[Friar Tuck]

Has anybody seen or handled the Argentine 1911A1 Colts being advertised for $300? They were supposedly built on Colt machinery and all parts interchange. Cruffler.com has a positive write-up on them.

Anyhow, it seems that $300 for a quasi-genuine Colt .45 seems like a good deal.....or am I missing something?

 

[EIGHTYDUECE]

I was at my gunsmith's shop about 2 hours ago.

He had 3 of them he had ordered from CDNN for customers and showed all three to me.

Pros: Very good price for a GI spec period piece 45, other than the markings.

Cons: He showed me how the breechface area on the slide has indentions of the casings due to soft metal of the period. Also ony one looked good, the other two looked like they were very used (example--->dragged behind a car for a bit) and showed alot of pitting.

Remember they were built in an Argentine Colt factory (good) but the ones that you are seeing sold were rebuild by the local arsenals (sweatshop), not the colt factory with colt trained ppl.

I still want one but it is the luck of the draw if you get a real nice one.

P.S. one of the guns came with a broken sear and a broken mainspring.

Hope this helps

_________________
"Apeasing a dictator is like throwing an alligator everything you value in hopes he will eat you last"

Winston Churchill

<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: EIGHTYDUECE on 2001-08-01 21:00 ]</font>

 

[Jim Higginbotham]

I have known several people who have owned these over the years. In original condition they were really well machined and fitted. Of course I cannot say about a well used example.

As noted, they were sort of soft. My partners beat up the lugs in the barrel and slide in about 80,000 rounds and we replaced it with American G.I. stuff but it still continues to shoot.

I have a Colt contract gun (made in USA 1927) which is also nicely fitted but I sense that it too is a bit soft. I am just leaving it alone rather than modifying it.

The story is that the Ballister Mollina (sort of a cross between a Star and a Colt) is harder but I don't have any idea... perhaps the gunsmiths on the list can chime in on that one.

Cheers,
Jim Higginbotham

 

[Masshole]

The Sistema Colt I purchased through http://www.cruffler.com 2 months ago has been a great shooter.I plan on carrying it as my CCW.Just have to send it to the smith for a beavertail and new hammer to prevent the nasty bite she gives me when shooting her.I have to say that when it came in the mail I was shocked to see that it looked like a brand new pistol.

 

[Baer1911]

I bought a Sistema Colt about a year and a half ago. I’m no expert, but as far as I’m concerned, it’s every bit a Colt. I didn’t see any indications of a soft slide, but I replaced it anyhow to get rid of the worthless rear and thunbnail front sight. I also installed a Kart barrel. It’s a great shooter!

 

[imported_PaulB]

I have had a 1927 Model Argentine Colt for several years now. I have heard several different things about these pistols, some of which I believe, and some . . . ..

First Argentina made these pistols for a long time. They were made in a factory in Argentina to Colt's designs that were around in 1927, hence the Model number. The model number is not necessarily the year it was produced. There is at least one book on the 1911 that includes production information for pistols that were built under license. Unfortunatly I did not buy a copy the last time I looked at one; but my Argentine (S/N 98XXX) was delivered to the Argentine Navy in 1954. Production was done under Colt supervision in Argentina, and most of them were probably reconditioned at the arsenal at least once. So condition will vary.

Concerning if the slides are soft or not, this will probably depend on when a particular pistol was really made. Early versions probably do have soft slides. Though I have heard that most of the steel for these pistols came from Sweden, from the same company that provided the steel for the Carl Gustov Mausers. I have no proof of this, but at my local gunshop we weighed an Argentine and a Colt that were about the same vintage and the Argentine was about 3 oz heavier.

I have only had two problems with my pistol. the rear sight notch was so tiny I tried to replace it, and found the rear sight blade is larger than the replacement sights I can find, and I lost faith in the original barrel. I ultimatly replaced the sight blade by shimming a US blade in place and securing it with lock tight, and I replaced the barrel with a GI barrel.

Would I buy another one? Yes, but I would also pay the extra fee for the hand select if I was ordering, or only buy one that I can handle first. Otherwise, I think its hard to go wrong, provided you do not try to compare one of these to the top offerings from the any of the current production makers.

I hope this helps.
PaulB