Remington-Rand 1911 A1 - Shoebox find

[Sprocket]

Hi All,
Well it finally happened - a buddy comes to me with a shoe box found while clearing out his late Dad's stuff...

Enter a R-R 1911 A1 marked US Property/ US Army - wear looks honest with no part changes and the blue worn off the sharp edges. I have Q's on the safety, which looks filed down and the overall appearance of the gun.

There are a couple markings on the receiver:
On the left there is a W on the trigger guard @ the receiver
On the right there looks to be a "1" at the same location
Below the slide lock are the letters FJA stamped on the receiver as well - not sure what that is about.

Serial is 1530XXX
Finish is about 60-70% if I had to guess.

The questions from the owner are:
What's it worth?
Do I keep it or sell it?
I want a super duper killer looking 1911, can I use this as a base?
and wordswordswords

My intuition says to sell it whole to finance the cool gun but I am hoping the group here for pointers - I can get pics but at this point am I looking at a general assessment before I call Greg Derr...

 

[jpm]

FJA is Lt Col Frank J Atwood the inspector at Remington during WW2.

I'd keep it, sounds like a nice original piece which is not common.

 

[Rob Boudrie]

I want a super duper killer looking 1911, can I use this as a base?

NOOO!!!! You have a wonderful historical artifact. You would destroy the collectors value of the gun, plus, a more modern base would be better for making a "killer looking" 1911.

 

[jpm]

NOOO!!!! You have a wonderful historical artifact. You would destroy the collectors value of the gun, plus, a more modern base would be better for making a "killer looking" 1911.

oh yeah and THIS^^^^^^^ x100000000000000000000000000000000000000

 

[browncoat]

If the owner wants a super dooper 1911, sell this one to a collector and use the money to buy a new one. If it were me, I'd never be able to sell a gun like that from my dad.

 

[Waher]

Sweet baby Jebus DO NOT SCREW WITH THAT FIREARM! It is a collectors item and you will ruin the value by Bubba'ing it!

 

[jpm]

From what I've seen, WW2 1911s in decent shape start around $1200-1500 and can go up and up from there.

 

[Sprocket]

Thanks All,

Who would be a recommendation to get it formally appraised and if he wants to sell, what would be a good venue for that?

 

[rep308]

My recommendation would be to get it to Greg Derr on the south shore. He has a proven track record with these and will treat it with the respect that it deserves.

 

[atilla]

pics or it didn't happen, OP. i love me a good old 1911.

 

[warwickben]

I'll buy it in a heart beat I want a rand to go with my p38 , and Nagant pistol.

 

[Sprocket]

Obligatory pics

 

[atilla]

nice.

 

[11_fingers]

Obligatory pics
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Check 1911 addicts, lots of knowledge and classifieds to help gauge price

 

[Rockrivr1]

That's in better shape then a lot of the WW2 1911s out there. Not sure how much the filed safety will detract from the value, but overall I'd say you friend will get a decent price for that.

As others have said, do not bubba it. Nothing worse then seeing a collector piece messed up like that.

 

[Sprocket]

Is there a way to ID the mags?

 

[the_shootist]

Is there a way to ID the mags?

This might help you.

http://www.coolgunsite.com/images/rem%20rands%20group/remrandstory.htm

 

[Rob Boudrie]

Obligatory pics
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I am not an expert in grading of guns, however, that looks somewhat better than the 60%-70% you mentioned.

If only the bottom half of the mag is blued, it would probably be a period correct one, perhaps original.

 

[Sprocket]

Yeah - quite a little treasure - thanks for all the great info. I'll ask about the mag.

 

[jpm]

I am not an expert in grading of guns, however, that looks somewhat better than the 60%-70% you mentioned.

definitely looks better than 60-70%! Take it down to Pack & Postal, he'll give you an honest appraisal of it.

 

[browncoat]

definitely looks better than 60-70%! Take it down to Pack & Postal, he'll give you an honest appraisal of it.

yeah, the pictures look much better than I expected after seeing 60-70%, that's a nice looking piece of history.

 

[Sprocket]

More pics - what % would you all rate it?

 

[the_shootist]

More pics - what % would you all rate it?
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To give you an idea of what this pistol may be worth, I picked this one up a couple of months ago for $1250...haven't seen one comparable on GB for less that $1700

 

[Sprocket]

What's the P near the mag release?

- - - Updated - - -

And sadly, I want it now...

 

[IPSC_DRL]

Very nice original specimen.

 

[martin08]

What I can see....

Looks like 85% bluing with freckling and edge wear.

... far better lighting and much better macro pics would be needed to give a proper assessment. And, oh yeah, just wipe it down with a lightly oiled soft cloth. That's all the upgrade needed for a pistol of this collectible category.

 

[ranger4-7]

The "P" is the government proof mark. What makes you think the safety was filed? Looks more like finish wear. Very nice specimen, agree with the other posts when it comes to condition and the desire not to alter it.

 

[jpm]

I would say solid 80% ignoring the safety grinding. You should be able to find an authentic replacement for that without much effort btw.

 

[PixelPusher]

That is absolutely beautiful.

If your buddy continues to harbor the desire to chop that up to make some custom gun, it is your moral obligation (as his friend) to beat the everlasting shit out of him until he comes around and realizes the error in his ways.

(This is solely my opinion of course, it belongs to him and can do what he wants to it, but should be soundly beaten regardless)

 

[TFLeader]

From the photos I would estimate:

Looks like a arsenal rebuild (reparkerized?), most likely several replacement parts.

Dealer/Trade $800-$900
Retail $1000- $1500
Gunbroker High Side $2500 (by a novice bidder)

Would not try to rebuild into something else. Would suggest you get a copy of Joe Poyer's 1911/1911A1 book and have some fun ID'ing the parts.

Even at 60% original, a cool pistol!