[Peakbager]

Hi all I am new to the forum and wanted to post some photos of my colt 1903 .32 that I just got it was a gift from a friend and he got it for 100 dollars from an old guy that said he had owned it for years it seems to be in good shape and fires like a dream it has a serial # of 13444 which dates it at 1904 and that's about all I know about it I would love to get a colt letter on it but 75 bucks is kind of steep for me right now. I plan on useing it as my primary side arm on trips out to the desert and am very happy to have it. Please let me know what you think of it. You can find photos of it on my photobucket page. http://s445.photobucket.com/albums/qq178/peakbager/1903 Colt/

 

[twaits]

Thats a pretty early 1903. It was made in 1904. It has the earlier plunge milled serrations. The grips are replacements.
Might be an old refinish. Nice old gun though, thanks for posting and welcome to the forum!

I'll put the photos in here for you:

 

[Colt75]

Nice old 1903. Bet it shoots like a dream. Gotta love those great 1903s. Enjoy your Colt and welcome to the forum.

 

[steveziga]

Have fun with that. I've got a first year 1908. Its the Type-II version. Anyways, finding period grips will be tough. You can get some decent repros for under $40. Instead of spending the $75 on a letter, you might want to grab an extra mag. They are getting more scarce. They run $100+. A correct one will run closer to $200.

 

[oberon]

That thing is way nicer than the 4 digit one I have. I do have the correct magazine for it, and I just tripped over a decent/fair original barrel that went right in easily. It actually shoots ok.
Even if yours was refinished some time ago, it is still the feline's derrierre. Parts do exist for 'em, so you might find some early 'scalloped' Colt grip panels for it.
Those little pistols are among the most appealing and stylish firearms ever built. Ya done good.

 

[Peakbager]

Thanks for getting the photos up for me and I am very happy that I got this gun I had been looking for a light weight side arm to carry. I had a colt Gov pocket light but had to give it back to its owner after a long loan and as much as I love my 1911 it is a bit to heavy for some of the hikes I do. So when I saw this one I knew I had a keeper. I'm not a big fan of the grips so I placed a bid on a set of originals don't know if they are real or repo but that don't matter to me it will just look better with them. When I got it I thought it was a rough shape but after researching the 1903 and the age of the gun along with photos of other guns of this age I was surprised at how nice it really was. It does look to have been reblued long ago but the way it is now is the way it will stay as I like the character. Glad to be part of the Fourm and thanks.

 

[rayb]

One of these goes with me on my periodic walks. I usually fire one magazine at the turn around point just for fun. They are wonderful pistols, in my opinion.
Heed the advice to get another magazine. Good ones are hard to find.
Hope you enjoy yours as much as I have mine.

rayb

 

[twaits]

Just don't carry it with a round in the chamber. If you drop it it will fire. A gun writer was killed this way a few years back.

 

[Peakbager]

Just don't carry it with a round in the chamber. If you drop it it will fire. A gun writer was killed this way a few years back.

Not to worry for the most part I never carry a chambered fire arm I know I will love it wait I already do ))

 

[Joeval57]

The Colt letters are nice to have, but it's a shooter and I would have fun with it. They are great plickers. I have two, one almost mint state and one shooter. I am getting the letter for the mint state since it was a vet bring back from the Philippines in 1945, but for all I know the shooter may have a more interesting History.

 

[RevJammer]

I have a 1903 also... have had it for a couple of years... what is the Colt "letter"?

Serial # is 31,xxx

Here are a couple of pics of mine.

The grips are a cheap aftermarket.. but I like em ok... gonna get a set of the black scalloped repros soon.

RJ

 

[halfmoonclip]

Just remember what it is; you ain't likely to stop a grizz charge with it!
I like a pistol on walkabout, and have dispatched copperheads (yeah, yeah, I know, but we're a long way from help for a snakebite down at camp, and I leave the blacksnakes alone) and a rabid fox.
The '03 is a neat old crock, and the OP's has enough character that there is no sin in carrying it.
OP, how is your bore? My specimen is probably 96%, but the bore was awful (deeply pitted); were corrosive .32s that common once upon a time?

Moon

 

[Collects]

Halfmoonclip, shoot every snake you see...like I do.

One of the very best reason to own a Colt is to kill snakes.

I like the irony - kill a snake with a Colt Snake Gun.

I once watched a man shoot the head off of a big diamondback rattler with a Colt Diamondback .38 at around 30 yards, with a single offhand shot. Sweet!

When I was a youngster living in Guadalajara, Mexico, I would sometimes climb a nearby mountain overlooking a lake. The lake was always filled with many, many watersnakes sunning themselves in and around the water. I would lie prone on the mountain top with my scoped Winchester .22 bolt action rifle, and shoot snakes for hours, burning through box after box of .22LR ammo. I would sometimes kill 100+ in a single day. Shoot 'em; watch 'em sink. I hate snakes. I never saw another person in my snake killing zone. How fun!