Make: Colt

Model: 1911-A1. Equipped with the very rare Swartz safety.

Serial Number: 728064

Year of Manufacture: Early 1941, as it was shipped to Springfield Armory on April 30, 1941.

Caliber: .45 ACP

Action Type: Single Action Semi-Auto with Removable Magazine

Barrel Length: 5"

Sights / Optics: The front sight is a short, round blade fixed to the slide. The rear sight is a “U”-notch dovetailed into the slide.

Stock Configuration & Condition: The grips are two-piece checkered walnut panels. The grips have no notable wear or damage, only light handling marks. The checkering is well defined. There are no chips or cracks. Overall, the grips are in Excellent Condition.

Type of Finish: Blued

Finish Originality: Professionally Restored by Turnbull Restoration

Bore Condition: The bore is semi-bright with sharp rifling. There is scattered minor erosion and some stubborn fouling in the bore. In this writer’s opinion, this bore rates about 8 out of 10.

Overall Condition: This pistol retains about 99% of its current metal finish. There is very faint thinning at some leading edges. There are a few scattered minor marks, most notable at the right edge of the mainspring housing checkering. The action shows faint operational wear. The screw heads are sharp. The markings are clear. Overall, this pistol is in Excellent Condition as Professionally Restored.

Mechanics: The action functions correctly. We have not fired this pistol. As with all previously owned firearms, thorough cleaning may be necessary to meet your maintenance standards.

Box, Paperwork & Accessories: This pistol comes with one vintage original 1911 “two tone” partially blued 7-round magazine, a Turnbull Restoration letter indicating restoration in 2015, and a Colt Archives letter.

Our Assessment:The Colt 1911 .45 ACP semi-automatic pistol was designed by the legendary firearms inventor John Moses Browning, and developed for the US Army after the .38 LC revolver failed to stop charging Moro warriors in the Philippines. The US Army issued the powerful .45 to officers, NCOs, and machine gunners in the Punitive Expedition, World War 1, and World War 2. In 1926, the 1911-A1 iteration introduced the arched mainspring housing, shorter trigger, and relief cuts behind the trigger on the frame. In mid to late 1941, Colt began finishing the guns by parkerizing them, a more durable finish than the original bluing, and fitting them with more cost effective plastic grips as opposed to the higher quality yet more expensive walnut.

This US Army Pre-WW2 Colt Model 1911A1 Pistol was made in early 1941, as the “Arsenal of Democracy” was gearing up but before the United States officially entered the war, and is in Excellent Condition as professionally restored. The work was performed by the famous Turnbull Restoration, and showcases their incredible talents. It features a 5” barrel, 99% of its skillfully restored blued finish, a serial-matching slide, martial markings, the very rare Swartz safety, crisp two-piece checkered walnut grips, an original 1911 “two tone” partially blued 7-round mag, a semi-bright bore with sharp rifling (there’s scattered minor erosion and some stubborn fouling), a Turnbull Restoration letter indicating restoration in 2015, and a Colt Archives letter indicating it was shipped to Springfield Armory on April 30, 1941. It was made toward the end of Colt M1911A1 production with a blued finish before they transitioned to parkerized, was among the last with walnut grips before they switched to plastic, and is a classic “RS” (Robert Sears) inspected example. This pistol is all original with the exception of the finish. As restored, this beauty will make a wonderful addition to a Colt or WW2 small arms collection.