New project
This is never gonna be a showpiece, but I’ve cleaned it enough to fire, and it fires reliably, even moderately accurately considering it’s poor (I’d say 9%) barrel. (yes, Tam, the 90% was a typo) but it will be a good shooter. Meet the Colt 1908 in 25 acp:
There was enough crap and rust and dirt that it would not cycle at all. So I cleaned it, laid the slide and frame on some crocus cloth to find out how deep the pits were, and reassembled. It has gone to the range and proven it’s function. Now I will polish it as best I can, sandblast that which can’t be polished, and put it in the soup for a while.
I joked with Tam that this looked like it had been reblued with a magic marker, but when I soaked it in Brakleen, the dark rubbed away just like marker. It will be a functional handgun when I’m done.
You DO realize that in a ballistics comparison with .22 SHORT, the .25ACP LOSES?
A .25 ACP fired from that pistol will not reliably penetrate winter clothing, let alone get through enough flesh to hit a vital organ and make a stop.
Since you can get a Kel-Tec P3AT for less than $300 new, and in it, you can fire the hotter .380ACP loads, you have an even chance for a one-shot stop, and since the P3AT is no bigger than the .25 ACP, why would you carry that old model ’08?
Unless you get VERY lucky, any goblin you hit with a .25, even multiple times, will likely kill you with his bare hands before your wounds on him take any effect, if they do. If said goblin has any sort of weapon, you are definitely dead.
For overkill, consider that ANY .22 Long Rifle pistol is about 25% more powerful, and you should now relegate that turkey to your museum.
This has a specific home it’s going to. It’s free. And the 25 in your pocket is a better gun than the whatever else you got at home. Nuff said.
Rivrdog, have you no poetry in your soul?
It’s a restoration.
Why, what an excellent gift Neanderpundit! Thank you, Ha ha!
Well I remember days when a fella would carry a pistol like that with all his other daily junk. Bankers and merchants mostly; back when men still carried pocket watches, fountain pens and cigar cutters and other stuff that you don’t see any more.
Ballistics are misleading. At 7 to 10 feet, that gun could ruin your day if you were on the wrong end of it.
As my retired police officer brother puts it, “A .25 is better than waving your d–K at them.”
Your description of this restoration reminds me of a parallel project I did last year. The firearm was closely contemporary to yours, a Savage .32. Ended up having to replace the springs as the century or so had weakened them.
With Fiocchi .32ACP it definitely goes “Bang!” when one pulls the trigger.
Besides, it has a sort of turn-of-the century hi-tech looks that I think is neat.
I like it. And like Weetabix said, it’s a restoration project. I can imagine just getting the po’ li’l baby to cycle at all was a thrill for Og. Taking what was presumably junk and creating a working pocket pistol is cool shit.
Looks good to me, dude. I got a makarov 380 with some of the damndest springs in it. It had started to pick up a little brown rattling around the trunk. All fixed now. Or at least is should cycle and go bang several times in a row.
Looks cool!