1903 Colt Project

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il_10

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I've had a 1903 colt pocket hammerless for probably 8 years now, made in 1911. I swapped out the hammer for a notched one, and carry it frequently in the spring and fall, it's my go between for pocket pistols and full size service guns, and I love the little guy to death. But the sights have always been mediocre. I was browsing ebay and saw this going for less than a normal slide and got intrigued:

u5jmkYB.jpg

Yep, it's cut for a Novak. :what: :D

I snatched it up pretty quick and dropped a generic 2-dot rear on it.


ddNsBEj.jpg

C2X30iL.jpg

I haven't swapped everything out yet, so this is just a mock up, but it looks like this is going to work out just fine:


TcZn6Q3.jpg

Everything has been refinished at one point or another, and this one's never getting sold, so I'll probably go over it all again at some point since I'm not worried about collector value in the least. I think a slightly extended safety would go a long way for these guns as well, so I may pick up a spare to tinker with. Either way, this will be an ongoing project, so I'll keep you guys posted!
 
il 10

Do you want me to say it or are you going to do it at some point?

Okay I will:

WOW! What a sight for sore eyes! (Sorry I couldn't resist).

Actually those are some really great sights and certainly go a long way in terms of being a big improvement over the factory originals. Please keep us updated as you continue to work on your Colt Pocket Hammerless 1903 and thanks for sharing.
 
Few 1903/1908 Colt Pocket Model owners know it, but the little pistol had the same front slot and rear dovetail used on it's big brother .45 1911 at the time both were made. Thus sights made for the .45 can be easily modified for the smaller slide.

For those who carry the pistol with a loaded chamber, switching to a later hammer with a safety notch/ledge is a good idea. But be aware a slight change was also made to the sear to be sure it would be compatible with the hammer. If you change one, change both. You can also alter or replace the firing pin to work like that in the 1911 .45 design.

If you have a pistol that has the magazine disconector you're good to go, as by then all the other modifications had been incorporated.
 
Few 1903/1908 Colt Pocket Model owners know it, but the little pistol had the same front slot and rear dovetail used on it's big brother .45 1911 at the time both were made. Thus sights made for the .45 can be easily modified for the smaller slide.

For those who carry the pistol with a loaded chamber, switching to a later hammer with a safety notch/ledge is a good idea. But be aware a slight change was also made to the sear to be sure it would be compatible with the hammer. If you change one, change both. You can also alter or replace the firing pin to work like that in the 1911 .45 design.

If you have a pistol that has the magazine disconector you're good to go, as by then all the other modifications had been incorporated.
Is that for all the Colt 1903's, Old Fuff, or just the Type IV's made for the US military?
 
I want to say the half cock hammer was added around 1922, so towards the end of the type III guns. Mine is in the 118,000 range, dating it to 1911 according to Colt, so I had to drop these parts in myself.

On that note, it's a heckuva testament to both JMB and Colt that this gun is 105 years old and still running like a top. I've never had a malfunction of any kind through a couple thousand rounds.
 
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