dmort
Active member
I posted this story here sometime back on Benchrest. You might find it interesting.
Sometime in the mid to late sixties my racing buddy and I were at a gun show. He was looking for a 45 as I was looking for a Luger. He found his 45 enclosed in a wooden box with miscellaneous accessories for $125.00. You could get a surplus 45 real cheap at that time and folks weren't paying much.
My friend's purchase was interesting but didn't mean much at the time. Sometime later (10 years later) he calls me and wants to sell it for what he paid for it. He was going through a divorce and needed some cash. I wasn't looking for a 45 but I said sure.
When the 1911 arrived in the box I really got to go through it. The box is made of hardwood but not oak. The latch and hinges are all brass. Given what all the box contained the box itself was relatively small. Someone had spent time working this all out. The contents contained: a 1911 Government 45, leather holster, duty belt with first aid packet, surplus ammo dated 1923 (last year of the 1911), an Army Calvery Manual on how to shoot the 1911 from a horse with illustrations, last but not least an old can of Fiend Oil. The box had dividers in the bottom so everything in it has its place. Really well done.
In the eighties I was shooting trap on a regular basis and looking for the perfect trap gun. I wanted a Browning BT99. They weren't cheap and I found on like new in the box and we made a trade. My reasoning was the BT99 would see a lot of use while the 1911 hardly ever saw daylight. I thought I was being practical. Two years later I had the first of three neck surgeries and sold the Browning. No more trap shooting period. I have been sorry about the trade I made ever since.
Mort
Sometime in the mid to late sixties my racing buddy and I were at a gun show. He was looking for a 45 as I was looking for a Luger. He found his 45 enclosed in a wooden box with miscellaneous accessories for $125.00. You could get a surplus 45 real cheap at that time and folks weren't paying much.
My friend's purchase was interesting but didn't mean much at the time. Sometime later (10 years later) he calls me and wants to sell it for what he paid for it. He was going through a divorce and needed some cash. I wasn't looking for a 45 but I said sure.
When the 1911 arrived in the box I really got to go through it. The box is made of hardwood but not oak. The latch and hinges are all brass. Given what all the box contained the box itself was relatively small. Someone had spent time working this all out. The contents contained: a 1911 Government 45, leather holster, duty belt with first aid packet, surplus ammo dated 1923 (last year of the 1911), an Army Calvery Manual on how to shoot the 1911 from a horse with illustrations, last but not least an old can of Fiend Oil. The box had dividers in the bottom so everything in it has its place. Really well done.
In the eighties I was shooting trap on a regular basis and looking for the perfect trap gun. I wanted a Browning BT99. They weren't cheap and I found on like new in the box and we made a trade. My reasoning was the BT99 would see a lot of use while the 1911 hardly ever saw daylight. I thought I was being practical. Two years later I had the first of three neck surgeries and sold the Browning. No more trap shooting period. I have been sorry about the trade I made ever since.
Mort
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