I recently inherited a Springfield Armory 1911 and I am trying to ID it. I know basically nothing about 1911s so please bear with me. The left slide has Colt patent info and also Springfield Armory USA while the left frame says United States Property. The right slide says Model of 1911 U.S. Army and the right frame has a serial number “No79xxx”. There is not any marking to indicate caliber but it is obviously a .45. Any ideas? I would appreciate any help you could give, thanks.

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Springfield Armory (Springfield, MA) was the official US government arms maker, dating from pre-Civil War times.

Springfield Armory manufactured Model 1911 pistols during the WW1 years when Colt was unable to meet war time demands. Other makers of that period included Remington-UMC and North American Arms. All makers produced on US military contracts under license from Colt's (some production went to Great Britain, perhaps a few other nations).

Assuming yours to be an original US Model 1911 made by the original Springfield Armory (not the modern incarnation doing business under that name), and it remains in unaltered condition, you have a very desirable collector piece.

We (me for sure) would love to see a few pictures.

LOBO pretty much hit the nail on the head.

Here are a few pics. It has some wear and a few blemishes but I have no idea how old it is.

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Here is a good starter reference for your SA 1911:

http://coolgunsite.com/collectors_gu...ory%20(M1911):

Looks to have been made in late 1914, so 104 years old or so. It appears to have been refinished but nearly every issued GI 1911 was at one point (or two, or three). About 60000 or so made that can be identified as SA production. Hope this is helpful.

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Alan
SWCA LM 2023, SWHF 220

I think Springfield had ceased production by about 1915. The reason was, Colt could supply all needed in that time, before WWI, and Springfield could not make the .45 any cheaper than what Colt charged the Govt. That had been the hope: that the arsenal could make the gun cheaper.

During WW I, Springfield was so busy making M-1903 rifles that they left pistol making to others.

Even in its worn condition, your gun will probably interest collectors. In better condition, it'd interest them a LOT!

Thanks for all the info, much appreciated.

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Springfield produced the 1911 for WWI from early 1914 through early 1917, manufacturing approximately 32,637 pistols.

Your pistol with a serial number beginning with 79 indicates early 1915 production.

The Springfield 1911s were very distinctive looking, as opposed to the Colts. The number and style of the rollmarks make it a "pretty" pistol to me. The American Eagle mark adds a touch of patriotism to the pistol for me.

The left side of the slide was thoroughly rollmarked with the Colt's patent information, plus Springfield's mark, plus the flaming bomb to the rear of the slide serrations.

The frame duplicated the flaming bomb just above the magazine release, and the frame was, of course, marked as "UNITED STATES PROPERTY".

Your pistol looks as though a lot of those marking have been polished off during one or more attempts to refinish it. It doesn't look like arsenal refinishing to me. I can't see the flaming bomb proof above the magazine release on yours.

It's a nice old pistol, though. I'd love to have it, myself.

Have you disassembled it to look for other Springfield markings on the internals? Like on the barrel? I think the barrel should have an "S" stamped on the barrel lug. I wouldn't mind seeing some more photos of it.

No, these aren't my pistols in the photos. Unfortunately.

I agree, it is a Springfield 1911, but it has been commercially refinished at least once, if not more. The roll markings are very faint and military 1911's had prominent roll markings. This greatly diminishes it's collector value.

Now I'm sure you are wondering if you should shoot this pistol, right? The metallurgy of these old 1911's is not the same as the WW II era 1911-A1 and certainly not the same as modern 1911 style pistols. I will say that the receiver is probably fine as it takes the least beating when fired, but these old slides can suffer from battered locking lug edges, battered breech faces, and cracks around the ejection port. With a fresh, 15 pound recoil spring (assuming the original, flat bottom firing pin spring retainer is still in place) and ammo no hotter than 230 grain ball, and a shock buffer (you won't hear me recommend these things very often), a limited amount of firing may be perfectly safe.

All the markings are present but some are very hard to see. I don't think I will shoot it and not interested in selling, I was just interested in finding out what it is. I found it under the seat of my dad's truck after he passed away.

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