Anyone have one of the new Colt’s .45 automatic 70 Series reproduction pistols?

Are they any good? I’d like a blued model but amn’t so sure if they’re still good guns.

Thoughts?

Bought one ten years ago.Fit and finish are very nice.The extractor needed a tweak,but that was the only flaw.Ive heard the latest ones don't have quite the polish of a few years ago,but I don't know if that's true or not

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Almost all of my 1911s are original Series 70 or older. My first one was a Gold Cup bought in 1974 which I still have. Pretty hard, for the same money, in my opinion, to improve on those 1970s Colts. Bought one of the early Series 70 "re-makes" maybe 15 years ago and was not impressed with it although I'm sure it was functionally fine. That said, earlier this year I bought a Colt Lightweight Commander, Talo (Series 70, 1 of 600), alloy frame (green Cerakote), steel slide in 38 Super. Not crazy about the finish but from a functionality and "shoot ability" perspective I couldn't be happier. Good luck.

Jeff
SWCA #1457

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Just a technical point. If the gun is manufactured by the original manufacturer it is a re-introduction, not a reproduction!

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Gunsmithing since 1961

Thanks, gang. With so so many souped up and tarted out 1911s made by every Tom Dick and Harry, I'm wanting a simple plain pony pistol, going back to the roots type gun.

For what you want you might look at a Springfield MilSpec. They generally run less than $700 and sometimes closer to $600. Hard to beat at that price.

I've got an original Series 70 Colt I bought new back in the 1970's. I have looked at but not fired the new version. IMHO the bluing on the new version is nowhere near the old guns.

Is not the distinguishing feature about the 70 series colts ,the Collette bushing?If so then none of the new series are true to the original .

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age is just a number

True.The current series 70 is the same as a pre series 70 gun with a little less polish and larger sights

The "new" Series 70 pistols came out in 2001. 2002 for the stainless version. The reintroduction went back to the solid barrel bushing. Colt never intended them to be an exact copy of the original Series 70s.

In my opinion, that doesn't make it any less of a Series 70 pistol. And the Series 70/Mark IV pistols do not incorporate that firing pin safety that you get in the Series 80 pistols (thank goodness).

Personally, I wish Colt had returned to the flat mainspring housing...preferably checkered. I changed out to a flat MSH and it makes a world of difference for me.

A few years ago I had an early blued Series 70 repro. It shot great, accurate, very few malfunctions. An acquaintance kept asking to buy it, and eventually made me an offer that was too good to refuse.

I also had a Series 70 Wiley Clapp Gov't, which was also a very good performer. Last year I decided I wanted a stainless Series 70, which Colt no longer makes. I ended up trading the Wiley Clapp to offset the steep cost of a new distributor (Accusport) limited run Colt Series 70 stainless. It came from the factory with Novak sights, checkered front strap, etc. The most expensive pistol I ever bought, but it's an incredible shooter. Over 2,000 rounds of ball and various hollow point ammo thru it so far with no stoppages.

In addition to the traditional Series 70 repro Colt now offers their Competition pistol as a Series 70, along with the Wiley Clapp guns, and assorted distributor specials.

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Wheel guns are real guns.

I have the blued 9mm with that bushing. Have never fired it. Bought it from a guy who was trying to survive a divorce a few years back.

Semantics..........."such quibbling over semantics may seem petty stuff". However, they are not as good as an original. It is a copy no matter who makes it.

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USMC 69-93 Combat Pistol Inst.

I think the new production Colt Series 70 1911's are good pistols. The elimination of the collet bushing in favor of a solid bushing is actually a good thing. The fingers on the collet bushing could break and tie up the pistol.

As for the finish, newer blued finishes do not seem to be as nice as the older finishes. They just don't.

Should you buy a Colt or another brand of 1911? Well, the genuine Colt will cost more at the time of purchase, but if you take good care of it, it will bring more money if you ever sell it. If you plan on shooting the snot out of it, maybe adding parts, changing sights, turning it into some form of a custom pistol, or if it will be rattling around on the floorboard of your car or truck, then look at a Springfield Armory or even a Rock Island 1911.

In the past I had little problems with brand new 1911’s in the mid 70’s. I made up my mind I’m going to keep them and fix them. I purchased every tool and fixture from brownells. Now some can be finicky with different ammo. All my 1911’s run flawlessly with ball ammo.

The only thing I do to any new 1911 I purchase is polish the feed ramp to a mirror finish. Flare the throat a tad.

I wouldn’t let any new 1911, steer me away. I can fix them now.

I learned how to polish a feed ramp and throat the barrel when I was building M1911's in the mid 1980's. I had a couple of teachers that taught me well. One was my 1stSgt. and the other was Jim MacDonald of MAC's .45 Shop in Seal Beach, Ca. I sure miss those days and learning sessions.

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USMC 69-93 Combat Pistol Inst.

I have two new series 70 versions, a wiley clapp model and a standard Government model. The frames and slides are like the originals but they both have series 80 hammers, in other words, no sear hooks but it's easy enough to replace the hammers. Not all of my older series 70s had collet bushings and my new versions do not either which is a plus for me as I thought they were junk then and still do.

Never had a problem with a collet bushing. My Gold Cup has had one in it for 40+ years with no problems.

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USMC 69-93 Combat Pistol Inst.

Colt's Mfg. are making, in my opinion, the best pistols they have ever made. Tolerances are right, and the 70 Series new production (made this year) that I looked at last weekend was great.

I agree that the new production Series 70 pistols are top quality. I have had two of them. Both have impressed me with the quality of fit and finish.

I have also had a number of "original" Series 70 Colts. The new version beats them hands-down.

Curl

Some of these lower budget 1911’s are built and fitted on CNC machines. They require to be worn in so break in is needed. The more they are shot the better they feel. Lube it with moly and shoot the snots out of it.

I have several 70 and 80 series and the triggers feel about the same with about the same weight, if they're tuned correctly you won't notice any difference. Here's my Whiley Clapp 70's series Commander.

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Dave Ramsey Cultist

I have a 2003 series repro (the bottom one in the picture), very nice gun, the blueing is nice and shiny, the fit is on the loose side but the gun is accurate nevertheless.

I also recently bought a 2017 made O1991 (top one in the picture). It is not marked 1991 like the original ones, just Colt’s government model, 45 automatic caliber. I removed the series 80 safety plunger and installed a shim.

The fit is tighter, the finish has a coarser brushing and less shine but is still very nice. The long trigger and flat MSH reminisce of the original 1911 (pre A1).

You might consider this as it fits the bill for a no frills reasonably priced pony.



And it’s a nice shooter too (25 meters off hand)

This is a group that I fired with my original Series 70 National Match Gold Cup. Shakey old man with old.old eyes...........

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USMC 69-93 Combat Pistol Inst.

I sent a Single Action Army in to them to be refinished a number of years back, and while on the phone, I asked for a supervisor and gave him an earful about why didn't they break the lettering anymore? Go look at a real 70 Series, then any new Colt. It's enough to make you weep. ( I had a WWI repro about four years ago, and it bothered me so much that I was considering having it refinished. Sold it instead.) I also told him when the lettering on an Auto Ordnance looked better than the lettering on a Colt, something was seriously wrong. I couldn't find fault mechanically with my newer Colts, but the appearance just bothers me. Anyway, sorry about the rant.

I tip my hat, sir

I thank you very much. If any of you folks are near Sebastian, Florida, please come shoot with us. Mostly Colts and S&W's, every Friday. Other days are reserved for rifles.

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USMC 69-93 Combat Pistol Inst.