View Full Version : Old Warhorse.....
I made the mistake of stopping by the shop I used to work at to say hello to the guys there.
I make it a point to always look through the used section, as you'll never know what you'll find there.
Well....I found something.
:help:
Colt M1917 New Service, .45 ACP.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v613/Tim_Orrock/Colt%20M1917%20New%20Service/Resized/P1040884.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v613/Tim_Orrock/Colt%20M1917%20New%20Service/Resized/P1040885.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v613/Tim_Orrock/Colt%20M1917%20New%20Service/Resized/P1040895.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v613/Tim_Orrock/Colt%20M1917%20New%20Service/Resized/P1040886.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v613/Tim_Orrock/Colt%20M1917%20New%20Service/Resized/P1040893.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v613/Tim_Orrock/Colt%20M1917%20New%20Service/Resized/P1040892.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v613/Tim_Orrock/Colt%20M1917%20New%20Service/Resized/P1040888.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v613/Tim_Orrock/Colt%20M1917%20New%20Service/Resized/P1040887-1.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v613/Tim_Orrock/Colt%20M1917%20New%20Service/Resized/P1040889.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v613/Tim_Orrock/Colt%20M1917%20New%20Service/Resized/P1040890.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v613/Tim_Orrock/Colt%20M1917%20New%20Service/Resized/P1040896.jpg
John_Wayne777
09-22-10, 16:08
I guess I'm just lucky that most of the gunshops around me suck...otherwise I'd be eating Alpo. Nice find.
Wow is that a great find. Very nice.
Moose-Knuckle
09-22-10, 16:17
Nice score, you don't see those everyday. :cool:
HawaiianBob
09-22-10, 16:17
I'm not a big revolver fan but that is cool.
RogerinTPA
09-22-10, 16:21
Definitely a collectible....nice score!:cool:
Wow - extremely nice find - bet you still got a smile on your face from this one!
isn't that Dr. Jones' gun? :D
isn't that Dr. Jones' gun? :D
Unfortunately not.....he was using a cut down Smith & Wesson M1917...
Stenbridge Gun Rental auction of Indy's blaster. (http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid43093113001?bctid=1755342325)
SeriousStudent
09-22-10, 19:41
Oh please, oh please tell me that is sitting in your safe now.
Very nice! :)
I always wanted the Smith & Wesson version, and wish I had the money to get one of the new ones they made recently.
Judging from the pic it looks like maybe the crown could use touching up.
That is a nice Colt version though. :D
Serious, it's sitting in layaway.....the next best thing....
DTHN2LGS, I had one of the S&W re-issue M1917's, and I've got to tell you.....you're better off saving your money and finding an original.....seriously.
I had some guys on the Colt forum do some digging and it turns out that this gun was in a shipment that was delivered to the Army in the first week of May 1918. So, it very well might have seen something of "Over There".
It escaped being rebuilt for WWII though. All the WWII reissued M1917's got overhauled at arsenals and given plastic grips and refinished in pakerizing/phosphate.
One serious issue with this thing is raising it's ugly head though......:angry:
I now have an almost uncontrollable urge to find a Winchester M1897 Trench Gun. :suicide:
Beautiful find! I love old military revolvers.
If only it could talk. Good find.:cool:
Looks like a good hundred dollar gun to me...:D
Don't you just love layaways. Right now I have 3 on layaway and if things work out right tomorrow, I'll get one off and put a nice German SIG on.
I always wondered about the "Property of the US Government" stamping...can they come take it back??
Nice find!
.
If only it could talk. Good find.:cool:
The Argonne (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bOAafgJxCZ0&feature)
SmokeJumper
09-22-10, 21:39
Sweet find, I bet it'd share a few war stories if it could talk.
Not to derail but have you ever seen the series The First World War? Great. The book it was based on, The First World War by Hew Strachan is excellent. Thanks for the link. I find WWI just as interesting as WWII.
SeriousStudent
09-22-10, 21:43
Serious, it's sitting in layaway.....the next best thing....
........
One serious issue with this thing is raising it's ugly head though......:angry:
I now have an almost uncontrollable urge to find a Winchester M1897 Trench Gun. :suicide:
Very good news about the layaway.
Next is the trench gun. The the bayonet for the trench gun. Then an original sling. Then a holster for the pistol. Then a cartridge belt......
Tis' a slippery slope. But an ever so fun one. :)
That is very cool. Thanks for sharing the pics.
GermanSynergy
09-22-10, 23:32
I guess I'm just lucky that most of the gunshops around me suck...otherwise I'd be eating Alpo. Nice find.
You & me both LOL. Super sweet piece you got there, Templar.
DTHN2LGS, I had one of the S&W re-issue M1917's, and I've got to tell you.....you're better off saving your money and finding an original.....seriously.
Good to know, thanks.
I actually do want an original, but thought the new one would be as well built. Apparently I'm wrong.
Good to know, thanks.
I actually do want an original, but thought the new one would be as well built. Apparently I'm wrong.
The glory days of S&W revolvers are behind them sadly... S&W makes nice stuff, but they aren't even close to what once was coming out their doors.
Mike
I worked in a gun store many moons ago myself and I passed the oppurtunity up to buy one of these pistols...I have always regretted it.
Funny you should post this. I know where one is for sale and it's just been sitting there for a couple months. Are these a sought after gun by collectors?
D. Christopher
09-24-10, 00:13
Well done again Templar. I'm glad that old veteran found a good home where it will be loved and respected.
Nice find! That's in beautiful condition too.
One of my friends has one, complete with an original WWI-vintage holster and belt. According to him, his great-grandfather carried it in the Great War, then gave it to his grandfather to carry in WWII. It's not in quite as nice a condition as yours, but it still shoots just fine.
I've always wanted one of the 1917 Smiths, since I really prefer the S&W cylinder latch over the Colt, but either one is a beautiful relic of a long-gone time.
HassanChop!
09-24-10, 00:38
That is a GREAT piece of iron!!!!!! Sweet find!
Funny you should post this. I know where one is for sale and it's just been sitting there for a couple months. Are these a sought after gun by collectors?
Really all depends on what people collect.
I'm a shooter, who really digs military surplus firearms that have a history and story behind them, that I can still shoot and enjoy.
If you're interested in that New Service that's been sitting there, I'd highly suggest taking some time to peruse the Colt forum and educate yourself a bit on the revolver first.....
http://coltforum.com/forums/index.php
The 100th anniversary or the Great War is coming up in 4 years, our direct involvement started in 1917, and that's not too far away.
Here's an old ad that a dealer in NYC had up in the late 20's or 30's for surplus Colt New Service M1917's.....
Although, since they're advertising checkered walnut grips and the ad is showing a gun without a lanyard loop, could very well be guns that Colt had in inventory that were made for the war and never delivered after Uncle Sugar cancelled the procurement.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v613/Tim_Orrock/Colt%20M1917%20New%20Service/ColtM1917Surplus.jpg
Alpha Sierra
09-24-10, 06:42
Oh what I would give for a time machine and a roll of Jacksons in my pocket......:D
So, I decided that I should probably take a serious look at this thing before I took it out to the range...
I took the grips off, and there was literally, no shit, about 3mm of 90 year old cosmoline or grease caked to the inside of the grip panels, and on the leaf spring.
I took the side plate off and removed the cylinder as well.
All I'm going to say is that environmentally friendly "green" gun cleaning products won't do shit to this stuff, but Shooter's Choice Bore Solvent works great.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v613/Tim_Orrock/Colt%20M1917%20New%20Service/Resized/P1040897.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v613/Tim_Orrock/Colt%20M1917%20New%20Service/Resized/P1040898.jpg
Went through a lot of q-tips. I'm not going to attempt to take the internals out until I get a hold of a shop manual, but I was able to clean up the great majority of the cosmoline.
Cleaned the bore and chambers as well, they were actually pretty clean already.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v613/Tim_Orrock/Colt%20M1917%20New%20Service/Resized/P1040905-1.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v613/Tim_Orrock/Colt%20M1917%20New%20Service/Resized/P1040900-1.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v613/Tim_Orrock/Colt%20M1917%20New%20Service/Resized/P1040901-1.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v613/Tim_Orrock/Colt%20M1917%20New%20Service/Resized/P1040906.jpg
Beat Trash
10-03-10, 00:52
One serious issue with this thing is raising it's ugly head though......:angry:
I now have an almost uncontrollable urge to find a Winchester M1897 Trench Gun. :suicide:
Go for it...
Templar, that's probably not cosmoline or grease inside your gun. That's what oil looks like after a gun hasn't been disassembled and cleaned for 50+ years.
I saw that all the time when people would bring in "Grandpa's gun" to be checked and cleaned when I worked as a gunsmith. I would have submerged the partially disassembled gun (just like in your pics) in a pan of cleaning solvent (parts washer type solvent) and left it in there overnight before I finished disassembling and cleaning it.
Once you get all that hardened oil out, the gun should feel a lot better when you work the action.
Templar, that's probably not cosmoline or grease inside your gun. That's what oil looks like after a gun hasn't been disassembled and cleaned for 50+ years.
I saw that all the time when people would bring in "Grandpa's gun" to be checked and cleaned when I worked as a gunsmith. I would have submerged the partially disassembled gun (just like in your pics) in a pan of cleaning solvent (parts washer type solvent) and left it in there overnight before I finished disassembling and cleaning it.
Once you get all that hardened oil out, the gun should feel a lot better when you work the action.
Well, whatever it was it's nasty and the action did slick up quite a bit after cleaning....:D
I had someone asking me about how this revolver would fire a rimless .45 ACP round....so I took some more pictures.
Here are some pics of both the original USGI half moon clips and current production full moon clips.
I actually prefer the half moon clips, they're easy to throw in a pocket and lay much flatter.
The first 50,000 Colt M1917 New Service revolvers did not have chambers that would headspace on the case mouth, which prevented a soldier from using loose .45 ACP rounds in a pinch. That got changed very quickly and most were modified. This particular revolver was made after Colt started cutting the chambers to headspace on loose .45 ACP.
Without half moon or full moon clips, there is nothing for the extractor star to grab a hold of, so if you did shoot loose .45 ACP rounds, you'd have to poke or pick the spent cases out by hand.
With the half moon or full moon clips, the spent cases and clips are ejected as a single unit and reloading is quite fast.
Chambers cut to headspace on the case mouth of .45 ACP.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v613/Tim_Orrock/Colt%20M1917%20New%20Service/Resized/P1040907.jpg
Current full moon and original USGI half moon clips.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v613/Tim_Orrock/Colt%20M1917%20New%20Service/Resized/P1040916.jpg
Two half moon clips loaded into the New Service.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v613/Tim_Orrock/Colt%20M1917%20New%20Service/Resized/P1040910.jpg
In these pictures, you can see a half moon clip loaded as well as a single loose round of .45 ACP. The loose round headspaces just fine, you just can't extract and eject them without a clip.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v613/Tim_Orrock/Colt%20M1917%20New%20Service/Resized/P1040912.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v613/Tim_Orrock/Colt%20M1917%20New%20Service/Resized/P1040915.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v613/Tim_Orrock/Colt%20M1917%20New%20Service/Resized/P1040924.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v613/Tim_Orrock/Colt%20M1917%20New%20Service/Resized/P1040923.jpg
Cylinder closed, fully loaded with two half moon clips.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v613/Tim_Orrock/Colt%20M1917%20New%20Service/Resized/P1040920.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v613/Tim_Orrock/Colt%20M1917%20New%20Service/Resized/P1040922.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v613/Tim_Orrock/Colt%20M1917%20New%20Service/Resized/P1040918.jpg
That's a beautiful find. I'm jealous.
GermanSynergy
10-04-10, 17:45
It's threads like that that make me happy I no longer have a C&R FFL. I'd be totally broke! :D
Templar, I'm not sure if you already know about this product, but Pre-Lim will make that revolver look even better.
http://apps.webcreate.com/ecom/catalog/product_specific.cfm?ClientID=15&ProductID=17912
Way to cool Templar. Awesome find.
Thanks for sharing the find with those pics. Always love the old workhorses.
Finally took it out to the range on Sunday.
Thumps, but not uncomfortable or uncontrollable.
Shot damn well, even with the less than optimum sight picture. The double action is a bit of a challenge when shot with one hand, but in modified isosceles, no problem at all.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v613/Tim_Orrock/Colt%20M1917%20New%20Service/Resized/P1040966.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v613/Tim_Orrock/Colt%20M1917%20New%20Service/Resized/P1040965.jpg
GermanSynergy
11-02-10, 17:16
Finally scored some half moons, eh? :D
Beautiful pistol!
There's something about an old wheel gun thats just awesome. If you don't mind me asking, how much did she run you?
I always wondered about the "Property of the US Government" stamping...can they come take it back??
.
No - but not everyone knows that.
As I recently posted on another forum, an LEO acquaintance told me he thought I needed to "turn in" a Savage-made, Lee-Enfield No. 4 rifle that is marked "U.S. Property." (I did not follow his advice). He told me this while we were shooting a friendly pistol competition & were just "shooting the bull" about old surplus rifles.
Point is: not every officer knows every law. And they are human; they sometimes get it wrong.
I am just glad that I happened to tell this LEO about my gun at a time when the gun itself was safe at home.
I try not to draw attention to myself & I follow every law, of course.
Templar: that is a VERY nice find indeed! Thanks for the range report.
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