2 Colts .380 & 32

[ARK9mm]

I have come actoss two Colts. They are both all metal frames.

The .380 says:
Left Side:
COLT'S PT F.A. MFG. CO. HARTFORD, CT. U.S.A.
PATENTED APR.20, 1897. DEC. 22, 1903
Serial # :
64426
Right Side:
COLT AUTOMATIC
CALIBRE .380 HAMMERLESS

The 32 says:
Left Side:
"BROWNING'S PATENT" COLT'S PAT. F.A. MF'G. CO.
APR201897 DEC221903 HARTFORD, CONN. U.S.A.
Serial # :
26683
Right Side:
AUTOMATIC COLT
CALIBRE 32 RIMLESS SMOKELESS

Any ideas about dates or eras? Were these GI issue?

A friend of mine thought they may be FBI issued around prohibition time. I tried to take some pictures but my camera did not do so well in the lighting I had available. I'm working on it again though.

Thanks in advance!
CH

 

[Jim Watson]

According to Proofhouse.com the .380 was made in 1923, the .32 in 1905, an early one.

There were some Colt pocket models issued to General Officers in WW II, but these guns are much too early for that. I know of no other US military application for them, unlike European armies whose officers commonly carried small caliber pistols largely as badges of rank.
The FBI did not officially get authority to carry guns and make arrests until 1934 and I doubt they used many .32s or .380s. The Bureau of Prohibition carried the workload of enforcing Prohibition; Elliot Ness was not in the FBI.

Just good sound Colt Pocket Models, nothing wrong with that. Buy the gun, not the story.

 

[BEARMAN]

Goto www.coltautos.com for more info.