Springfield Armory Museum - Collection Record



Home | Advanced Collection Search | Advanced Archival Search | Rate Your Search


Send us your own comments about this object.

Title:PISTOL, SEMI-AUTOMATIC -  COLT PISTOL EXPERIMENTAL .45ACP
Maker/Manufacturer:BROWNING, JOHN MOSES/GUIDE LAMP DIVISION OF GM
Date of Manufacture:1945
Eminent Figure:
Catalog Number:SPAR 1379
Measurements:OL: 21.8CM 8 5/8" BL: 12.7CM 5" 51 oz.

Object Description:

COLT PISTOL EXPERIMENTAL .45ACP
Manufactured by Guide Lamp Division of GM, Dayton, Oh. - Experimental recoil semi-automatic pistol with 7-round box magazine feed mechanism. Made from stamped sheet fabrication in order to determine if this would be practical for handguns. Metal surfaces are parkerized. Magazine missing. Weapon weighs approximately 51 oz.

No markings.

Exhibit label: "COLT M1911A1 (EXPERIMENTAL) .45 caliber, 1947, less than 20 made. After World War II the Army investigated the adoption of a lightweight .45 caliber automatic pistol. A number of variations were considered; Colt worked with an aluminum weapon, and some made from sheet metal stampings, as is the pistol displayed here."

Notes: " During the last days of the Third Reich, the German government set up a program to develop and mass-produce simple and inexpensive weapons for Home Guard and civilians to use in a last-ditch defense. Mauser, Walther, and Gustloff Werke all worked on designs for the Volkspistole, a stamped, sheet metal pistol chambered for the 9mm Parabellum cartridge. Existing examples are crude, ugly, and possibly on the hairy edge of safety. They do, however, shoot, which is all that could be asked under the circumstances.
Advantages of Sheet Metal - After World War II, General Motors' Guide Lamp Division, the makers of the single-shot .45 ACP Liberator pistol, were curious as to the potential of similar sheet metal construction for a version of the issue M1911A1. Sheet metal has certain advantages in manufacturing: it's cheap, it requires less sophisticated machinery and less skilled labor, and changes in design require less lead time. Twenty prototypes were made at the Guide Lamp facilities in Dayton, Ohio. The pistol was recoil-operated, featured a Parkerized finish on all surfaces, and used the standard M1911A1 magazine. It was no lightweight, the sheet metal prototype weighed 51 ounces, as opposed to the standard Model 1911A1's 39 ounces.
Although the Guide Lamp attempt at simplifying handgun production is now all but forgotten, the principle has not been discarded. In 1949, Messrs. Sturm and Ruger entered the market with a .22 semi-automatic pistol that featured a frame made of two stamped sheet metal halves welded together. The pistol, the classic Standard Model, is a success to this day." - Atlas Editions, Inc.

LABEL ERROR

Rate Your Search


Searching provided by:
 Re:discovery Software Logo, and link to go to www.RedsicoverySoftware.com