The serial number on the frame indicates that it could be from either 1918 or 1919; it seems that some pistols were shipped out of serial order. I have also seen some lists that would put it definitely as 1918 while others attest to it being 1919. I suppose it's a coin flip that doesn't really matter much.
I don't have any M1911 pistols in my collection, only variants of the M1911A1. Wish I did, just to have one, but the examples I've come across over the years have been to pricey.
ReplyDeleteUnless it was something with an abysmal chrome finish, I never saw a bargain priced 1911 either. I paid more than I wanted for this one, thinking it would probably be a "last chance" for that vintage. Not that I have been shopping for another, so far this century I don't recall seeing one at any of our local stores.
ReplyDeleteI once had a 1911 whose S/N indicated it had been shipped to the Army in 1913. It was fun to think about where that gun had been, given the size of the army at the time (Mexico with Pershing? The Philippines? Meuse-Argonne?). And I liked the duck-bill hammer and the wider (it seemed to me) frame-mounted safety. But the hammer bit me and I didn't trust the metallurgy with modern ammo, so I no longer have it. If I'd waited a few decades to sell it, I'd be RICH! Oh, well. . . .
ReplyDeleteHey there Old 1811! Golly, it is great to hear from you again.
ReplyDeleteI've noticed that many slides on these pre A1 pistols looked a little soft; many slide stop notches are rounded and poorly redone; this one wasn't too bad. The Agentine 1927 A1 style pistol I have has a visible mark of being hardened in the area of the slide stop notch. Both this one and the Argentine bite the heck outta by hand; last range trip I got a nasty infection. The safety notch on this slide also looks soft and somehow got disfigured; it may have suffered a had drop.
Yeah, just as you said, the activity of the US Armed Forces between WW1 and WW2 may have put these old Colts in some exotic situations. It is like holding a handful of history.