Need some opinions on a colt 1911 restore

I have my great grandfathers colt 1911 serial 9657 (non govt issued manuf in 1912).
He lived at the coast for his entire life. Surprisingly its relatively rust free but has some in the serrations on the slide. Its more of a family keepsake than a show piece but dont want to devalue it too much by doing a full restore. If the value isnt there than we will do a full restore. What say the collectors on here?

Leave it as is. The wear is a reminder of his use of it.

Also, refurbishing removes any collector value.

Its not a collector piece for us. It will get shot and used. We didnt even know he owned it until after his death

Rust on guns has always bothered me, so I'd get it refinished. I believe Colt will do it for you, but I have no idea how much that would cost.

Leave the stories with the gun. I inherited a similar gun and was lucky enough to hear stories about it's use around the world. When I shoot it I and think about the original owner and the adventures he had, each wear mark and rust spot is part of the history and I honor him by keeping it's condition as close to day I got it as I can.

I don't see rust as part of its history. The rust is much more likely to have been caused from sitting in a closet than from being used in war.

How much Rust are you talking about?


Personally if it looked ugly or an eyesore I would get it cleaned up but if it just looked like a 100 year old cool looking gun I would not.

Its definitely didnt get used much, nor talked about (no one even knew he had it). Its not govt issued, so no historical value. Its just a gun he owned, nothing more nothing less. The question is, doesthe restore devalue the gun so much thats its not beneficial? If it knocks a few $$$ off no big deal, id rather have a fully functioning weapon than one thats looks cool just bc its old.

Restoration nearly always devalues the gun. We would need to see pictures of it as-is to know how much.

Does the Serial Number start with a C?

I'd either send it to Turnbull, or keep it as-is and not have to part ways with a kidney on the black market

Yes eyes it does

My book tells me built in 1914 based on that S#. Commercial Model with Regular Finish roughly a total of 138,532 were made up until 1925 when A1 model started.

My opinion is free so take it for what it is worth. Clean the rust up yourself with a penny (piece of copper wire on slide serrations) and light machine oil, gentle pressure and it should lift most of the rust off.

Like I said earlier I have a Commercial Model that was bought by an mentor of mine in 1919, that gun traveled all over the place by boat, plane, horse, foot, train and car. Many of the travels I heard first hand and the rest of them are recorded in his writings. He used that gun for 70 year and it was rode hard and put away wet during his life. I have chosen to keep it in the condition I received it in so as to keep the record of his adventures as they were when he left this world.


As a starting point if you want to think about refinishing:
Colt will refinish a 1911 starting at 325 dollars but they do not guarantee removal of pitting or the clarity of markings after the work is done you might end up with sorry looking finish. You might call them for more info but I do not believe they do full restorations. Full restoration would be a much bigger investment of time an money and you will never get the money back but you might in satisfaction. Comes down to personal preference and I hope you get years of use and enjoyment out of it regardless the path you take.

When you do shoot it make sure to pay attention to where the web between your thumb and index finger is located. If you don't you will understand why the long beaver tail came about.

My local smith will be doing the resto. Hes an oldtimer and is at $250

Just curious what is the value of a gun this old,we have one in the family that is a commercial model that is 100 years old. Gun store said between $800-1000. Not rusted but most of bluing is worn off.

I would not refinish such an early 1911. Sell it to me so I can protect it

I'd clean that up, oil it up, and leave it as is. Then I'd shoot it...
IMO there is no pay off for "restoring" that pistol. Replace the springs and wear it as Grandad's old gun.

I see what your concern is, but I probably wouldn't refinish that gun.

For what my opinion is worth, I would clean it up real good an oil it down. Then I would shoot the hell out of it and smile every time I shot it.

There is a lot of good cleaners out there, like Hoppes. . I think Brownells.com even has a rusted gun removal kit.

I agree, clean and shoot.

I'm with the rest of these guys. I would clean what rust I could with oil and a rag and call it good.

clean it, keep it clean. period...

No way in hell I would restore that pistol. Clean it up as best you can, that's not a cheap pistol in the condition it's in now.