From the Hip

Beginning in 2018, Standard Manufacturing Company, based in New Britain, Connecticut, began producing a Colt Single Action Army pattern sixgun. While there were some minor issues with early production guns, those problems have long since been resolved, and today their Single Action is a high-quality and accurate sixgun that is 100 percent built in the USA. 

For those not familiar with Standard, the company is owned and operated by Antony “Tony” Galazan and is a division of Connecticut Shotgun Manufacturing Company and manufactured under the same roof. I have been to the facility, and it is very impressive. In short, they use state-of-the-art CNC and other manufacturing techniques blended with old-world hand craftsmanship, metalworking and engraving. Galazan builds some of the finest firearms in the world and is even producing the latest version of the Ruger Red Label shotgun that is in such high demand. 

The first Standard Single Action revolver began with serial number US5, and this writer received gun US7, or the 3rd gun produced, which was reviewed in these pages eight years ago. At that time, Standard was sourcing parts, including the hammer, trigger and other small components. As can be the case with any new firearm going into production, early examples can have growing pains, so to speak, but the sourced parts were largely to blame. Standard was quick to address those issues and was soon making the gun 100 percent in the USA. All parts are manufactured by Standard, with the exception of the springs that are made by Wolff Gunsprings. All bluing, bone and charcoal case coloring and nickel plating are done in-house. 

While the Standard Single Action is a Colt pattern gun, one notable difference is the frame and cylinder size. In short, all Colt SAAs have an outside-diameter cylinder that is plus or minus 1.650 inches. The Standard is 1.670 inches; however, the measurement from the center of the base pin to the axis of the bore is the same. This adds notable strength just over the bolt-notch cutouts on the cylinder, which is the weak link in this sixgun design. While its strength is not as much as the various large-frame Ruger Blackhawks, it is stronger than the Colt SAA. I suggest limiting maximum loads to 23,000 pounds per square inch (psi), the same as +P 45 ACP loads. When the 45 Colt is handloaded to that pressure level, it offers notable performance improvements over standard pressure factory loads. (For additional handloading data, see the “Pet Loads” article, “.45 Colt +P Medium Frame Sixguns” in Handloader magazine – No. 337, April 2022.) 

I have followed the Standard Single Action since production began and even consulted with them before production began. One area that has deterred some buyers is the case colors on the frame and hammer. In short, they displayed dark browns and blues that were neither traditional nor attractive. Frankly, one of the reasons people purchase a Colt SAA or SAA pattern gun is to enjoy the beautiful period-type molten case colors. After several years of negative feedback, Standard has substantially improved the case colors with lighter browns, so-called salmon colors and more modest amounts of blue. This change has hugely helped the appeal and beauty of these fine sixguns. 

Stocks are two-piece walnut, but fancy grade one-piece stocks are optional and are worth the upgrade. Frankly, they are not shaped to suit my taste, but a few minutes with a file and sandpaper followed with a bit of Tru-Oil solves that problem! The very butt of the backstrap is too sharp for shooters with larger hands, so when shaping the stocks it’s a good time to give the butt some slight rounding like pre-World War II Colt SAAs were configured. This substantially increases the comfort level for shooters with larger hands. 

Standard uses forged frames to further increase the 4140 chrome-moly steel’s strength. Basically, forging rearranges the steel structure and grain and compresses it, resulting in a harder, stronger and longer-lasting product. After forging to basic form, this chunk of steel weighs 33 ounces and is then machined down to 9 ounces for the finished frame profile (without the loading gate). Standard installs a special hardened recoil plate – the same as all Colt SAAs. 

This brings us to today’s test gun, a recent manufacture. It sports the 51⁄2-inch barrel, is chambered in 45 Colt (the only caliber offered at this time), and has the deep, high-polish blue finish with case-colored frame and hammer. Initial impressions are good, as it is handsome, beautifully fit and finished. The case colors are much more attractive than previous guns. For the record, this sixgun was purchased from a dealer and is fitted with the two-piece walnut stocks rather than the one-piece that I would have preferred. Timing is good, with the bolt dropping in the approaches. Just as the hammer is brought to the full cock position, the trigger sear engages the hammer notch, leaving very little hammer movement to the rear. The trigger pull breaks clean at 42 ounces. Incidentally, when the hammer is in the half-cock position, each chamber aligns properly with the loading trough.  

The frame, back strap and trigger guard are polished as a single unit for perfect mating of parts. The trigger guard is gracefully rounded with beveled edges. Unlike any other single action, like a fine shotgun, the screws are all qualified for that custom touch and are further accented with fire bluing. The hammer cam, notches and cone-shaped fixed firing pin are reminiscent of golden-era Colt SAAs. The cut-rifled barrels are made in-house and held to minimum specifications. The bore of the sample gun shines like a mirror and is straight. The forcing cone is cut smoothly at 11 degrees. The throats measure .452 inch and each chamber ranges with the bore perfectly. The barrel cylinder gap is .004 inch. These features combined almost guarantee a great shooting sixgun. 

After firing around 100 rounds at impromptu targets, it was time to settle down and test this sixgun with factory loads. As can be seen in Table II, loads from Black Hills, Hornady, Federal and Remington (all combined) averaged 1.25 inches at 20 yards (two groups with 5 shots from each load). The single tightest factory load group came from the Federal Hammer Down 250-grain JHP load that measured .80 inches center to center. 

Moving on to handloads, several loads were tried that included standard pressure (14,000 psi) and +P pressures (up to 23,000 psi). All were assembled in Starline cases and ignited with CCI 300 Large Pistol primers. New cases were full-length sized in a Redding Dual Ring Carbide die, then neck expanded, and bullets seated and roll crimped using RCBS dies. 

There were a couple of noteworthy loads containing my own cast bullets. The first is from RCBS mould 45-250-FN, sized to .452 inch and weighed 265 grains from my alloy. They were seated to an overall cartridge length of 1.648 inches and pushed to 853 feet per second (fps) using 7.1 grains of Accurate No. 2 powder. The first three shots cut a cloverleaf, but the 4th and 5th shots opened the group to just .890 inch, but the next group dropped to .720 inch. Not bad for a 154-year-old designed sixgun and cartridge.

A +P handload consisted of the RCBS cast bullet from 45-270-SAA that weighs 285 grains, sized to .452 inch and pushed to 1,068 fps using 11.3 grains of Hodgdon Longshot powder. Extreme spreads were just 9 fps for a 5-shot string. While several groups were fired, one in particular cut all five shots into 1.00 inch. Clearly this gun is more than handsome; it’s a shooter! 

Unfortunately, factory options are rather limited on the Standard Single Action. As of this writing, it is available in a blue and case-colored finish, or nickel plating, while barrel lengths are 43⁄4, 51⁄2 and 71⁄2 inches. Chase-style hand-cut engraving is an option, with established patterns based on period designs by Cuno Helfricht (a period Colt engraver). While the 44-40 was offered briefly, the 45 Colt is the only caliber currently available. At the very least, and it is doable, I would like to see a black-powder-style frame, hard rubber stocks and additional calibers such as 357 Magnum and 44 Special, with an extra 44-40 cylinder and an optional 45 ACP cylinder for 45 Colt guns. Perhaps an adjustable sight model patterned after vintage King-style converted Colt SAAs. I would be first in line for that model. 

Regardless, the Standard Single Action is a high-quality, handsome sixgun and a great shooter.