Colt Delta H-Bar
I have a Colt Delta H-bar as new with all Colt logo mount,cheek piece, leather sling, 2 twenty rd mags, aluminum case, tasco rubber armored 3x9 scope. How do I tell if this is a pre ban gun and if it is "blue label" or "green label" and what does the label discription mean? the gun has a flash supreesor but no bayonet lug. what is the approxamate value? Gun has seen maybe 200 rds since I purchased it new in 89 or 90. [?][
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parkershtr31-
The ban which would apply to your Delta would have been the Assault Weapons Ban, enacted on September 13, 1994 ... so being a complete weapon and purchased prior to that date would make it pre-ban.
Many people are confused by all the assorted bans ... the other major ban was an Executive Order issued by our first President Bush in May of 1989 (I forget the exact date) ... which applied to Assault Weapon imports such as AK's, HK's, Steyr's, SIG's ... not domestic firearms ... Colt kind of aided the confusion by prematurely starting the neutering process on domestic weapons in 89 by removing the bayo lugs from their AR's.
To verify yours is a pre-ban you can check your serial number here: www.gun-info.com/ar15_serials.asp
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Chance favors the prepared mind [8D]
kimberkid@gunbroker.zzn.com0 -
While KK's knowledge of these matters is vast, and mine is only half-vast, I think the "ban" that created this "bayonet-lugless" Delta was the horrible Bush41 1989 import ban that KK describes as being aided by Colt in one of the dumbest moves ever. (I assume Colt was looking for political points to curry favor for future government contracts.) After the 1989 ban, Colt removed the evil bayonet lug and then eventually added a receiver block (beginning in about 1992 as I recall) to prevent the installation of drop-in auto-sears and finally increased the pin size of the fire control parts to prevent the use of M16 parts. (Like no one could ream out the M16 parts and use them with the larger pins! Removing the block would be much harder.) The September 13, 1994 ban did not have much effect on Colt rifles because Colt had already pretty much "neutered" them as KK said. If Colt would have used a fake flash suppressor on the post-ban guns, they would look exactly the same as the pre-ban guns.
The Deltas were said to have been specially selected for accuracy. The accessories and packaging made a premium package that I think still has a lot of collector value, as well as practical value. The scope was cheap, but worked fine under non-combat conditions. The A.R.M.S. mount was the real thing and could be used with a better scope.
The little round stick-on "Delta" labels for the handgrip have lost their "stickum" on mine had have fallen off, and I have lost one. Anyone body have any for sale?0 -
Oh PLEASE JudgeColt, ... half-vast?
I haven't seen you around much, where have you been keeping yourself?
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Chance favors the prepared mind
kimberkid@gunbroker.zzn.com0 -
Thanks for the info you cleared up a lot, however, How do I know if it is a green label gun or does it really matter? 0 -
Also there is another way to check if it is a pr-ban open the gun up meaning seperate the upper from the lower and look to the back of the lower reciever and if it has a block in it then it is a post ban if there is no block in it then it is a pre ban.
DO RIGHT GUNSMITH, INC.0 -
ranger37 is totally incorrect in the last post regarding the receiver block as being indicitive of pre-ban or post-ban status. As I said in my first post, Colt began installing the block in about 1992. The "assault weapons" ban became effective September 13, 1994. It is therefore entirely possible to have a pre-ban rifle with the block. I have handled many over the years. 0 -
parkershtr31 -
The Judge is totally correct about the block ...
I'm not really up to speed on the Blue/Green label thing ... I do know that at one time it indicated something about what variation model the cardboard box contained ... "ie" if it was a Blue label it was a Government model, Green Label it was a civilian model ... or something like that ... being yours was a Delta, it had neither a Blue or Green lable as it didn't come in a cardboard box ...
I think that's how it was ... If I'm wrong I'm sure our half-vast friend will straighten me out [^]
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Chance favors the prepared mind
kimberkid@gunbroker.zzn.com0 -
Half-Vast Friend checking in!
This box-label-color thing comes up a lot. The following site:
http://www.biggerhammer.net/ar15/coltcolors.html
has information about the box label colors that seems to agree with my experience. (Note that site mentions the block as beginning in 1992.)
I disagree about the Deltas having no boxes. They came in an outer shipping carton covering the aluminum case, but, without getting mine out of the attic, I could not tell you if there is a colored label on the box or not. If there is, then parkershtr31's rilfe should have a blue label.0 -
Green label guns are without a doubt preban guns. Blue label gun can be both. The serial number is really what counts.
Boomer
"Success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has reached in life as it is by the obstacles which one has overcome while trying to succeed."NRA Life Member0 -
Judge -
It didn't even occour to me the aluminum case would be shipped in a box ... duh! I must be brain dead! [xx(]
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Chance favors the prepared mind
kimberkid@gunbroker.zzn.com0
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