Wife and I hit a local re-sale shop here on the island.
She is looking for an old trunk.
Guy that owns the joint always has a showcase
with some "guy" stuff".
I am looking at some old Zippos's and spot this laying in the back.
Colt 1903 Hammerless in .32 cal. living in an old
Bucheimer/Clark rig.
Based on the condition it likely spent most of it's life here
on the island. No rust...lots of holster wear.
Serial number puts it at 1913 mfg.
$300 firm. I bit.....
Very nice. I'm fond of the Colt 1903 Pocket Hammerless and 1908, but they tend to be rather pricey, (upwards of $800 in good condition) so you got a good deal. I've only see one other in person of a similar price, but it had basically all of its finish worn off and didn't come with a holster.
What's more, the Colt 1903 Pocket Hammerless and its .380 ACP counterpart the 1908 have become increasingly scarce over the years, so prices are on the rise.
Personally, I abandoned my persuit of a Colt 1908 due to lack of availability in anything resembling decent condition for a reasonable price and settled for a Tokarev TT33, which is really more of a hybrid between the FN 1903 and the Colt 1911, but the aesthetics are close enough to satisfy me and it only cost me $220. Plus it comes chambered in an interesting cartridge, the 7.62x25 Tokarev, which is basically the 1930's equivalent of the 5.7x28 FN.
$300 is a very fair price. Add in the holster and it is darn near a crime in progress.
I have bought two 1903s in the last five years, both shooter grade. The prices have nearly doubled in that time - and original mags are a better investment.
The 1903s are superb shooters and masterworks of Art Deco age in design/production. Every time I disassemble one, I am reminded of the brilliance of John Moses Browning - and wonder why did he make this decision or that?
That and nothing.…nothing! feels as reassuring slipped in AIWB as that 1903. JMB seemingly had the hand of providence guiding him in shaping the 1903 to sit behind a man’s strongside braces.
Nice find! I wouldn't do anything to it except clean it and shoot it. wonder what tales it could tell?
I have a 1943 wartime manufactured 1903, issued to my stepdad, who gave it to me before he passed 20 years ago. It's blued and has the "US Property" stamp on it.
You may find that this pistol will only like FMJ rounds, or hollow points with a rounded nose. The flat-sided, tapered rounds like Hornady XTP don't feed well. I only occasionally take mine out to shoot, it's the closest I have to a safe queen.
Don’t pay the crazy prices for original mags - U S Armament is the company that made the current 1903s for Colt and they sell great mags (and barrels):
I bought one like yours back in the early 1960s; bought a box of factory ammo. I couldn't hit anything smaller than a barn and traded it off. The ammo was expensive too considering we got paid small beans back then!
I have noticed in the old 1930s gangster movies that Cagney, Robinson, Bogart and other small bad guys were carrying Colt 1903s or 1908s. Little Alan Ladd in "This Gun for Hire" did a lot of damage with a little Colt.
....
No rust...lots of holster wear.
Serial number puts it at 1913 mfg.
$300 firm. I bit.....
Great deal! I paid $249 for this one after discovering it at the back of the gun case in a Cabela’s gun library some years ago, and still think I got a great deal despite the fact that all the finish is rubbed off. It’s a 1917 vintage. For just 50 bucks more you got a basically intact blue finish!
....
The real Norwegian resistance agent in David Horwath's, We Die Alone had a.32 Colt, I think. OSS used them, and generals were issued those.
And as I always point out in threads about these, the British SOE got a bunch and most famously armed the Czech agents sent to Prague to assassinate Reinhard Heydrich with them in 1942.
The photo shows an original Model M on display in Prague at the site of the final stand, although it’s unclear whether it is one of the actual pistols.
I'd say you got a fabulous deal! When I got out of Colts many years ago in preparation to get into S&W firearms with passion, the SAA's, the 1911, 1911A1's, the Python, Trooper all went for decent money and fairly quickly.
I had two 1903's, 1 was a 1919 that was gifted to a former USMC, Nam vet who had sold his to make ends meet way back in the late 60's and upon his retirement, I gave him a package (the gun was original finish and mag, the grips cracked so we had repro's installed)....he was thrilled and I know he still treasures it to this day.
The other one also original and in great condition, original mag and grips was known as Type III (integral barrel bushing) first year (1910-1926). Interesting is that the gun had the early patent date of 1897 on left side rollmark...considered a plus by Collectors. Also it had the early Type I grips, which were also common to type II (1909-1910) manufactured guns as well as first year issue type III as Colt used up inventory.
As said for many years there was no interest in my gun and it was priced right around $500. I withdrew it from sales outlets that I use, and stashed it away along with a box of ammo. Lo and behold about 3 years ago I got a call wanting to know if I still had it for sale. Guy wanted to shoot it first so we met, he tried it, was so satisfied he gave me six hundred on the spot.
Now I see them when available for $800 to $1000 in similar shape, but since I got out of Colts I don't have any seller remorse.
Enjoy yours and in case you don't have a Manual for that little beauty....attached please find one.
I got this 1903 recently from a member here. I had bought the holster on a whim because it was just to nice to pass up and had no idea what gun it fit. So after some advice from the holster gurus here we figured out it fit a 1903 so I had to buy a gun to fit.
Here's a couple of photos of the rig, they're some of the holster missing the stud which I have since replaced.
Always wanted a nice clean 1908. Recently made an offer on one and could have gotten it for $650 but ended up passing on it in the end. It was in pretty nice condition.
I only have one in this pattern. I bought it because my mother's father had one in nickel (32 ACP) when I was a young lad. I admired that gun and when he passed, it found an avenue to another home (not me). I looked for years before my dad found this one for me. It is 380, but I like it just fine. I even found some neat leather for it.
This little Colt has several pairs of shoes. I had the mother of pearl on to give it a fancy air to go with the floral carved holster. I have sambar stag and the original black plastic stocks for this one, but the stag has a loose escutcheon and the black plastic stocks have a crack that I don't wish to see spread.
I only have one in this pattern. I bought it because my mother's father had one in nickel (32 ACP) when I was a young lad. I admired that gun and when he passed, it found an avenue to another home (not me). I looked for years before my dad found this one for me. It is 380, but I like it just fine. I even found some neat leather for it.
This little Colt has several pairs of shoes. I had the mother of pearl on to give it a fancy air to go with the floral carved holster. I have sambar stag and the original black plastic stocks for this one, but the stag has a loose escutcheon and the black plastic stocks have a crack that I don't wish to see spread.
That is one beautiful holster. My grandfather made one similar for my cap pistol in the early 1950s. The plastic and nylon of today don't compare!
$300 in almost any condition is a great deal, Congratulations!
Mine was only $150, but as you can see, it was in somewhat worse shape. In fact it sat in Kroil for weeks before I could even get the magazine free.
Having said that, it’s a point of pride for me to say that not only does it function, but I’ve fired it several times and it functions perfectly (the magazine was obviously replaced, as well as the smaller grip springs, that thin metal didn’t hold up well to this extensive oxidation). It also gave me my first chance to try rust bluing, and while the pitting remains, the bluing came out pretty well.
Someone mentioned it earlier, But it bears repeating, if you ever have the opportunity (read as painful experience) to disassemble and reassemble one of these, you will know what a genius John Browning really was.
Well, you did a fantastic job restoring it, NavySCPO. My TT33 (pictured in a previous post) was all dirty and rusted up in the mag well just like your 1903. I had to let the magazine soak in Ballistol for a week before I could even disassemble it, and once I did it was all rusted out inside.
Fortunately, I was able to clean the TT33 itself up quite nicely. (Unfortunately, I forgot to take any "before" pictures, so all I have are the "after" photos.)
My Spanish Echave Y Arizmendi from Eibar is similarly based on the Browning 1906. It is the 6.35 1918 Model Automatic Pistol 'Bronco'. Mine sat in a leather holster too long but functions okay for a 100 year old piece.
Last edited by 50bulletnose; 08-01-2020 at 04:03 PM.
My Spanish Eschave Y Arizmendi from Eibar is similarly based on the Browning 1906. It is the 6.35 1918 Model Automatic Pistol 'Bronco'.....
Baby Ruby!
Quite a few Eibar gunmakers produced pocket-sized versions in .25 after the end of the French contracts. And of course the Ruby was an unlicensed derivative of JMB’s 1903 design. Mine is by Arizmendi y Goenaga. The Arizmendi name was associated with several gun producers in Eibar.
Not as nice as many of yours, but this came through my uncle who became City of Kalamazoo police during World War II when the younger men went to fight. Have shot it a few times but definitely need to find a mag spring. Was apparently stored for many years and not used. Passed to me when my mother died. Very early four digit serial number.
Last edited by Early Bird Dave; 08-17-2020 at 07:08 PM.
Colt 1903....
Colt 1908
Linear Mode
