Colt M1903 O.S.S.

[Garandy]

Hello from Garandy..

I just had my Colt M1903 pistol, .32acp lettered historically by Colts.
It was shipped on 12/15/44 to "Transportation Officer, New York Port of Embarkation, Brooklyn, New York, for Port Strategic Services Officer". SN 565833..phosphate finish, "U.S. PROPERTY"
It has been published, [Pates book on secondary U.S. sidearms], that this grouping of 100 pistols went to the O.S.S. in England.
I would think the original users of these pistols would have been assisting Resistance forces in a Fifth Column attempt to disrupt German lines of communication, or demoralizing them. Anything known about the O.S.S. in England at this time?
Heres my collection, ALL 100% functional, and original. No post war rebuilds!

[Laplander]

Hi Garandy and welcome to the forum!.
Thank you for showing us that nice colt 1903.
Do you have a nice holster for your gun?
I have a gun like yours, but lacking the historic info your gun have.

Best regards
Laplander
please show us your holster, if you have one.

[Garandy]

No holster Laplander.
I sold my Stars, i had a Model D, German 1944 contract, and a Model B, WaA proofed. I only have U.S. weapons now.
Is your M1903 US PROPERTY? British BNP proofed?
Andy

[HVK]

Thank you for showing your very nice gun! In Denmark one SOE agent died when jumping from an airplane and the parachute failed. On this agent the germans did find a Colt 1903 in a special edition. Please see the pictures. Try to write to the owner of TIMELAPSE.DK who has a bunch of information regarding these guns - and who will be very interested to hear about your gun!







The pictures are all from http://www.timelapse.dk/models.php

[Laplander]

Hello again Garandy.
Mine is "US Property" and phosphatized(spelling?)
The serialnumber on my gun is 565932.
Do you know the exact serialrange for the OSS-guns?
Picture of my gun can be seen in this thread.
https://www.warrelics.eu/forum/firea...mmerless-6349/
This is getting really interesting.....

Laplander

[Garandy]

Yours is only 99 numbers away from mine!
I think its beyond the 100 that went to the OSS, its probably either one of the 5000 pistols shipped to England as LL, or one of the pistols sent to Springfield Armory.
However, it could be OSS too. Are you in the US, or Europe?
Phosphate is the spelling.
Andy

[Laplander]

Im in Europe, Sweden to be exact.
I bought the gun from a swedish collector maybe 12 years ago.
It came without any information.
HVK:s pictures shows a gun traditionally blued, not the phosphate finish. I guess the OSS-guns could have been a mixture of blued and phosphate.

Laplander

[HVK]

Im in Europe, Sweden to be exact.
I bought the gun from a swedish collector maybe 12 years ago.
It came without any information.
HVK:s pictures shows a gun traditionally blued, not the phosphate finish. I guess the OSS-guns could have been a mixture of blued and phosphate.

Laplander

Try writing Anders from Timelapse. He has been wisiting the OSS archives in the UK and has a lot of information of these "hidden guns". I would think that they were eigther blued or phosphated. A hun could also have been refinished by an armourer just after the war.

[Garandy]

Laplander, the earlier pistols were blued, later pistols were phosphated, after about the 562XXX range. Anything earlier would be blued. Yours is correct.
Is there white metal underneath your Ordnance escutcheon?
I cant find an email address for Anders of Timelapse. Can you provide one, the only link on the page wont give me the e-mail address. Thankyou, Andy

[Garandy]

Laplander, Ive seen your pics. I think from what I see its original parkerized [phosphated] finish. White under Ordnance wheel [escutcheon].
If the O.S.S. contract took pistols from the factory in non consecutive order, yours could very well have been used by OSS organizing Norwegian Resistance? Then it got to Sweden after the war, or OSS agents left it in Sweden after the war. No BNP's?
Andy