1911a1 .45
My wife was going through some stuff at her great grandmothers house and found a US Army M1911a1 .45 made by Ithaca Gun Co. Inc. No. 861663. From what I have found it seems to have been made in 1943. The slide does match and all the inspection stamps match so it is an original. My wife's Great Grandfather was in WWII. How do I find out if the weapon was and does anyone know what its worth. I found one thing that said around 4500.00. Thanks ahead of time for your help.
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Well, since Ithaca made 1911A1s ONLY during WW II, you may rest assured that it was used then. But there is no central registry of who was issued what rifle or pistol in the Army. While you can assume that Great Grandpa pilfered his service pistol, he might have bought it surplus any time later. There is no way to know for sure.
People are claiming some wild prices for USGI guns but $4500 is way high.0 -
Hello sorry to say but the first Ithaca 1911A1 was serial #1208674 so your pistol is Not all ORIGINAL as shipped. During WWII blocks of numbers were allotted to different company's your serial number shows it is a Colt frame and would either have been inspected by Lt.Col Guy H. DREWRY G.H.D or Col. Waldemar Broberg W.B. if it was an Ithaca frame then it would have been inspected by Lt.Col. F.J.Atwood FJA. Many times these WW II pistols were cleaned in an arms rooms with no desire to keep all the parts of each pistol together on top of that many were rebuild many times and they took two pistols with different worn parts and making one good one . Whatdoes this mean to you is you may very well have a GOOD shooter quality 1911A! but collector value is gone. [:(] but don't feel too bad the person that stated it was worth $4500.00 was Blowing smoke tell him Grandma needs money and will sell it to him $2000.00 cash see how quick he finds somewhere to hide.
EDITVERYinteresting Let me do some more detailed research . I know Ithaca like most others had some start-up Quality problems. And made some parts first then complete pistols . as of Right now it does look like Atwood did inspect whicvh is good news . I will get back to you later Be aware each post is only allowed 10 replies before it is locked and your pictures have used up some spots . If this topic gets locked just start a new one named Ithaca 1911A1 take 2.
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][:D][:D]just found the information you want to hear Ithaca was given serial 856405-916404 colt also made pistols with frame serial #856101-958100 so it looks like your pistol is correct also it does look like original finish [^]might be worth around That $2000.00 mark[:)]0 -
This original Colt was made a few months after your (frame), so if you compare you will likely see that yours has been arsenal refinished.
But, in any case, a mixed parts gun is probably worth in the $800-1,000 range.
Neal
EDIT: Yes, the guys are correct; it does look original. Of course, we need to see ALL the parts, especially the barrel markings that can only be see when you remove it. It looks like your gun may have 95-98% finish, & would sell in the $1,200-1,400 range.0 -
Perry it does have the FJA above the trigger and underneath the slide catch. Since I am foreign to the 1911 A1 does that make it an Ithaca and Ive read on several websites that Ithaca helped Colt in the early efforts and their Serial #'s started with 8. Only after Colt started did they move to the 1 series. Neal how do I know if it has been arsenal refinished. Thanks guys for all your help so far. 0 -
how do I post a picture of this gun for you guys to see? 0 -
quote:Ive read on several websites that Ithaca helped Colt in the early efforts
Quite the other way around, Colt had been making the gun since 1911 and Ithaca was a WW II -only contractor, after all.
The SN chart on coolgunsite.com shows Ithaca production starting at No 856405. Colt duplicated serial numbers in that range but Frank J. Atwood (FJA stamp) was the chief inspector for Ithaca while a Colt would be marked GHD for Guy H. Drewry. So I think you have a straight early Ithaca.
The first run of Ithacas were in Du-Lite blue over sandblast, color would be a dull black. An arsenal rework would be Parkerized and would carry a small faint stamp on the left side of the receiver for the shop, like the AA on mine for Augusta Arsenal, also RIA and SA.0 -
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yeah Hawk I had it mixed up. 0 -
quote:Originally posted by Warmother51
Looks original to me, down to the proper stamps.0
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