To Load: Thumb the hammer back to half-cock. That's two clicks on a traditional colt. The cylinder should spin freely on half-cock. Open the loading gate just rear of the cylinder and insert the cartridges. Leave one chamber empty under the hammer if you're going to carry it. Pull the hammer back and pull the trigger to fire. When it's empty, put it on half-cock again, open the loading gate and press the ejector rod located just under the barrel. This will pop the empties out.
To field strip: I haven't field stripped a colt in a long time, but you have to take out a little screw just foward of the cylinder on the frame in order to remove the cylinder pin. Once you remove the cylinder pin, open the loading gate and remove the cylinder. You may have to put the hammer on half-cock or something to do this. Like I say, I haven't messed with a colt much, so some of these other guys can probably help you a little more.
