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Trooper MK-V?
Purchased some time back in the early '80s. Blued, 4 inch barrel with big wood grips. (Wears stag grips now). I'm wanting to know what the differences are between the Trooper MK-III and the Trooper MK-V? I have a friend who is a retired LEO who carried a MK-III for years until his department went semi-auto, but he says he never even heard of the MK-V. I've seen MK-IIIs on the used gun market selling for $850 to as high as $1200. Was the MK-V an improved version over the MKIII? Is the V worth more than the III? The guy who sold it to me indicated it was and said the MK-V had a similar lock work as the Python, only not as well fitted. To help anyone who might put a value on it, my MK-V is in about 95% condition.
Any info anyone has on this fine revolver, including production numbers would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.
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The MK-V was designed to lower Colt's costs. The finish and machining were not near as nice, and I believe it was the first Colt to come with rubber grips instead of wood. They were made in 4 & 6" barrels, but I never saw a 4". I had a MK III and a Python, while a buddy of mine had the MK V; you could REALLY tell the difference when shooting! While most all of Colt's revolvers shared the same lock work, the later models were not nearly as polished. It was a sad decline to watch.
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The difference was the MK-V was a total redesigned revolver form the MK-III. Nothing was interchageable. The MK-V was only made for a couple of years I think.:smt1099
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MkIII and MkV are very similar and neither has the Python style action. Frame grip shape, shorter action, and cast hammer and trigger are the only big differances between III and V.
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To the best of my knowledge ther are three different troopers. The first was made until 1969 and many refer to it as the poor man's python, The guy who sold it to you may have confused the mark V with this. The Mark three was a complete redesign with no interchangeable parts with the original. From 82-85 colt produced the Mark V again a complete redesign.