My 1962 Vietnam 601 (almost) PIC heavy!

[imarangemaster]

Well, I have been talking about it, hinting at it, and even a sneak preview cell phone pic that sucked. He it is: It started as a 603, then changed to a 602, but finally got it to be "The Poor man's 601": (Pardon the Kalifornicating bullet button) It still needs a NDS triangle charging handle and dimpled takedown pin and safety, but those will have to wait until finances improve. This is as done as it is going to get for the some timet, so here goes..

NDS 601 lower
Colt SP1 LPK
Colt lower receiver extension and buffer
Colt early 604 upper with late 60s vintage CMP C 1/12" barrel and slip ring. It is a forged FSB, but it is an early smoothed one, so it looks close to a cast FSB
Colt Charging handle
Colt early 603 Chrome BCG
Type D stock, early mottled grip and no drain hand guards painted with Testor's Master Modeler "Dark Green FS34079"
Early duckbill 3 prong from John Thomas
original 601 front and rear swivels
Colt .223 marked early 20 round magazine with aluminum follower
60s vintage web gear, bayonet, and bipod.
Correct (I think) early cotton web OD green M14 sling

Information

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[RCS]

Nice looking rifle, your green color is very close to the original green. Years ago, I found a complete set of green and put it on a Colt SP1 in the four digit serial number range. Next time I take some photos, I will include some of this SP1 with the green plastic for comparision. RCS

[imarangemaster]

THANKS, I'd love to see your rifle.

One of the retro building gurus on the AR15.com retro board found the color. He has several original sets, also, and said it was the closest "out of the can" match he found. I had a really good 95% original set in the late 80s that I gave to a friend for a build (he was going to replace them -NOT). I gave him an original duckbill, too. Turns out the build was not for himself like he said, but he sold it high dollar. I never got anything back from him. This color seems close to what I remember, too.

[imarangemaster]

It can shoot, too! Went up off Waggoner Creek Rd in the Siskiyous south of Tanlent, OR with my son-in-law and Grandson, Will. Rough sighted the 601 and GAU5-A/A in at 25 yards to 1.25" below POA. Fired about 200-300 rounds per weapon. With barrels hot, got the below pictured group kneeling on the ground using a bar stool and couch pillow as a rest. Most groups were like the one pictured, though when it was just warm after about 10 rounds, got one 3 shot group 1/4" center to center, with two of the shots through almost the same hole from the 601. Not bad for a surplus, 45 year old M16 barrel of untold round count. If you look in the picture of me shooting the 601, you can see the bolt is to rear part way, and the muzzle blast in front. The GAU-5A/A shorty in the other picture has an ER Shaw lightweight barrel and actually shot tighter than the 601 did. Several 1/2" 25 yard groups. One pic shows my armory I have with me on the trip, including the Kel-Tec SU-16CA, which actually shoots better than either AR! You can also see my 5 year-old Grandson with his Red Ryder BB gun, a future AR shooter! Next time we will do some distance shooting. I did hit some stuff offhand at about 100 yards, reminding me why I like the 5.56x45 round and the AR 20" retro platform.

[RCS]

Attachment 24634Attachment 24633Attachment 24635Attachment 24636Rifle is a four digit Colt SP1 (2xxx I do not remember the entire serial) with original green plastic and an original triangle charging handle with waffle magazine.

Sunlight photos of the green color Robert

[browningautorifle]

That was sort of how mine looked and that was how I discovered my fibrite brown furniture. Mine was black over the green over the brown...

[RCS]

Interesting that some of the red/brown handguards were painted the green color while others were painted the black color.Attachment 24637Attachment 24638Attachment 24639Attachment 24640

[GUTS]

We had a discussion on the ARFCOM Retro Forum a while back about the black over green over brown furniture and the best information to be had was that some of the early 601s that were to be sold to Law Enforcement Agencies were painted black. The first 100 601s were brown and the next 8500 or so were painted green over the brown, after that the standard black furniture was used about when the 601 was changed to the 602 and all the rest of the models after that. This 601 that I have is all original 601 with the exception of the lower(NDS 601)and the barrel which is MP marked. The right side handguard is as far as we can tell one of the first 100, it was never painted green. The left side handguard was off of one of the Police models, it was black over green over brown. I stripped it to match the original one. The inards and dimpled pins and such are all original.









The original green over brown furniture and especially the original brown only furniture is extremely rare and spendy. A set of handguards recently brought right at $1500. An original 601 upper without the barrel will easily bring $500. A true 601 1/14 twist barreled upper without handguards will bring $2500 with out a problem. OP your rifle is about as nice as it gets without spending thousands of dollars for the original pieces.

[Tom in N.J.]

Attachment 24676Attachment 24675Attachment 24674Attachment 24677Here is my not too authentic 601. NDS 601 lower, Colt 603 upper, with the sight arrows removed. The green is G.I. O.D. cammo polished with steel wool.... No bayonet lug or duck billed flash hider allowed in N.J... That's a welded on compensator on the barrel to hide the threads. It now sports a NDS waffle magazine permanently blocked to 10 rounds to comply with the 15 round capacity magazine requirements. The mag in the photos is an old Colt mag, marked ".223". U.S. Air Force unit decal was done on the computer, my son's old outfit, 5th MOB. from Robins AFB, GA.

[imarangemaster]

NIce job, Tom. I WANT YOUR BAYONET! Seriously, where did you get it? Mine has a bullet button and 10 round mag for Kalifornistan.

Guts, I recognize your sweet 601 from the retro forum! Neat. Mine is about as done as it will be. I am trading my XM16E1 chrome BCG for a 601 BCG and NDS triangle charging handle. It shoots like a dream... I am in love, but don't tell my wife, she'll be jealous if I pet the 601 instead of her!