A1<br>M203A2||[[File:M203.jpg|300px]] | ||
|- | |- | ||
|} | |} | ||
[[Category:Manufacturer]] | [[Category:Manufacturer]] | ||
Latest revision as of 23:13, 29 June 2023
About
Colt's Manufacturing Company, often referred to as simply Colt, is an American firearm manufacturing company founded in 1855 by Samuel Colt, the culmination of Samuel Colt's earlier firearms manufacturing business ventures. The first forerunner to the modern Colt company was known as the Patent Arms Company, established in 1836 in Paterson, New Jersey, shortly after Samuel Colt was granted patents for his improved revolver mechanism. The Patent Arms Company gained recognition for producing the earliest successful revolver design, the Colt Patterson 1836. While the Colt Patterson was met with praise for its innovative design, the early revolver was marred by quality issues. Samuel Colt started to find true success after production began on the Colt Walker series of revolvers and in 1855, a new corporation, Colt's Patent Fire Arms Manufacturing Company was established in Hartford, Connecticut.
The 1850s and 1860s saw huge success for Colt, with revolvers like the Colt 1851 Navy and Colt 1860 gaining enormous popularity in the United States and Europe, with sales booming with the onset of the American Civil War in 1861. The post-Civil War era saw Colt branching into the new-fangled metallic cartridge market, eventually resulting in the creation of the Colt Single Action Army, arguably one of the most iconic and instantly recognizable revolvers in popular culture. Colt's success is partly owed to its embracing of new manufacturing techniques like interchangeable parts and the assembly line.
The 20th century bought continued success for Colt, with its revolvers being used by military forces the world over and the venerable Colt M1911 being introduced in 1911. World War I and World War II saw a massive surge in business as had occurred during the American Civil War decades earlier. Following the Second World War, Colt was faced with bankruptcy due to years of mismanagement and labor disputes- the company produced nothing at all between 1945 and 1947. The company's next windfall came with the Vietnam War, where they would be contracted to produce the M16 rifle series. While not the original designers of the AR-15/M16, Colt would become the company most heavily associated with the M16 rifle. The 1980s saw Colt attempting to innovate on its aging handgun designs to compete with the increasingly popular "Wonder Nines" like the Glock 17, but efforts like the Colt Double Eagle and Colt 2000 were met with tepid sales (or complete failure, in the case of the Colt 2000). Colt's problems compounded in the 1990s, as the fall of the Soviet Union and end of the Cold War affected the entire arms industry. In 1998, Colt CEO Ron Stewart voiced favorable opinions for gun control, leading to a massive boycott by American gun owners. This boycott petered out by 2002, when new Colt CEO William M. Keys, a former United States Marine Corps Lt. General, managed to salvage the company's reputation and save it from bankruptcy.
Continued failed bids at contracts throughout the 2000s bought on more financial woes. Following a 2002 restructuring, Colt Defense, LLC was founded to fulfill military, law enforcement and security orders while Colt's Manufacturing Company, Inc continued to make weapons for the commercial market. Another blow to the company came in 2013, when Colt lost its contract to manufacture M4 carbines for the US military due to persistent reliability issues. Colt restructured again in 2016. Following this restructure, Colt began introducing new variants of the M1911 pistol and began reintroducing its classic double-action revolvers, including a new run of the iconic Colt Python revolver starting in 2020.
Colt, along with Colt Canada (formerly Diemaco), was acquired by CZ on February 11, 2021, a deal which was officially completed on May 24th.
Information
Founded: 1855
Country: USA
Guns
Pistols
Revolvers
Shotguns
| Weapon | Caliber(s) | Capacity | Produced | Variants | Image |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Colt Model 1878 | 10 gauge 12 gauge |
2 | 1878 - ? | Error creating thumbnail: File missing | |
| Colt Coltsman | 12 gauge 16 gauge 20 gauge |
4+1 | 1961 - 1965 | Error creating thumbnail: File missing | |
| Colt Defender Mark I | 20 gauge 20 gauge / ??mm tear gas grenade (on some models) |
8 / 1 | 1967 - 1971 (prototypes only; never produced) |
Multiple prototypes w/various features | Error creating thumbnail: File missing |
Submachine Guns
| Weapon | Caliber(s) | Capacity | Produced | Variants | Image |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thompson Submachine Gun | .45 ACP | 20, 30, 50, 100 | 1921-Present | M1921 Thompson M1928 Thompson M1 Thompson M1A1 Thompson |
Error creating thumbnail: File missing |
| Colt 9mm Submachine Gun | 9x19mm | 30 | 1982-Present | Error creating thumbnail: File missing |
Machine Guns
| Weapon | Caliber(s) | Capacity | Produced | Variants | Image |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Colt 1895 Automatic Machine Gun | 6mm Lee Navy 7x57mm Mauser .30-40 Krag .30-06 Springfield .303 British 7.62x54mmR |
Belt Fed | 1895-1919 | Error creating thumbnail: File missing | |
| Colt Mk 12 cannon | 20x110mm USN | Various | 1950s-Present | Error creating thumbnail: File missing |
Rifles
| Weapon | Caliber(s) | Capacity | Produced | Variants | Image |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Colt Lightning Carbine | .44-40 | 15 | 1884-1904 | Error creating thumbnail: File missing | |
| Colt Model 1855 | .44 | 5, 6 | 1855-1864 | Error creating thumbnail: File missing | |
| Colt M16 | 5.56x45mm NATO | STANAG | 1960-Present | XM16E1 Rifle M16A1 Rifle M16A2 Rifle M16A4 Rifle Colt AR-15 Sporter-1 Colt Match Target Colt AR-15 Sporter Carbine Colt Model 715 Colt Canada C8 Carbine Colt XM177/CAR-15/Commando Series & MORE |
Error creating thumbnail: File missing |
| Colt CM901 | 5.56x45mm NATO 6.8x43mm SPC 7.62x39mm 7.62x51mm NATO |
STANAG | 2000s-present | Colt SP901 | Error creating thumbnail: File missing |
| Colt Sub Compact Weapon | 5.56x45mm NATO | STANAG | 2005-Present | Error creating thumbnail: File missing |
Grenade Launchers
| Weapon | Caliber(s) | Capacity | Produced | Variants | Image |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| M203 | 40x46mm | Single Shot | 1969 – Present | M203A1 M203A2 |
Error creating thumbnail: File missing |
