I picked up this U.S.&S. 1911a1 a while back. The gun has a good look to it but i believe it is an old re-blue that has about fallen off. But i have also seen pics of US&S guns with a similar blotchy look. The barrel, recoil spring cap, guide rod and possibly the barrel bushing are not original. Everything else looks good. Someone probably robbed those parts to complete an original finish gun. Have yet to shoot it. Still a nice gun and one of the more scarce variations.

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A great piece of history. Congrats!

Very nice. Just missed a very nice example. Still kicking myself

Mis-Matched parts: typical GI M1911A1

I recently picked up a 1911A1 from CMP that had a US&S receiver but the slide was from Colt. Overall a very nice pistol.

I once had a US&S bring back... got it from coworker... Naval veteran dad passed and mom wanted him to take it to the sheriff to get rid of it... glad we had lunch that day... lol... traded it to a friend that was a Kimber dealer... swapped for a stainless Target Kimber - first generation... at the time it was a great deal... not so much now... mine was 98% and was parkerized if that helps anyone

I’d love to own the OP’s pistol. I grew up across the river from US&S and had friends that worked there. All that’s there now is a shopping center.

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Robvious, The US&S pistols all were blue. they used the DuLite blue that all the makers used until parkerizing became standard after the US&S contract was terminated early after only 55,000 pistols were made. lee

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Yeah, we could go on & on about all these historic mills, plants, factories, etc., that shut down around here, eh? Lucky for me I was only 27 when my 9-year tenure in the mill came to a halt. You'd think a couple would have some nice shooting ranges on them. I forgot all about US & S manufacturing the 1911s. Like the military Jeeps from Butler. I'd like to get ahold of a mixed-matched set of parts like that in an "original" 1911, let alone an all original, if there i$ $uch a thing left (that would al$o fit in my wallet!)

For the OP, it looks like an old cold blue, but I am far from an expert on them. Whatever it is, looks like the slide and frame have been together for a long time.

I got a nice US&S frame with a Rem Rand slide on it. Some small parts are US&S, but not all. I would love to find a US&S slide for it. They made 3 types of slides, the early ones did not have a P stamping on the slide, the next ones mfr had a hanging P (stamped on the top edge of the slide, and later ones had the P moved to the top center. I need an early one without the P marking.

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Charlie

I agree i believe it is an old cold blue. Luckily it has about fallen completely off. This pistol has the "hanging P" stamping. Might be a candidate for a restore. Really just need an H S barrel to get going.

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Back in the DCM days of the early 1960s, they were selling 1911A1s for I think around $20. I ordered one, and it (a US&S) arrived in essentially new condition. As a total fool, I sold it to a friend maybe a year later for, I think, $25.

Is there any kind of registry that owners could use to find people to swap parts with, and get back to a 1-manufacturer gun? Or is this not desirable?

Kinda getting interested... wouldn’t mind having an ex-mil pair of shooters 1911 and 1917).

I have a Remington Rand with A Colt Slide.Mine is Blued also. I have been looking for someone to trade with to get a Remington Rand slide but no luck yet.

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Shouldn't be too difficult to find a willing swapper. Colt slides are somewhat scarcer than R-R slides.

That's what I mean... there should be a web page where you can list what parts yours is made of, and find various people with the opposite config in any given pair or parts, so that you can each get closer to orig.

Probably have to post pix to show wear and finish, have some kind of setup to avoid fraud, etc.

For all you 1911A1 US&S fans you'll enjoy this war film.

For sake of comparison, here is a US&S 1911A1 from my collection. It's original in all respects, including the DuLite bluing. It was manufactured in 1943. If you happen to have a 2003 copy of Gun Digest, check my article on 20th Century U.S. military .45s for more info on this and other manufacturers.

John

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- Cogito, ergo armatus sum -

Nice @ the OP. I had a chance on one a few years ago, think about 3 years ago, for ~$3500. I am sure if I gave the fella the money, and he sold it, he wouldn't be happy, so we just enjoyed our shared hobby and I told him to hang on to it. No idea what value they are, but always thought it was cool.

John/Paladin,

Can you please grace us with your collective photo on these guns? The one where you have every --just about--variant present? I'd like to kindly share with the wife to show her I am not as bad as you; and that you have been a bad influence.....

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Rather be outdoors

All known US&S pistols were finished with the DuLite bluing process, which presents a thinned and frequently irregular appearance. Based on the OP's photo I would suspect that this may be the original finish that has worn over time. WW2 contracts specified the Parkerizing process, but wartime exigencies led to acceptance of the non-standard pistols to fill essential needs.

Many issued pistols will have some mismatched parts. This was normal for unit maintenance procedures. If the pistol were ever sent for arsenal re-work it would most likely have been Parkerized and mismatching of parts would be all over the board.

US&S subcontracted several parts including barrels, magazines, some springs, and others. This was common among the various producers of WW2 era, and cooperation was encouraged between the various companies to facilitate war-time production efforts.

All US&S pistols are of interest to collectors due to the relatively low production numbers. US&S had some serious labor problems during the contract period, missing a few payrolls and causing quite a bit of animosity among the workforce. More than a few pistols disappeared from the factory, presumably taken by workers who resented not being paid on time. One of my US&S pistols came from the estate of the son of a man who worked at the US&S plant during that time and proudly displayed that pistol as proof that he had gotten something for his time and skills while many others had not received anything.

Union Switch & Signal Corporation was a manufacturer of equipment for railroad applications (switching and signaling gear), based in Swissvale, Pennsylvania.

Sure. Check my photo album on this forum here:

smith-wessonforum.com/members/paladin85020-albums-u-s-models-1911-and-1911a1-45-pistols.html

The picture I think you remember might be this one, which covers U.S. 20th Century military .45s of almost all types, not just the 1911 series.

John

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Here's another DCM 1911A1, a Rock Island Arsenal rebuild with a Remington frame and a US&S slide.

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