Welcome to as we speak’s Picture of the Day! Right here we’ve got what could be one of many rarest manufacturing Colt revolvers you’ll ever see. This can be a factory-engraved Mannequin 1877 “Rainmaker” in .32 Lengthy Colt – certainly one of possibly six that exist with manufacturing unit engraving. The Mannequin 1877 earned nicknames based mostly on caliber – “Lightning” for .38 and “Thunderer” for .41. The .32 model bought caught with “Rainmaker,” in all probability as a result of it was the lightest bathe within the storm household. Solely about 200 Rainmakers have been ever made, making them scarce even with out engraving.
What makes this one particular is the work of Cuno Helfricht, Colt’s grasp engraver for practically 50 years. Helfricht ran the engraving store throughout the top of the adorned firearms craze within the Eighties and Nineties. His signature fashion is throughout this piece – tremendous floral scrollwork on punch dot backgrounds, fan patterns on the recoil defend, and people distinctive alternating patterns between the cylinder flutes that match documented examples in R.L. Wilson’s reference books.
The manufacturing unit letter confirms this shipped as a single gun to Hartley & Graham on August 6, 1892. That’s telling – single gun shipments normally meant particular orders or presentation items. The nickel end and pearl grips recommend somebody wished the complete deluxe therapy on what was already Colt’s most advanced revolver mechanism. Whereas R.L. Wilson documented about 725 complete manufacturing unit engraved Mannequin 1877s in .38 and .41 calibers, he didn’t present numbers for Rainmakers. Provided that solely 200 primary Rainmakers have been made, collectors estimate fewer than six obtained manufacturing unit engraving. This places it in the identical rarity class as prototype firearms – the form of piece that exhibits up as soon as in a collector’s lifetime.
Most of our POTDs make the most of photographs from our buddies at Rock Island Public sale Firm, the premier firearms public sale in america. Take a while to browse their present auctions – who is aware of, possibly you’ll discover a piece of historical past to take residence!
“Manufacturing unit Engraved Colt Mannequin 1877 ‘Rainmaker’ .32 Colt Revolver.” Rock Island Public sale, www.rockislandauction.com/element/4095/117/factory-engraved-colt-model-1877-rainmaker-32-colt-revolver. Accessed 12 Aug. 2025.
