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Colt factory records
Who holds this maker's production records today, whether a serial table exists at all, and what it costs to have the archive read them.
Colt is the exception that proves the rule: the records survive and the company still reads them. The archive is run as its own operation, the letters arrive on embossed stationery with the signature of the Colt Historian, and the collector market treats them as the definitive document for a Colt. That authority has a price and a wait, and both have moved in one direction. Collectors reported a Colt letter at $65; the published list now runs $80 for many revolvers and pistols, $105 for the higher tier that includes the Single Action Army, Python and New Service, and $205 to $305 for percussion models. Turnaround is quoted at roughly 150 days. Expedited service exists and costs a further $100 — or $150 on a First Generation Single Action Army.
Who holds the records today
Covers Original factory shipping ledgers
Serial table published by the maker?
Yes.
manufacturer
Colt publishes its own serial lookup. Its shipping records are the reason a Colt can be dated more precisely than most.
Archive letter
Cost: $30 dates-only · $80–$105 most models · up to $305 percussion. Expedited adds $100 ($150 for 1st Gen SAA)
Waiting time: about 150 days standard; expedited gives details in ~3 days and the letter in 2–3 weeks
Observed 2026-10-14 — confirm with the archive before ordering.
Can a serial number date a Colt?
Yes — the maker publishes a table, so a year can be estimated from the serial number against a source you can check yourself. The date is only as precise as the gap between two published entries, and manufacturers do not build in strict serial order.
Reference work
Colt: An American Legend — R. L. Wilson.
Date a firearm by its serial number
The lookup covers only makers that publish their own browsable chart — and it says which, and cites the threshold behind every result.
Open the serial number lookup