Colt 1911A1 Barrel

aldo35

I have a Colt 1911A1 made by Remington. Based on serial number it was made in 1944. On the right side of the barrel near the piece that the link is attached there are the letters H S , Are these inspector marks or is this a High Standard barrel?

On the right side of the frame near the trigger guard are the letters SA. I think this pistol may have been refurbished at the Springfield Arsenal after the WWll and that is the source of the SA stamp. Is there anyway to determine if this pistol was processed this way or was SA and inspectors mark?

Aldo35

Hawk Carse

Not entirely clear. Is it a Colt or is it a Remington Rand?
What is the serial number, what are the slide markings? Pictures would be nice.

The HS marked barrel is indeed from High Standard. They provided barrels to Remington Rand manufacture and as spare parts.

The SA is probably a sign of overhaul at Springfield Armory.

They didn't care about matching up brand names, so you might well have a Colt slide on a Remington Rand receiver or vice versa.

perry shooter

Just to add to Hawk Carse's reply There were many companies that made parts for 1911A1 pistols during the time frame leading up to & during WW II most of these parts can be identified from their markings. HS is indeed HIGH STANDARD . SA is indeed SPRINGFIELD. as to WHO MADE the frame each maker was assigned a BLOCK of serial numbers so one needs to check with one of the many books about Military 45 AUTO pistols to determine if the Frame and Slide were made by the same Maker. even then the time frame may be different between Slide and Frame determined by the style & location of these marks . If it is an early colt it may have the slide serial number marked on the slide but hidden as it is marked on the slide under the Firing pin stop . detailed in focus pictures of each mark on each part and posted here will let us tell you what you have. some small parts may not be clearly marked but may be made slightly different and identified by their picture PRAISE THE HARD-BALL GUN

nmyers

Not to pick nits, but ..... what you have is a "M1911A1 pistol". Although many were made by Colt during WW2 they were also made by Remington Rand, Ithaca, & others.

While most pistols stamped SA were completely rebuilt, some were just inspected by Springfield Armory. In order to tell what you have, & whether or not it's been rebuilt, we need to see well lit, focused, photos. Be sure that they show the serial number, & the inspectors mark (left side of frame between the trigger & the grips).

Neal

EDIT: We are still unable to tell if your gun has the original finish or has been refinished. The serial number & FJA inspectors marks were applied after Parkerizing; with a 10X magnifier like a jewelers loupe, you should be able to see some bare metal (called burnishing) within the letters & numbers if original finish.
EDIT 2: Refinishing firearms by US arsenals has been common since prior to WW1.

aldo35

Hi, I have been unable to load pictures even though I have received several sets of excellent directions they just don't load! That said, this is the description, left side: Remington Rand Inc, below that Syracuse, N.Y.U.S.A. on the frame is FJA and a small p near the mag release button

There are no marks on the right side of slide. On right side of frame 1st line: United Sates Property M1911A1 U.S.Army below this from left to right NO. 1780608 beyond trigger on frame SA and on trigger guard the letter M.

The barrel lug has H S on left side and a small p on the right side of the lug.

I had checked the serial number and it came up 1944 for Remington.

Thanks for your imput.

Aldo35

perry shooter

FJA inspector LT.COL. F.J. Atwood born Penn. apr 27 1891 inspected total production of Remington Rand pistols and also total production of ITHACA pistols Your slide should have the third type logo marks they were shorter then type one and two so instead of 2& 3/8 inch long they would be about one inch editas to the question of original finish from the location of the SA as you described I suspect it has been refinished with the grips off are the grip bushing Staked onto the frame and are they also bear steel where the staking tool hit them to hold to the frame or is this part of the bushing also PARK FINISHED

aldo35

Perry Shooter,

Thanks for all the info. The Remington Rand is the 1" marking.

Aldo35[:)]

Don McManus

Listing of 1911 by S/N showing Date and Manufacturer.

Your frame is a Remington Rand Frame, so the slide and frame are correct.

http://www.coolgunsite.com/pistols/colt production.htm

aldo35

Thanks

aldo35

I looked at the bushing and inspector marks and there is no sign of bare metal. As suggested the pistol was refinished. Was this common practice after WWll ?

Aldo35