Questions on Colt 1903 .32

[AndyM]

Folks,

I saw a couple of Colt 1903 Pocket (right name?) pistols in a store the other day and I must say, they are darn nice looking pistols. I don't mean these particular pistols. I just think the 1903 pistol itself is a really nice looking design.

How's the pistol itself? Reliable? fun to shoot? Hold up well?

Anything bad about them? Can you still get mags?

Is there any problem shooting them? For example, I know some people suggest no shooting +P ammo in older .38s. Any such restriction with these old colts?

There's just something about these older pistols that interests me. This is the same infliction that causes me to buy really neat looking old tools at garage sales even when I have no use for them.

Any web sites out there devoted to these pistols?

 

[Johnny Guest]

Very nice pistols - - -

They were just about state of the art in 1903. In the next few years, Colt improved them somewhat, making the slide just a touch shorter, and doing away with the separate barrel bushing. In 1908, they REALLY improved the breed by chambering the same pistol for the .380 cartridge. It gave up one shot, but, hey - - -

Yes, VERY attractive looking design. I especially like the slick exterior. I forget which gun scribe commented, "Some so-called 'pocket pistols' are about as easy to draw as a fistful of fish hooks." THIS is the exact opposite. Even the thumb safety is flat against the frame but still pretty easy to manipulate. The entirely enclosed hammer adds to the unencumbered exterior. With the grip safety/thumb safety combination and no external hammer exposed to trauma, this is probably as safe as a single-action auto pistol can be, given a halfway competent user. I doubt there is ANY factory .32 ACP load hot enough to bother an '03 Colt. At the same time, I wouldn't try handloading it up to .32-20 levels or anything.

It should be noted: .25, .32, and .380 ACP were THE pocket pistol rounds of the day, if you wanted anything like compactness. They were considered adequate back then; less so now. Also, men's suits were cut differently in that era, with deeper, stronger pockets. The '03 and '08 Colts were wonderful for then - - Nowadays they are really a bit large, heavy, and underpowered for the burden.

I have often fantasized about a truly updated '08 - - A half-inch shorter, with alloy or polymer frame. Perhaps even chambered for the 9x19 mm cartridge. NOT DA. I'd love to have one, but then, I don't have trouble remembering and finding a thumb safety.

I have a rather beaten-up '08, gift from a now-departed friend. I wouldn't take for it, but I seldom carry it - - I have other, more efficient small handguns. Mine resides in the drawer beneath computer keyboard, condition three. It is amazingly accurate, right out to 50 yards, and I occasionally carry it in a vintage holster. This is when in my "traditional" mood, but not to the point of packing a skinny barrel M&P.

There IS something about the solid heft, the dead-bang reliability, the businesslike aspect of these little pistols, which inspires confidence. They would do in a pinch. (Yep, young feller - - I recollect one time, in nineteen-aught-sixty-nine, when I charged gleefully into the fray, armed solely with a yeller-handled Colt .380, and one exter clip. O'course, I was a lot younger then . . . . )

Youthful foolhardiness should NOT be confused with rational thought.

Best,
Johnny

 

[Keith]

I owned a .380 (06-08?) some years ago. It was just a fantastic gun, in every way! I gave that to the wife of a Russian friend of mine who had admired it and shot it many times, on the day she got her legal residency status. I don't regret it!

Like Johnny above, I too want someone to bring this gun back, in an authoritative caliber and a locked breech design. I was just discussing this on the "design your own gun" thread...

These guns are very slender, and "melted" with no sharp edges - designed for concealed carry. I'm not sure I'd trust the .32 version, but the .380 with its relatively long barrel would be enough gun, methinks.

The only problem is that the sights suck - they're just too small and regulated so that you shoot high in every example I've shot. Other than that, they are accurate and extremely reliable.

Keith

 

[Joe Demko]

I had on of the .32's with MOP grips. Lost it in a divorce. Miss it, not the woman. Very accurate little gun. Also very flat. Superior in a lot of ways to the NAA Guardian and the P-32. Wish I had that gun back...

 

[BigG]

They are a good little pistol. Mine was a nice gun and it had some advantages over the pocket automatics we have today in that it was flat and had few projections to snag. I miss it, too, sometimes.

 

[flinch]

I can only praise the '03 Colt. Be aware the mags. are very hard to come by and to my knowledge only the terrible TripleK brand are made as replacements. So check that mag. carefully.

 

[Jim K]

Maybe too much gun for the caliber, but totally reliable (.32; the .380 a bit less so), reasonably accurate and about indestructible. They were made for the FMJ bullets, though, so using anything else could be iffy.

They are flat and in that respect are better than some of the bulky guns available today when it comes to concealment. And then, I have to admit there is something sensual about the curve of the slide and frame and the grip. Browning must have had some other curves on his mind at the time.

Jim

 

[jacketch]

Got to love those flat 03/08's

 

[444]

I have always admired the looks of the 1903 Colt. I kind of wanted one for years and finally decided to look in to buying one. I checked the Gun List and found several but my local dealer said to be patient and he would get one in. For some reason this small town gunshop seems to get several of them in a year. Within a couple months he gave me a call. He had a widow come in wanting to sell one. Instead of buying it he just gave me her number and we worked out a deal. I ordered a complete new spring set from Wolff, however I was unable to figure out how to get the mag spring out to replace it. I have fired mine a few times and it was a very nice, well thought out pistol. I enjoy owning it. I enjoy owning all kinds of guns even if I don't take them out very often.
This is only my personal opinion, but I would not shoot hot loads out of it. I am not saying it couldn't take it or anything, but this handgun is old. A given example might be pushing 100 years old. I consider them things of beauty, or a curiosity. Again, IMO if you want a small handgun for self defense or to shoot hot ammo out of, there are more modern designs out there. I don't like to put undue wear and tear on the old timers; I just like to enjoy them for what they are.
Here is a web page with some info and pictures of the Colt model of 1903: http://www.coltautos.com/

 

[JNewell]

Dunno, 444, the M1903s always seemed like they had a really high ratio of (very good quality) steel to PSI or Ft-Lbs or whatever measure you want to use! Not that they shouldn't be taken care of, but I think they're probably more than up to real service. Probably last indefinitely if properly lubed and used with SAAMI loads?

Of course, if someone wants to, the M1903s would probably (you must prove this before you carry it) feed the Winchester .32 Silvertips nicely. IIRC, the Silvertip load has a surprisingly effective track record with the M&S folks -- if that proves anything (that's a different thread).

Flat and slick -- makes a G36 look obese!

There was a good article in either Precision Shooting or Accurate Rifle a few months back on the M1908 (.380).