Make: Remington Rand

Model: 1911-A1

Serial Number: 918804

Year of Manufacture: December 1942

Caliber: .45 ACP

Action Type: Single Action Semi-Auto fed by Removable Magazine

Barrel Length: 5”

Sights / Optics: The front sight is a short blade with a serrated, ramped rear face fixed to the slide. The rear sight is a square notch dovetailed into the slide.

Stock Configuration & Condition: The grips are checkered brown plastic early Keyes Fibre panels without reinforcement rings around the screws but with reinforcement ribs on the inside. The grips have little in the way of handling wear with only a few minor marks. There are no chips or cracks. The checkering is well defined. Overall, the grips are in Fine to Excellent Condition.

Type of Finish: Du-Lite

Finish Originality: Original

Bore Condition: The bore is mostly bright. The rifling is sharp. There is no erosion in the bore, but there is a little stubborn fouling. In this writer's opinion, the bore rates about 9 out of 10.

Overall Condition: This pistol retains about 95% of its metal finish. The finish is lightly thinning at some edges. There is some minor handling wear, most notable on the grip safety. There are a few scattered minor nicks, scuffs, and scratches. There is a minor "idiot mark" under the slide stop. The action shows operational wear. The screw heads are sharp. The markings are generally clear. The Ordnance Department “crossed cannons” cartouche is marked through the finish, but is somewhat faint, as is common. Overall, this pistol is in about Fine Condition.

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 original US WW2 Risdon blued 7-round magazine.

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 both World War 1 and World War 2. As was the case at the outset of the Great War, the demand for Colt M-1911A1 pistols by the US Army at the beginning of WW2 would exceed the production capacity of Colt. This time, the US government had already planned to contract-out pistol production to other manufacturers. The M-1911A1 was even able to be simplified due to educational orders and a production study conducted by the Singer Sewing Machine Company, who developed comprehensive plans and instructions for companies who had never made a 1911A1, allowing them to easily order materials and machinery, and set up manufacturing for the pistol. Remington Rand was the star example of this project's success, and by the end of the war, they had produced just about as many M-1911A1s as all of the other makers combined, and remarkably, at the lowest price while being the highest quality.

This US Army WW2 Remington Rand Early, Type 1 Model 1911A1 Semi-Auto Pistol was made in December 1942 and is in Fine Condition. It features a 5” barrel, 95% of its crisp, original, and early Du-Lite finish, martial markings, checkered brown plastic early Keyes Fibre grips without reinforcement rings around the screws but with reinforcement ribs on the inside, an original US WW2 Risdon blued 7-round mag, strong mechanics, and a mostly bright bore with sharp rifling and no erosion (just a little stubborn fouling). In addition to the early finish and grips, this pistol boasts a few other distinctive characteristics of the early, “Type 1” Remington Rand. Namely, the maker’s mark on the left side of the slide has “NEW YORK” fully spelled out (it’s abbreviated on the Type 2 and 3), and the Ordnance Department “crossed cannons” cartouche on the right rear of the frame was actually applied upside down. Remington Rand began production of the 1911A1 in November 1942, and delivered 255 pistols that month (S/N range 916405-916659). In December 1942, they delivered 5,013 pistols (S/N range 916660-921672), making this pistol the 2,399th coming off their production line in just their second month of manufacture, December 1942. This is a fantastic example of the scarce, early Type 1 Remington Rand 1911A1.