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Wartime M-1911/ M-1911A1 Mags


arnhem44mad
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arnhem44mad

Hi there everyone.

 

First of all I assume that 1911 mags fit into 1911A1s and vice versa...but is this a correct assumption haha?

 

Secondly: How can you tell an original wartime magazine?

 

Are there markings on the magazines or dates?

 

Thank you!

 

P.s.: I am going to war and peace on tuesday and fancy trying to find some mags!

 

Scott

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A short answer: M1911 and M1911A1 seven-round magazines are interchangeable.

M1911/WWI: Colt magazines are unmarked, as are Remington-UMC and Springfield's which have a folded base. Contractor magazines can have an A, B, L, or R on the top of the toe. Magazines are two-toned (in the white on the top, blue on the bottom) because the lips were hardened after blueing. This carried through into the early stages of WWII.

M1911A1/WW2: Colt magazines are unmarked. They are blue as lips were hardened before blueing. Magazines made by contractors for Colt will have a L, S, or R on top of the toe, and a CS, CL, CR on the bottom. If just L, S, or R then they are replacement magazines or issued with Remington, USS, and Ithaca. Remington made replacement magazines with G on the toe and a seam on the rear of the magazine. None were originally parkerized.

M1911A1 Post-War are marked on the bottom with numbers and text, but that is another subject. There are also civilian magazines that were converted to military issue, but that another subject.

If I've missed something, someone else can correct me or add to this.

Hope this helps.

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arnhem44mad

Thats brilliant mate thank you!

 

I have scteen shotted your comment and will use it like a bible at the show haha!

 

Thank you bud!

 

 

Scott

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Something else to add is the lanyard loops that are on the really early magazines. There are a lot of reproductions out there, but if it is two-toned and has a pinned floor plate with a lanyard loop it is most likely a very early (and costly) correct magazine. Also, correct two-toned magazines have a zone of change, not a distinct line from white to blue which takes some experience to distinguish.

Also, before you spend any kind of money on a magazine, make sure the lips are not cracked; look at the rear of the magazine where there is a squared cutout behind the follower from the left to right side of the magazine. The right-angled cuts have a tendency to crack right there.

I could go on and on, but I hope you can make some sense of all this.

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