Sheriff9mm
NES Member
So I was rummaging through my dad's gun safe, and behind a couple of boxes of ammunition I found this little gem. I wasn't all that familiar with the weapon, so I asked my old man about it.
By first glance, it would appear to be an early Colt 1911 (non-A1), but it is not. It's a Polish F.B. Radom VIS Mod. 35 9mm produced before World War II for the German Army. According to my dad, when my grandfather was in the US Army, 82nd Airborne, he was briefly sent into Poland where his unit was able to capture a weapons factory. My grandfather confiscated the weapon and returned to the United States with it. I was a little skeptical of the story, until my father pulled out the transfer paperwork from the War Department signed by the European Theater Command designate from his file. My dad then handed me the pistol and told me to go get an FA-10; it was my turn to hold onto the family heirloom.![[smile]](/xen/styles/default/xenforo/smilies.vb/001.gif "Smile [smile]")
A few things that I noticed when I first handled the Radom was that it was a considerably heavier gun than my SW1911 (Steel vs Scandium). There are small Nazi Eagle stamps with the number 77 under them on both the slide and frame assemblies. Instead of a thumb safety mounted on the frame, it instead has a decock lever on the left side of the slide assembly. The stack magazines hold 8 rounds. Unlike the traditional 1911, there is no barrel bushing system. Also, the grip angle feels more perpendicular to the bore than the American counterpart. Other than these observations, it's a very striking copy.
By first glance, it would appear to be an early Colt 1911 (non-A1), but it is not. It's a Polish F.B. Radom VIS Mod. 35 9mm produced before World War II for the German Army. According to my dad, when my grandfather was in the US Army, 82nd Airborne, he was briefly sent into Poland where his unit was able to capture a weapons factory. My grandfather confiscated the weapon and returned to the United States with it. I was a little skeptical of the story, until my father pulled out the transfer paperwork from the War Department signed by the European Theater Command designate from his file. My dad then handed me the pistol and told me to go get an FA-10; it was my turn to hold onto the family heirloom.
A few things that I noticed when I first handled the Radom was that it was a considerably heavier gun than my SW1911 (Steel vs Scandium). There are small Nazi Eagle stamps with the number 77 under them on both the slide and frame assemblies. Instead of a thumb safety mounted on the frame, it instead has a decock lever on the left side of the slide assembly. The stack magazines hold 8 rounds. Unlike the traditional 1911, there is no barrel bushing system. Also, the grip angle feels more perpendicular to the bore than the American counterpart. Other than these observations, it's a very striking copy.
![[grin]](/xen/styles/default/xenforo/smilies.vb/041.gif "Grin [grin]")
