Colt Dragoon Revolver The Colt Model 1848 Percussion Army Revolver is a . 44 caliber revolver designed by Samuel Colt for the U . S . Army ' s Mounted Rifles , also known as " Dragoons " . This revolver was designed as a solution to numerous problems encountered with the Walker Colt . Although it was introduced after the Mexican - American War , it became popular among civilians during the 1850s and ' 60s , and was also used during the American Civil War . Production . The Colt Dragoon Revolver was produced with several variations between 1848 and 1860 , when the Colt Model 1860 revolver replaced it . All the improvements in design of Colt revolvers were applied to the Dragoons as well to the smaller models of Colt revolvers . Total production of Colt Dragoons including the 1 , 100 Walkers , from 1847 to 1860 : 19 , 800 ; plus 750 Dragoons in a separate number range for the British market . For collectors , there are three different types . First Model . The First Model Colt Dragoon Revolver has oval - shaped cylinder notches , a V - type mainspring , no wheel on the rear of the hammer , no pins between the nipples on the cylinder and a squareback triggerguard . Colt produced about 7 , 000 first models between 1848 and 1850 . Second Model . The Second Model has rectangular cylinder notches . Until the no . 10 , 000 the V - shaped mainspring was standard and then replaced with a flat leaf mainspring and a wheel on the hammer at its bearing on the mainspring . All the Second Model Dragoons have the squareback triggerguard . The company made about 2 , 550 Second Models in 1850 and ' 51 . Third Model . The Third Model Dragoon numbers stand at ten - thousand from 1851 through 1860 . This design had more variations as compared to its earlier counterparts . Some of the third model Colt Dragoon Revolvers had frame cuts for detachable shoulder stocks , horizontal loading lever latches and folding leaf sights . Third Colt Dragoon Revolvers had a round trigger guard . Government records showed an order for 8 , 390 Dragoons . 1848 Pocket Pistol . Other variants included the Colt " 1848 Pocket Pistol " now known as the Baby Dragoon , marketed in California with success during the Gold Rush days . With the addition of a loading lever this evolved into the 1849 pocket revolver ( see Colt Pocket Percussion Revolvers ) . Size . The Dragoon was produced because of the problems seen with the fielded Colt Walker revolvers , namely , the Walker ' s large size , four and a half pounds , making it suitable only for use as a saddle - mounted revolver , the Walker ' s propensity for cylinders exploding on occasion when fired ( due to the chambers being loaded with too much powder ) , and the Walker ' s habit of dropping the loading lever upon discharge , locking up the revolver action in the middle of combat . The Colt Dragoon Revolver had a comparatively shorter cylinder ( thus preventing overloading the cylinder ) and held up to 50 grains of powder , whereas the Walker had used up to 60 grains of powder . The Dragoon Revolver had a shorter barrel at 7 . 5 inches ( some later revolvers 8 inches ) as compared to the barrel on the Walker . A loading lever latch in front of the lever replaced the spring to keep the lever from dropping during recoil , thereby preventing jamming of the revolver . These variations made the Colt Dragoon Revolver 4 pounds two ounces . These changes also reduced the risks of the Colt Dragoon Revolver from exploding when fired , unlike the risk that had been demonstrated with the Walker revolvers . Popularity . In the troublesome events that led to the Civil War , Colt Dragoons became extremely popular . In the beginning Colt Dragoon Revolver were issued for the U . S . Army ' s Mounted Rifles . They were carried in pommel holsters on the saddle . The Colt Dragoon Revolver gained popularity among civilians in the Southwest where many had served in the Mexican - American War . The Dragoon became a master weapon for civilians who hailed it as a powerful weapon of the time . Famous users included Joaquin Murietta , the California bandit , Charley Parkhurst , California teamster , Union general George B McClellan , probably Harriet Tubman of the Underground Railroad , and fictionally Mattie Ross in the 1969 version of " True Grit " . Parkhurst , while driving freight , was confronted by two bandits whom he dispatched with the Colt Holster Pistol . According to Harper ' s Weekly , James Butler ( Wild Bill ) Hickock arrived in Springfield , Missouri carrying a Dragoon though it is generally accepted that he used a Navy in his street duel with Davis Tutt . Present . The Dragoon is now a collectible arm and sold for high prices . Non - firing replicas of the Colt 1848 Dragoon were manufactured at Denix in Spain . In 2005 , a fire burned down the factory and destroyed the mold for the gun , which has since gone out of production . Denix has since reintroduced the non - firing model of the Colt 1848 Dragoon in Nickel . Quality Replica Dragoons are currently produced by the Aldo Uberti Company of Brescia , Italy and distributed in the United States by Taylors , Inc . ; Cimarron Firearms , and others . They are quite accurate and potentially more powerful than the belt sized revolvers of the same bore diameter . Velocities with . 451 - 457 - inch round balls of approximately 141 grains over the full 50 grains of powder frequently show chronographed readings in the 1 , 000 to 1 , 100 foot per second range depending upon the powder used . A cartridge - converted Colt Walker instead of the Colt Dragoon in the book was used in the 1969 film " True Grit " , as the weapon carried by 14 - year - old Mattie , possibly due the Walker ' s bigger size . The Dragoon was used in the 2010 Coen Bros . movie as in the original book . References . 4 . Flack , Jeremy " Rifles and Pitols " Florida : Sunburst Books , 1995 .