'18 1911 Correct Finish

[Ran]

Hi,

My first post here. I have my father's 1911 now. As far as I can tell, it was made in 1918, serial 570278. I also have his holster, marked Joseph H. Mosser, 1942 also.

Anyway, my question is whether I should re-blue the gun or leave it as is?

The patina that is on the gun is a light sepia shade. The finish isn't completely consistant through out the weapon. (I noticed this after field stripping and a good cleaning.)

It's in good shape, but missing the front site and I'm not really interested in selling it as it has too much sentimental value. I believe it may have been carried by one of the family when he was in France late in WWI, but won't bet the farm on that. He was part of the medical corps.

The grips seem may be original but the right side shows more wear where it rests in the palm than the left. I don't know if the uneven wear came from use or if the left grip was replaced.

Outside of the cosmetic, it's a fine shooter. I want to preserve it for my children but want to do correctly and not do any over restoration.

Any advice?

Thanks much in advance,

Ran

[Scott Gahimer]

Welcome to the forum.
If there is any chance that the finish is the original, I'd definitely leave it alone. When you are that old, you'll surely show some significant aging too. ;) From the sentimental standpoint, I still believe originality outweighs condition in importance.
Had the pistol's finish been damaged through some accident or neglect recently, altering how it had looked all it's life, then I might consider a restoration IF the pistol had already been refinished prior.
Replacing the front sight is something I'd probably do. But you need a correct sight to do it and someone qualified for the work. Right grips generally will show more wear on a well used pistol, but if significantly different in condition, the other grip may have been replaced, as you said.
Photos would help determine exactly what you have.

[Ran]

Thanks for the help. I don't ever remember the finish being fooled around with so I think I will leave it alone. I have a feeling a lot of good guns (like old furniture) have been over restored so I was hesitant anyway.

I'll poke in the other forums to see what I can find out about the front sight.

Thanks again,

Ran

[1911Tuner]

I vote for leavin' it alone too. If it's blue, chances are that it's original. The
pre-A1 USGI pistols that went through a government arsenal rebuild were usually parkerized. Not many of the old warhorses around that wear the original blue finish.

Repro grips are available for show/use. If yours has the double diamond grips,
Brownells has near-copies for about 18 bucks a set. Darken'em with a little
boiled linseed oil and handling, and they'll look about right for the gun.

Congratulations on your old Colt and your feelings of sentiment for it. Too many get hacked up when somebody wants to "improve" the guns by tryin'
to give'em a "custom" flavor. Pure sacrilege!

[Wild Turk]

The pre-A1 USGI pistols that went through a government arsenal rebuild were usually parkerized. Not many of the old warhorses around that wear the original blue finish.

I posted in another thread about an unfired Ithaca I have that is blued. Are blued 1911s from the WWII era that rare? I dont know much about 1911 history (learning quickly since I just got 3 of them).

Thanks

Wild Turk

[dsk]

These USGI 1911 pistols were blued:

Colts: 1912-early 1941, usually a brushed-blue finish
Singers: 1941, Glossy Du-Lite blue
Remington Rand and Ithaca: late 1942-EARLY 1943, sandblasted Du-Lite blue
Union Switch and Signal: all of 1943, sandblasted Du-Lite blue

[jacobtowne]

My 1911 is a late 1917 Colt (196xxx), and has a finish similar to yours, perhaps even worse. At best only 60-70% of the bluing remains, none on the grip straps. It's all original as far as I can tell, with a very tight action. I installed a Shok-buf, and shoot it regularly. I would never even consider refinishing, since the finish, or what remains of it, is original.
JT