Was there ever a Colt CAR-15 open bolt design?

alvin · 03-22-2012, 05:32 AM

I had acquired a NIB Colt 6520 green label years ago from a bankrupt FFL dealer. The gun was later sold to a new collector. In general, he's happy on the condition. But, he carried the gun to a local gun expert, and the expert told him, "Weird, this carbine should be 'open bolt', but this one is 'close bolt', which is much less collectible......"

So the buyer came back to me asking "where is the correct bolt?"..... "Sorry, I don't have it, and I have never heard of such a thing on Colt CAR"..... The buyer still decided to keep the gun. But asked me "Did you wrongly install the bolt on it during assembly?"

Of course not, I had only one Colt, and that's the only one. But this 'open bolt' argument confused me. From the expert's statement, sounds like open bolt CAR was not a prototype, it's something in mainstream production..... Semi-auto CAR-15 with open bolt?? I have never seen one ...... was there ever such an 'open bolt' CAR-15 design?

03-22-2012, 05:32 AM	#1
alvin User Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: US Posts: 3,843 Thanks: 132 Thanked 729 Times in 438 Posts	Was there ever a Colt CAR-15 open bolt design? I had acquired a NIB Colt 6520 green label years ago from a bankrupt FFL dealer. The gun was later sold to a new collector. In general, he's happy on the condition. But, he carried the gun to a local gun expert, and the expert told him, "Weird, this carbine should be 'open bolt', but this one is 'close bolt', which is much less collectible......" So the buyer came back to me asking "where is the correct bolt?"..... "Sorry, I don't have it, and I have never heard of such a thing on Colt CAR"..... The buyer still decided to keep the gun. But asked me "Did you wrongly install the bolt on it during assembly?" Of course not, I had only one Colt, and that's the only one. But this 'open bolt' argument confused me. From the expert's statement, sounds like open bolt CAR was not a prototype, it's something in mainstream production..... Semi-auto CAR-15 with open bolt?? I have never seen one ...... was there ever such an 'open bolt' CAR-15 design?