It became one of the bestselling police firearms of all time, eventually coming to exemplify typical law enforcement officer weaponry in the 1950s.

[2][3] Colt's marketing strategy was further fine-tuned by making a few superficial alterations to the Army Special revolver and then renaming it as the "Official Police" model.

[2][4] In 1930, Colt publicized that their Official Police model could easily handle the firing of heavily-loaded .38 rounds intended for competitor Smith & Wesson's new large N-frame revolver, the .38-44.

When government purchasing officials objected to production delays of the OP, as well as the unit cost, Colt responded by simplifying the gun.

[2][3] Colt announced the discontinuation of the Official Police in 1969, stating that competitive production of the design was no longer economically feasible.

[2] The Official Police was machined of fine carbon steel, with blued or nickel-plated finishes, and was offered in 4, 5 and 6 inches (100, 130 and 150 mm) barrels.

[2] The pistol's sights consist of a blade front and a simple U-notch shaped groove milled into the revolver's top strap.

[2][3] The Commando was a wartime variant of the Official Police, manufactured with either a two or four inch barrel, and incorporating several production economies including a non-gloss Parkerized finish.

The Commando also lacked the usual metal checkering on the hammer, trigger, and cylinder latch, as well as the reflection-deadening treatment of the commercial version's top strap.

[3] The moniker "Official Police" was borrowed by one model in a new generation of revolvers Colt introduced in the late 1960s, called the "MK III" series.

MK III models consisted of simpler versions of several classic Colt revolvers with updated lockwork, based on a new "J" frame, which failed to attain commercial success and was cancelled after only three years.