colt 45 model year 1875 serial #16401

have inherited this wepon fron my grandfather, and am wondering its approximate value.
thank you for any insight

i beleive your pistol was made in 1876 judging from the serial number you gave ,,15000 was the last number in 1875 listed ,,this pistols value depends alot on condition and is worthy of a colt factory letter ,,the letter will help to justify the value,,then i would seek a professional antique appraiser for insurance values..mabey silacon schorcher will chime in here ,,he's more of a colt athority than i am..
bigcurt

thank you, i gather from your responce that this "could be" a valuble piece. i am interested in any information that you can give me about this process as i have never dealt with a "collectable". who should i contact about a factory letter? i guess this is a document that shows that the pistol is indeed what it is claimed to be. i am not curious of its value for the purpose of selling as this piece has great setimental value, but for insurance purposes ans you mentioned before. i believe that it is in firable condition and is in very good condition, i should have some pics soon as it is still on its way to me!

I also inherited a Colt from 1875 # 16148 (letter from Colt says it is from 1875). It has a blued barrel, and grip strapping. but the rest is, I think nickel maybe. I have had three people look at it with amazingly different results. One man at a shop said it was a very good example and worth 16,000 at least. Another guy in the same shop (when the earlier appraiser was not near) said $2,000. I think he wanted to buy it.
I then sent photos to an auction house and their appraiser who emailed me back that it was a fake. But no details or anything. It has three matching numbers on trigger guard, frame and a barely visible one on the bottom of the grip strap. There are other numbers on the barrel. I would like to know where to take it for a trustworthy appraisal. Thanks, Bill