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LOT 1401
Highly Desirable Documented U.S. Rock Island Arsenal M15 General Officers Semi-Automatic Pistol - Serial
no. GO49, 45 ACP cal., 4 1/2 inch round bbl., blue finish, walnut grips. This is an exceptional example of a U.S. Army issue
M15 General Officer pistol. The M15 pistols were manufactured solely
by Rock Island Arsenal starting in the early 1970s through approximately
1985 when the US Army adopted the Beretta M9 pistol. This specific pistol is listed on p. 146 of “The Colt General Officers’ Pistol” by Greeley as being
issued in 1972. These pistols were fabricated by using a standard M1911A1 pistol, milling off old markings and then applying the new markings and shortening the slide and barrel assembly to 4 1/2 inches, installing a high profile front and rear sight, serrated mainspring housing, and the National Match style checkered front grip strap. The left side of the
slide is marked with “General Officer Model/RIA”, and “Serial No. GO 49” is on the right side
of the frame above the grips. The grips are checkered walnut, and the right side has a cast Rock Island Arsenal ordnance emblem, while the left grip panel is inlaid with a blank silver name plate. The pistol has a highly polished blue finish on most the parts, the barrel is chrome plated, and it is furnished with a full blue magazine hand marked “49” on the left side. Includes a commercial production Colt black leather holster.
CONDITION: Excellent, retains 98% plus of the Rock Island Arsenal applied blue finish with a few scattered very light handling marks. The grips are also excellent with only the slightest handling marks and crisp checkering. Mechanically excellent. The holster is very fine with minimal wear.
Estimate: 5,500 - 8,000
LOT 1402 Documented U.S. Army Issued SIG Sauer M17 Semi-Automatic Pistol with Box - Serial
no. TF000827, 9 mm para cal., 4 3/4 inch round bbl., coyote tan finish, polymer grips. In January 2017
it was announced that SIG Sauer
had won the highly competitive U.S. Military Modular Handgun System
(MHS) contract to replace the Beretta M9 as the standard U.S. military sidearm, and later that year the U.S. Army announced the 101st and 82nd Airborne
divisions were to be the first units to receive the M17. Only
3,000 of these pistols were returned to SIG
Sauer for sale on the commercial market. The introduction of the
M17 marked the beginning of the end to the M9’s service with the
U.S. Armed Forces that originated in the late 1980s when it replaced the Colt M1911A1. If
the service life of the M1911A1 and M9 are any indication to the longevity of the standard U.S. military handgun, it will be decades before we see a round of rigorous testing to replace the M17, making this early U.S. Army example issued to the famed 101st Airborne Division a historic piece of military hardware of the modern era that will only gain more collector interest in the future. The M17 is a variant of the SIG 320 modular pistol and integrates an ambidextrous thumb safety to the modular fire control unit, with illuminated night sights, optics mounting point on the slide, “+P” weight recoil spring, and coyote tan metal and polymer finish. A sticker numbering the pistol “10” is adhered to the top of the slide between the front sight and ejection port. The grip unit is marked size “S”. The shipping box is a numbered match to the pistol and identifies it as “UDM17-9-SURPLUS” and contains two extra magazines, a standard weight recoil spring, cable lock, and papers. Per the included certificate, this pistol was part of the initial deployment of the U.S. M17 MHS Pistol in American service. An included Freedom of Information Act letter from the Department of Defense states this pistol was received by P Troop, 4th Squadron, 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment in Fort Hood, Texas, on January 11, 2018. On June 19, 2019, the pistol was turned in to the Logistics Readiness Center in Fort Hood and shipped to DLA Distribution in Anniston, Alabama, where it was received on July 25, 2019. That same day it was shipped to SIG Sauer Inc. in Newington, New Hampshire. CONDITION: Excellent as used by the 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment, retaining 95% original coyote tan finish with scattered handling marks and some light spotting in the slide serrations. The grip module is very good with scattered dings and scratches. Mechanically excellent. Box is very fine. Don’t miss out on an opportunity to own one of the first M17 pistols deployed to the United States Army! Estimate: 2,750 - 4,250
SERIAL NUMBER GO49