This is very unique and very rare COLT 1911 USMC ROLLMARK U.S. MARINES M45A1 SEMPER FI FDE. That level of accuracy is truly noteworthy in a randomly selected, government-issue pistol. [9], The Officer In Command of the Precision Weapons Shop in 2001, Chief Warrant Officer 5 Ken Davis, stated that the M1911 is "the only pistol that can stand up to this use". Im thinking having that done would make my pistol less valuable as a collector item, plus its not a gun Ill shoot very often so my front strap will remain smooth. You will hear different stories, but the simplest is that the M45A1 was Colts first large-scale run of Cerakoted pistols. The USMC-marked pistol is from one of the early runs when Colt was using the same rollmark that they applied to the actual USMC guns. was not the question, rather, it was how tightly I could group the splatter marks. This is the so called blue box Colt pistol, model 01070M45. Colt M45A1 USMC - Cool Gun with a Cool Story - General Chat You just need to be willing to spend the money it takes to grab a true jewel of firearm technology. We ended the session shooting the old FBI pistol qualification course on a counter shaded QIT-99 (you can see the course of fire here). Sticky for all Colt USMC CQB/ M45 FACTUAL information Handgun Hard Choices: Colt M1911 or S&W M1917? It is bug enough - yet snug enough to retain the M45A1 and other railed 5" 1911s. Change), You are commenting using your Twitter account. Springfield Armory entered a variant of the full-sized Loaded MC Operator M1911A1 pistol with a military-standard 1913 rail, tritium night sights and finished with a two-tone black slide with an olive-drab green frame. Match 1.60" Winchester 230-gr. [9] However, it is more common for a Marine to return the pistol to the PWS at Quantico for a rebuild after 10,000 rounds have been fired. The solid, medium-long trigger broke at 4 lbs., 4 ozs., of pressure after a short bit of take-up to release the hammer. A forum community dedicated to all 1911 firearm owners and enthusiasts. COLT M45A1 MARINE PISTOL. The Colt M45A1 is just as reliable as a perfectly tuned competition-grade custom 1911, except this comes with that level of reliability right out of the factory and rightfully so. Hes only had one run away gun and a hand full of hammer follow situations Ive witnessed- normally they dont function well enough to get that worn (keep in mind this is over the course of decades, during which time he has owned scores of 1911 pistols). (camp). My friend, a 1911 aficionado accompanied me to the range. Colt M45A1 USMC rollmark in the blue clam shellUltra rare version 01070M45, USMC Rollmark in Blue Box ( Not Pelican Box ) AboutPressCopyrightContact. CCS M45A1 is really a good deal @ $2k price point (MSRP). Passionate Caretakers of Our Historic Military Firearms and Americas Wartime Heritage. Enter your email address to subscribe and receive notifications of new posts by email. Come join the discussion about optics, gunsmithing, styles, reviews, accessories, classifieds, and more! The firearm felt like it had close tolerances, with everything locking up firmly, but without that hand-fitted exactness one can feel in a custom M1911. Marine HQ requested Colt to stop marking the pistols as such. The .45s had a number of features that jumped right out: the light rails, the aggressively checkered G10 stockswhich replaced the Pachmayrs we had used for so longtritium vials in the Novak sights, and unique markings on the frames and slides. First, there is the additional weight already mentioned. This sample proved that sentiment. View all posts by David Freeman. The early finish problems encountered by the Marines were all fixed by the time the first 1,000 units had been issued. I have other Colt 1911s with smooth front straps, so I guess its just not something thats in Colts playbook for their stock pistols. GUNSweek.com is a new online platform dedicated to the diffusion of technical knowledge in the gun world. All content Copyright 1998-2018 Rifleshooter.com, FTC disclosure: some links on this site are monetized, Sig Sauer MCX Virtus PCP Air Rifle Review- Initial Impressions, Project Guns- Gunsmithing articles and posts, 1911 Rear Sight Installation (Novak style cut), Quick rifle bedding tip: Easy removal of bedding material from pillars, Tactical Shotgun Build: Back Boring a Barrel and Lengthening a Forcing Cone to Increase Performance, Back when Sears sold a Mauser: The J.C. Higgins Model 51, Short and Loud: The 16 inch 308 Win Precision Rifle, 224 VALKYRIE- Effect of barrel length on velocity, Bipod rail installation (Atlas bipod adapter). If the highest accuracy and best trigger is your goal, get a custom shop model. The M45A1 ships with Wilson Combat 47 7 round magazines, and is a production grade weapon, rolling off the same line as the commercial M45A1 with identical markings and parts. Pistol, Model of 1911 to the Marine Corps. It actually protected the Colt M45A1 on the way too and from the range. There were only 20 of these made and this one is the 17th of the series. The .45 maintains a traditional military lanyard loop in the flat, serrated mainspring housing. THESE PISTOLS WERE BUILT FOR THE USMC BY NOVAK FOR COLT, AND THERE WERE NOT MANY MADE. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); S&W CSX Is it Really the New ChiefsSpecial? Shooting two handed, strong side only and weak side only it functioned flawlessly. Rogers, Patrick A. Davids Articles at GUNS, American Handgunner & Shooting Industry Magazines. The Colt gobbled up a wide variety of bullet profiles, cycling smoothly and without hesitation, while grouping each in a cluster that fit within the space the front sight covered at any given distance. Pelican Storm Case. The decoms will always be worth a premium. [10] A rebuild entails discarding almost all of the gun's parts except for the frame, which prior to 2003 was a U.S. Government frame last manufactured in 1945. On July 20, 2012, the Colt 1911 Rail Gun was selected and won a contract to initially deliver 4,000 pistols for MARSOC and Force Recon. Two Wilson Combat magazines. I know what you are thinking, why carry a gun that holds twice as many rounds, weighs less, is more compact, more reliable and costs a third as much- I must be nuts? In July 2012, the United States Marine Corps System Command announced that Colt Defense LLC of Hartford, Connecticut, was the winner of the new CQBP pistol contract. Colt M45A1 USMC rollmark in the blue clam shell - YouTube When the enemy breaches the position, any of them will do. It is big enough - yet snug enough to retain the M45A1 and other railed 5" 1911s. [12] 2013 Colt Government CQBP .45 ACP Desert Sand *ULTRA RARE USMC ROLLMARK That is quite a service legacy for any military firearm. The revised parts list included barrels, bushings, link pins, sear springs, ejectors, firing pin stops, mainspring housings and mainsprings, all from Nowlin Manufacturing. This full-size lower rail adds some of the noticeable heft to the gun,but that heft seems to balance out thepistolso that the gundoesnt feel nose heavy. Over the years Ive built quite a few custom rifles on Remington 700 actions. When Remington offered a [], 1911 Rear sight installation (Novak style cut) Aftermarket sights are a common upgrade on 1911 pistols. I believe there was also a run of grey M45s with front strap checkering that were not CS guns. NEW IN THE COLT ISSUED BLUE BOX EXACTLY AS WAS SHIPPED TO THE USMC. An MEU(SOC) 1911 pistol, built by PWS at Quantico, Virginia. I'll be content with mine in Ion Bond marked M45A1 in the blue box. My pistol is the commercial, non-custom shop version and I wouldnt own it had I not been a gun shop owner who could buy wholesale when these became available. An identical version coming off the same assembly line was sold to the civilian market. The trigger is smooth even by series 80 standards and breaks cleanly at 5 lbs. The Colt M45A1 CQBP pistol is based on the tried and true Series 80 platform: it comes with a single-action trigger, a skeletonized enhanced hammer, an automatic firing pin safety, an ambidextrous frame-mounted manual safety, and an improved and crisp trigger pull - about two kilos or just under 6 lbs. The pistol functioned well for the first three rounds, but then I couldnt find my front sight- literally- it flew off! The Marine Colt pistol was designated the M45A1. We use cookies on this website, our and third parties, to enhance your user experience. It will fit though. Colt Custom Shop M45A1 (NO USMC MARKINGS) "EGA" serial number. Sweet! Decommisioned M45A1 - AR15.COM The Marine Corps had chosen the tan Colts, official designation M45A1, as a commercial replacement for the legendary, custom, Quantico-built M1911s issued to U.S. Marine Corps Forces Special Operations Command (MARSOC) Marine Raiders and the Corps Force Reconnaissance Marines. Outside of the mentioned ambidextrous manual safety, the controls configuration is the same as on any other 1911 variant. Dec 1, 2014 (Edited) It's kinda tricky, commercial sale frames were pulled right from the contract gun production line. I went through the boxes with the armorers, examining a few random Colts to get a sense of the pistols. The M45A1 has a dual recoil spring assembly which seems to dampen recoil somewhat. A huge proponent of the system, he has been lecturing me about the benefits of the 1911 platform for nearly two decades. The pistols shipped in the original cardboard container with the contract-correct black Wilson Combat seven-round magazine. There were only 20 of these made and this one is the 17th of the series. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding. While most will instantly recognize that the Officers sized guns arent known for reliability, I didnt know it at the time. SWC 1.49" Hornady 200-gr. Normally his 1911 lectures are held during downtime at the range when he is repairing his 1911. Second Media Inc., 30800 Telegraph Rd, Suite 1921, Bingham Farms, MI 48025 USA. Since he edits this website, Ill pretend that I was there when one of them worked flawlessly. I have it in quotes for a reason, it kinda looked like a 45 ACP cartridge, only it was bent and weird looking. In the first post, we field stripped the gun between shots to verify that it []. Not all civilian M45s go through the Custom Shop. The ejection port was modified by widening it and flaring it out. USMC O1070M45 regular production, blue box - unknown how many released, probably less than the pelican cased version.