Once Italian, now global, always family-owned; the world’s oldest industrial firm balances continuity and new ideas in its 500-year-old pursuit of gunmaking perfection.
The legendary three-arrow logo dates to the 19th century and was often accompanied by the Italian phrase for “hit the bullseye.”
Photos courtesy of Beretta
There have been several Pietro Berettas to head the firm, including the 12th generation of the family seen here. He led Beretta from the late 19th century into the 1950s, a period of enormous growth, the devastation of two world wars and the subsequent reconstruction.
Anyone remember American Rifleman’s article from March 1980 hailing Beretta’s big 300th anniversary? (Not a typo.) In part, it featured family member Ugo Gussalli Beretta, who in the years since went from general manager to CEO to chairman of the board. For now, let’s just say the changes that occurred under his watch were astounding (details to come) and the most surprising, the one that rewrote history, happened first. Shortly after that issue was mailed, the State Archive of Venice coughed up a blockbuster: A handwritten brief dated 3 October 1526 recording the payment of 296 ducati to Maestro Bartolomeo Beretta of the Brescian territory of Gardone for delivery of 185 arquebus barrels to the Venetian Republic arsenal. Until that reveal, no one knew exactly how old Beretta was, and in a sense that’s still the case. But, history of this magnitude hinges on hard evidence, and this invoice, as Beretta calls it, is as ironclad as those long-ago barrels. So, we say congratulations again to the Beretta family and their employees, this time for making great guns without interruption for half a millennium.
The Beretta family’s firearm genius was in no small measure destined by birth in Italy’s Val Trompia, a mountain valley rich in iron-ore deposits ideal for making arms and armor. For millennia, resident armorers outfitted Roman legionnaires, medieval knights and crusaders bound for the Holy Land with swords, helmets, shields and more.
The coming of gunpowder gave rise to barrelsmithing, a specialized trade that became near-exclusive to Beretta’s hometown, Gardone. For more than five centuries, an unbroken hereditary line of Beretta sons has tended the business.
Now retired, Ugo represents the 14th generation; his sons, Pietro Gussalli Beretta, President/CEO of Beretta Holding, and Franco Gussalli Beretta, President/CEO of Italy-based Fabbrica d’Armi Pietro Beretta, are the 15th; Ugo’s grandchildren, Carlo and Marie Teresa, are in line to become the 16th generation. Many historians believe Beretta is not only the world’s oldest gun manufacturer, but also the oldest family business.
The two oldest known surviving Beretta pistols date from the 17th and 18th centuries, respectively, and are emblematic of the company’s 500-year commitment to building innovative, reliable, beautiful and timeless firearms.
“Our history is not something we simply preserve. It is something we build on and renew every day,” says Franco Gussalli Beretta. “There is a natural tendency to look at a company with five centuries behind it and assume that continuity comes easily.
In fact, the opposite is true. Continuity demands discipline, a strong sense of responsibility and a constant commitment from one generation to the next. However, Beretta is not defined by its past alone. Its identity lies in the balance between deep roots and a clear vision for the future. We are a manufacturing company built on people, quality and responsibility, while continuing to evolve through innovation and technology. To understand this balance is to understand the true essence of Beretta.”
The first evidence of Beretta’s existence is this purchase order from the Serene Republic of Venice dated 1526.
While the early history is sketchy, Beretta highlights are a focal point of the 1980 hardcover, “Beretta: The World’s Oldest Industrial Dynasty,” by military arms scholars Marco Morin and Robert Held. For such as the aforementioned arquebuses, the authors trace some 15 steps from mining and refining the ore, to final bore straightening and polishing to fitting locks and other hardware.
“The phase most vital” state Morin and Held, “carried out by the true and proper maestri da canne … was to wrap the red-hot [iron] plates around a cylindrical steel mandrel and to lap-weld the resulting tubes by anvil forging along their entire lengths. This organisation, [the] half-industrial, half-artisan transformation of gritty minerals into gun barrels prized everywhere for their perfection … lasted with but slight modifications until the fall of the Venetian Republic in 1797.”
(l.) While still owned by the Beretta family, what was once an artisan shop has grown to a multinational conglomerate with thousands of employees and advanced, modern production facilities. (r.) The ornate gun library at Beretta’s headquarters includes examples of the company’s products spanning centuries.
Forging Ahead
Because of frequent wars, Val Trompian armsmakers were esteemed, but nonetheless governed erratically. Though the ruling senate granted the tradesmen tax breaks and exemptions from compulsory military service, at times it banned the export of unlicensed military barrels and blocked the sale of “all unstocked barrels,” according to firearm guru R.L. Wilson in his “The World of Beretta” (2000).
To counter resentment, the authorities brokered contracts with foreign powers, such as a 1544 order from “His Magnificence the ambassador of the most serene King of England” for “1,500 arquebuses and [1,500 suits of] armors.” That monarch was renowned hunter Henry VIII, and so speculation naturally holds that his pursuit of British stags and boar may have included Beretta barrels.
Prosperity spiked in the 1570s, when Venice allied with Spain and the Papal States to defend its island territory of Cyprus from warring Turks. The rectors of Brescia were commanded to arm the Christian forces and expressly required to operate the forges around the clock for nearly three years. At war’s end, a Brescian report to the Senate stated, “[The Gardonese] made as many as [300] arquebuses a day, that is, the barrels with their iron furnishings.”
(l.) Gardone Val Trompia has been Beretta’s home for half a millennium. By the 1880s, its factory was fully industrialized, and modernization has never ceased.. (ctr.) Ugo Gussalli Beretta, his sons, Pietro and Franco and grandson Carlo, continue the 500-year legacy of Beretta family ownership (r.) One of Beretta’s more iconic product lines, its shotguns are prized throughout the world for their quality and craftsmanship.
The Beretta workshop was under new management, since Bartolomeo’s death circa 1568 elevated his son Giovannino, aged between 30 and 40 years old, but already a master barrelsmith himself. In fact, an older brother, Lodovico, was likewise accorded master status, but rather than staying in the family business, he moved to Brescia to fabricate locks and other accessories. And so, were barrels from the historic forge finished with parts produced by a brother?
Could this herald the very first all-Beretta guns? Perhaps not, though there’s no overlooking an historic dynasty in the making.
The demands faced then, however, are not entirely different than today’s, according to Franco Gussalli Beretta: “Producing those early barrels required more than technical skill alone. From the very beginning, Beretta’s work was founded on craftsmanship, discipline and an exceptional level of manual expertise.
It also demanded consistency, precision and reliability—qualities that have remained at the heart of the company throughout its history. In this respect, although the tools and technologies have changed beyond recognition, the fundamental challenge remains much the same: achieving precision and repeatability with the resources available.
Today, advanced technologies and control systems allow us to manage and monitor every stage of that process. In the 16th century, the same result depended almost entirely on the experience, judgment and skill of the individual craftsman.”
The 20th century saw rapid growth of both Beretta’s commercial business and its military sales, as evidenced by these advertisements.
Renaissance
The 1600s ushered in successors to traditional matchlock arquebuses. Shoulder-fired moschetti (muskets) and heavy-barreled, large-bore arms were built to handle greater muzzle energy generated by increasing projectile weight over larger powder charges to maintain velocity.
Though intended for one-man operation, optimally such shoulder cannons required a forked rest to aid firing. A Venetian order specified barrels must have reinforced breech halves before tapering to the muzzle. Much lighter were cavalry muskets or carbines fitted with barrels a bit longer than 20 inches, plus pistols downsized to .55 caliber with barrels measuring about 10 inches. After 1625, wheellocks were commonly used on lightweight arms.
From the 1680s onward, small arms were increasingly equipped with flintlocks, which would remain for more than 150 years. An accounting from 1698 showed that Gardone’s 33 chief masters had produced 21,930 long barrels and 1,136 pistol barrels. Beretta’s output of 2,883 made it the second-most prolific on the list, according to Morin/Held.
The ballistic advances were actually surpassed by another aspect of gunmaking. During the height of the Renaissance, firearms ornamentation became an increasingly elaborate art form, and that was certainly the case in Brescia.
Rather than the engraving we prize today, lockplates, grips and butt collars were fashioned from so-called iron lace—compositions of hundreds of intricate piercings created by tiny wire saws and needle files for seamless mounting into stock inlets.
Among other enhancements were diminutive figures sculpted into hammers, ramrod guides and trigger guards, as well as stocks carved from highly figured Italian walnut root wood.
Masterworks fitted with Beretta-marked barrels can be found in present-day museums, a heritage that allows us to better appreciate Beretta’s zeal for finely adorned firearms. For decades, its engraving studios have been cherished not only for the art they create, but also for training top engravers who go on to work elsewhere. No other major gun manufacturer is in Beretta’s league in this area.
At PB Custom Atelier, Beretta’s in-house custom shop, customers can order handmade stocks and hand-engraved metalwork, all produced by master artisans who spend hundreds of hours working on a single firearm • Gold inlay, intricate hand-engraving and custom designs are all options for the discerning Beretta customer • Beretta shotguns also have an outstanding reputation for performance and reliability in hunting fields and blinds.
Though Beretta had both prospered and survived trying times for more than 300 years, it was about to face a turning point. In 1797, Napoleon Bonaparte marched his army east on a mission of conquest, and when the once-proud Venetian Republic capitulated without a fight, Val Trompia’s armsmakers no longer answered to a senate that for centuries had encouraged their genius, bought their products, regulated their industry and taxed the proceeds.
Here was a new ruler who desperately needed what they could supply. That demand continued for years, even after the entire region was sold to the Austrians, according to Wilson.
Industrial Revolution
In the wake of Europe’s Industrial Revolution, the father/son duo of Pietro and Giuseppe Beretta, respectively ninth and 10th in the family line of succession, proved themselves savvy entrepreneurs and forward-thinkers. Correspondence details that both men frequently traveled to meet with exporters, brokers and shopkeepers, clearly determined to grow business to civilian customers. Fittingly, the firm was formally christened Fabbrica d’Armi Pietro Beretta, a name long since stamped into gun metal and printed on catalogs.
Just 13 when his father died in 1853, Giuseppe’s delayed tenure soon bore fruit. Along with his penchant for traveling to buoy the sales network he’d inherited, the mid-century boss greatly modernized manufacturing capabilities to the point where Beretta was producing rifles, pistols, revolvers and shotguns, and it strived to fabricate the necessary components in-house.
Production boomed from around 300 guns annually during the 1850s to more than 7,500 by the 1880s. Under Pietro’s watch, the factory had moved from flintlock to caplock ignition, but in just a few decades, it leaped to mass production of breechloading centerfires.
In an 1876 letter to the newspaper La Borsa, Giuseppe Beretta bragged, “This firm alone possesses the remarkable capability of total production … and sends out finished guns, which are sold not only in Italy, but also abroad …where they are much sought after for their quality and safety.”
Beretta shotguns have dominated the Olympic Games, including helping its sponsored athletes win 14 of 15 available medals at the 2024 Summer Olympiad in Paris
The next president, Giuseppe’s eldest son, (also) Pietro Beretta, furthered his forefathers’ accomplishments well into the 1950s, capping a three-generational run that spanned nearly a century and a half. Priorities shifted from exposed-hammer models to modern designs like bolt-action Vetterli and Carcano rifles, as well as handguns like the Model 1889 Bodeo revolver.
As the machinery needed to drive the rapidly enlarging facilities and workforce often had to be improvised in-house, the 20th-century maestro deftly tackled the design and integration of new tooling. Even so, Pietro Beretta’s foremost engineering feat was the creation of hydroelectric plants, a new way to harness the valley’s Mella River, which for a millennium had powered the forges’ massive bellows.
World Wars
The progress soon slowed, however, as war clouds altered European gun concerns. To keep its factory busy as sporting sales cratered, Beretta took on contract work to supply barrels and parts for Fiat 1914 and Villar Perosa machine guns, among others. Production resumed on Carcano Model 91 TS carbines for the Italian army, and it remained a Beretta standby through both world wars.
More importantly, unfilled demand for service pistols led to development of the long-lived Model 1915. Sized between existing pocket pistols and duty guns like the American M1911 or German P08, the semi-automatic chambered in 9 mm Glisenti and 7.65 mm/.32 ACP was reliable due in part to its open slide, and for its time, it boasted a fast lock time.
By war’s end, production topped 4,200 pistols per month, and for years to come, derivative models possessed Model 1915 characteristics. One was the Model 1934, which in 1935 was adopted as the longtime Italian army standard-issue pistol. As with many of its service sidearms, the Model 1934 was widely used by various armies fighting in Italy, thereby spreading awareness of Italian workmanship.
(l.) Part of the reason for that Olympic success comes from the craftsmen who build the guns. The company has a highly skilled labor force and uses the latest technology to build some of the finest shotguns in the world. (r.) Competitive shotgunning has long been a focus for Beretta, both as a statement of the company’s commitment to supporting the shooting sports and to help showcase its products’ performance capabilities.
While wartime production went out to all Axis powers, it’s also true that Beretta lashed back at the Nazi command, which occupied company plants as well as the family home after the fall of the Italian regime in 1943.
Reportedly, the Germans suspected Pietro and sons Carlo and Giuseppe of diverting guns to partisan fighters but needed the men present to keep things running. After heavy aerial bombing in Brescia, employees prevailed on Carlo to halt work for a day so they could check on family.
For doing so, he was jailed by the SS for two weeks, though he ultimately returned to the plant under constant watch. In late April 1945, as fighting wound down, Pietro Beretta, age 75, was held as a hostage before local partisans fought and took German prisoners to win his release. Though Beretta facilities were heavily damaged, the family and workers rallied to resume production late that year.
Following World War II, Beretta imports started trickling into the U.S. Early examples include military-surplus guns like the Carcano and Model 1934 pistol, which eventually gave way to Cold War arms like the Model 51 duty handgun, the firm’s first firearm chambered in 9 mm, along with the Model 12 submachine gun, which attracted a cult following despite restricted availability to civilians.
The 1960s also brought the BM59, in essence the M1 Garand converted to shoot 7.62 NATO ammo. Beretta also made it more compact and gave it a detachable box magazine, creating a package that World War II authority Martin K.A. Morgan said, “… made a bit of a splash on the civilian market here in the U.S.” And then he doubled-down, lauding “… the sheer engineering prowess of [Beretta engineers] who took John Garand’s magnum opus and made it better.”
(l.) In 1977, the Italian firm acquired a manufacturing facility in Accokeek, Md., and has since opened a larger factory in Gallatin, Tenn. (r.) Beretta USA builds many of the brand’s iconic guns sold in North America.
Sporting guns likewise grabbed attention, especially in trap and skeet leagues springing up across the U.S. More than any other maker, Beretta capitalized as over-under shotguns surpassed the popularity of the iconic side-by-side.
Starting with its S1 model in the early 1930s, the Italians diligently refined a template featuring a low-seated receiver so adept at managing recoil geometry that it eased follow-up shots.
A century later, the upper-crust SO sidelock series remains an aspirational fixture, but it fortuitously spawned the wildly successful boxlock 680 family, which balances brilliant handling and performance with relative affordability.
Since its introduction in the 1980s, price points across innumerable 680/682/686/687 iterations have ranged from the high three figures to well over five. Field gunners who prefer a double can—and often do—take advantage. For scale, Morin/Held wrote that “the name Beretta is as synonymous with [over-under] as Colt is with revolver and Winchester is with lever-action.” That was 46 years ago, but it hasn’t changed.
Global Economy
Since 1995, the Beretta Holding superstructure, while remaining true to its small-town, family roots, has assembled an A-list roster. Under now-retired Ugo Gussalli Beretta and CEO sons Pietro and Franco, the diversified holdings connect a constellation of famous shooting brands to namesake couture and retail galleries in key cities. In nearly every popular category, the arms portfolio is competitive, if not dominant.
(l.) Beretta Galleries in London, Paris, Dallas and on Madison Avenue in Manhattan offer a refined retail experience reflecting the company’s style and heritage. (top r.) Beretta handguns can also receive the custom treatment, as seen on this Model 92FS (btm. r.) Hand-fitting and finishing are key components of Beretta’s custom guns.
The rise traces back to a 1977 decision to manufacture Berettas in the U.S. Upon acquisition of the former Firearms International Industries gun factory in Accokeek, Md., a new-world “forge” fired up to produce the M950 semi-automatic handgun. Such small-framed “pocket” pistols had been banned from importation by the 1968 Gun Control Act, and though free to market their successful shotguns and other sporting designs, the Italians would not be denied full access to the world’s biggest firearm marketplace. American shooters would soon “discover” the age-old brand stamped “Made in USA.”
But, that was just a warm-up to the “hello, America” message that really drove Ugo Gussalli Beretta. It was not mere coincidence that the Defense Department would soon conduct trials for a new service handgun to replace the revered M1911.
In hindsight, it appears preordained that the plum contract would not go to a domestic legacy maker, but for many 1980s gun geeks, such a turn was unthinkable. Backing the practical merits of its proven Model 92SB-F, the hole card was Beretta USA’s growing facility 23 miles from the Pentagon.
And we all know the rest of the story behind the M9’s service across all branches of our Armed Forces for an enlistment that stretched 30-some years. Sure, there was griping: “not a 1911, not a .45, not what won us two World Wars!” Eventually soldiers would set the record straight—the M9 was a smooth shooter, trainee-friendly, reliable and after tweaks, increasingly earned its battlefield stripes in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The Sixth Century
Across 30-plus years, U.S. military contracts for the M9 called for delivery of more than a half-million handguns. Just the proof-testing alone was a titanic chore, not to mention everything else—material handling, machining, assembly, finishing, in-spection, packing.
And while all that occurred as specified by Fabbrica d’Armi Pietro Beretta in Italy and Beretta USA, the newly established Beretta Holding kicked every other task into a higher gear.
The creation of Beretta Holding marked a new chapter, bringing together the Beretta family’s businesses under a single corporate structure and laying the foundation for one of the industry’s broadest portfolios. From its headquarters in Luxembourg, CEO Pietro Gussalli Beretta and his team have engineered growth whose compound stature exceeds balance-sheet numbers.
Beyond “big and bold,” the whole thing defies summation. A giant acquisition, say Europe’s Ammotec, loading around 1 million rounds daily, is balanced by a prestige pickup like the Britain’s Holland & Holland, whose artisans hand-build 50 guns a year.
And now it has put down more roots—a Beretta factory in Gallatin, Tenn. (2016), and a Norma ammunition plant near Savannah, Ga. (2022)—resulting in hundreds of coveted American jobs welcomed by pro-gun, pro-business governors in those states. That comes in contrast to Maryland’s stifling anti-gun climate, where ill-conceived legislation blindsided established practices. Clearly Beretta Holding is here to stay, and it understands where to find the needed stability.
Beretta is a global leader in military small arms manufacture, with guns like the modular ARX160 and the new NARP seeing service with multiple armies.
“We have something that others don’t, and that they’ll never have: a single family owner,” Pietro Gussalli Beretta told Forbes magazine. “When we need to deal with foreign governments, it’s me or my brother meeting the president. That’s not the case with other businesses. We have a long-term vision that isn’t speculative.”
As this was written, huge news broke announcing formal ties between Beretta Holding and Ruger. An AmericanRifleman.org report explained what led to discussions and the subsequent agreement and shared optimistic quotes from leaders at both companies. At this point, no information has been released regarding joint efforts in product design and manufacture, cooperative operations or other corporate synergy. We will keep watch.
Mind-boggling as the pending alliance may be, what we do know at present is that Beretta Holding’s global reach includes manufacturing, administrative and sales operations and employees in 50 countries, generating more than $1.9 billion in annual revenue. Purchases here in the U.S. absorb nearly 40 percent of Beretta Holding’s annual firearms output. The scope is vast, especially when you can track it back to a known craftsman working at a small forge hammering red-hot iron sheets into gun barrels. We don’t dismiss concerns about consolidation, but the number of gun-manufacturer startups remains as strong or stronger than any time in the past 50 years. Again, it bears watching.
Why it’s important and beneficial to American gun owners is that the clout of companies as big as Beretta Holding and Ruger makes them critical allies in NRA’s mission to preserve individual freedoms for now and for tomorrow.
Time for Fireworks: America at 250 Salutes Beretta at 500
Since launching U.S. operations, Beretta et al. have been industry champions in support of shooting, hunting and conservation and firearm training. NRA has prominently received funding for political action and litigation, as well as youth programs, hunting and conservation activities and the National Firearms Museum.
Accordingly, NRA leaders have praised Beretta’s timely and strategic commitments to preserving American rights. At the 2026 NRA Annual Meetings and Exhibits in Houston, Franco Gussalli Beretta, president and CEO of Fabbrica d’Armi Pietro Beretta, was presented with the 2026 NRA Defender of Freedom Award, one of the Association’s highest honors recognizing individuals whose extraordinary efforts help preserve the fundamental freedoms upon which the U.S. was built.
That meaningful salute to Beretta’s epic quincentennial came on behalf of all NRA members and like-minded Americans. It is time to celebrate.
The old Colt Python earned a reputation as one of the finest revolvers ever built, then disappeared long enough to become painfully collectible. Colt brought the snake back in 2020 with stronger construction and redesigned internals, giving 2026 buyers a much harder question: buy the legend, or buy the modern gun built to shoot?
Editor’s Note: This article originally reviewed a Royal Blue 6″ Colt Python manufactured in 1968, years before Colt revived the model. We have updated it for 2026 with the 2020 reintroduction, modern design changes, current barrel and finish options, new-vs-vintage pricing, and a buyer’s verdict. The original testing, photographs, captions, humor, and conclusions remain the foundation of the article.
Table of contents
- The Colt Python Returned in 2020
- Vintage vs. New Colt Python: What Actually Changed?
- The Modern Colt Python Is a Family Now
- What Does a Colt Python Cost in 2026?
- Original Review: I’m in Love With a Snake
- 1968 Colt Python Specs and That Legendary Trigger
- When You Couldn’t Buy a New Python
- Shooting a 1968 Colt Python: The Trigger Lives Up to the Myth
- Vintage Python Reliability and Timing
- Should You Buy a New or Vintage Colt Python in 2026?
The Colt Python Returned in 2020
There is a passage later in this original review that has aged almost suspiciously well. Back when used Python prices were climbing and Colt had no new gun to sell you, the author wondered whether the company might be sitting on the snakes, waiting for the right time to strike.
Strike it did. Colt reintroduced the Python in 2020, bringing its most famous double-action revolver back into regular production after years of collector-market insanity.
But Colt did not simply dig the old tooling out of the basement, blow off the dust, and tell everybody it was 1974 again. The new Python was reengineered for modern manufacturing. Colt strengthened the frame around the top strap, simplified the internal action, tightened manufacturing tolerances with modern machining, and retained the leaf-spring character of the old gun rather than replacing the whole personality with a generic coil-spring action.
The silhouette survived. You still get the ventilated rib, full-length underlug, six-shot cylinder, rearward-pull cylinder latch, adjustable sights, and that unmistakable Python profile. However, under the sideplate, this is a new generation.
Vintage vs. New Colt Python: What Actually Changed?
| Feature | Vintage Python | 2020-and-Newer Python |
|---|---|---|
| Production Style | Extensive traditional hand fitting | Modern CNC machining and tighter repeatable tolerances |
| Action | Classic Colt Python lockwork | Redesigned, simplified lockwork with fewer components |
| Main Spring | Traditional leaf-spring Colt system | Redesigned leaf-spring system retained |
| Top Strap | Original I-frame design | Strengthened with substantially more steel in the critical area |
| Front Sight | Period configuration varies | User-changeable front sight |
| Muzzle | Traditional vintage crown | Recessed target-style crown |
| Classic Finish | Royal Blue, nickel, later stainless | Modern stainless plus later blued production |
| Collector Value | Often substantial | Primarily a current-production shooter |
| Parts and Support | Vintage specialist territory | Current-production support advantage |
| Best Reason to Buy | History, originality, collecting | Shooting, durability, value |
Calling the new revolver a “copy” of the old Python misses the point. The new gun is better understood as Colt taking the old Python’s visual identity and shooting personality, then rebuilding the mechanical package around manufacturing methods that did not exist when the original was introduced in 1955.
Colt added roughly 30 percent more steel around the top-strap area and simplified the action considerably. Several assemblies in the original became single modern components, cutting friction points and making consistent production possible without the extraordinary amount of hand fitting that helped make old Pythons both wonderful and expensive.
Does that mean the new trigger is worse because somebody with a stone and a lifetime of experience did not personally whisper encouragement to every engagement surface? Not necessarily. Reviews of the revived Python have repeatedly found exceptionally smooth double-action pulls and crisp single-action breaks. Some experienced shooters actually prefer the consistency of the modern action.
That does not make the guns the same. A 1960s Royal Blue Python is a mechanical artifact from a particular era of American gunmaking. A 2026 Python is a modern production revolver built to be used. Pick your flavor of romance.
The Modern Colt Python Is a Family Now
The 2020 return started with stainless 4.25″ and 6″ revolvers. Colt subsequently expanded the family with a 3″ Python and an 8″ version, giving buyers everything from a relatively compact carry-sized snake to a revolver that looks like it should arrive with its own tripod.
Then Colt brought back another part of the old magic. In 2024, the company reintroduced a redesigned blued Python. No modern production finish needs to pretend it came out of the same polishing room as a pristine 1960s Royal Blue gun, but the return of a dark steel Python was exactly what a lot of snake people had been demanding since the stainless revival appeared.
The practical result in 2026 is that you no longer need to raid a retirement account just because you want a Python with the correct number of holes in the cylinder. The collector market and shooter market have finally separated again.
What Does a Colt Python Cost in 2026?
Modern Python: Standard current-production guns commonly trade in roughly the low $1,200s through the mid $1,400s depending on barrel length, finish, configuration, and seller. Verified standard 4.25″ stainless and blued configurations have carried a $1,499 MSRP, although specialty and engraved versions can cost considerably more.
Recent sold-market examples illustrate the point. A new 6″ stainless Python sold for $1,421.95 in September 2026, while a new 8″ stainless example sold for $1,299.99. Deals move around. Apparently even snakes go on sale.
Vintage Python: This is where asking “what does a Python cost?” becomes roughly as useful as asking what an old Corvette costs. Which year? Which barrel? Which finish? Original grips? Original box? Refinished? Turn line? Engraved? Early serial number?
Broad 2026 market tracking puts an ordinary used vintage Python around the $2,000 mark on average, but individual guns move far above and below that number. Recent sales include a 1978 Royal Blue 4″ Python at $2,675 and a 1976 bright-nickel 6″ gun at $2,870.99. A three-digit 1956 Royal Blue 6″ Python sold for $7,275. Rare factory engraving and unusual configurations can go much higher.
The lesson is simple. Buy a modern Python by configuration and street price. Buy a vintage Python by provenance, originality, condition, production period, and collector desirability. Those are two different transactions that happen to involve guns with the same snake on the barrel.
Original Review: I’m in Love With a Snake
Hello. My name is David, and I’m in love with a snake. I used to be ophidiophobic, but I’ve begun a steady program of exposure therapy. I now spend a lot of time with a Python, and it has opened my eyes. I guess it should come as no surprise, as most of the gun-loving free world has a soft spot for Colt’s snakes.
These badass guns were built in staggering numbers from 1955 until 2005. Many believe that the Colt Python is the single best revolver ever to be produced. In a world with a lot of revolvers, many of which are exceptionally well-made guns, that is a bold claim. But it hardly stops there. As some of those Python backers also believe that revolvers are vastly superior to automatics, the Python begins to look like the pinnacle of an immense handgun pyramid.
1968 Colt Python Specs and That Legendary Trigger
This Python, which was made in 1968, has a 6″ barrel. They were made with short barrels, as short as 2.5″, and with longer 8″ barrels, and several in between. The 6″ gun is substantial. The full-length barrel lug adds weight to an already heavy design.
I’d have to break out a scale to weigh this thing, but to hell with that. It is 3 pounds, easy. This gun was made in the era that appreciated big-block engines and curves on women. None of these models look like tall boys or hybrid cars. And they weren’t shy about using American steel in guns. There’s more steel in a Python than there is in a 2015 Ford F-150. The grip, this one is not original to the gun, is huge. The fat flare at the end of the one-piece design forces your hand up on the grip.
The trigger on this one breaks like some of those anemic fashion models, right at 8 pounds in double-action mode, and just north of 3 pounds in single-action. If poets still wrote romantic ballads, we’d be awash in odes to the Python’s trigger. It is that good. In single action, there is no creep. No take-up. No overtravel.
The Pythons were originally made in Royal Blue, like this one, and in nickel-plated versions. The nickel version was later replaced by stainless steel. The longer-barreled guns had full-length vent ribs on top, and the sights, both front and rear, are adjustable.
Make no mistake. The Python is a beast. With six rounds of .357, the capacity is on par with most of the competition. The 6″ barrel produces muzzle velocities in the 1,150 FPS range with 158 grain Federal Hydra-Shok JHPs. That’s on the slow end of the .357s, as the bullet weighs more. Basic .38s will leave the barrel anywhere from the high 800s to the low 1000s. That’s not bad, but I’d never carry anything in the Python that wasn’t capable of taking down a moose, so I’m sticking with the .357s.
When You Couldn’t Buy a New Python
With the stunning effectiveness of the Python, and the exquisite aesthetics, why couldn’t you pop into your local FFL and buy a Python?
This section was originally written when the Python was no longer in regular production. That is obviously no longer true, but the history explains why vintage values exploded and why Colt’s 2020 return mattered so much.
This section is going to be filled with some conjecture. I’d be willing to bet that most of it is 100% accurate. But Colt won’t comment, and I think there’s a good reason for that, too. So I’ll stop being vague and get to it.
1. Revolvers used to be popular. The Python, in fact, was carried by a lot of law enforcement agencies. These were standard-issue firearms up into the 1990’s. And they were incredibly reliable, accurate, and iconic; everything you’d want from a sidearm except the capacity. So out they went. And as the public’s preference for pistols grew, sales slumped. Bye-bye snakes.
2. These aren’t inexpensive guns. When a lot of other guns are being made of plastic, the snakes start to look like resource hogs. The tooling was antiquated and old-fashioned, the materials were pricey, and the market for the guns was not-so-slowly drying up.
So the expensive guns for which there was a shrinking market were pulled from production. Clearly, we see now, the market hadn’t dried up. Not completely. And the guns were selling for insane prices. I’m going to jump in here with my consumer bias and say that the prices for used Pythons are insane. $3,000? And that’s for a shooter in good condition. You can find a better price, occasionally, and you can take out a second mortgage for one that’s new-in-box, and unturned.
Side note: I got schooled in revolver valuation recently, and I’d like to pass on this nugget. “Unfired” is easy enough to fake. I can take a gun in reasonably good condition and spruce it up so it looks new. “Unturned” means that the cylinder shows no marks from rotation. This is a better way to evaluate the wear on a revolver. A truly pristine, unturned, unfired Python will fetch a very high price, so high that it is worth the risk for some to attempt to pass off fakes. Caveat emptor.
The Author Called It: New Snakes Really Did Return
3. New Snakes? So let’s entertain a third option for Colt’s decision to pull the Python. They may have seen the downward slope of the supply/demand curve. What to do? Continue to flood the market with expensive pistols? Hell no. Cut supply. Immediately. Let the demand build. Watch what happens on the secondary market and figure out where your price point should be. Judge that delicate balancing point between supply and demand that will allow you to charge a premium for a product produced in limited numbers. Colt may be sitting on the snakes, biding their time, waiting, somewhat snake-like, for the right time to strike.
As guns are a popular topic of conversation here at GunsAmerica, we’ve had numerous conversations around the virtual water-cooler about Colt. More than Colt would like, I think. But we all love the snakes, and can’t see why Colt doesn’t jump on the newfound popularity of the revolver. Retro revolvers.
2026 update: That speculation turned out to be amusingly close to reality. Colt brought the Cobra back first, then the King Cobra, and finally reintroduced the Python in 2020. The revived gun now exists alongside the vintage market rather than replacing it, which is probably the best possible outcome for shooters and collectors alike.
Shooting a 1968 Colt Python: The Trigger Lives Up to the Myth
You should take what I say about economics with a grain of salt. I’ve got a Ph.D., but it isn’t in economics. And this is a review, so I’m much more interested in how this thing shoots. I’m not one to put away shiny collectables. I’ve got a seven-year-old boy, so I can’t use a Python as a coffee table set-about. If I can’t shoot it, it doesn’t stick around long.
This one, though, shoots straight. It shoots better than any revolver I’ve ever owned or shot. You’ll see what I mean when you look at the target pics. I’m not that good with a revolver, but this one made me feel like I could be a rockstar.
And I did better with it in double action than I did in single action, defeating my own long-held belief that single action is superior. I used to take a constant ribbing from Bob Lawman, a revolver expert, about my half-assed revolver technique. He swore I would shoot better if I just learned how to shoot a double-action.
Well, Bob, I get it. The trigger on this Python is smooth, light, and easy to stage. I can rock the hammer back with the trigger and hold it all day long.
In single action, I kept dropping the trigger a bit unexpectedly. The pull is light enough that I’d drop at least one round early. But the double-action pull was gratifying and has inflated my ego.
Vintage Python Reliability and Timing
It is a revolver. What could go wrong? According to the wisdom of the internet, the Pythons are prone to timing issues as their round counts escalate. Maybe so. The cylinder locks up tight to the forcing cone on this one, and I had no issues with the timing. That said, I would estimate the round count on this one to be very low. The timing works fine.
If a Python were to get out of time, the cylinder would lock up with the forcing cone, but not perfectly. This allows gas to escape. It can even shave off bits of lead. I’ve fired revolvers and had to perform basic first aid after. But that’s tremendously unlikely on a gun as well-built as this. A more likely scenario is that you’d sacrifice a bit of accuracy and see more soot on the cylinder.
This is also one of the meaningful differences for the 2026 buyer. Colt redesigned and strengthened the modern Python partly to create a more durable working revolver using current materials and manufacturing. An old gun should be evaluated as an old gun. Timing, lockup, originality, previous action work, and overall condition matter enormously when collector money is involved.
Original Verdict: The Python Was Too Good and Too Precious
This is my first Python. And I love it. Every time I look at it, I see the 1970s. I’ve seen a few episodes of The Walking Dead, but I’m not zombie obsessive. I have a hard time suspending my disbelief long enough to believe anyone, let alone roaming the countryside in a world where ammo is no longer being manufactured, would carry anything other than a 9mm.
But if I had Hollywood’s unending supply lines and a steady stream of slightly lethargic targets that wouldn’t shoot back, I’d carry a Python, too. Hell, I’d carry two. With a double-action trigger like this, I’d be dual-wielding like a maniac.
In the real world, though, I’m faced with a dilemma. While there is a limited supply of Pythons, Colt’s competitors continue to push their own, completely capable .357 revolvers. I have a hard time carrying a gun this precious when there are less expensive guns that work. I almost said just as well.
If I were ever to use this in a defensive situation, where it would no doubt be confiscated, or if it were stolen, I’d feel the loss. I’d have a huge Python-shaped hole in my revolver-loving soul. Would it not be better to carry a Smith 686, or a Ruger? Not that I wouldn’t pine at their loss, but I might not pine as much.
I think the only thing to do is put it to the test. Head-to-head. Gun vs. Gun. The Python vs. the Smith & Wesson 686. How will the snake stand up to the Smith? Stay tuned.
Should You Buy a New or Vintage Colt Python in 2026?
Buy a modern Python if: you intend to shoot the thing. The revived revolver gives you the Python profile, excellent trigger, current-production support, stronger construction, modern manufacturing, and a price that is substantially less terrifying than damaging a collectible Royal Blue gun.
Buy a vintage Python if: the history is part of the purchase. A real Royal Blue revolver from the classic production era has craftsmanship, finish, provenance, and collector appeal that a modern gun cannot recreate simply by wearing the same rollmark.
Buy carefully if: somebody is asking premium vintage money. Verify originality, finish, serial period, barrel length, grips, cylinder wear, timing, previous gunsmithing, box and paperwork claims, and whether the revolver has been refinished. “Python” alone does not make every old example a museum piece.
Our 2026 verdict: For a shooter, the new Python makes more sense. That is the great gift of the 2020 revival. You can finally own a Python and behave like a person who owns a revolver instead of the temporary curator of an increasingly expensive historical object.
The vintage gun still owns the romance. The modern gun owns the range bag. And if your finances allow one of each, congratulations on discovering the easiest possible answer to this entire article.
Colt Python Pros & Cons in 2026
- Modern Python Pros: Stronger construction, simplified action, excellent trigger, current production support, multiple barrel lengths, stainless and blued options, and substantially lower cost than many collectible originals.
- Modern Python Cons: It is not an original hand-fitted Royal Blue Python, and premium pricing still places it above many extremely capable .357 revolvers.
- Vintage Python Pros: Classic hand fitting, Royal Blue and period finishes, historical importance, exceptional trigger reputation, collector value, and unmistakable old-school craftsmanship.
- Vintage Python Cons: High prices, condition-sensitive value, specialized repair concerns, possible timing wear on heavily used examples, and the emotional trauma associated with putting a scratch on something worth several thousand dollars.
