[Steelharp]

... looks a bit like a tribute to the Civil War. Had it out in the sun today, and while the slide is a gorgeous blue... the frame is kinda grayish... ? What's up wid dat?

Mikey D...

 

[ColtM4A3]

There wernt nothing civil about the war and the correct name for that conflict is The War of Northern Aggression.

I would guess that the blueing on the frame was done at a different place than the Slide. I dont think they do the Slide bluing inhouse.

 

[M1991A1]

My brothers had the same finish problem. DSK found out that the preservitive used on the slide did not come completly off before finishing resulting in the differant finish. My brother sent his back to Colt and they promptly refinished the slide under warrenty.

 

[dsk]

Another thing to remember is the slide and frame are heat treated differently. The slides are usually quite hard, while the frames may possibly not be hardened at all. This can easily affect the color of the bluing. Remember the purplish color on so many pre-70 and early Series 70 slides? While it may be possible to get a color match anyway, I'm sure Colt's finisher isn't willing to reblue the parts over and over until the finish is "just right", especially when different lighting can affect the appearance as well to the naked eye.

 

[Parker Dean]

I also remember somebody around here saying that an original WWI-era 1911 had a similar color difference. A search on the WWI should turn the post up.

 

[Mark1648]

Ron's Gun Shop, Oshkosh WI. They do all of the bluing, the guy's name is Paul, he has spent a great deal of time researching and replicating the original process. We talk from time to time, and I rag on him alittle about color match, but the truth is some come out perfect and some are a little off, this is the nature of the beast. As we get further into this we can begin to match up different batches to get color closer, he is working on getting a more consistant process and we are doing what is needed on our end to give him consistant parts to work with. The heat treating point is true, the slide is heat treated and the receiver is not, this adds to the issue.

 

[ColtBuff]

The War

There wernt nothing civil about the war and the correct name for that conflict is The War of Northern Aggression.

I would guess that the blueing on the frame was done at a different place than the Slide. I dont think they do the Slide bluing inhouse.

In the Volunteer State, we calls it the Yankee Invasion of '61


C-Buff

 

[pl45]

Hello,
I am Paul Lippold, and the person who is doing the finishing on the Colt 1911 WWI replicas. Since I occasionally pop in here and take a look at what’s going on, I thought I would jump in and add a little info for those who might be interested. First off, let me say that working with Colt on this project has been a pleasure, and I can tell you that everyone I work with there is really determined to make a first rate quality product! The finish on these pistols is the “true” Carbonia method, and is the exact same process that Colt had originally used. Now I’ll tackle the big color “thing”. Needless to say, the manufacturing of firearms has passed by this finish a long time ago, and we actually see this finish completely dropped by the end WWII by all the major manufacturers. The alloys and heat-treating methods used to produce firearms today is quite a bit different than it was back then, and those two items combined have a major affect to the finish. The fact that this finish can be accommodated to the modern steels is a testament to how good this old finish actually is. Of course, it is not without it’s negative side. Mostly being the care of polishing, cleanliness of product (and I mean squeaky clean!), and absolute perfection in finish processing, it is more art than science. This finish is completely different in how it produces its color compared to all modern blueing finishes. Carbonia is not an oxidizing process! It is blueing steel with heat, and that is a major difference. That is why the heat-treating issue does come into play. Oh yeah, Mark really doesn’t rag too much at all, he has a pretty placid personality Really though, everyone on this board is lucky to have Mark contribute to it, he is a great guy to work with. Paul.

 

[Steelharp]

Paul, welcome, and thank you for your reply. Excellent insight into matters I knew nothing about. Let me say, I was not complaining about the finish, I just happened to notice it, and wondered what might have caused it. I would never send it back to attempt to change it. This is how it was made, and I intend to keep it just like it is.

Thanks, Mikey D...

 

[Rrotz]

WOW! Try getting any other 1911 manufacturers to contribute to the forum and actually INTERACT with a customer base! I only liked Colt to start with because they make a wonderful product. NOW, I LOVE COLT BECAUSE THEY ACTUALLY SEEM TO CARE!

Colt has turned this frugal buyer into a LOYAL CUSTOMER! I'll be collecting only Colt 1911's, AR15's and other Colt Products from now on!

Thank you, Paul and Mark for representing Colt in such a manner befitting Samuel Colt's fine name.

 

[Parker Dean]

WOW! Try getting any other 1911 manufacturers to contribute to the forum and actually INTERACT with a customer base!

Well, actually over on the Dan Wesson forum the company president and the shop manager both drop in on a regular basis. Plus they ask for input on new models from the forum. The Razorback was the product of forum input and there's a thread right now to hash out some ideas for new caliber and model offerings.

Regardless, I know what you mean. I can just imagine hearing from, say, Dennis from the evil "K" company

On another note, if y'all keep this up about how different the Carbonia bluing is, you're going to make me have to get a WWI you know

 

[WiseguyThreeOne]

And Gary Smith is ALWAYS on the Caspian Arms forum. Still, it's amazing to get a description of the bluing on what might be my next 1911.....

 

[alarmguy]

I'd like to be able to comment on the quality of the finish but so far the fact that these pistols even exist is just rumor and speculation as no gun shop in central Ohio has had any. I spoke to one of the owners of the major gun shop in the area and had to convince him I wasn't talking about the WWII repro. I've been trying to get one since early August.

 

[guy sajer]

Paul pl45

Thanks for your insight . Please don't be a stranger here at the forum .

"Northern Aggression" , "Invasion" ?
Let me think for a minute , who attacked Ft Sumter ???

 

[ColtBuff]

Re: Paul pl45

Thanks for your insight . Please don't be a stranger here at the forum .

"Northern Aggression" , "Invasion" ?
Let me think for a minute , who attacked Ft Sumter ???

They asked them to abandon the fort before they fired.
Once South Carolina became soverieng state, the occupation
of Fort Sumter was unlawful and just plain bad manners.

C-Buff

 

[guy sajer]

Well that's a whole 'nother story . Maybe you should've afforded us some of that famous Southern hospitality . Asked us to join you in a couple bourbons and we could have saved a passle of trouble .

 

[scratchy wilson]

Does Ron's Gun Shop have a link?

Silly me(thank goodness for Google )


http://www.ronsgunshop.com/

wish there were before pix of the 1911 restoration

 

[DHart]

Mark and Paul.... it's just awesome to have you guys contributing here... makes all the difference to those of us who love and support Colts! Thanks.

 

[FirearmsPlus.FL]

And Gary Smith is ALWAYS on the Caspian Arms forum.

True, now if only his profile had the correct Caspian web site info, he'd be doing good.
(I emailed him and posted once about it I think.)

Still, it's amazing to get a description of the bluing on what might be my next 1911.....

They really are neat guns, though I've only had the one pass through here. I want one, but just too many other things on the plate right now. The walnut grips were great, and I had to go buy one of the disassembly tools right away

Now, if only Colt would have a "half price" deal like Kahr does for employee's of dealers...