WWII Colt with HS Barrel

[1903nm]

2341123412First let me state that I am not a pistol expert. I purchased a Colt 45 Automatic a while back because it looked so good and the slide was very tight fighting to the frame. Litlle did I know then that it had a HS barrel. I suspect this was a field replacement but wonder if this diminshes the collectors value much. My son turns 21 in a few months and he has had his eyes on this pistol since I got it. I expect to give it to him as he seems to enjoy collecting military guns. Are there Colt barrels floating around for a 1.1 million Colt?

[Duane Hansen]

Your pistol would have started out with a Colt marked barrel that has an "F" stamped in front of the lugs. Even if you change the barrel to a correct type Colt barrel, it will never be original and thats what serious collectors really care about. Having the HS replacement barrel in it now definately effects the value of the pistol. Changing the barrel may help a bit but it will never have the value that an all original example would have. And another thing to consider is that the Colt "F" marked barrels are getting harder to find in any condition and even if you do find one they can be expensive. Maybe $250 to $400 range depending on condition.

Can you show us some pictures? Is everthing else original?

Leaving the pistol as is would probably be the best option, in my opinion.

[1903nm]

Thank you Duane for replying. I took two pictures which were from my phone and may not be that good. Everything else looks correct & original and I would rate this pistol at 95% overall. I'd love to find an "F" marked barrel, as this pistol is way too nice to not restore correctly.

[Duane Hansen]

Thank you Duane for replying. I took two pictures which were from my phone and may not be that good. Everything else looks correct & original and I would rate this pistol at 95% overall. I'd love to find an "F" marked barrel, as this pistol is way too nice to not restore correctly.

I can't really tell too much from the pictures but it does look like it could be a very nice pistol. And I'll have to say that if it were mine I would probably want to see if I could'nt find a correct "F" marked Colt barrel for it too.

[John Sukey]

Just a small point. To an armorer, "parts is parts" The idea was to get the firearm back in service, They were not worried about what a collector would think today.

It gets even more ridiculous with Garand collectors. Apparently the opinion is that military rifles always are in the condition thy left the factory and NEVER get repaired!

[Johnny P]

The OP's question was whether the High Standard barrel diminished the collector value of the Colt, and it does. The barrel may have been changed 70 years ago, or it may have been changed 7 years ago, and either way it is not the original type barrel.

[SPEEDGUNNER]

Finding the correct "F" Colt barrel will return the pistol to original. No one will know the difference. You can recoup your cost to by the correct barrel by selling the "HS" barrel, it is worth $100-150 depending on condition and bore.

[Duane Hansen]

Finding the correct "F" Colt barrel will return the pistol to original. No one will know the difference. You can recoup your cost to by the correct barrel by selling the "HS" barrel, it is worth $100-150 depending on condition and bore.

This is all true to a degree but a true serious 1911/1911A1 collector can actually tell if the barrel has been with the pistol for any length of time. By field stripping the pistol and comparing the mating surface on the slide to barrel and barrel to frame surface. Where they mate together a definate pattern can usually be detected. (If one really cares to.) What I'm saying is that it will never be truely original ever again even though it may be all correct. I know that many won't be able to tell and others won't even care. Just the way it is. But you are right in that you will probably be able to get a little more for it when it has a CORRECT barrel in it. IMO

[Scott Gahimer]

Originality....every collector wants something exactly how it was manufactured. Yes, parts were sometimes changed out by military armorers, but a lot more parts have been changed by those outside the military seeking to collect or sell "original" examples.

The problem with parts that have been swapped out is one can rarely ever know exactly when the parts were changed...or by whom. The advantage a truly original piece has is obvious...you don't have to wonder who has been messing with the item.

Truly original pistols still exist today. The key for any buyer is being able to inspect and identify the parts that have been changed. Duane is right...a lot guys simply don't know what they are looking at, and others simply do not care.

There are many sellers today who don't know and don't care. It's all about the money to them. They will choose to swap out an original barrel because they think another barrel in better condition will make the pistol sell for more money. Ignorance is the biggest enemy of any purist collector. Swapped parts stick out like a sore thumb to any experienced collector.

Regarding rifles...a lot of rifles returned home after WWI and/or WWII still all original. Those that remained in service eventually were scheduled for overhaul as routine maintenance. Just like in pistol collecting, an experienced purist collector will seek items that did not require overhaul.

Original = the item has all the same parts as when procured by the government. No parts have been changed. A corrected example will never be worth as much as an original. With original examples, there isn't anything to wonder about, nothing to explain away.

[Duane Hansen]

Well said Scott.....