Double Action Colt 1911

[Holland]

I just saw a Double Action Colt 1911 at a gun store. I had never heard of these before. The gun store owner said quote,"Colt made some of these in the 1980's before the big Double Action craze so they did not sell well so Colt stopped making them." I dry fired it in the store and it really is Double Action,I pulled the trigger and that cocked the hammer.
My questions are:
1. Have you or you ever heard of these,I wasn't able to find any info on them anywhere on the web?
2. Were they really made by Colt,or is it some kind of after market conversion?
3. Are they reliable or do they malfunction?
4. It's for sell,for $650,do you think I should buy it?
5. What other web sites are out there where I could find out more info on this gun?
Question numbers 2 and 3 above are the most important to me.
Thanks in advance for any helpfull info.
John

 

[B. Adams]

I've never heard of a double action Colt 1911. Did it actually have a Colt rollmark on the slide?

Could it have been a Para-Ordnance double action "1911"? The price would be about right for one of those.

If it is a real Colt, I'm guessing that it's a conversion.

 

[ClarkEMyers]

Try a book if you can't find it on the web - it is on the web

1. I've heard of it; I've even handled it; try a search with Double Eagle
2. I can't see the pistol you are talking about but Colt really made Double Eagles - there was of course the Seecamp conversion first and the LDA after.
Depending on markings the particular pistol is very likely an authentic Colt made Double Eagle.
3. Pretty much as reliable as any other Colt of the period
4. Do you want it or not? Neither so rare as to be a rare find and a great investment nor so common that you can be sure of finding another quickly.
5. Any of the specialty 1911 websites and lots of others as well.

The Colt Double Eagle is a double-action, semi-automatic pistol manufactured by Colt's Manufacturing Company between 1989 and 1997. It was available in standard full-size, as well as in more compact versions, features a decocking lever, and was chambered for several calibers. The family of models was known as the Series 90.

The design of the Double Eagle was based on the Colt M1911 pistol. Magazines are single stack and are identical to magazines shipped with the M1911. Most of the Double Eagle models were available in stainless steel only, however the "Lightweight" Officer's had an alloy frame and blued slide.

The slide used a version of Colt's series 80 locking firing pin safety, but unlike Colt's series 80 pistols, the Double Eagle Officer's model in .45 ACP held an 8 round magazine.


[edit] Variations
The Double Eagle was chambered for several calibers; among the more common are .45 ACP, .40 S&W, and 10mm Auto. Occasionally one will see a copy in 9mm and .38 Super. Similar to the M1911, Colt offered, in addition to the full-sized version, the more compact Commanders and Officers versions. The full-sized version was chambered for .45 ACP and 10mm Auto, while the Commander model was chambered for .40 S&W in addition to the other two calibers. The Officers model was available only in .45 ACP. Former gun writer Dean Speir once described a 10mm round which exploded due to an improperly cut chamber.[1]

Colt also redesigned the trigger mechanism and added a retaining plate due to some shooters having problems with skin being pinched by the top part of the trigger, as well as some springs and pins only being retained by the grip panel. The result was the Double Eagle Mark II.

 

[mgregg85]

so was the Double Eagle DAO or was it DA/SA?

 

[Jim K]

The Series 90 Double Eagle was made from 1990 to 1996, mostly in .45. 9mm and .38 Super calibers were made only in 1991, and 10mm was discontinued in 1993. There were versions in the Combat Commander format (including a .40), an Officers Model and an Officers Model Lightweight (Both .45). The only one I have actually seen and handled was the standard version.

It was not a bad pistol, but had a rather long trigger reach that some folks didn't like. It had a hammer lowering lever, and no grip safety. It was a conventional DA/SA, and its burr hammer could be cocked for SA, but with no manual safety, it could not be carried "cocked and locked."

It looked a lot like the standard GM except for the large trigger guard. The right side of the frame was cut away extensively for the DA mechanism (which was basically the Seecamp system) and the gap covered by extending the right grip forward.

While the gunzines had been promoting the Seecamp, and urging Colt to produce a DA pistol, they exaggerated the market, which was not there when the gun was actually made.

In that period, it was one of two major disasters for Colt, the other being the absolutely awful All America 2000 pistol.
Jim