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Posted: 5/6/2015 2:56:43 PM EDT
I found this one in a pawnshop this morning. I've got $180.00 in it.
It's right rough but it functions just fine and has a nice bore. I've always wanted a 1903, and of course I would have preferred a better looking example but prices on the 1903s are just retarded in this area. It's springs were still in good shape so I cleaned/oiled it and ran it down to my range. It's a joy to shoot and pretty darn accurate. 8+1 capacity. Made in 1920. I already had a Audley Safety Holster for it in my footlocker-O-holsters. 
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Posted: 5/6/2015 3:40:18 PM EDT
[#1]
jealous.
I'd refinish and put some better sights on it, then carry it. |
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Posted: 5/6/2015 5:07:37 PM EDT
[#2]
That one has been around the horn a time or two but still a good buy. Might be a worthwhile restoration project.
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Posted: 5/6/2015 6:53:11 PM EDT
[#3]
Good grab at that price.
I've got a .380 1908 enroute (made in 1932, a Type IV) but I paid a little bit more than you. 
The rear dovetail on these is identical to the 1911, so putting on better rear sights is cake. Later ones also have identical front sight blade arrangements, but I'm not sure when that was changed. If it were mine, I'd have it reblued. |
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Posted: 5/6/2015 7:06:38 PM EDT
[#4]
Nice score. Especially with the grips still completely intact, unless there are cracks we can't see.
I was pricing them some time back as a buddy has one he was looking to sell and they normally go from 200-250, even in the condition yours looks like. Just never EVER take the grip safety out, or you will need 4 hands to get it back together. I had to put his together from a box-o-parts and it's probably the worst gun I've ever had to get back together. |
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Posted: 5/6/2015 7:59:22 PM EDT
[#5]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
Good grab at that price. I've got a .380 1908 enroute (made in 1932, a Type IV) but I paid a little bit more than you.
The rear dovetail on these is identical to the 1911, so putting on better rear sights is cake. Later ones also have identical front sight blade arrangements, but I'm not sure when that was changed. If it were mine, I'd have it reblued. I cleaned the rust scale off it the best I could to see what I had to work with. I figure by the time the pits and the scratches are polished out I may as well have it parked. It's value is only as a cool shooter so I'm not sure if the view is worth the climb to put around $200.00 into it. Oil is a lot cheaper. 
LOL....It's in about the same condition as the one Bonnie smuggled into jail for Clyde.
Lots of them in the old movies too. Humphrey Bogart had small hands and liked the 1903 as it made him look bigger which is why it appeared in so many of his pictures like Casablanca, The Maltese Falcon, Desperate Hours. "You move, kid, I'll blow your head off." 
Even Edward G. Robinson as "Johnny Rocco" used one. 
I'm Shocked! 
I guess you could call the 1903 and later 08 the original "Gangsta guns". 
http://averagejoeshandgunreviews.blogspot.com/2012/04/blog-post.html |
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Posted: 5/6/2015 8:11:55 PM EDT
[#6]
Definitely. Capone supposedly kept a .32 1903 in his nightstand, Dillinger died with a .380 1908 in his hand.
They are, to me, the epitome of the classy pocket gun. Sleek, sexy, classic. I'd put the money into it. They're just beautiful guns in that bright blue finish. |
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Posted: 5/6/2015 8:39:51 PM EDT
[#7]
Your gun your rules but......
Its honest wear , I vote to not mess with it. A poor re-blue messes up lots of stuff and even a super top shelf job , while giving you a pretty thing, somehow messes with the honesty of the thing . I have been told most any original gun is worth more as is than after any re-finish |
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Posted: 5/6/2015 8:53:16 PM EDT
[#8]
and I say chrome it!
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Posted: 5/6/2015 9:20:52 PM EDT
[#9]
OMG. Leave it alone. It's beautiful just how it is... Love it.
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Posted: 5/6/2015 9:30:13 PM EDT
[#10]
toss up whether to leave or blue it. I lean toward leave it. It's honest wear.
My first thought if really pitted was to get her nickle plated.
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Posted: 5/6/2015 10:23:35 PM EDT
[#11]
That Pony has definitely been around the block. I like the "vintage" look.
I have one that was given to me by a good friend, love to shoot it !! BTW, nice score. |
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Posted: 5/7/2015 6:58:39 AM EDT
[#12]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
Your gun your rules but...... Its honest wear , I vote to not mess with it. A poor re-blue messes up lots of stuff and even a super top shelf job , while giving you a pretty thing, somehow messes with the honesty of the thing . I have been told most any original gun is worth more as is than after any re-finish Having "slept on it" I'm of the same opinion though I had to get the rust scale off of it because that leads to nothing good. Plus I did not wake-up any less cheap, oil is fine.
As to being worth more as it is I don't think so when I look at completed auctions for re-blued examples and examples with little finnish. They seem to bring more but not enough to off-set the cost of a refinish at today's prices. Back in the day you could take your gun to a jewelry store and have it polished/re-blued or chromed for cheap. Not now. Heck even a "paint job" with one of the gun-coating products is north of $200.00 these days unless you do it yourself and even then it's not all that cheap if you go and buy the equipment to do it properly. |
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Posted: 5/7/2015 7:13:48 AM EDT
[#13]
Yeah, refinishing a worn Model M isn't going to hurt the value, it'll improve it. These aren't US martial arms (in general - there are exceptions, don't refinish US PROPERTY marked ones) and unless in 99% condition they aren't going to draw big collector bucks. These tended to be carried a lot and loved by their owners, and many Model Ms have seen a refinish or two already.
I've been watching these on Gunbroker for a while (one was next on my list) and tastefully refinished ones don't seem to go for much less than good condition original finish ones. I recently saw a nicely refinished nickel-plated gun go for over $900, and a blued/engraved one has regularly been pulling bids of $2500 (I'll be honest, it was gorgeous). Now, these were .380s and not .32s - the .380s are far rarer and draw higher bids - but the value of the .32s would similarly be improved with a nice refinish job. That said, there's nothing wrong with leaving it the way it is, either. |
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Posted: 5/7/2015 7:26:13 AM EDT
[#14]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
Yeah, refinishing a worn Model M isn't going to hurt the value, it'll improve it. These aren't US martial arms (in general - there are exceptions, don't refinish US PROPERTY marked ones) and unless in 99% condition they aren't going to draw big collector bucks. These tended to be carried a lot and loved by their owners, and many Model Ms have seen a refinish or two already. I've been watching these on Gunbroker for a while (one was next on my list) and tastefully refinished ones don't seem to go for much less than good condition original finish ones. I recently saw a nicely refinished nickel-plated gun go for over $900, and a blued/engraved one has regularly been pulling bids of $2500 (I'll be honest, it was gorgeous). Now, these were .380s and not .32s - the .380s are far rarer and draw higher bids - but the value of the .32s would similarly be improved with a nice refinish job. That said, there's nothing wrong with leaving it the way it is, either. A high polish (scratches/minor pits removed) hot blue job is a expensive proposition these days. Easily $300+. Rust blue is even worse. I did find one place that does a dip blue (you do the metal prep) for $120 counting shipping....Must be the Earl Sheib of the gun refinish world.
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Posted: 5/7/2015 7:28:55 AM EDT
[#15]
Yep - not cheap any more. My dad had a Nazi HiPower reblued (it had been nickel plated and the plating was flaking, with rust underneath) a few years ago and it wasn't cheap at all. Looks gorgeous now, though.
The $120 blue job sounds like MAACO for guns. Labor's more expensive, and there aren't too many people that even know how to do it right any more. Appropriately enough, those are the main reasons Colt discontinued the Model M entirely after WWII - they were expensive to make, the tooling was worn out, and the workers on that line were all old and retiring. |
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Posted: 5/7/2015 1:01:34 PM EDT
[#16]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
Yep - not cheap any more. My dad had a Nazi HiPower reblued (it had been nickel plated and the plating was flaking, with rust underneath) a few years ago and it wasn't cheap at all. Looks gorgeous now, though. The $120 blue job sounds like MAACO for guns. Labor's more expensive, and there aren't too many people that even know how to do it right any more. Appropriately enough, those are the main reasons Colt discontinued the Model M entirely after WWII - they were expensive to make, the tooling was worn out, and the workers on that line were all old and retiring. I'm sure they were good at what they did and it was a common practice at the time but can you imagine working on the same gun day after day, year after year for a whole career.
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Posted: 5/7/2015 8:55:31 PM EDT
[#17]
Rub it down with some Oxpho and maybe put a new recoil spring in it. Oxpho has a nice patina to it and it won't look like you dropped it in a bucket of paint.
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Posted: 5/7/2015 9:06:05 PM EDT
[#18]
Of course ultimately up to you, but where I in your shoes, I would look long and hard about getting it refinished in black chrome. If I was going to carry it a lot, probably more likely satin black chrome.
Why? Because why not.  |
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Posted: 5/7/2015 9:19:20 PM EDT
[#19]
My granddad got a well worn Model 10, and sent it off to S&W for rebluing. It's absolutely gorgeous.
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Posted: 5/7/2015 9:25:55 PM EDT
[#20]
An old friend contacted me yesterday about a pistol she has. She doesn't know what it is, and hasn't taken pics yet. Hopefully today. From a photo of another gun she sent it looks like a Browning 1910. It is marked with the FNH symbol and name, so whatever model the FN was.
She's looking for a mag, but it might be better if she sells the thing and gets another pistol with the cash honestly. It has some rust, so I told her to take it apart and take pics of everything but the serial, I would post in here and find out what it is for sure and maybe what it's worth, with advice as to what to do with it. It's a .32acp that looks like the 1910 or the FN version. |
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Posted: 5/7/2015 9:26:23 PM EDT
[#21]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
My granddad got a well worn Model 10, and sent it off to S&W for rebluing. It's absolutely gorgeous. Pics? |
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Posted: 5/7/2015 9:34:06 PM EDT
[#22]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
Pics? Quote HistoryQuoted:
Quoted:
My granddad got a well worn Model 10, and sent it off to S&W for rebluing. It's absolutely gorgeous. Pics? In my brother's safe. I got the Arminius .22"LR, & now have a .22" WMR companion for it. |
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Posted: 5/8/2015 8:58:47 AM EDT
[#23]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
An old friend contacted me yesterday about a pistol she has. She doesn't know what it is, and hasn't taken pics yet. Hopefully today. From a photo of another gun she sent it looks like a Browning 1910. It is marked with the FNH symbol and name, so whatever model the FN was. She's looking for a mag, but it might be better if she sells the thing and gets another pistol with the cash honestly. It has some rust, so I told her to take it apart and take pics of everything but the serial, I would post in here and find out what it is for sure and maybe what it's worth, with advice as to what to do with it. It's a .32acp that looks like the 1910 or the FN version. Sounds like a FN Model 1910. They came in .32 (marked 7mm65 on the barrel) and .380 (marked 9mm on the barrel) just like the Colt Model Ms. Due to patent/licensing issues, the straight FN 1910s weren't sold here, only in Europe, making them somewhat rare. The later 1910/22 pistols with the long barrel extensions did get imported later on and are more common. An FN 1910 in .380 was used by Gavrilo Princip to start WWI. They don't seem to have a lot of collector interest here in the US, oddly. They generally go for a good bit less than a Colt Model M, given equal condition, and most of the FN 1910s (not 1910/22s) are in pretty rough shape. Is she missing the magazine for it? That'll hurt the value a good bit. Triple K makes magazines, but I have no idea as to their quality, originals are tough to find and run $70 when you do find them. In bad shape, with some rust, missing the magazine, maybe $350 for a straight Model 1910. If it's the later 1910/22, which are a lot more common, you'd probably struggle to get anyone to pay more than $250 for it. |
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Posted: 5/8/2015 12:02:06 PM EDT
[#24]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
Sounds like a FN Model 1910. They came in .32 (marked 7mm65 on the barrel) and .380 (marked 9mm on the barrel) just like the Colt Model Ms. Due to patent/licensing issues, the straight FN 1910s weren't sold here, only in Europe, making them somewhat rare. The later 1910/22 pistols with the long barrel extensions did get imported later on and are more common. An FN 1910 in .380 was used by Gavrilo Princip to start WWI. They don't seem to have a lot of collector interest here in the US, oddly. They generally go for a good bit less than a Colt Model M, given equal condition, and most of the FN 1910s (not 1910/22s) are in pretty rough shape. Is she missing the magazine for it? That'll hurt the value a good bit. Triple K makes magazines, but I have no idea as to their quality, originals are tough to find and run $70 when you do find them. In bad shape, with some rust, missing the magazine, maybe $350 for a straight Model 1910. If it's the later 1910/22, which are a lot more common, you'd probably struggle to get anyone to pay more than $250 for it. Quote HistoryQuoted:
Quoted:
An old friend contacted me yesterday about a pistol she has. She doesn't know what it is, and hasn't taken pics yet. Hopefully today. From a photo of another gun she sent it looks like a Browning 1910. It is marked with the FNH symbol and name, so whatever model the FN was. She's looking for a mag, but it might be better if she sells the thing and gets another pistol with the cash honestly. It has some rust, so I told her to take it apart and take pics of everything but the serial, I would post in here and find out what it is for sure and maybe what it's worth, with advice as to what to do with it. It's a .32acp that looks like the 1910 or the FN version. Sounds like a FN Model 1910. They came in .32 (marked 7mm65 on the barrel) and .380 (marked 9mm on the barrel) just like the Colt Model Ms. Due to patent/licensing issues, the straight FN 1910s weren't sold here, only in Europe, making them somewhat rare. The later 1910/22 pistols with the long barrel extensions did get imported later on and are more common. An FN 1910 in .380 was used by Gavrilo Princip to start WWI. They don't seem to have a lot of collector interest here in the US, oddly. They generally go for a good bit less than a Colt Model M, given equal condition, and most of the FN 1910s (not 1910/22s) are in pretty rough shape. Is she missing the magazine for it? That'll hurt the value a good bit. Triple K makes magazines, but I have no idea as to their quality, originals are tough to find and run $70 when you do find them. In bad shape, with some rust, missing the magazine, maybe $350 for a straight Model 1910. If it's the later 1910/22, which are a lot more common, you'd probably struggle to get anyone to pay more than $250 for it. Are you talking about the grip being straight ? If so, then yes, it is straight, there's no curve to it. She had a magazine, but when they moved it disappeared. She's looking for it, but no luck yet. Based on her description, I figured that being what it was, so I did look for mags, and like you say, they run about $70 for a decent one. Until she gets pics to me, I can't tell her what magazine, plus, I can't post them here for you guys to once over it and say if it's really worth anything. I told her honestly, if I were her, I would sell it for whatever it was worth and get a modern .380. A modern gun would be a better choice for her since it's for carry. It was her dad's though. It was working when he passed away, as he shot it occasionally, and, it's the gun he taught her how to shoot with, so there's that personal connection. Still, for a woman that isn't really a gun person, I think she would be better served with a Ruger LCP. As soon as she sends pics of the firearm, I will post them. |
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Posted: 5/8/2015 12:12:43 PM EDT
[#25]
Fords guns down here in Florida does excellent work, I've been holding off but will eventually send them two Hi Powers I preped for bluing. I have a beautiful 1903, it's a 4th gen, paid five times what you did but it's pretty mint looking, came in the original box with a brush bore cleaner. It's been my only C&R purchase ever. I've never shot it. I post it's picture every now and then when 1903'S come up in threads. Not posting it, don't want to hijack your thread.
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Posted: 5/8/2015 12:22:32 PM EDT
[#26]
There are two "versions" of the FN 1910 - the original 1910 and a later model, the 1910/22. The 1910/22 model was intended for military/police use and is more of a full-size pistol with a barrel extension. The 1910/22 did see a decent amount of military and police sales in the pre-WWII period (particularly in Germany) and was also imported into the US under the Browning name. The 1910/22s are a lot more common and aren't really worth much at all unless they're in fantastic shape. By straight 1910 I mean the original FN 1910, and not the later 1910/22.
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Posted: 5/8/2015 11:21:42 PM EDT
[#27]
Very nice!
I'm against refinishing old guns, but it would look nice... |
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Posted: 5/23/2015 10:20:29 AM EDT
[#28]
An elderly relative of mine has one that he has not fired in over 50 years. It's a Type 1 in the 56,000 range with a little more blue than yours. The funny thing is he has the same holster for his, too. It's strange how the attitudes have (thankfully) changed about gun safety. For anyone unfamiliar with this holster in order to draw you have to put your finger in the triggerguard to press the metal retaining clip that holds the inside of the gun's triggerguard. I guess it's the Serpa of its day!
Along the same lines, back when I was in my late teens, a friend of a friend sold me his grandfather's Iver Johnson single shot 12ga he inherited for $15 because he really wanted beer money on a Friday night. The way I see it, if he was willing to sell his dead grandfather's shotgun for beer money, it went to a better home. I still use it in my Safety Classes to show how much things have changed over the years. The trigger looks like a Glock trigger but the inside of it is what fires the shotgun. With the hammer down, you pull the entire trigger assembly to break it open. I put the safety of that shotgun on the same level as this holster! Nice find. I hope my relative's 1903 is mine someday. If it is, I'll leave the honest wear on it and keep it oiled. |
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Posted: 5/23/2015 10:26:48 AM EDT
[#29]
Welcome to the club . I would get a nice refinish ( .02 )
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Posted: 5/24/2015 1:06:35 AM EDT
[#30]
I remember a while back there being an article I think it was in Shotgun News where they redid one as a carry gun and remember thinking it was pretty cool and ever since have been kind of looking for one on the cheap in poor shape to do the same thing to.
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Posted: 5/26/2015 10:16:55 AM EDT
[#31]
I like original patina but if the finish is that bad, I'd cold blue it with Super Blue. I like Super Blue because you can control the final finish by how many coats that you use. Just do one coat and blend it in with 0000 steel wool, and the gun will still have a nice patina to it. Keep applying coats if you want a nice dark finish.
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Posted: 6/8/2015 9:18:44 PM EDT
[#32]
Had the rear firing pin on mine break over the weekend and can't find the part in stock at Sarco or Numrich. Any other sources that you good folks are aware of?
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Posted: 6/8/2015 9:40:13 PM EDT
[#33]
OP seeing that great piece of American history, I immediately thought of that scene from the movie "Patton," where George C. Scott was in North Africa and jumped from the upstairs room onto the roof of the truck to shoot at the German aircraft!
I think that bad boy would look great parkerized and displayed in a repro officers leather belt and holster rig! |
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Posted: 6/8/2015 9:48:17 PM EDT
[#34]
Quote HistoryQuoted: I cleaned the rust scale off it the best I could to see what I had to work with. I figure by the time the pits and the scratches are polished out I may as well have it parked. It's value is only as a cool shooter so I'm not sure if the view is worth the climb to put around $200.00 into it. Oil is a lot cheaper. http://oi62.tinypic.com/4taoft.jpg LOL....It's in about the same condition as the one Bonnie smuggled into jail for Clyde. http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-T_DftEeHJPw/T5iw8uou20I/AAAAAAAADf0/UbauzWBOj5c/s400/clydescolt.jpg Lots of them in the old movies too. Humphrey Bogart had small hands and liked the 1903 as it made him look bigger which is why it appeared in so many of his pictures like Casablanca, The Maltese Falcon, Desperate Hours. "You move, kid, I'll blow your head off." http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UchhtZq1u3M/T5i0W3_xm5I/AAAAAAAADgs/V6zeJI-EF1I/s640/Desperate+Hours2.jpg Even Edward G. Robinson as "Johnny Rocco" used one. http://1.bp.blogspot.com/--hsUlTNIpnQ/T5i0qXWgPuI/AAAAAAAADg8/GzwjQrQSR9I/s640/Key+Largo.jpg I'm Shocked! http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-V1nuT2igBnM/T5iaoXtLhLI/AAAAAAAADeQ/FaAeg9ycKcY/s400/Casablanca.jpg I guess you could call the 1903 and later 08 the original "Gangsta guns". http://averagejoeshandgunreviews.blogspot.com/2012/04/blog-post.html Quote HistoryQuoted: Quoted: Good grab at that price. I've got a .380 1908 enroute (made in 1932, a Type IV) but I paid a little bit more than you. The rear dovetail on these is identical to the 1911, so putting on better rear sights is cake. Later ones also have identical front sight blade arrangements, but I'm not sure when that was changed. If it were mine, I'd have it reblued. I cleaned the rust scale off it the best I could to see what I had to work with. I figure by the time the pits and the scratches are polished out I may as well have it parked. It's value is only as a cool shooter so I'm not sure if the view is worth the climb to put around $200.00 into it. Oil is a lot cheaper. http://oi62.tinypic.com/4taoft.jpg LOL....It's in about the same condition as the one Bonnie smuggled into jail for Clyde. http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-T_DftEeHJPw/T5iw8uou20I/AAAAAAAADf0/UbauzWBOj5c/s400/clydescolt.jpg Lots of them in the old movies too. Humphrey Bogart had small hands and liked the 1903 as it made him look bigger which is why it appeared in so many of his pictures like Casablanca, The Maltese Falcon, Desperate Hours. "You move, kid, I'll blow your head off." http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UchhtZq1u3M/T5i0W3_xm5I/AAAAAAAADgs/V6zeJI-EF1I/s640/Desperate+Hours2.jpg Even Edward G. Robinson as "Johnny Rocco" used one. http://1.bp.blogspot.com/--hsUlTNIpnQ/T5i0qXWgPuI/AAAAAAAADg8/GzwjQrQSR9I/s640/Key+Largo.jpg I'm Shocked! http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-V1nuT2igBnM/T5iaoXtLhLI/AAAAAAAADeQ/FaAeg9ycKcY/s400/Casablanca.jpg I guess you could call the 1903 and later 08 the original "Gangsta guns". http://averagejoeshandgunreviews.blogspot.com/2012/04/blog-post.html Grandpa M ran with one ;-) He was more postmaster than gangsta  |
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