Andrew LB
8th March 2007, 05:25
Yeah.... many guys here said to clean it up and keep it safe, but today I took my Grandfathers personal sidearm from World War 2 which also saw World War 1 considering it has a sub 40k serial and is stamped MODEL OF 1911 US NAVY down to Sharp Shooters and had Fred and my buddy Ryan who both work there give the pre-World War 1 Colt 1911 .45 ACP a good thorough look, some much needed cleaning and oiling, and to make sure everything was in proper working order.
After they deemed that the internals were more than adequate, I bought a box of .45 ACP 230gr ball ammunition and took it and my Springfield XD 9mm 4" (the work horse) into the range, loaded up a magazine and fired the first bullet through the beautiful US NAVY issue 1911 in 40+ years. The first shot was about an inch low of the bullseye @ 20 feet and after some corrections, ended up firing 50 rounds through the pistol. The first target was a little messy but the second target which saw 21 impacts had the whole 5" diameter black center cut out of it and was hanging by a few strands of paper.
When the last round was spent, Ryan carefully field stripped it again and gave it a cleaning with hoppes using nylon brushes and soft patches rather than a metal based brush and a good oiling down since It probably wont see the range again for many years to come.... if ever.
It felt great shooting a pistol that is not only a great piece of Colt 1911 history, but my grandfathers service in the second World War... as well as the soldier who carried it during the first world war.
When I left the range today, it was the most awesome feeling. Now I'm craving to buy a 1911 that I can shoot on a regular basis. Perhaps a Springfield TRP. :)
http://www.kalionzes.com/firearms/Colt-1911-1.jpg
After they deemed that the internals were more than adequate, I bought a box of .45 ACP 230gr ball ammunition and took it and my Springfield XD 9mm 4" (the work horse) into the range, loaded up a magazine and fired the first bullet through the beautiful US NAVY issue 1911 in 40+ years. The first shot was about an inch low of the bullseye @ 20 feet and after some corrections, ended up firing 50 rounds through the pistol. The first target was a little messy but the second target which saw 21 impacts had the whole 5" diameter black center cut out of it and was hanging by a few strands of paper.
When the last round was spent, Ryan carefully field stripped it again and gave it a cleaning with hoppes using nylon brushes and soft patches rather than a metal based brush and a good oiling down since It probably wont see the range again for many years to come.... if ever.
It felt great shooting a pistol that is not only a great piece of Colt 1911 history, but my grandfathers service in the second World War... as well as the soldier who carried it during the first world war.
When I left the range today, it was the most awesome feeling. Now I'm craving to buy a 1911 that I can shoot on a regular basis. Perhaps a Springfield TRP. :)
http://www.kalionzes.com/firearms/Colt-1911-1.jpg