Canadian Contract 1911 Question

M

MellyVinelli

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I may have an opportunity to obtain a Canadian contract 1911. It's gonna cost about $4k. It is steep but I'm wondering if this is a once in a lifetime opportunity? If it is I'll give it a serious thought but if they come up for sale from time to time I would have other priorities. What are your thoughts?

The seller has provenance and even tracked down and got it touch with the descendent of the original owner.
 
Yes. It has several things right - Canadian, wartime, limited contract numbers, provenance, .45, you have money and RPAL. Don't expect to retire to the south of France when you sell this, but preserving Canadian history is not only the job of museums.
 
sailor723 said:
Might well be a reasonable price at 4k depending on condition and provenance.
This one sold last December......

http://www.icollector.com/COLT-MODEL-1911-GOVT-CALIBER-45-ACPP_i28629656
Click to expand...

I owned a Canadian contract 1911 for a period of time and it had provenance also. However it certainly wasn't like the one referred to above. It had been reblued and somewhere in it's history an owner had tried to make it a target pistol. Fine tuned it so much it only fired fully automatic! Of course, I had to have it repaired. Fortunately the smith had some WWI vintage parts but it is even less original than before. Even the magazine wasn't correct. I guess my point is I learned a lot more after I bought the gun so be very careful. There are examples that are worth every penny of 4K and others far, far less.

We can't even begin to make an educated guess without PICTURES!
 
Magnum PI said:
I owned a Canadian contract 1911 for a period of time and it had provenance also. However it certainly wasn't like the one referred to above. It had been reblued and somewhere in it's history an owner had tried to make it a target pistol. Fine tuned it so much it only fired fully automatic! Of course, I had to have it repaired. Fortunately the smith had some WWI vintage parts but it is even less original than before. Even the magazine wasn't correct. I guess my point is I learned a lot more after I bought the gun so be very careful. There are examples that are worth every penny of 4K and others far, far less.

We can't even begin to make an educated guess without PICTURES!
Click to expand...

Absolutely! For guns like this it's all about condition, original parts and the quality of the provenance.
 
I used to own 7 "Canadian Contract Colts" up until a few years ago. You find them in varied condition, I paid anywhere from $900 for pistols that had replacement parts to $4000 for a pistol with 98% original finish and provenance. The 6, I sold also had Colt letters with them. Pictures are everything and don't forget to ask about the location of all markings. Research is your friend.
 
Looks like I missed out on it. I went back to the show today and his table was gone...sometimes you gotta jump on these opportunities...
 
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