# WWII Colt???



## YFZsandrider (Feb 28, 2009)

I saw a program on television tonight, although unrelated to the topic, mentioned that many service personnel, after the war, kept their G.I. 1911's. Just wondering if anyone knows more about this, and how easy are they to find?


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## gmaske (Jan 7, 2008)

My understanding is that there are quite a few out there.


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## Marcus99 (Apr 23, 2008)

I dunno if they got to legitimately keep theirs or not. My grandfather had to turn his in at the end of his service. I thought for a time he had kept his buts apparently not. There were alot of them in circulation, wouldnt surprise me if a few got through to the civilian market. Maybe someone with a bit more knowledge knows what the government did with the surplus after the war.

Sure would be nice to have one though. How about from the first world war! Ive seen one or two are shows, they command a high price though.


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## Captain Crunch (Jul 4, 2006)

Many commissioned officers were allowed to purchase their sidearms when they were demobilized at the end of WW2. No doubt, many 1911s came home in duffle bags and seabags, there's no way of knowing how many. 

The government sold surplus 1911s to the public through the DCM, but that program dried up in the early sixties. A small amount were sold as surplus through the NRA.

Many M1911 and M1911A1 pistols were rebuilt/refurbished at the various arsenals and Ordnance depots after WW2, and either returned to active service or placed in storage. 

Many thousands were sold to our allies, such as South Korea and South Vietnam.

The M1911s that were retired when the Beretta M9 was adopted are still in government storage.


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## DevilsJohnson (Oct 21, 2007)

Several of my Fathers friends had theirs from the war. Oddly they all took the serial numbers off them and I was told this happened a lot. I'm not exactly sure why but it apparently was pretty normal for these guys to do that. Several older guys I know that have them from the war have them with no numbers on them. The people that bought them after the numbers are still on them. I would have thought to have an altered firearm like that would be a world of trouble that I'd not want to get involved with. Two of the guys I knew that had them like that were both buried with the weapons. I'm not sure about the others as I had moved to another state after meeting them.

I'm guessing that they were not supposed to have the weapons but found a way to get them home and wanted to disrupt any paper trail.


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## Marcus99 (Apr 23, 2008)

DevilsJohnson said:


> Several of my Fathers friends had theirs from the war. Oddly they all took the serial numbers off them and I was told this happened a lot. I'm not exactly sure why but it apparently was pretty normal for these guys to do that. Several older guys I know that have them from the war have them with no numbers on them. The people that bought them after the numbers are still on them. I would have thought to have an altered firearm like that would be a world of trouble that I'd not want to get involved with. Two of the guys I knew that had them like that were both buried with the weapons. I'm not sure about the others as I had moved to another state after meeting them.
> 
> I'm guessing that they were not supposed to have the weapons but found a way to get them home and wanted to disrupt any paper trail.


Devil,

I'd suspect that there are indeed a few older guys out there that have some relics from their parents or something they got in the second world war/korea/vietnam that grew up in a time where firearm laws were more or less unheard of are at least not really followed. Probably weren't avide shooters and just kept it somewhere in the house, ya know.


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## AirForceShooter (May 6, 2006)

My Dad and his friends could have supplied a nice sized Comapny from what they brought home from WWII.
1911's Lugers, P-38's. and God only know what else.
It's funny it was mostly hand guns and not long arms. I never saw a bring back M-1.

I didn't get to bring a thing back from Viet Nam.

AFS


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