Colt Walker
| Colt Walker | |
|---|---|
Colt Walker Revolver number 1017. Metropolitan Museum of Art Arms and Armor collection, accession number 58.171.1 | |
| Type | Revolver |
| Place of origin | United States |
| Service history | |
| In service | 1847–1865 |
| Used by | |
| Wars | |
| Production history | |
| Designer | Samuel Colt, Captain Samuel Walker |
| Designed | 1846 |
| Manufacturer | Eli Whitney, Jr. at Whitneyville, Connecticut for Saml. Colt, New York City |
| Produced | 1847 |
| No. built | 1,100 |
| Variants | Colt Whitneyville Hartford Dragoon Revolver, quantity about 240 |
| Specifications | |
| Mass | 4.5 lb (2.0 kg) |
| Length | 15.5 in (390 mm) |
| Barrel length | 9 in (230 mm) |
| Caliber | .44 ball, revolver .457 in (11.6 mm), dia. |
| Action | Single-action |
| Muzzle velocity | 1,000 to 1,350 feet per second (300–410 m/s) |
| Effective firing range | 100 yards (91 m) |
| Feed system | Six-round cylinder |
| Sights | Blade front sight, hammer notch rear sight |
The Colt Walker, sometimes known as the Walker Colt, is a single-action six-shot black powder revolver (typically firing .44 caliber lead balls). It was designed in 1846 by American firearms inventor Samuel Colt to the specifications of Captain Samuel Hamilton Walker. It was the first practical six shooter, and came to define the Old West gunfighter mystique and violence. Before Colt began mass-production in 1847, handguns had not played a significant role in the history of either the American West or the nation as a whole. It is the official handgun of the state of Texas.