COLT MODEL 1889 "NAVY" (NEW NAVY DA, MODEL OF 1889) Description
.38 Short and Long Colt, and .41 Short and Long Colt cal., 3, 4 1/2, and 6 in. barrel, blue (military and civilian) or nickel (civilian only) finish, wood (U.S. Navy) or hard rubber (civilian) grips with the world "Colt" in oval at top. The first solid frame, swing out cylinder - recognizable by no visible locking latches - unles later converted to 1895 action. Cylinder rotates counter-clockwise, sideplate is also on the right-hand side of frame, Colt produced approx. 31,000 mfg. 1889-1894, 1st 5,000 were ordered by U.S. Navy, with some additional Navy orders later in production - hence name. Serial number is on the butt. U.S. Navy versions (6 in. bbl. ONLY), also include Navy markings. RF=1.
Note: Nearly all U.S. Navy Military 1889 Navy issues were later converted to 1895 type actions. Unconverted Navy-marked specimens w/o notched cylinders will bring a premium, but must be authenticated by an expert - Fakes and re-assembled guns are common.
There was also NO mass updating of civilian 1889 revolvers. Real, unmolested civilian 1889 Colt DAs should appear with the older and original 1889 action, not with any modified actions or updated features.
For later (post 1894) U.S. Navy DA 38s, see below under civilian New Navy guns.