Modern Take on Snubbie Nostalgia

The Colt Night Cobra Special is a throwback. In an era of polymer frames and molded rubber grips, this classic-looking wheel gun celebrates the era of steel and wood carry guns. Along the way, it reminds us why they were great in the first place. I won’t blow smoke and tell you to ditch your Glock for a revolver. But guns like this have their place. The Night Cobra Special brings a sense of nostalgia that a Glock can’t match.

The Colt Night Cobra Special

That nostalgia starts with the Night Cobra Special’s close resemblance to the old Colt Detective Special. It debuted in 1927 and, for me, is the classic snubbie. The Detective Special went through three evolutions, “issues” in Colt parlance, and several variants before being discontinued in 1986, thanks to high labor costs and a strike.

Colt released a “Fourth Issue” between 1993 and 1996 using leftover parts to meet customer demand. Successor guns followed, including the current Cobra line, of which this gun is obviously a part.

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The Detective Special’s grips and other features changed over time, incorporating rounded butts, synthetic grips, and a shrouded ejector rod. Two and three-inch barrels were available. The Night Cobra Special hearkens back to several classic Detective Special features, while upgrading others, but never losing the old-school feel.

Colt Night Cobra Special Features

The Night Cobra Special brings back the original Detective’s square butt with checkered walnut grips. However, it includes the shrouded ejector rod. The Night Cobra Special is only available with a two-inch barrel.

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It incorporates the Cobra’s slightly longer frame and enlarged trigger guard. So, it’s not quite as concealable as the old two-inch Detectives and is a touch heavier. But the ergonomics are better. For me, personally, it’s the best of both worlds.

The frame, cylinder, and barrel are stainless steel. Their matte-black Diamond-Like Carbon coating provides extra durability, though I miss the old blued-steel look.

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The checkered walnut grips have a classic feel, and I prefer them to the synthetic grips, even if they may not be quite as effective. I kept wooden grips on my Viper for the same reason. I just like them better. That may, of course, be my inner Fudd emerging as I age. So be it.

Colt chambered the Cobra line for the .38 Special cartridge and +P loads. The Night Cobra Special is no different. Its brass bead front sight is very visible through the deep groove running along the top strap. Some sight grooves are better than others, and this one is well-defined and effective.

The crane swings out smoothly, and the cylinder spins effortlessly, as I expect from a quality revolver. The ejector star does its job, and the cylinder locks up firmly when closing. I like the serrated hammer spur. It’s positive, with no mushiness. Finally, the transfer bar safety is clearly visible.

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The Night Cobra Special on the Range

I’m admittedly still learning revolvers. I bought my first handgun in 2010, at age 45, and leaned heavily into the semi-automatic, concealed carry world, with a few Milsurp pistols thrown in for good measure. Wheel guns seemed so “last century” to me. More the fool I, which I’ll address below.

However, I’ve recently gotten some good advice from revolver aficionados like Mike Searson and James Maybrick. Both of whom I’m lucky to count as friends. I even know Maybrick’s secret true identity, though Searson remains a semi-mythical figure in the gun world.

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That said, the Night Cobra Special has been great fun, and I’m pleased by my performance with it. The recoil is very manageable, even with +P rounds. Part of that is the grip technique Searson showed me, which is obviously different from my standard semi-auto grip.

Another part is the .38 Special cartridge itself, which doesn’t beat me to death as the .357 Magnum does in a small wheel gun. But the gun itself plays a role too, and I think Colt got it right with this one.

The single/double-action trigger is quite good for a factory revolver. I like SA/DA triggers because I can stage them, giving me more control. Each gun is obviously a little different, but the concept remains the same.

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I learned to stage this gun’s trigger fairly quickly and have gotten to where I can do it successfully about 80 percent of the time. More practice will get me to 100 percent, whereupon I can start seriously improving my drill performances. And I will drill because I intend to carry it come fall and winter.

Feeding the Snubbie

I found the Night Cobra Special to be quite accurate, depending on the load. I fired the following .38 Special loads, which were generously provided by my friends at Ammunition Depot:

Hornady also kindly provided 50 rounds of 110-grain Hornady Critical Defense FTX. The Remington UMC rounds are technically defensive rounds, despite the older bullet technology. So, I counted them that way, though they’re priced like target loads, and are advertised as such. You can view them however you like.

Shooting the Night Cobra Special

The gun was completely reliable through 250 rounds of target ammo and 120 rounds of defensive ammo. We shot those over two range trips and gave the gun a quick cleaning in between.

I experienced a couple of hiccups early on when I fired a few quick shot strings. But my co-tester and I determined that I was short-stroking the trigger on the reset. So, it was my fault, not the gun’s. I cleaned that up and had no more issues.

The Colt seemed to prefer the slower, heavier loads to the lighter Hornady Critical Defense. I fired six-round groups at ten yards with the three defensive loads. Then, I shot freehand in double action, since that’s how I would likely use the gun in a real-world scenario.

The Hornady produced 2-to-3-inch groups, and I usually had a flyer. Same with the Remington Golden Saber, but those groups were usually a little tighter than the Hornady. The Remington UMC was consistently the best, and I rarely had a flyer.

The flyers are almost certainly my fault, as I’m still early in my revolver journey. My performance will improve, but I only have so much time to test and review a firearm. However, the groups were consistent with each load. So, like most guns, the Colt likes some better than others.

I didn’t perceive any real recoil differences between the various loads, despite Hornady’s 110 fps advantage over the two Remington rounds.

A Revolver Revelation

I’ve recently experienced a revolver revelation. It’s been building for a while, but handling and shooting the Colt Night Cobra Special brought it fully into focus. My son and co-tester is a confirmed wheel gun guy. He carries a .357 Magnum revolver by choice. He’s been working on me for a while, and I eventually saw the light.

I’m not going to start carrying revolvers full-time, but I’ve come to love them. I love their history, and I love their personality. Sometimes I feel like I’m “tacticooled” out. However, my EDC gun wears an optic and a comp, and I’ve never really seen myself as being cool.

I enjoy shooting revolvers, and I intend to start carrying one as a backup when attire permits, and I achieve the necessary skill level.

I expect this Night Cobra Special to be part of that carry rotation. It’s smooth, accurate, and has been durable and reliable so far. It’s also a lot of fun. I’ve joked that shooting it makes me want to buy a wide-brimmed fedora and trench coat and talk like Humphrey Bogart. I can’t really do impressions, but the fedora and trench coat are possibilities.

Anyway, the Colt Night Cobra Special is a cool gun that can be very effective if deployed correctly. Snubbies are like that. A good wheel gun will always go “bang” when you pull the trigger. I like having that option in my repertoire. People like revolvers for a reason. I’m glad I finally saw that.

Colt Night Cobra Special Specs

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