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Posted: 9/3/2026 8:40:59 AM EDT
[Last Edit: DOGS2008][Edited]
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Looking at late 70’s SP1. Not perfect has moderate wear on high points around mag well and FA guessing good +or better condition uniform matching dark black anodize. Has tear drop FA. Assuming the BCG is original but yet to confirm. No box just the rifle. $1500 + tax = $1612 OTD Deal - No-deal ? Don’t need it but hate to pass at affordable price to me at least. Thoughts ? Thanks |
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I got my first SP1 in 1978 (and two others in 1979 or 1980 and 1981), no Colt SP1 had a forward assist. The seller is either ignorant or trying to rip you off. My first job in the gun industry was building AR-15s from GI kits, new parts (CAR-15s), and receivers from SGW, Quality Parts, PAC West, etc. in 1982. Post a picture of what you are considering. |
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Dogs2008 First, there is the presence of the FA. Second, I would have expected all Colt SP1 to have large front pin pivot holes. The pin's diameter should measure .315" compared to mil spec which would be .250". So was the upper receiver front pivot hole opened to match it with the lower? Third, the anodizing of the upper and the lower simply never matched. The anodizing usually varied from gray to "plum". If it has been re anodized this would impact the value, but if you want an ALL Colt rifle it is a start. db |
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Looked at it yesterday. Upper and lower were both painted black. Didn’t look much beyond that.Attached File |
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Run away. Not only is it painted, but the upper isn’t original to the gun. God only know what’s under that paint, could be sand blasted for all we know. You can see definitely see the small to large hole adapter screw in your pic that confirms what most here suspected. There is at least one SP1 that was made with a forward assist. Somebody here posted pics a long time ago when I was just a lurker. It was basically a custom build for a Colt employee in the late 1960’s or early 1970’s iirc. The upper was a large hole, that was an M16A1 upper probably pulled off the line prior to anodizing with the pivot pin hole made to SP1 specs. There was documentation from Colt on the gun as well so it wasn’t just a story. |
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Well, it's worth maybe $800 -$1,100 in that condition and not being an original SP1, but I can't tell from one close up. If the complete upper is an all original A1, maybe a bit more. I added an A1 upper to one of my SP1s back around 1983 - back then it was considered an upgrade. Offset pins were available through Quality Parts Corp. (became Bushmaster), but I drilled my upper out and used the original bolts (left very little meat on the holes but worked fine). You can get a decent SP1 on Gunbroker for around $2,000 at times. Here is one for $2,500 (buy now price): https://www.gunbroker.com/item/1185704775 - manufactured in 1976. Here is another for $2,300 (manufactured around 1982) BUT it does not have the original grip: https://www.gunbroker.com/item/1196225780 . It has a Lone Star Ordnance Stowaway grip, which was also considered an upgrade accessory in the 1980s (I had many of these). And another for $2,400 manufactured in 1978: https://www.gunbroker.com/item/1194268917 |
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