Remington 1911A1

[geopop71]

Rem. 1911A1

That is a keeper for sure. Very nice all around condition. Slide and frame seem to be of the same quality and finish. As far as the barrel goes, I have an all Colt 45 dated 1943, it has been to Rock Island Arsenal for a rebuild after the war and it has the initials of the inspecter of that arsenal I believe untill 1947. His initials are there as well as GHD near the trigger. Mine also has a High Standard barrel and looks worn enough to have been the rebuild barrel at the time. The left side has some pit wannabes that match the entire side of the gun. The pits are only blemishes not able to feel them. Very dependable, no jambs at all. One like yours is hard to find these days. geopop

[geopop71]

Rem. 1911A1

Here is a scan of my Colt

[Frank De Smedt]

Kris,

I've seen this one before

Regards,

FRANK

[Josh Beckett]

Very nice pistol, is it live shooter or deactivated?

[Ronnie Fry]

Excellent example Kris!!
The 1911 Colt Auto is one of my all time favorites!! This is one you should not be shooting much, but keeping in your safe.
By the way, since I see you are from Belgium, what is the meaning of the Belgian proofs. Do they proof the pistols like the English?? How would this .45 have gotten these marks??

r

[Kris]

Hi guys,

Thanks for the nice comments! I really did a good job it seems

To answer to your questions :

- it has Belgian proofs to be alligned with the law here i guess. I can't see no other obvious reason. When it was done i can't say ?
- It's live, not deactivated
- Gary: the slide release is/seems indeed blued. No idea if it should be different. The reference book i checked doens't make this difference.

Where the WW2 dated pistols used in the Korean and Vietnam conflict and after that or where they phased out and replaced by new examples ?

Thanks for the additional info and pics all !

[U-96]

Very nice gun and lucky for you it's a live one. hope you got a permit

[Kris]

Very nice gun and lucky for you it's a live one. hope you got a permit

Don't worry

[geopop71]

Rem 45

Kris:
The colt 45 was used in the Korean war, I carried one during that period in the artillary. I also know they were used in Nam, I believe the Berreta came shortly after, a huge mistake in my opinion!! Nothing beats the knockdown of a 45! 9mm's have the reputation of going right through a body without much damage. The 45 auto is very easy to take apart and exchange parts, and is Very rugged. I guess the same people who were responsible for adopting the Berreta, are the same ones that adopted the horrible M16!
geopop
PS. I beleive my Colt was re-issued for the Korean conflict after rehab at Rock Island Arsenal.

[U-96]

Kris:
The colt 45 was used in the Korean war, I carried one during that period in the artillary. I also know they were used in Nam, I believe the Berreta came shortly after, a huge mistake in my opinion!! Nothing beats the knockdown of a 45! 9mm's have the reputation of going right through a body without much damage. The 45 auto is very easy to take apart and exchange parts, and is Very rugged. I guess the same people who were responsible for adopting the Berreta, are the same ones that adopted the horrible M16!
geopop
PS. I beleive my Colt was re-issued for the Korean conflict after rehab at Rock Island Arsenal.

But IMO the 1911 .45 gives more technical problems than a 9mm no? In my gunclub I heard different members who had to tune their .45 before it worked properly,including me. That's why I sold mine. My 9mm has never let me down so far...

[Johnnie]

It is my understanding that except for perhaps small ammounts to fufill contracts, all 1911 series pistols were made prior to the end of the Second World War. These same pistols were rebuilt over and over in depots as necessary, and were used in Korea, Vietnam, and untill the adoption of the Beretta. Even then it was found in National Guard and Reserve units for a considerable ammount of time.
That it why it is very rare to find a 1911A1, especially, in factory original condidtion.
I also recall reading that one of FNs first immediate post war contracts was refurbishing US small arms in Europe.
As far aas the slide stop being blued, there could be a number of reasons. Blued parts were factory installed as long as they were in stock. It could also be a replaced commercial stop.
In 2003 in Kosovo, I saw Greek reservists stationed there with mint refurbished 1911A1s although who did the work I dont't know, or they could actually have been originals never before issued. The US gave tremendous ammounts of WW2 small arms to allies post war.

Johnnie

Hi guys,

Thanks for the nice comments! I really did a good job it seems

To answer to your questions :

- it has Belgian proofs to be alligned with the law here i guess. I can't see no other obvious reason. When it was done i can't say ?
- It's live, not deactivated
- Gary: the slide release is/seems indeed blued. No idea if it should be different. The reference book i checked doens't make this difference.

Where the WW2 dated pistols used in the Korean and Vietnam conflict and after that or where they phased out and replaced by new examples ?

Thanks for the additional info and pics all !

[geopop71]

Govt 45

The govt 45 usually needs some tuning and tightening up to make it an accurate shooter. However, for man sized targets, I don't think there is a problem. Mine does quite well at 15 yds, being able to keep em in a five inch bull. That with clamping the gun tightly in my hands and sitting down!!
I have a mark "something" Colt 45, with a muzzle brake and a clark barrel, adjustable sights and reloads, 3 inch shoot n see targets 7 shots all touching,
also at 15 yds. It is much tighter than the military one, it doesn't rattle when you shake it. As far as quality, no where near the Berreta, but from a military stand point, the 45 has earned it's reputation.
geopop

[Kris]

Thanks for the info's guys.
So it's indeed almost inpossible to know what happened to a 1911 in it's lifetime !

[Andy Harris]

Beautiful 1911a1, Kris!

The US Military did not replace the .45s until the 1980's. I joined the US Marine Corps in 1985, and my unit didn't get Berettas until 1987. Personally, I preferred the .45.

[geopop71]

Rem. 45

Kris:
Govt 45's from the war suffered the same fate as the M1 Garand, Carbine,
and other's. We did not serial every loose part on our weapons, (silly stuff and a waste of manpower) only lot numbers were used, and every single Garand or Carbine and the likes, were refurbished after the war. As long as the parts were able to be mixed with all the other MFG's, and not such close tollerances
so if it got muddied up or some thing, it would still function. I own a beautiful all matching K98, this rifle is just too pretty to even take hunting let alone drag it through the dirt and mud of combat!! Most early K98's had all the parts w/ matching numbers, including the screws on the trigger guard. I read that the earliest K98's had the bayonet and scabbard matching the rifle!!!
I can only guess that the German armament people figgured after the war
the K98 would be very collectable, but only if the numbers match. I for one am glad they did, other wise I would just have a real nice K98 instead of an all matcher. geopop