CMP 1911 1250?

[DucksOnQuack]

I am wondering if I do decide to buy the service grade CMP 1911 I was chosen for for $1250 will it hold its value? Seems like a hefty chunk of change and I cant get a good gauge if there is really a market for them.

My gut tells me to pass for the price.

Read More

 

[solv3nt]

The last 1911 contract from the government was in 1945, so you won't be finding any new ones since then. The CMP ones seem kind of high for a mutt, but in general old war horses hold their value. Just look at the price of the Mosin Nugget.

 

[ORhutner]

I would expect them to at least hold their value and go up with the pace of inflation. The fact their is a lottery should inform you of the market demand. One of the rules of business is that if there is more demand than supply the price is to low, especially on an item where there is a finite amount.

 

[User 1234]

Buy it. You'll regret it later if you don't.

 

[aasbra]

I bought one in the first round of them several years back.. Don't recall what the cost was, but I think it was under $1,250.

As others noted, they aren't making any more of them with the history attached. Yes, you can get a similar, new production GI spec 1911 in 45 made overseas for a fraction of the price. So to me, it would depend on your reason for buying one. investment? I can think of other investments that will earn a better return over time. Shooter? Probably find a better shooting 1911 for less $. Owning a piece of history? To me, it was worth the price of admission.




You could get M1 Garands for a few hundred dollars back when I was younger. They cost quite a bit more today. Glad I bought one from the CMP when I did; wish I would have bought more of them.

Your $, your decision though.

 

[Knobgoblin]

If you got the dough, I'd say jump. It's not going to be a carry gun ,or even a range toy. That much is certain.

 

[orygun]

I saw a US marked, arsenal re-parked for $1000 or $1100 from Keith's at a gun show about 10-12 years ago. $1250 for one now doesn't seem bad.

 

[Carguy]

I got one in the second round. The best they had was service grade. I wish it was as pictured by aasbra. Mine is an Ithaca frame with a "DSE" commercial slide, no markings except an NSN and cage code. Just letting you know to be prepared for whatever you get.

 

[CountryGent]

Buy it. You'll regret it later if you don't.

Kind of have to go with this. I don't have any interest personally, but if one wants a CMP 1911, probably best to jump now.

 

[ron]

Do you feel lucky? Luck of the draw. Some guys received some beautiful original Colt and US&S 1911s. Some
discussion on the CMP forums about not wanting a 'new' slide. I took the advice by ordering a "Field"
grade not the higher "Service" grade less chance of getting a new slide. Example of a New numbered slide.

My field grade Remington Rand slide and Ithaca frame.


CMP pictures

https://forums.thecmp.org/forum/cmp-sales/cmp-1911/139215-m1911-m1911a1-picture-thread/page60

 

[oremike]

I don't get the guns as an investment mentality. With the rare exception they are tools to be used and enjoyed. If holding a piece of history is enjoyable for you then get it. If shooting a piece of history when imagining the stories it could tell then get it. But if you are worried that you'll not make or even lose money on it then don't buy it. Go buy a '65 Mustang instead.

 

[TTSX]

I don't get the guns as an investment mentality. With the rare exception they are tools to be used and enjoyed. If holding a piece of history is enjoyable for you then get it. If shooting a piece of history when imagining the stories it could tell then get it. But if you are worried that you'll not make or even lose money on it then don't buy it. Go buy a '65 Mustang instead.

Guns are some of the worst investments I've ever made. Their value doesn't go up very much over time and almost always at a slower rate than inflation. They're also some of the best purchases I've ever made.

 

[jbett98]

There's a real nice original Ithaca 1911 up for bid on Jack The Dog auction site right now.
The bid right now is $1,500 with three days to go.
If I was looking for a nice original example of a real WW2 1911, I would spend the extra coin on knowing what I was getting.
There's also a refinished Remington Rand that's bid up to $1,200. The pictures and the descriptions of the guns he puts up for sale are second to none.

 

[nehalemguy]

I am wondering if I do decide to buy the service grade CMP 1911 I was chosen for for $1250 will it hold its value? Seems like a hefty chunk of change and I cant get a good gauge if there is really a market for them.

My gut tells me to pass for the price.

Have you received a phone call from the CMP yet? When they do call, they will give you the grade options that are available on that day only. If there are no Service Grades available that day, you're out of luck and would need to pick something else that is available.

When I got the call in Round 3, only Rack and Range Grades were available. I picked Rack and was extremely lucky to get both a Remington Rand slide and frame. Often the slides and frames are mismatched. It is pure luck of the draw. (I paid $1050 for the Rack Grade)

As for those 1911s that show up with 80s-90s replacement slides, there is no advantage in picking one grade over another in an attempt to avoid a replacement. In Round 3, myself and another member on the CMP Forum tracked over 200 orders across all grades. We found almost zero difference between the grades and the occurrence of replacement slides. They were scattered almost equally across the orders which contradicts the theory that some grades are either less likely or more prone to see a replacement slide. The math simply does not support that theory.

 

[solv3nt]

Have you received a phone call from the CMP yet? When they do call, they will give you the grade options that are available on that day only. If there are no Service Grades available that day, you're out of luck and would need to pick something else that is available.

When I got the call in Round 3, only Rack and Range Grades were available. I picked Rack and was extremely lucky to get both a Remington Rand slide and frame. Often the slides and frames are mismatched. It is pure luck of the draw. (I paid $1050 for the Rack Grade)

As for those 1911s that show up with 80s-90s replacement slides, there is no advantage in picking one grade over another in an attempt to avoid a replacement. In Round 3, myself and another member on the CMP Forum tracked over 200 orders across all grades. We found almost zero difference between the grades and the occurrence of replacement slides. They were scattered almost equally across the orders which contradicts the theory that some grades are either less likely or more prone to see a replacement slide. The math simply does not support that theory.

View attachment 1828325 View attachment 1828326

Price just seems high to me for a mutt. With that kind of lifetime of replacement parts, I personally don't see the value in it.

 

[User 1234]

It's the only way to buy a military surplus pistol from the government. A pistol which has likely seen deployment in WWII. The "mutt" history of regular military maintenance does not detract from that part of its value. It isn't the same combination of parts that the pistol held in its earliest life, true.

 

[crossbow5]

I purchased mine in Round 2. It is a Field grade with an early Ithaca frame and a Remington Rand slide. It was $950. The CMP keeps increasing the price.

 

[nehalemguy]

I purchased mine in Round 2. It is a Field grade with an early Ithaca frame and a Remington Rand slide. It was $950. The CMP keeps increasing the price.

They keep increasing the price because the demand justifies it. Same with the M1 rifle prices. Both are a finite supply. When they're gone, they're gone.

-E-

 

[WAW44]

I am wondering if I do decide to buy the service grade CMP 1911 I was chosen for for $1250 will it hold its value? Seems like a hefty chunk of change and I cant get a good gauge if there is really a market for them.

My gut tells me to pass for the price.

If you don't like what you get you can always sell it and make your money back. Even simple sale to a WA based forum member would get you your money back because that WA guy saves $120 in taxes just because they are buying from a private party and not CMP. So get it, see what you get, and sell it if you don't like it .

 

[gmerkt]

If you're buying a USGI 1911, buy the best one you can afford.

If you remain focused on CMP 1911's, bear in mind that for historic purposes, technically they were "in service" up to the time CMP took custody of them. As a practical matter, with mismatched parts and all, they were in actual service much longer than very clean, "original" examples that were surplused out or stolen years or decades earlier. Just my opinion. for historic purposes, the late numbered only slide is evidence of the gun's extended military service. It doesn't have to be looked upon as a minus from the historic standpoint. Yet probably worth less to many collectors.

I've owned many USGI 1911's over the years, so they don't hold much attraction for me now. I passed on the CMP first round and haven't paid much attention to them since then. Again, it's only my opinion, but it seems to me that some of the price support comes from initial hype and CMP buying hysteria. Yes, the supply is limited. When this point is played up, buyers want them even more.

The year I was born, WW2 had only been over for five years. When I was a child, my parents often enough made anecdotal comments about "the war." Now, I'm in my 70's and people who had no involvement with "the war" continue to be fascinated by it. I keep wondering how deep into later generations this fascination with the event will endure. It hasn't taken a break yet. Continued price support on this basis isn't certain but probable for some time to come.