There has been growing interest in a line of Belgian-made cap and ball revolvers that many collectors consider a direct-line descendant from the original Civil War era 1860 Colt. They feel these are more authentic than 2nd and 3rd generation Colts made in the United States.
The story goes that in 1853 Samuel Colt traveled overseas and licensed Belgian gun manufacturers to produce his famous revolvers. Then one hundred years later, these companies regrouped and began to churn out cap and ball six shooters. This time with modern steel. The new pistols were marketed as 1960 New Model Army and were stamped Made in Belgium. At that time the upcoming centennial of the American Civil War, the scarcity of original 1860 New Armies and no reproductions for re-enactors all pointed to an obvious need.
There to answer that need were two important ingredients, original Colt equipment waiting silently in Belgium for nearly a century and a young man by the name of William B. Edwards. Edwards was a gun historian and one of the principals of Centennial Arms Corp. of Chicago. Edwards realized there was a ready market just waiting for a reproduction of the Colt Army. Edwards entrusted Fabriques d_Armes Unies de Li_ge in Belgium with the production of the New Army. Under Edwards, Centennial Arms soon became the main U.S. dealer for the new guns.
This 1860/1960 NEW MODEL ARMY is mechanically perfect, has a few handling dings. All screws are original. The bore is good with some black powder pitting. The action positive and locks up tight.
To learn more about this gun go to: www.1960nma.org.
