Anyone out there have a Colt 1908 Vest Pocket .25 ?

jrprich · Jun 21, 2013

I am looking for advice and suggestions,

I recently picked up a vintage 1919 Colt 1908 Vest Pocket .25. It is not a collector piece as over it's 94 years of life it has lost most of it's original finish but otherwise it looks pretty good. Before taking it to the range I did a basic strip and degreased all parts and re-lubed with Froglube. The magazine looks original and is stamped Colt and was in rougher shape than the pistol.
At the range the first 3 mags fired flawlessly but starting at mag 4 I started to get FTE. On inspection I could see that the fired casing had not been completely pulled out of the barrel. I changed ammo brands and got two more mags full shot without a jam and then the same FTE started happening again. Sorry, no pics as I had left my phone in the car
When I got home I stripped the pistol and removed the extractor from the frame. I did not see anything wrong with the extractor and it's hook appeared fine.
So I am thinking that I will try replacing the extractor, if I can find one. I would also like to replace the old magazine but they are hard to find and priced like gold, the only one I found so far was $150 and may not be any better than mine. I see that Triple K makes replacement mags for this Colt but my experiences with their mags for a High Standard .22 I had was not good. If anyone has used the Triple K makes replacement mags for this Colt, I would appreciate your experiences.
I have a Wolff replacement spring kit on the way.

Thanks in advance,
Jim

DadDuck · Jun 21, 2013

The spring kit should do the trick. Neat little
gun!

jbett98 · Jun 21, 2013

Numrich Gun Parts has what you need, including original magazines.
Free shipping if you call their 1-800 # and get the free shipping code of the day and then order online.
I think I have a mag for that pistol. It's yours for free if you want it. Portland area.

jrprich · Jun 21, 2013

jbett98 said:
Numrich Gun Parts has what you need, including original magazines.
Free shipping if you call their 1-800 # and get the free shipping code of the day and then order online.
I think I have a mag for that pistol. It's yours for free if you want it. Portland area.

Sent you a PM

Thanks,
Jim

jrprich · Jun 24, 2013

DadDuck said:
The spring kit should do the trick. Neat little
gun!

Did you put in a new Wolff kit in your 1908 .25?
I ask because the new Wolff recoil spring is VERY stiff compared to the original spring!
I just put the new Wolff kit in and I can't believe how stiff the replacement Wolff recoil spring is......I think it is easier to rack my 1911 Gold Cup than the tiny 1908 with the new spring.

Wondering if I need to cut off any coils on the new spring for the 1908 to function correctly and if these puny .25 shells will be able to cycle the slide with this new spring ??
Could be a short range visit.

Thanks,
Jim

jrprich · Jun 24, 2013

jbett98 said:
Numrich Gun Parts has what you need, including original magazines.
Free shipping if you call their 1-800 # and get the free shipping code of the day and then order online.
I think I have a mag for that pistol. It's yours for free if you want it. Portland area.

I located an aftermarket mag online for not too much and will see if it functions.

After looking the the pics you sent me I am sure that yours will not fit as the Colt requires the mag to fit flush with the backstrap as the mag catch/release is on the bottom of the backstrap. Your mag seems to have a ridge/seam all around the bottom of the mag.

Thanks so much for the offer and the help,

Jim

DadDuck · Jun 24, 2013

Actually I ordered replacements from Numrich so they were probably used replacements. I did ordered from wolff for my High Standard model B and did have to cut the spring down. Good luck

jrprich · Jun 24, 2013

Thanks for the info.

Not sure how to determine the correct spring rate for the Colt 1908.
How did you figure it out for your High Standard

DadDuck · Jun 24, 2013

That I don't know. I have a couple of these and both are very smooth and not difficult to pull the slide back on. I would probably compare the new springs and cut down to just 1 or 2 coil longer than original. And hope that works, that's what I did on the model b and it works great!