reblue?

[John F.]

Howdy, interesting thread! I have used these pistols extensively over the past 15-16 years, and have good news on the faded left grip. Heat and humidity from carrying it next to the body (like, inside the waistband) can cause this to happen in short order.

I have used a .380 Colt M1908 as a licensed concealed carry gun and was horrified when a minty left grip turned that color in just one full day, when carrying it in hot, humid Southern conditions! In desperation, I Armor-alled the grip, which restored it to its original black color. It now matches the other side perfectly once again. These have proven to be extremely reliable, accurate and fun shooters in my experience.

Replica grips are very easy to spot, 2 or 3 ways: 1, they are castings, and even those with good detail on the front will generally show many fine pits on the backs. Original grips are smoothly finished on the back. 2. Original grips fit the frames perfectly whereas all the repros I have seen (several pair) have had slop fore and aft, and relied on being tightened down by the grip screw to keep them from moving around. 3. Repros are supplied without grip screws and escutcheons. There is an art to fitting the grip escutcheons to repro grips. It is very easy to mess this up if you haven't done it before. The best technique I have found is to deepen the hole for the escutcheon slightly with the proper size drill bit, and then insert the escutcheon as deep as it will go. This minimizes the amount of metal you will have to remove from the top of the escutcheon in order to make it fit flush with the face of the grip. Put tape around the hole on the face of the grip to protect it as you very carefully and gently file the soft metal of the escutcheon to match the face and curve of the grip. Stop before you scar the grip, obviously. When properly done, it will be very hard to tell this from a factory job, unless you know to look for the patina of 60+ years on the escutcheon itself. If you know to look for the effect of age, then even the best-fitted escutcheon in a repro grip is easy to spot.

If anyone needs an original, minty set of hard rubber grips for these, I have a spare set of one of the rarest patterns: used only from c. 1911-1914, the one with the pony & elongated, stylized "C" behind the pony. As a species, most repro magazines don't seem to work very well in my experience. Original magazines, while expensive and hard to find, are a good investment if you plan to shoot your Colt. A few years ago I could get them regularly for $20-25; now a minty 2-tone .380 mag is about $80!

Anyone who is interested in learning more about the shooting and practical use of these pistols can obtain a very detailed, 12-page article that appeared in "The Accurate Rifle" magazine in March, 2003. The article is called "100 Years Old, and Still Going Strong: Colt's Classic 1903 Pocket Automatic." Back issues can be ordered by calling 1-860-645-8776.

I am learning every day from you guys about Lugers and greatly appreciate all the knowledge you have shared -- finally, I had something to contribute! :-) Hope this helps!

John