Being a Colt, and knowing Colt as I do, I would say new in box, fired at the factory only........

 

I believe the standard answer is 'approximately 500'. It seems that just about every single used pistol I've come across has reportedly been fired only 'approximately 500 times'. A remarkable coincidence, but apparently true nonetheless.

 

Mostly from the guide rod wear, I’m going to say 15K, or there abouts!
Is that a crack in the foot of barrel lug?

 

I think it looks to be in fairly decent shape (what Mr. Cuber points out above looks like a crack on the right barrel foot doesn't seem to show from the rear view). Not much blue wear on the receiver deck, barrel seat, or the bow-tie.

The breech face looks rough but it's hard to know whether those are Colt tool marks or not. Pitting around the firing pin hole, possible scabbing where the barrel hood contacts. I would imagine the face would have more of a polished appearance the more rounds through it.

If I may, why is it you are asking?

 

I think it looks to be in fairly decent shape (what Mr. Cuber points out above looks like a crack on the right barrel foot doesn't seem to show from the rear view). Not much blue wear on the receiver deck, barrel seat, or the bow-tie.

View attachment 777251 View attachment 777252

The breech face looks rough but it's hard to know whether those are Colt tool marks or not. Pitting around the firing pin hole, possible scabbing where the barrel hood contacts. I would imagine the face would have more of a polished appearance the more rounds through it.

View attachment 777253

If I may, why is it you are asking?

Just thought it’d make for a bit of fun. I’ve always found posts showing honest wear interesting and figured I’d contribute while I had it out.

I think that might be a trick of the light but I’ll certainly double check the barrel.

 

I think the best thought when looking at a 1911 for how much it had been shot is examining the breech face for flame cutting. None here. NV

 

There's no way to know, of course. I don't worry about round counts; I look at condition. If a gun has seen use but has been well maintained, that's probably a go.
If a gun shows little wear but shows signs of neglect, I'll pass.

Take it home, then shoot it and see if it needs anything. Springs are cheap. Barrels are available at many price levels.

Just like with a used car, you need to allow some money to fix whatever it was that caused the seller to sell.
Most of the time with guns, that turns out not to be necessary. But it might be, so factor that in.

For example, not too long ago I decided to get a "beater" 1911 to keep in my truck. I picked up a Thompson Ordnance 1911A1, for no other reason that I liked the look of the bullet logo with the cursive script on a blued gun.

I'd heard all the horror stories about those guns being crap or whatever, but research seemed to indicate that the problem was likely to be the result of early MIM parts or maybe GI-reject parts.

So I looked at the cost of new internals (fire control), new recoil and/or main spring, and maybe a new barrel and mentally added that to the price of the gun.
So I found a cheap one online that looked to be in good condition with a nice finish, and appeared to have seen some use (which meant it had been working well enough for someone; a good sign), crossed my fingers and bought it.

It shot fine; though it wasn't ejecting too well a new recoil spring fixed that.
A little polishing of the internals, fixing the sear profile and hammer spurs, etc. and it's greatly improved.
I dabbed a little Oxpho Blue here and there, and it looks almost new.

Since I didn't have to really do anything remedial, I blew the contingency money on a Wilson extended slide release and thumb safety, replaced that crappy-looking trigger and the flat MSH for an arched one, and decided to replace the hammer spring for good measure. The original grips were worn, so I dropped ten bucks on a pair of GI contract plastic grip panels.

Now it's too nice to keep in the truck!

 

19,000 +/-.

 

If you go back to the first set of photos posted by Lucky, right click on the photo, then left click on 'open image in new tab'. Go to the new tab, and you'll see a little + sign when you hover over the image. Left click while hovering and the 'zoomed in' close up will provide much more detail.
Looking at the presumed 'crack' seems to show it as a tool mark. And the marks on the breech face above the FP hole looks to me to have been made by a Dremel Tool stone...pretty clear.

 

African swallow or European swallow?

 

Answer is: just above 6k rounds.

 

 

 

Is this some kind of test for us or are you looking at this gun to buy it? Either way we need the following:
While there is no precise method to determine the exact number of rounds fired through that 1911, combining visual inspection, performance testing, and historical context I/we, can provide a reasonable estimate. We need a lot more to give you a reasonable idea of how many rds have been through that gun. Any service records wit the gun?
Why no internal barrel pics—if barrel is indeed original? Need to look for signs of wear or pitting inside of barrel. A smooth shiny barrel indicates fewer rds through the barrel. The photos need better lighting to see the wear on the slide and the frame. I would want to measure and test the spring. Since we can’t see the wear well on them w/o better lighting it s hard to tell. How often was it used? I would want to put it together and rack it numerous times to see if it hangs up, jams excessively which it would indicate if it was shot extensively. If I were buying it I would want to shoot it to evaluate the accuracy at various distances. A decline in accuracy can indicate wear from high usage. BTW, if I want to shoot your gun I pay for range time and ammo for my evaluation… I never put that on owner.
I want to know if the gun has been used for training or competition?If so it may have significantly more rounds through it.
Competitive shooters often fire 400-600 rounds per session. If the owner is a regular shooter, this can add up quickly. Was the gun used in competitive shooting? If yes it is often fired 400-600 rounds per session. If you are a regular shooter, this can add up quickly.
Ifbthis is some kind of test for us then tell us what for? I assume there is some element of involving us in some sort of test? Since your post starts out with Riddle me this. Maybe, your screen name should be “ Joker” instead of “Lucky.”

 

Is this a quiz so you will know who to pay attention to?

 

More than 35,000 rounds

 

Interesting post. Lucky! I don't recall ever seeing one like it

 

Two fiddy.

 

Don't look like much rounds through. But you cannot really know round counts by looking at it. You can pull a new recoil spring and place side by side with the old one to give you a sense of how long the previous spring has been in that pistol. But that will still not give you a good measure of round counts if prior owner keep up this maintenance schedule with spring changes.

If you have concern, always replace recoil spring and firing pin spring with no ways of knowing prior round counts. Other thing is check barrel lockup etc.

 

Hey Lucky…they don’t make em like they used too…..

 

722.

 

My rookie eyes are fixated on the breech face. First, Colt didn't seem to be concerned with removing the tool marks from it. Second, the breech face doesn't bear the indentations from the case heads that pistols with a lot of rounds on them typically do. Third, who knows the cause of all of the tiny punch-like marks at the top of the breech face? I don't recall ever seeing those.

 

3000

 

Yes, from slide wear and barrel wear i would estimate 3000 to 4000 rounds fired. Condidering it's mass produced firearm wear pattern indicates well fitted and assembled gun, nicely broken in firearm.

 

10,000

 

Metric or English?

 

4327 ... or there abouts.