Printable View
Shipped to Argentina in 1941 in a military contract for the Argentinean Navy. The pistol is still original finish, has the Swartz safety parts intact and remains in pretty nice condition.
https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo.../10e348o-1.jpg
https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo.../2wqaij5-1.jpg
I'm sure this has been said, but the Swartz safety reminds me of the series 70/80 safety parts...I can see why the military didn't want them. I prefer not to have them myself.
The Swartz safety was not part of the military specifications for the Model 1911A1 pistol, so Colt removed them when they transferred the Government Models to the military contract, but today it is a bonus to find a Colt Government Model with the Swartz safety intact.
Here I am again showing my ignorance but what is the Swartz safety??? I've looked over other photos and tried to compare them but they look the same. TIA
Just Google Swartz safety and it'll come up. It's a firing pin block more or less. The pistol would fire if dropped on the muzzle while loaded...this defeated that issue, actioned by depressing the grip safety...read on McDuff!
I learned something today! :D
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DQcT8yooEmE
BTW, the Swartz system was adopted by Kimber and S&W (many years after the patents expired...) for those pistols with a "drop safety".
And in the last S&W 1911 I had, the grip safety would stick in the depressed position due to poor fitting of the Swartz safety assembly, so it was usually useless! Swapped it off after a short while back to the shop from whence it came, so no photos.
I read a number of pages from different sites and the general consensus, they were/are junk. Thanks
If it works it's good. (Provided that you worry about dropping your .45 on it's muzzle from a great height.-My take is that the bullet won't go far...) I have a .38 Super and a commercial .45 Government Model Colt with the Swartz and they're fine.
It does look over complicated, levers up on the front of the grip safety...it looks small and easy to damage. Definitely overcomplicated, no wonder it was dropped.