1911-2011: When is the Colt Government's "100th. birthday"?

[Cap'n Redneck]

Hi to "the Bunch",

On the slide of the Colt there's a patent date of "Feb. 14. 1911" , and in the book of Colt Firearms by Sutherland/Wilson it is mentioned that the Army Small arms Board made public it's report on the Colt 1911 and the Savage Pistol on "March 29. 1911".

My question is: when was the Colt M1911 officially adopted as the "Government Model" by the U.S. Army?

[SGT John Chapman]

***!! THANKYOU !!*** To The M1911/M1911A1 For Your Service!! You have served your country well!!


I always thought they adopted the M1905, which while still in the Military's hands, was developed over a period of years, into the M1911/M1911A1.

[St. George]

Though preceded by earlier Models - the one that seems to concern everyone is the Model 1911.

It was officially adopted on 29 March 1911 and the initial order was for 30,262 pistols, with spare parts and screwdrivers to be shipped to Springfield Armory, Massachusetts.

Scouts Out!

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[Shotgun Franklin]

Yep, and Savage lost the bid because they couldn't supply the guns, parts or screwdrivers in the required numbers.

[St. George]

No - Savage lost because their weapons weren't deemed reliable - and for no other reason.

From 'Ordnance Office File 13092/un-numbered.  RG 156. NA' - based upon input from the School of Musketry, Presidio of Monterey, California, on 23 October 1910.

"It is therefore recommended that the Savage automatic pistol, primarily on account of the uncertainty of its functioning properly, be not adopted for use in the military service of the United States".

Vaya,

Scouts Out!

[Pancho Peacemaker]

Colt has two 100 Anniversary models available for order:

This one would make a very nice WB pistol.  It looks very similar to the Carbonia Blue model they sold a few years ago:




This one has a little more flash and embelishement on it:

They are taking orders for these now and will only sell them through next November.

[SGT John Chapman]

How many thousand dollar bills is the Plain Jane version?

[Pancho Peacemaker]

How many thousand dollar bills is the Plain Jane version?

The plain military model MSRP is $1150.  The production run will only be limited to the date of orders.  All orders will be filled between now and Nov 31, 2011.  That makes this a little less collectible and a little more desirable as a shooter.

The fancy model MSRP is $2295.  It's limited to 750 pieces.  I really don't like gold-embellished guns, but I've heard the royal blue on these is quite remarkable.

[Hedley Lamarr]

The cheaper Colt Anniv model is exactly the same as the 1918 "Black Army" version they recently stopped making.
The only difference is the slide roll marking & the packaging.
The expensive one is the same gun with the gold & royal blue.

And yes; the base gun is a perfect Wild Bunch gun.

[Fiddler Green]

There is one thing missing from this thread: John Moses Browning.

The man that designed the 1911 and so many other great guns that they can't all be listed here.

Bruce

[Border Ruffian]

I can't wait for the old war horse's 100th birthday.  For half of my of my 27 year career in the Army, the M1911A1 was the sidearm.  Here is a picture of my grandfathers' M1911 he carried in the trenches.  The story is on my gun blog.

[Pancho Peacemaker]

I can't wait for the old war horse's 100th birthday.  For half of my of my 27 year career in the Army, the M1911A1 was the sidearm.  Here is a picture of my grandfathers' M1911 he carried in the trenches.  The story is on my gun blog.

Border Ruffian,

Great blog!  I really enjoy your writing.

You are very fortunate to have your Grandpa's 1911 with such a rich history.  The places that pistol saw will never be again.  Make sure you have that pistol passed on to an heir that will care for it and maintain it's provenance in the family.

[Border Ruffian]

Thank you for the kind words.  After I'm gone the M1911 will have a great caretaker.  Come visit the blog anytime!