Military pistols & revolvers, before 1946

What this entry covers

This is a class entry. ATF's wording is "All properly marked and identified semiautomatic pistols and revolvers used by, or mfd. for, any military organization prior to 1946."¹ It names no country, maker, model or caliber. Read phrase by phrase, it asks for a semiautomatic pistol or a revolver; that is "properly marked and identified"; with a military connection stated two ways, "used by, or mfd. for"; and a date, "prior to 1946"¹. The entry does not define what marking or identification is enough¹. Whether a particular handgun fits this entry depends on the ATF wording above.

Military rifles and military shotguns have their own class entries on the same page, with different wording¹. Many individual pistols also have entries of their own. The Colt Model 1911 military series, for example, is listed separately with a serial range and a date, and the commercial Colt Model 1911 has its own entry with "S/Ns Cl - C130000"².

Identifying it

• Ownership and acceptance marks. American M1911 pistols of the First World War carried the marking United States Property on the left of the frame, and Springfield Armory examples also bore the Ordnance Department's flaming-bomb insignia³. A Webley Mark VI revolver in the Australian War Memorial, dated 1917, carries military acceptance stamps including broad arrow marks⁵.
• Dates on the arm. Webley Mark VI frames in the Memorial's collection are stamped with the year, for example PATENTS 1917^5,6.
• Later marks. Another Memorial Webley, also dated 1917, carries what the Memorial describes as a double arrow sale mark⁶. Imported handguns must also carry the importer's name and location (or name and abbreviated licence number) and the country of manufacture⁷; the importer adds that stamp, and it stands apart from the arm's service markings⁷.

Common confusions

• Rebuilt pistols. During the Second World War, many older M1911 pistols were inspected, given replacement parts, refinished by Parkerizing, and stamped on the frame with the initials of the facility that did the work⁴. Most American service .45s used after the war were rebuilt several times⁴.
• Same model, commercial sale. Colt sold the Model 1911 commercially as well as to the services, and the commercial pistols have their own list entry, separate from the military series².
• Production after 1945. American Rifleman's answer notes that no government contract .45 pistols were made after 1945⁴. The wording's "prior to 1946" attaches to "used by, or mfd. for, any military organization"¹; the entry does not say what evidence shows that.

History

The entry spans both world wars. When the United States entered the First World War it had only about 75,000 M1911 pistols on hand, so Colt and Smith & Wesson also built large-frame revolvers adapted to the .45 ACP cartridge, known as the M1917³. In the Second World War the government procured 1,878,742 M1911A1 pistols from Colt and several other contractors⁴. Both revolvers are dated 1917; the Memorial records one as made by Webley & Scott⁵ and lists the other, Sergeant Buckley's, under the First World War⁶.

Further reading

• American Rifleman's article on non-Colt M1911s³ describes the markings and serial ranges of each American wartime maker.
• Its question-and-answer piece on M1911 production⁴ covers the 1926 change of name to M1911A1, wartime contractors and the marks left by rebuilding.
• The Australian War Memorial records^5,6 show how dates, acceptance stamps and later marks appear on surviving service revolvers.