Colt Double Eagle Serial Numbers
A while back I was drawn to this COLT DOUBLE EAGLE at a gun show. I am thinking of selling at this time, and after researching on the net I can't find another example anywhere.
First, I just liked the way a previous owner accented the gun with the gold plating.anyway this one is marked COLT DOUBLE EAGLE SERIES 90 on the left side. Most others I find say MARK II or MARK IV.
Next on the right side only says LIGHTWEIGHT OFFICERS ACP. The serial number starts with the letters DL.
The slide appears to be like black chrome, and is steel. The frame is blued and some non magnetic alloy. Pistol is chambered in.45ACP with barrel also 'black chrome'. Very hard to photograph as it is so shiny. Magazine also gold plated.
Fires very good, and is quite accurate for a 3.5' barrel. Lightweight is a bit of a stretch by todays standards of weight. Has a few marks and a little wear on slide release plating but all lettering and bore is crisp. Hope the 2 pics attach. As The GunClinger posted, I typed in Colt Double Eagle and came up with a slew of info.. The Double Eagle was Colts attempt to catch up with S&W, however the Double Eagle was not accepted by the shooting community and was very quickly discontinued.
If I remember correctly it was just a 1911 with a Seecamp type double action type system installed. It had a lot of problems, both in quality and design. Again as posted, because of the Bling, the value of yours is about half of what it could have brought. There are quite a few of them for sale, of course none like yours. It is hard to put a value on something as different as your gun, but looking at those on the market I would say maybe 600. Sorry about that, could be wrong, been wrong before. First, I would like to thank all for your input!
Member #: 5524. Join Date: Feb 2009. Location: Kentucky. Liked: 47 times. Mud dog, Mine's like yours with the serial number beginning with DA. Share this post on; Digg Twitter Share on Facebook Reddit!
Second, THIS IS NOT MY FIRST RODEO. I am aware of Google and certain peoples opinions and what they have read on the internet about Colts early problems with the DOUBLE EAGLES.
I am a shooter, and also own one in 10MM so don,t believe everything written on the net. Also wouldn't it be great to own an Edsel now? Download Arm Translation Installer V1.1.
Third and MOST IMPORTANT you all missed my point. Easycap Driver For Windows 10. I have looked at hundreds of Double Eagles online and can't find any with identical markings on the slide. Finally, I am a collector hoping to hear info from owners of the LIGHTWEIGHT OFFICERS MODEL with S/N DLxxxxx.
I spend most my time on the S & W Forum as I own quite a few. I only own 2 other Colts, the 10mm DOUBLE EAGLE and a US Army model of 1917.
I do appreciate all the comments, even the satire that keeps things lively! I also rotate and shoot ALL my pistols and clean them as I have no safe queens! G35JIM, Guy, you did post on what is it worth forum. I was just trying to get across that, yes, fewer Light Weight Officers were made than the full size Double Eagle, it really does not matter as far as value. Because it has been gussied up, it has cut any collectors value it may have. Even if scarce it was still a poor design, even with the redesign resulting in the Mark II or Eagle II.
If you're happy with your Colt then so be it, may you both live a long and happy life, Live Well and Prosper. I think it makes a nice barbeque gun and if yours shoots well then you are ahead of the game. I know it irks people when they are told their dog is ugly ( in my case it don't matter because I know he is ugly ), Sorry about that. • The Firearms Forum is on online community for all gun enthusiasts.
Join us to discuss firearms of all kinds, gun accessories, legal issues and more. Membership is free and we welcome all types of shooters, whether you're a novice or a pro.
Come for the info, stay and make some friends. • Site Functions • • • • • Useful Links • • • • • • Support the site! We work hard to bring the best Firearms Forum has to offer! Unlock additional features, and fewer ads while browsing. Consider upgrading your membership for less than a box of bullets!
My favorite pawn/gunshop is getting out of the gun business. About all of his really nice stuff has been snatched up. He does have a pretty nice (not real nice, just pretty nice) Colt Double Eagle for around $500 ( +tax etc) if anyone is interested. I'm not too familiar with these guns, I'd guess they are not uncommon, but you don't see one every day. At least I don't. Are they worth buying? Or is there a reason he's still got his in the gun case?
He's also got an old Fox SxS 16 ga. Model B that I'm seriously thinking about buying.
It's not the prettiest old shotgun I've ever seen but it's still solid and tight - for $300. Anyway what's the deal on the Double Eagle? The Colt D-Eagle was always frowned upon by the 45/1911 people. I held on once and did not care for the crunch-tick d/a trigger and the long trigger reach. They're not easy to sell and most people don't want them.
If the Fox Model B is in good shape, thats actually a decent buy for a nice little shotgun. These were built by Savage in the 50s/60s. Not as sexy or desirable as the early 1900s Philiadelphia built A.H. Foxes, but a solid gun you can take afield and it will go bang every time. My Dad has a 12 gauge version and it is well built but a tad heavy.
A 16 gauge SxS would make a great dove/quail/rabbit gun. I use a 16 gauge Model 12 Winchester for most of my dove hunting and love the 16 gauge. Thanks BB, The old shotgun leaves a bit to be desired as far as appearance but it's in good mechanical shape.
I'll probably have to have it. I've always liked a 16 ga. They fell out of favor for a while but the load seems to be coming back. I do occasionally get an invite to a grouse hunt and this would probably make a nice gun for that, although it is a mite heavy to carry as you said.
Besides it would make a pretty nice welcoming piece to keep by the door. Nothing says 'Hello, what the hell do you want' quite like a double barrel. The 16 gauge would make an excellent grouse gun. A grouse is about the size of our bobwhite quail and my 16 with a load of #6s puts down quail with gusto.
I'd offer him 250 in cash and I'll bet he'd bite.its worth that. I love the 16 gauge. Kills like a 12, kicks like a 20. Perfect for our 'hot barrel' dove shoots in South Texas. 16 gauge shells are not hard to find at all and yes, it seems to be making a comeback. Ithaca and Remington both started making 16 gauges again and the Russian SxSs are also avaialble in 16 gauge. Its far from dead.
Well.I'd pass. For much less money, you can get a SA GI 1911 or a Rock Island Armory 1911 and have a much better 45.
I picked up the Fox 16 ga. I'd forgotten how much fun a double barrel was - just to have - much less to shoot. I couldn't get the dealer to come off the price but I did get several boxes of shells and some cleaning goodies. It shows the wear of a 40 year old gun that has been used. I'd guess this old gun has been on many hunts. It has a reasonable amount of dings and the engraving isn't as sharp as it could be. But she locks up tight and everything does as it's supposed to.
I don't need a shotgun that's too nice or I'd never take it out in the field. I'm looking forward to giving this old gun a good cleaning and doing a little shooting. I might need a bird dog now! I go to about 2 gun shows a month and I see a lot of these guns for sale for outrageous prices $800+. However I never see anyone actually BUY one.
When Colt first introduced the Double Eagle I jumped in headfirst and bought the first Double Eagle Officers model to come out of the plant. I went so far as to special order it and have it expedited from Colt's facility. I just had to be 'the first'. Keep in mind that this gun had special handling and I was getting one before ANYONE ELSE.
Of course I paid dearly for this privilege. You cannot even imagine how devastated I was when I got it to the firing line after months of anticipation only to discover it was a complete piece of ****. The trigger was absolutely intolerable. I sent it back to Colt 3 times. Completely unreliable by any standards. It jammed, it broke, every malfunction known to mankind happened with this gun.
After almost a year of struggling with the gun and Colts customer service I conceded and sold the gun back to my dealer whom had full knowledge of my experience and took pity on me. Of course I took a bath on the gun. The Double Eagle was the worst handgun purchase I've ever made. That's not a bad price for a Double Eagle. OTOH, I wouldn't buy it unless you weren't going to shoot it much and could afford to be wrong in hoping it will appreciate in value. Most folks who buy these are betting on the fact that the relative rarity of the Double Eagle combined with the general fervor surrounding all things Colt will eventually make these desirable. It's not like they're making any more of them; that much is true.
They weren't completely awful guns, at least after they got some of the bugs worked out in the later shipments. They put their neck out with the Double Eagle during a time when it seemed that everybody had to have a double action service gun to be taken seriously by police departments. It was enough of a departure from the traditional Colt styling and design to piss off the Colt diehards. Worse, it didn't offer any real advantage in functionality, while complicating the design and making it impossible to use with existing 1911 holsters.
It was a blunder that was only to be surpassed some years later by the Colt All American 2000.