Ithaca 1911 from WWII!
 

Hey everyone, I was lucky enough to come across this deal and I couldn't say no. This old gentlemen was getting ready to take out a generic classified ad in the paper to sell his guns when he approached me in the ammo section of Walmart asking if I wanted to buy any of his guns. VERY skeptical of what he was offering, I decided to take a peek at what he had. Man, I was floored when I saw this gun...Pretty pristine Ithaca 1911, and from what I've been able to find it was manufactured in 1942. The guy even had a field manual that dated 1940! Pretty cool find I think and I did shoot the gun (one mag only in the video).

that only happens in the movies

Very cool :cool:

I've got a WWII Ithaca myself.

lol, I thought he was trying to lure me into his house to murder me. I kept my distance and was really paranoid until I saw the contents of his gun safe on the table :wow:

All original with the numbers all matched, dare I ask?

as far as I can tell, yes. I've checked all the markings with what I've been able to find in books and it all checks out. Pretty fortunate, because I understand some or many of the guns from Ithaca during that time were mismatch guns (some had Colt frames ect.). A real dead giveaway with an Ithaca is how rough the machining is. It's pretty rough compared to a Remington-Rand, but I really like it.

Most of the guns that came back from the war and went through active duty service usually would receive some sort of service/maintenance at the depot level where all the worn parts got swapped about. Still 100% GI, but not 100% stock.

I am green with envy!!!

I knew a dude who took his grandfather's WWII US Navy M1911A1 and "tacticalized" it. That was a crime against America!!!

OMG! :crying: why would he do that?!

The big question is how much did you get it for?

lol, I'm not telling, let's just say that it was less than half of what it's worth. The guy refused to hear anything about what it was worth, he just wanted what he asked for....and he got it quick lol

I'm super jealous. The only used 1911 I want, until I can find a career and can start actually collecting, is a 1911 from WWII. It would be great if I could find one used in a famous battle in the Pacific.

They are out there! Just keep looking, this one popped up right when I didn't want (or could afford) a gun so I had to move some stuff around to get it. As far as I know, Colt is the best as knowing the entire firearm history. You can pay them a fee and they give you everything. Unfortunately for me, Ithaca had a loss of records during their 2005 buyout. So I can only take info from the books that I found through my research.

A knowledgeable examination could tell if it were correct and even if original, but there are no numbers to match.

Few US firearms have multiple serial numbers for parts matching like foreign products. An Ithaca military contract pistol is not one of them.

A Colt made from 1937-1943 will have the serial number under the firing pin stop as well as on the receiver, but none of the others.

Correct, non Colts have specific manufacturing marks and lettering to look for that should match the time period it was produced. I had a conversation with some dealers about this, and apparently this is a market for counterfeiting. But if you know what to look for, it's pretty easy to spot a fake (at least thats what they tell me).

Glad you got one. My PD issued us a binch of WWII era 1911's, I got a Colt, several Colt's Remington's and Ithaca's were issued.
I had mine throated, put a new recoil spring and bought some mags. Most of the guys carry them as a off duty firearm, and are happy with them.

Congratulations on your USGI 1911A1.

Interestingly, I also acquired a Ithaca 1911A1 recently. Mine was a gifted to me from a Korean War military police veteran. I did a little research and was able to determine that mine is all matching original and to top it off, it shoots good too.

Hope you enjoy and appreciate yours as much as I do mine.

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