curious to year of manufacture of pistol

Question
Hello doug,my name is Gary and i recently came to own my father's Colt 22.long rifle woodsman pistol and i have no knowledge of the pistols history,it has brown plastic grips 6 and 1/2 inch barrel serial number is baffling...the first number looks like a one with a line under it so i don't know if it's a one or seven? the serial number is as follows..183301 my father told me he purchased it in the 1950s but could not be exact,one other detail on the rear of grip behind thumb rest there are a series of horizontal lines i assume for grip any information would be a great help,thank you.

Answer
Gary,

Sorry about the delay in answering your questions.  I was out of town for a couple of days and didn't have access to email during my trip.

Excuses aside...your Colt Woodsman was made in 1958 which confirms your Dad's purchase timeframe.  It was most likely mid year based on the series.  I can't get much more precise that that with the information available to me.  Colt could tell you the month if you wrote them, but they'd charge you for that...

As far as the Woodsman is concerned, it has been part of the Colt pistol family since 1915.  That was the year of first production.  It was manufactured continuously until 1942.  The Colt factory was mostly retooled for wartime production, so this sporting arm was temporarily suspended.  The Woodsman (2nd Series) was produced starting in 1948 and ended in 1955.  It come with minor improvements in design and appearance over the previous series.  The Woodsman (3rd Series) was produced beginning in 1956 and ended with the final production at the end of 1976.  

The pistol was discontinued by Colt in 1977.

Within the three primary groups the Woodsman had many variations from a campground plinker to a match quality pistol.  Yours was not a match quality gun as they carried a serial number that began with an MT.


The Colt Woodsman was Hartford's premier .22 caliber pistol.  It was designed by John Browning, who also designed the world famous Colt 1911 which was recognized as the most enduring pistol design ever.

These guns are quite collectable.  A Colt Woodsman in good condition would probably start at about $500 today.  If you have a gun in pristine condition, the price can quickly approach $1000.

Gary, you have a genuine piece of American firearms heritage...I'm sure it has a great deal of sentimental value since it was your Dad's pistol.  Be assured that it is also something that you can prize as a really collectable gun that will only appreciate in value with proper care and maintenance.

I hope I've help you and that the answer was worth waiting for...

Best regards,

Doug Little