# The Phoenix Project: The Resurrection of a Colt Trooper MK III



## TINCANBANDIT (Jun 12, 2015)

I have another project gun that I hope to take from pitted ugliness to redemption. This one was in a house fire and the finish was destroyed, rusted and pitted. This is a 1978 vintage Colt Trooper Mk III in .357 Mag





Now before anyone tries to tell me that this gun is un-shootable due to the heat exposure, I will ask you to do some research...look up Charcoal Bluing or better yet Color Case Hardening...

The grips on this gun were blistered, but not charred, which means the temperature did not get above 400 degrees. Hardly enough to hurt the steel. The internal parts, including the springs were intact and showed no signs of warping or loss of life.

stay tuned. this will be a long ride


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## TINCANBANDIT (Jun 12, 2015)

some close-ups of the pitting that we are dealing with



The bore looked like a sewer pipe.....



and the cylinder was not salvageable (the pitting around the stop notches was too deep, any attempt to remove the pitting would make the gun unsafe)



So my 1st step is to find the parts necessary to bring the gun back to safe functioning


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## TINCANBANDIT (Jun 12, 2015)

blog post with additional pictures

TINCANBANDIT's Gunsmithing: The Phoenix Project: The Resurrection of a Colt Trooper MK III: Part 1


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## TINCANBANDIT (Jun 12, 2015)

After searching the online gun forums, gun auction sites and ebay I came up with this excellent condition Trooper MkV barrel (with the optional vented rib!) for $40



I also found a local guy who had a drawer full of NOS parts, I scored a side plate, cylinder latch, hammer and internal parts and springs as well as brand new screws! all for $80, 
no more worries about losing the roll marks



Then we were lucky enough to score a good condition cylinder (also from fleabay) for $49


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## TINCANBANDIT (Jun 12, 2015)

The sanding starts with 100 grit paper, backed by a hard wood block



in some areas the progress moved quickly


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## TINCANBANDIT (Jun 12, 2015)

fitting the new side plate to the frame



I removed the barrel using a home made action/frame wrench, see how I did it here: TINCANBANDIT's Gunsmithing: Removing a Barrel from a Revolver


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## TINCANBANDIT (Jun 12, 2015)

the fit of the side plate was not perfect, so I blended them together for a seamless fit, here is what it looked like before the blending



The sanding continues, this is a 100 grit finish, almost all the pitting is gone



Blog update

TINCANBANDIT's Gunsmithing: Removing a Barrel from a Revolver

some more pictures of the progress


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## TINCANBANDIT (Jun 12, 2015)

working with revolvers can be difficult, you need to keep the round edges round and the square edges sharp, all while avoiding screw holes, roll marks and rivets
note how I have not yet sanded the side plate where the Colt rampart logo is, that will come when we get to the 1000+ grit level, this is a 600 grit



Once I had most everything sanded to the 600 grit level I installed the new barrel and checked for fit. I got it perfectly square and level, the cylinder gap is a bit tight, but I can deal with that later



I then sand blasted the top of the frame and barrel





the factory did this to prevent glare in the sight picture


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## MoMan (Dec 27, 2010)

TINCANBANDIT,
GREAT project!! I have a 1969 MK III that fortunately is in pristine condition. I love shooting this thing!
Your work is looking really good! I'm sure when you are done you will have a GREAT shooter there, that will give you even more satisfaction knowing what it was like when you got it!!


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## TINCANBANDIT (Jun 12, 2015)

MoMan said:


> TINCANBANDIT,
> GREAT project!! I have a 1969 MK III that fortunately is in pristine condition. I love shooting this thing!
> Your work is looking really good! I'm sure when you are done you will have a GREAT shooter there, that will give you even more satisfaction knowing what it was like when you got it!!


Thanks!

More photos

fitting the ejector to the new cylinder




polishing the transition of the ejector star and chamber openings



polishing the ejector for smooth operation



I also cleaned up the face of the cylinder


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## TINCANBANDIT (Jun 12, 2015)

While the cylinder looked good with bluing on it, after removing the bluing we could see some small pits



after sanding, this is a 600 grit finish



The small parts needed work too, even the ejector rod & rear sight had pitting



I chucked the ejector rod into my drill and sanded it with emory cloth



The rear sight was made of a soft material, not sure if it is going to look very good, I'll see if I can find a used one for a reasonable price


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## TINCANBANDIT (Jun 12, 2015)

Latest blog post for this project

TINCANBANDIT's Gunsmithing: The Phoenix Project: The Resurrection of a Colt Trooper MK III: part 4

Some before/after progress shots


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## TINCANBANDIT (Jun 12, 2015)

I'll post a link to my blog when it is ready with more pictures and details

The parts reblued and oiled, waiting for re-assembly



before and after








































































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