Colt Gold Cup NM from Custom Shop question

[johnb_az]

Hi all,

I picked up this piece today at a gun show and am trying to find out its value and history. The Serial number is CGC00XX and below is a picture. The seller says it is new unfired and it looks it and stated it came from Colt's custom shop. The blue slide is mirror polished on the side and so is the stainless frame. It came with the grips, laser and swirl etching on trigger and barrel. Says Gold Cup National match on slide and on barrel it says Colt 45 Auto NM. The trigger breaks at 5lb 5oz per my Digital Lyman trigger pull machine and is very clean with no creep or overtravel. How is the acurracy of this piece? Is there a website with more info on this gun? I am not sure when it was made or anything else. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
John

http://members.cox.net/az411/images/colt_nm_gold_cup_custom_shop.jpg

[44 Man]

That's a fine looking weapon, but only YOU can tell us how it shoots! Every gun is an individual, but most Gold Cups shoot very well and come with excellent triggers. You should be proud. Enjoy. 44 Man

[Hunter]

I have a Colt Series 70 Gold Cup National Match Bi Tone (blued slide and nickle frame) from the custom shop that looks similar to yours. It would appear to me that the trigger has been jeweled and the grips changed. Also it looks like the box has been cut for the laser to fit. It is a very nice Colt that may have been changer a little. I could be wrong but I am not positive it is all original.

[John]

Nice gun! Shiny too! :p

[pogie45]

Good looking Gold Cup!!!...Keep us updated on how it shoots.

[Ericthenorse]

It looks to me like it is stainless and blue.... is this the case? I have never seen one that says "clasic Gold Cup" I would be interested in seeing a picture of the roll marks on the other side of the slide...

[johnb_az]

Yes it is stainless and blue, here are two picture from the other side. Serial number is erased out. I made a mistake about earlier number. It is CGC0XX

http://members.cox.net/az411/images/colt2.jpg

http://members.cox.net/az411/images/colt3.jpg

[Ericthenorse]

Man... that is cool... I would assume by the 3 digit number that it was probably a run limited to 500 or so.. That is definately a keeper... I am a Gold Cup nut, and my dream is to have one of evry variant, and now I have to add one more to my list..... Man, this is going to get expensive :D
I can't tell from the picture... is the top rib serated or flat?

[johnb_az]

The rib is serrated. The pictures did not turn out as well as I had hoped. I figure it is a limted run since there are only 3 digits and mine is low. I just wish I could find out more. If the grips and laser was standard or not, etc. I took off the laser as I wont use it when taking it to the range.

John

[Ericthenorse]

Call Colt's 800 number for customer service... They might be able to tell you a little more about it... I am prety sure the laser was added, and the grips look like old Hogue grips...

[Hajah Momenem]

Man... that is cool... I would assume by the 3 digit number that it was probably a run limited to 500 or so.. That is definately a keeper... I am a Gold Cup nut, and my dream is to have one of evry variant, and now I have to add one more to my list..... Man, this is going to get expensive :D
I can't tell from the picture... is the top rib serated or flat?
Hey,Hi,Howdy Gold Cup nuts of the World. This is my very first post on this great forum! I have been reading this site for a good while;now I hope I know at least enough to ask for what I hope to learn.
Is this thread the proper place for me to ask questions about my '70 Series Colt Gold Cup? (Sir,Yes Sir;the pictures will be pouring in ASAP!) I haven't had much luck shrinking pictures;but I'll keep trying.
True Confessions: I have not shot my GC very much at all;and I have owned it since the Bicentennial(sp?) of nineteen&seventy six. I didn't enjoy shooting the box or two of 185 gr. SWC it voraciously digested and ever so eloquently reminded me that even though I am not hitting the target very often this pistol is hitting precisely where it is aimed at the time the bangswitch trips the sear(?)
I hold the Colt Gold Cup up in lofty highest regard. Maybe the reason I didn't enjoy shooting mine was because with each shot I knew that the barrel bushing was brushing off another micro-layer of bluing from the Nation Match barrel. I truly enjoyed the Colt Commander(satin nickel) I also bought back in the mid-'70s;it was my lesson(stolen) to ALWAYS keep my firearms locked as securely as possible. I was lucky to get a Series '80 lightweight Officer's Colt which I have carried for 10+ years as my constant companion...
My questions have to do with whether or not to modify the GC somehow in order to shoot self-defense loads and good old hard-ball ammo. I do want to keep this pistol;but I don't shoot competitively and don't plan to;but I do like the urban-combat style of shooting.
Is it wrong to try to make a GC into a super-reliable self-defense pistol? I don't much care for adjustable sights;and I'd be OK with replacing the Elliasons. I'd want a different grip safety and maybe a slightly extended manual safety;but no ambi. So,after shopping around for a full-sized "tactical" type 1911 I find my GC has just about everything I want;and doesn't have a lot of the stuff I don't want.
Maybe I should just get a proper Wollfe(sp?) spring group and shoot til the Elliasons fall off,then consider sight options?
I feel like this M1911 website is a truly wonderful gift;but I know it is not totally free. I hope to be able to contribute in some way to its growth and enrichment.
I have lots of questions.
Your Humble Servant,
K.B. Warwulf

[Hunter]

You would not need to do anything different to shoot the personal defense rounds in you Gold Cup as long as you have the 16 pound recoil spring. Some Gold Cups came with a lighter recoil spring for target loads. I carry a Colt Gold Cup Trophy when I am going somewhere nice (that is my going out pistol) and I did not feel I needed to do anything to make it reliable. if you are concerned about the Elliasons sights falling off as I have heard of this happening make sure you have a solid pin holding them to the slide and you should be good to go. I myself love the Colt Gold Cups and have a few of them. They all shoot great and I have had not trouble out of any of them. Welcome to the forum.

[dakota1911]

Yes, iff this came from the Colt Custom Shop it might be worth a premium.

John posted that sticky at the top of the Colt section for history on a Colt:

Kathy Hoyt
Colt Historian
P.O. Box 1868
Hartford, CT 06144-1868
Phone: 800-962-2658

This might also be a good starting point to detail this pistol's history.

I continue to be amazed at what the relatively new Colts bring on the market. The older ones are an even more expensive story. I saw an 80s Gold Cup Commander in SS about a month ago in a gun store for about $1,900. Gold Cup Commanders are somewhat rare of course and this pistol was in good condition but not NIB. I thought about it and still undecided went back the next day to look at it again. It was sold and they said the fellow who bought it looked at it then wrote a check for the full amount.

[John]

Gentlemen, the contact details I have for the Colt Historian, are very old. Let me verify that with Mark and see if I can come up with more contemporary information, before you start sending letters there. Also, keep in mind that if you want a certificate letter for your pistol, from Colt, it costs about 100$.