Your friend is all kinds of wrong.
Colt made plenty of pistols in a nickel finish (actually two types of nickel finishes), especially in the 70s, when your gun was made. They didn't stop after the 70s (heck, they still list a Special Combat Government with a nickel frame today!) nor did they start in the 70s, either! Many of the factory-engraved old Colts were given this finish, to make the engraving stand out better. You might want to tell your friend that they have sold many thousands of nickel-finished revolvers, too.
Colt has had two types of nickel finish: nickel electroplate (usually called simply 'nickel') and electroless nickel.
The serial number is a good clue to reveal the original finish, but I don't remember how exactly... I think some say if there's a B after the '70' then the finish is blue; if it's a G it's nickel... but this could be hear-say. I'd wait for someone else to chime in.
Pictures might help, too.
Too many people miss the silver lining because they're expecting gold.
M. Setter
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