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Colt Ace Service Model 1945 help

ak47-726ak47-726 Member Posts: 30 ✭✭
edited December 2010 in Ask the Experts
oh and im new here so if doing something wrong please dont get mad .
I recently acquired a Colt Ace Service Model, serial number is SM58XX Caliber is .22 long rifle. 5 inch barrel. Finish is Parko-Lubrite. Moulded plastic stock. It was shipped to the Army-Navy Consolidating Station in New York, for Officer in Charge, Naval Supply Depot in Oakland CA. There were 1200 guns in the shipment. It was shipped June 13, 1945. I have the Colt Archive Authentication Certificate.

I have taken it to a gun shop and he said the gun was 85 to 89 %.

I am looking for the value of this gun. Any assistance would be greatly appreciated.

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Comments

  • perry shooterperry shooter Member Posts: 17,105 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    WoW nice pistol . I have not seen any 1945 models sold and as this Finish PARKO-LUBRITE is only factory finish on a small number of pistols My opinion is it would bring more then a Blued model. I think the only way to tell what it is worth is to have it seen by a large number of people and then have a true auction and the value that day would be the highest bidder. I feel and Hope that things will improve and sale prices would go up if you hold on and wait for a few years before you try to sell.
  • ak47-726ak47-726 Member Posts: 30 ✭✭
    edited November -1
    quote:Originally posted by perry shooter
    WoW nice pistol . I have not seen any 1945 models sold and as this Finish PARKO-LUBRITE is only factory finish on a small number of pistols My opinion is it would bring more then a Blued model. I think the only way to tell what it is worth is to have it seen by a large number of people and then have a true auction and the value that day would be the highest bidder. I feel and Hope that things will improve and sale prices would go up if you hold on and wait for a few years before you try to sell.

    thank you perry shooter
  • Wolf.Wolf. Member Posts: 2,223 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    I agree with Perryshooter regarding hanging onto the gun for a while before you try to sell it.

    The following is just my opinion....take it for what you think it is worth:
    My reason for replying is to caution you regarding how you store the gun, especially for a long period of months or a few years. For a possibly high value gun, I personally would remove the grip scales and give the internals and externals a good coat of preservative such as BreakFree-CLP (cleaner, lubricant, preservant), then lay it on a a couple layers of brown grocery bags for a few days to soak up the excess (then reinstall the grip scales). I would also get some vapor-wrap paper form a source such as Brownells and wrap the gun in that and put it in a gun storage bag, also from Brownells or another source.

    WHAT I WOULD NOT DO is store the gun in that plastic handgun rug you have there in the picture, which probably has some type of synthetic funny-fur inside. If you simply MUST store the gun in a gun rug, I would buy an oblong shaped Boyd premium rug of the proper size made of heavy cotton canvas, with cotton batting internal padding and cotton liner. You can get these direct from Boyd's website or maybe on GunBroker, I don't know. But prior to storing the piece in the rug, I would do the BreakFree-CLP treatment.

    EDIT EDIT
    I just took a look at your photos again and it looks like your storage rug might be of cloth of some kind rather than plastic, but not sure. If so, something that breaths is better than plastic, regardless of the cloth composition.
  • ak47-726ak47-726 Member Posts: 30 ✭✭
    edited November -1
    thanks Wolf the bag is canvas on the out side and cotton on the in side .
  • nmyersnmyers Member Posts: 16,889 ✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    I'm not sure what you have.

    Your photos are too fuzzy & lighting is too poor. Your gun looks too "gray" for a P-L finish, more like a commercial potassium phosphate refinish; I just can't tell. If we can't see the markings on the gun, then the photos aren't good enough.

    While a Colt letter is often a plus when evaluating a gun, their use of the word "authentication" is misleading. All they do is research the serial number & tell you what a gun looked like when it left the factory; they don't examine the gun & tell you if yours is really "authentic".

    Neal

    EDIT: THAT'S a good job of posting photos! There is no doubt in my mind that the finish is original. But, it looks to me like the % finish is in the high 90's. I would think it would bring a minimum of $2K at auction, maybe a lot more.
  • ak47-726ak47-726 Member Posts: 30 ✭✭
    edited November -1
    Hi Neal i added more phtos thanks for reading the post.
  • ak47-726ak47-726 Member Posts: 30 ✭✭
    edited November -1
    thanks again Neal your in put really helps.
  • tsr1965tsr1965 Member Posts: 8,682 ✭✭
    edited November -1
    I do agree with Neal, and Perry. That is something special you have there. That finish would easily rate at 95%, if not more. I know a few collectors who would trip over themselves if they seen that on auction.

    Just for further information, instead of posting a new post to the thread every time, use the edit function to add to your post. Herein the "Experts" column, the threads are locked after 10 posts'.

    Best
  • perry shooterperry shooter Member Posts: 17,105 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Hello Thanks for your email . I will try to call you tonight. Karl Woerner.
  • ak47-726ak47-726 Member Posts: 30 ✭✭
    edited November -1
    thanks for all the help on here i have just whan ahead and listed it on gun broker if it sell it sell if it dont i will just keep it but again thank for all the heads up here
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