[jclinebell1]

My grandfather has a 1911 made in 1927 and I'm sure it has not been cleaned in a long time. How should I clean it to ensure that it still works, lasts and does not rust . I have Ballistol but is there something else that I should use on a gun as old as this?

 

[SHOOTER13]

I would just field strip and clean it will the Ballistol...

then wipe it down with some Breakfree CLP to protect it from further rust.

I would love to see a picture of it...I guess it's an old Colt, given the age.

 

[SeventiesWreckers]

If it was myself, I'd find a reputable gunsmith locally that specializes in Colt 1911's. The reason being that there wear indicators on Colt 1911's that are hard to see unless you know what your looking for. Hairline cracks & such that won't be obvious with just a field strip & cleaning. The finish is also a consideration, and a pro can give valuable advice on the value of the firearm, and what you might consider for it's future. It might be okay to shoot, or you might go another direction. It might be worth quite a bit just as a collector firearm. At any rate, congratulations, I wish I had those kinds of choices to make. It's a fine old firearm.

 

[jclinebell1]

I will throw a picture up for you guys. The story my grandfather told me was he traded a new tv for the gun. And as far as I know it has been siting in his closet for years.I already wiped some parts down with a clean cloth just to get the nasty stuff off from inside. I did shoot a few rounds through it and it worked great. Not sure how much it is I looked online and saw varied prices. I do know it was a colt 1911 made in the USA for the Argentinian army. On the slide it says Ejército Argentino and apparently there was only 10000 made and it is exactly the same as a
Colt sold on America during that time period. After the 10000 Argentina got the rights to make their own 1911 under a colt license. Research from different sites gave a big price gap $400-$1500. I have a gun shop that sells collector guns I'll prob take it there for their opinion. Thanks you your suggestions and help.

 

[TampaBaySean]

The shop by me offers a deep cleaning ultrasonic cleaning for like $50 . may be something you want to think about. Unless you really take it down you may not get it all. 1911 s have a lot of parts .The ultrasonic cleaner gets into all the little spaces.