Colt 1911 frame " reserved for receivers " ?
I have a colt 1911 ser # 210,xxx with mixed parts. According to Clawsons book this serial # block was designated reserved for receivers . What does tis mean and whan were they used. Any info would help . thanks , Mike
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Swides,
Your question doesn't make much sense as the receiver is the part that carries the full serial number on the early Colt.
Please reference the page number in Clawsons ".45 SERVICE PISTOLS 1911 AND 1911A1 and I will check my copy tomorrow to see what you are talking about.
Men have passed on...knowledge...yet in politcs, statecraft, and social relationships we continue to repeat old mistakes.
It is a thing I must remember, that men must always remember, that civilization is a flimsy cloak, and just outside are hunger, thirst, and cold.....waiting. L'Amour0 -
Page #144 of the collectors guide. Thanks ,Mike 0 -
quote:Originally posted by SWIDES
Page #144 of the collectors guide. Thanks ,Mike
Sorry, I only have the big book. I will look up your serno though.
Best
Men have passed on...knowledge...yet in politcs, statecraft, and social relationships we continue to repeat old mistakes.
It is a thing I must remember, that men must always remember, that civilization is a flimsy cloak, and just outside are hunger, thirst, and cold.....waiting. L'Amour0 -
My guess would be that "Reserved for receivers" would mean a block of serial #s reserved for frames (only), sold to the military as replacements/spares. 0 -
I agree , but when were they used ? This one has a Ithaca slide and a high standard barrel. thanks ,Mike 0 -
CAN ANYONE HELP ? 0 -
Sounds interesting. I ran a Division Ordnance Small Arms Repair shop and never heard of or had spare receivers for any arm up to the 105 recoilless rifles. We had most all other parts though.
Arms we classified unserviceable ( except for BARs) went to Depot Ordnance where they may have had spare parts receivers.0 -
"......but when were they used?"
Who knows? Serial #s 210387 to 215386 were made by Colt in 1917 and listed as "Reserved for receivers".
I would assume that they were used in WWI, but some could have been put into storage and used in WWII. I doubt if they were still around for Korea or Vietnam.....but?????0 -
The frame has a AA rebuild mark on it. Is it correct for every part to be green /grey parkerized ? thanks ,Mike 0 -
The earliest Colt contract called for them to make extra guns without serial numbers which were held in reserve just in case a gun failed inspection by the Ordinance Dept. (At that time, they were worried about keeping guns in consecutive order.) If a gun failed inspection, Colt could take an unnumbered guns & stamp it with the same # as the one that failed. (For these guns, the # was struck THROUGH the blue finish.)
Since your gun was made shortly after that period, I would guess that Colt was assigned this block to hold for replacement receivers only, just in case they were needed. It was cheaper than making complete guns, & the War Dept was no longer obsessed with keeping serial #'s consecutive. There's no documentation that shows that these are "parts" guns, or if Colt was allowed to use these numbers later to make complete guns.
Starting soon after WWI, continuing until the 1950's, Augusta Arsenal rebuilt hundreds of thousands of .45's. They could have any combination of new & used parts, but many were completely reparkerized a gray color. After 50-80 years exposure to grease & oil, many are now a greenish gray.
Neal0 -
I have been going over your number for a couple of days and what everyone has told you jibes with my info.
Whether these were released by Colt to the Government in 1917 or kept at Hartford I have not been able to determine.
While it probably doesn't matter too much, a factory letter from Colt would clear it up.
Since you didn't publish your serial number, I couldn't run it through online Springfield Research. You can though and if they have a record of it, you will at least be able to pin down when it went in for overhaul.
Good luck
Men have passed on...knowledge...yet in politcs, statecraft, and social relationships we continue to repeat old mistakes.
It is a thing I must remember, that men must always remember, that civilization is a flimsy cloak, and just outside are hunger, thirst, and cold.....waiting. L'Amour0 -
"The frame has a AA rebuild mark on it. Is it correct for every part to be green /grey parkerized?"
Yes, it's perfectly correct.
After WWI, many thousands of M1911s were put into storage. In the hectic early days of WWII, many these guns were taken out of storage. Some were issued "as is". Some were partially refurbished, and some were brought up to M1911A1 specs....including parkerizing.
The mix & match frame/slide/barrel could've been done at the arsenal, or later, "out in the field".....or even later, in civilian life, by some "Bubba" making up a "parts gun".
No real way of telling.0
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