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Question on an old Colt 32 rimless auto

bagsjrbagsjr Member Posts: 42 ✭✭
edited February 2007 in Ask the Experts
Can someone tell me anything about this gun?

Serial #562819
Left side of slide reads - "Colt's PT.F.A.MFG.CO. HARTFORD,CT.USA
PATENTED APR.20,1897. DEC. 22, 1903

Right side reads - COLT AUTOMATIC CALIBRE 32 RIMLESS SMOKELESS
U.S. Property (on frame)

little "35" stamped on trigger guard
The original aluminum packaging (2 bags 1 for gun 1 for slides cleaner) says AUG 1960 MM B 1910 CLASS 1 and 2 LOT NO 302
I have original shipping box it came in also. Someone wrote in pencil on one of the bags " Colt 56.7/93 "

Beautiful unfired condition still has reminents of original packing grease.

I'd just like to know a bit about it and its approximate value. Not interested in selling it as it was my father's gun.
Thanks,
Bob.
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    wm69wm69 Member Posts: 236 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    www.coltautos.com

    Colt 1903. Nice little pistols
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    perry shooterperry shooter Member Posts: 17,390 ✭
    edited November -1
    Check with COLT COLLECTOR SITE and Military Pistol site If your pistol is marked U.S. Property it may be a general officers model and a fairly high dollar gun Let us know please if you put up for sale on this site.
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    v35v35 Member Posts: 12,710 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    General Officer's issue pistol. It should be parkerized.
    Being a collectible you should save all the wrappers.
    I had a memorable experience with one. In the field overseas,our General sent one to me in parts to assemble and check out. After struggling to understand the parts, the mainspring was found to be broken. As I had small arms parts up to the 105mm recoilless rifle and 4.2 mortar, there was a lot of resource material to draw from. The spring was made from either a flat 50BMG or BAR spring, bent and rehardened with gasoline blow torches. After many hours of mistakes and sweat and with the General impatiently calling for his gun, it was together and working. When I sent for some ammo to test it, he asked what for.
    When he found out, he said "I dont want any homemade springs in my gun." and sent down another one which was intact and not screwed with.
    What a letdown after all that struggle.
    Since then, I've never desired to own a 1903 Colt automatic.
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    bagsjrbagsjr Member Posts: 42 ✭✭
    edited November -1
    I'll betcha your homemade spring worked just fine. Wonder what happened to that gun.

    I remember my dad saying something about Officer or General when referring to this gun.

    When you say "It should be parkerized" do you mean this should be done now or it was parkerized when manufactured?
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    perry shooterperry shooter Member Posts: 17,390 ✭
    edited November -1
    The finish is a dull matt not high polish blue DON'T DON'T DO ANY THING TO THE FINISH NOW. If this is a true as issured pistol
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    11b6r11b6r Member Posts: 16,588 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Some of the officer's pistols were in blue, some in park. DO NOT CHANGE ANYTHING ON THIS ONE. DO NOT EVEN BREATHE ON IT ! Yes, these are high dollar items if they are an officer's pistol. If there is any documentation, it is a HIGHER dollar item!!!
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    bagsjrbagsjr Member Posts: 42 ✭✭
    edited November -1
    There are some clumps of what looks to be old oil or grease that has almost hardened on the finish. Can I simply clean and oil this firearm?

    Thanks
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    perry shooterperry shooter Member Posts: 17,390 ✭
    edited November -1
    I would leave just like it is if you are going to sell but if you are going to shoot I would use something like Kroil and use that to disolve the old grease do not try to shoot old grease out of a barrel
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    v35v35 Member Posts: 12,710 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    I assume your gun was repackaged since they were long out of production by 1960. As I recall, the two I dealt with didn't come in cosmoline as other small arms did and they didn't have the bright nitre finish of early commercial 20th century Colts.
    Yes, the homemade spring worked and the gun cycled. Where it went is a good question. Neither came out of the 7th Div Ord Major Items unit or I might have snagged it. They did have a Colt Detective Special which I wasn't able to talk them out of and a case of Springfield 03A4s which I was.
    Horse trading took place at all levels and with the nearby British Commonwealth Brigade.
    One mobile unit had a captured Russian 2 1/2 ton truck on the books.
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    11b6r11b6r Member Posts: 16,588 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Before you decide to "clean it up" and shoot it- Gun Traders Guide, 27th Edition, Pg 44- Mdl 1903 Pocket Hammerless .32 Automatic pistol- Military: SN range w/ M prefix- M1- M200,000 Made 1941-1945 Blued service model (marked US Property) Good-$650, Ex $950, NIB $1435. Blued DOCUMENTED Officer's Model Good $1500, Ex $3,600, and NIB $4,375. These were issued to officers when promoted to rank of General, and usually kept by the General for life. There was also a .380 version- I think the Mdl 1908. Please talk to someone in the collectors association before you do anything to this one.
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    tobefreetobefree Member Posts: 7,401
    edited November -1
    I have a few of these(Non US PROPERTY)... one of my all time favorite firearms. They are great little shooters. Yours is a piece of history and sounds like a museum piece worth far beyond the price of one of these shooters... I wouldn't do a thing to it.....
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    bagsjrbagsjr Member Posts: 42 ✭✭
    edited November -1
    I've taken a bunch of pictures of this firearm and I'll post them tomorrow when I get into the office.

    I remember my late father told me that in roughly 1960 he traded a skill saw and 11 dollars for this gun. He did say it belonged to a General. I think the son of the General traded it to my father if I remember his story correctly. Would be neat to trace its history.
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