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Identifying your M-1911Who made it?by Robert Gibson ([email protected]).Several have posted over last couple of months asking how to ID theM1911A1 Govt 45 Auto, as in 'I've got one, who made the darn thing?' Good question since the frame usually just says 'GOVERNMENT MODEL' or'UNITED STATES PROPERTY M 1911 A1 U.S.ARMY'.or some such.I'm certainly no Govt 45 expert but I dug up some info, maybe it willhelp.but first a bit of history.World War I production: Four (4) manufacturers made M1911 pistols thatactually saw use during the war years:. Colt. Remington-UMC. Springfield Armory (U.S.
Government owned & operated). North American Arms Co. Of Quebec (just a VERY FEW)Seven (7) manufacturers were tooling up to produce M1911 pistols butthe Armistice stopped it all and program was cancelled:.
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National Cash Register Co. Savage Arms Co. Caron Bros. Of Montreal. Burroughs Adding Machine Co.
Winchester Repeating Arms Co. Lanston Monotype Co. Savage Munitions Co.World War II production: five (5) manufacturers made the M1911A1pistol:. Colt. Ithaca.
Remington-Rand. Union Switch & Signal. Singer Sewing Machine Co. Download camera 360 untuk hp nokia asha 501. 500)The problem with ID'ing M1911A1's is that parts are totallyinterchange- able, and during the lives of many examples their slideswere many times switched or replaced.
Since the slide is the only partactually marked with the manufacturer's name, you can see the problemthat arises.The following taken from an article by Charles W. Sony vaio model pcg 7d1m tv. Karwan in the 3/1/95issue of Classic Firearms will shed some light.' All is not lost, however. The guns themselves can help you revealwhich company made the pistol's frame.
First, if you encounter anM1911A1 - identified by the finger cutouts and/or the M1911A1markings on the frame - and it has a slide made by Remington-UMC,Springfield or Savage, you know the slide is not original to thegun since the first two manufacturers only made M1911 pistolsduring WWI, and the latter only made M1911 slides.The slide is also not original if it has a drawing number on theside, usually 7790314. These are replacement slides made long afterWWII by Colt and SanColMar. The same is true if the slide is markedDrake - the company that built National Match slides for thegovernment.Looking at the pistol's frame, here are some rules to help youidentify its maker:1. The presence of VP proofmark in a triangle at the left front ofthe triggerguard; a GHD inspector marking or an M1911A1 markingwith- out any spaces between the figures indicates an M1911A1manufactured by Colt.2. A serial number preceded by an 'S' indicates an M1911A1 manufact-ured by Singer (not many of these around - an understatement)3. A serial number preceded by a 'NO' instead of a 'No' indicatesmanufacture by Remington-Rand.4. An RCD inspector mark or double spacing between the M and 1911A1indicates manufacture by Union Switch and Signal.5.
A geometric-shape proofmark, like a triangle, arrowhead or such,on the front left of triggerguard indicates an M1911A1 made byIthaca.6. An 'X' prefix to the serial number indicates a gun that has beenre-serial numbered by ordnance, and the maker is neitheridentifiable or relevant.These rules will not allow you to identify every single frame youen- counter, but the will suffice for 99 percent of them.' BTW, when M1911A1 pistols were rebuilt a military facility they wererebuilt without any regard to the maker of the frame, slide or otherparts.mix 'n match, first in - last out, whatever was expedient toget the pistol in and out was the rule of thumb. Any such rebuildswill normally be stamped with a code indicating the facility that didthe work.
M1911a1 Serial Number
It might be any of the following (and there may have beenothers not shown):AAA - Anniston Army Depot AA - Augusta ArsenalOG - Ogden Arsenal MR - Mt. Rainier Ordnance DepotRA - Raritan Arsenal RR - Red River ArsenalRIA - Rock Island Arsenal SAA - San Antonio ArsenalSA - Springfield Armory BA - Benecia ArsenalAnyway, hope some of this is of help to someone out there.Robert GibsonThe above was found at.
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