The Reintroduction of the Colt Cobra Revolver

Posted by Jordan on Jul 6th 2018

Colt marks its triumphant return to the double-action revolver world with the reintroduction of the Colt Cobra.

The original Cobra was released in 1950; designed as a lightweight backup pistol for police officers. The design was nearly identical to Colt's Detective Special, but the Cobra had an aluminum alloy frame instead of the Detective Special's steel frame.

It was the era of the wheelgun, and a large majority of police officers packed either a Smith & Wesson or a Colt. The Cobra's main competitor was the Smith & Wesson Chief's Special, however the Cobra had some big advantages. The Cobra held six rounds of .38 Special, whereas the Chief's Special only held 5. Even with the extra capacity, the Cobra still weighed about 4-5 ounces less than the Chief's Special.

The Cobra was a popular carry gun for police officers and civilians alike, but the rise in popularity of +P ammunition contributed to a huge decline in sales leading Colt to eventually discontinue the Cobra in 1981. This was one of the first issues addressed by Colt with the redesign of the Cobra. The new model Cobra is now completely safe for use with +P ammo thanks to its all-steel construction.

While the new model Cobra feels very similar to its predecessor, it has been completely redesigned from the ground up. Starting at the business end, the pistol features a two inch barrel that tapers up to the frame more smoothly than older models. This prevents snagging and makes for easier re-holstering.

It also comes standard with a really nice fiber-optic front sight that makes it very fast and easy to acquire your sight picture. The front sight is easily interchangeable by the user and requires no gunsmithing. Just loosen the set screw on the front of the barrel and the sight slides right out. Colt does offer an all-black front sight as well as a night sight option.

As mentioned before, the steel cylinder can hold six rounds of +P ammunition while still maintaining a very slim profile. The cylinder release has more aggressive texturing that provides plenty of grip, and makes quick reloading easier than ever. The shrouded ejector also helps make sure that the ejector rod doesn't get bent or damaged as they often did on the original model.

One of our favorite new features is the redesigned trigger. Colt put a lot of consideration into making the pistol easier to shoot and it shows. The trigger on the new Cobra has been straightened out quite a bit which gives the shooter a lot more leverage and a much better perceived trigger pull. The trigger guard has also been elongated and widened to help accommodate the new trigger and make it easier to shoot while wearing gloves. The back of the trigger guard now sits farther from the front of the grip frame. This makes the pistol much more comfortable to shoot as the trigger guard doesn't tend to punish your knuckles as much as it did on the older models. The Hogue Overmolded grip provides a better grasp on the pistol and helps soak up some of the recoil.

The new model Cobra embodies the quality and reliability that Colt is known for – now packed with modern features.

Buy it here

Specs:

Action: Double action

Barrel length: 2"

Capacity: 6rds

Safety: Double action

Grips: Hogue Overmold rubber grip

Finish: Matte stainless steel

Sights: Fiber optic front, frame trench rear

Overall length: 7.25"

Features: LL2 linear leaf mainspring design/ +p rated