U.S. World War II Colt Commando Revolver

WWII Colt Commando .38 Special Revolver – Unissued, New Old Stock

This Colt Commando .38 Special revolver is all new and unfired, remaining in its original Kraft shipping boxes complete with period-correct accompanying materials. The revolver retains its original military finish, commonly referred to as parkerizing, though Colt’s wartime process consisted of a fine sandblasted surface finished with a dull blue treatment. The revolver is fitted with correct Colt brown plastic military grips, typical of late-war production.

The left upper frame is U.S. Ordnance inspected and stamped with the initials GHD over the Ordnance “flaming bomb” marking. The GHD stamp represents Colonel Guy H. Drewry, a U.S. Army Ordnance officer whose inspection mark appears on a wide range of WWII small arms. The barrel is correctly marked “Colt Commando .38 Special.”

Total wartime production of the Colt Commando revolver is estimated at approximately 50,000 units. This figure is modest when compared to the far more extensively produced Smith & Wesson Victory Model .38, which saw production numbers several times higher due to broader military and allied issuance.

Early in World War II, the U.S. Army recalled many .45 ACP M1911 pistols from state National Guard units due to wartime shortages. The Alabama National Guard, like several other states, was affected by this withdrawal. To replace their sidearms, the Alabama National Guard placed an order with Colt for Commando revolvers chambered in .38 Special. While exact contract quantities are unknown, estimates suggest a relatively small order, possibly on the order of a few hundred revolvers.

Before delivery of the Colt Commandos was completed, Army Ordnance reversed course and reissued .45 caliber automatic pistols to National Guard units. As a result, the Colt Commandos intended for Alabama were never issued. Upon delivery, they were placed directly into long-term storage rather than being distributed for service use.

Remarkably, these revolvers remained in storage for approximately 68 years, from their wartime manufacture around 1943 until March of 2011. At that time, the unissued revolvers were donated to the Marion Military Institute Museum in Alabama, preserving an unusually well-documented and untouched example of wartime U.S. sidearm procurement.

Examples such as this represent a rare intersection of wartime production, administrative change, and long-term preservation. Unlike most WWII-issued sidearms, which typically exhibit wear from service use or post-war handling, these Colt Commandos remain true time-capsule artifacts of the U.S. home-front war effort.

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