Colt Anaconda - Development

Development

Built on a new and heavier ‘AA’ frame, the Anaconda was brought out to compete with .44 Magnum contemporaries such as the Smith & Wesson Model 29, the Sturm, Ruger & Co. Redhawk and Blackhawk, and the Dan Wesson Firearms Model 44. Considering that many of these models had been marketed and sold for fully 35 years upon its introduction, the Anaconda was a very late entry into the large-bore handgun market. Unlike most other pistols introduced in the 1980s and 1990s, the Anaconda was never offered with a carbon steel blued finish, but was available only in stainless steel. When originally introduced Anacondas were plagued with poor accuracy, but changes to the barrels quickly corrected the problems to the point that Colt billed its new pistol as among the most accurate .44 Magnum revolvers in production. Anaconda revolvers were primarily marketed for sport enthusiast shooters and hunters, as they are too large for law enforcement use by small-framed male and female officers or concealed-carry. Colt firearms announced the discontinuation of the Anaconda and many other double-action revolver models in October 1999, although made-to-order limited production versions of the gun continued to be available from the Colt custom gun shop until approximately 2003.