This is a video of the new Colt rifles for 2013 that was recorded by the good people at Davidson’s Gallery of Guns. The video is a good overview of the new guns Colt will have for sale this year (assuming they aren’t all banned, the nation dissolves into civil war, or we are struck by a meteor.)
No doubt, several of the rifles shown are pretty sweet, but I think my favorite is the one decked out in the A-TACS FG camo.
If the media is to be believed, gun companies are all making money hand over fist: Black Friday gun sales set all time records and the re-election of President Obama has sparked impulse buying. However, there are a few companies that are experiencing some difficulties right now.
A fire in mid-November shut down the Dan Wesson Firearms plant, halting all production of their guns. The good news is only one employee was injured, and he or she did not need hospitalization. The bad news is the company does not expect to re-open for business in 2012.
Superstorm Sandy wiped out the Henry Repeating Arms manufacturing facility in Bayonne, NJ in late October. An estimated three feet of seawater flooded the facility, damaging at least 100 of the company’s manufacturing machines. Additionally, parts of the facility’s roof was destroyed and some inventory was soaked with sea- and rainwater.
In a move that will surely enhance Colt’s bids on US Government contracts, US Army General George W. Casey (ret.) was appointed to the governing board of Colt Defense on December 1, 2011. Gen. Casey’s most recent posting was as Chief of Staff of the Army from February 2007 until his retirement in April 2011.
Casey’s high-level contacts inside the US Government (and other governments around the world) will give Colt a significant advantage in securing weapons contracts. While I’m sure the man is a good leader, and will make a fine addition to the Colt team, it does smack of influence pedaling.
Colt is set to re-introduce the 9mm New Agent pistol at the 2010 SHOT Show. The diminutive 1911-style handgun features a 3″ barrel, slicked sights, and a captive recoil spring assembly.
The New Agent will use the Series 80 firing system.
MSRP will be around $1000.
The Mako Group, a leader in marketing and distributing weapons accessories, announces our new WG1911 product, a Colt 1911 set of polymer handgrips with incorporated magazine funnel. The WG1911, manufactured by FAB Defense in Israel, allows you to quickly change magazines without having to modify your handgun or invest a lot of money in a magazine extension product.
Instead of spending $100+ on a magazine extension and paying a gunsmith to install it by drilling into your 1911, The Mako Group offers a simple, quick, and incredibly inexpensive solution: just take off your existing handgrips by removing the four screws and attach the WG1911 in its place! An extra product design bonus is the textured handgrips for maximum non-slip control. Read More…
Colt has brought back the Combat Elite. Announced at the 2009 SHOT Show and now listed in the ’09 Colt catalog, the Combat Elite is a very nice looking and feeling 1911-platform gun chambered in the venerable .45 ACP.
The floor sample at the SHOT Show had excellent craftsmanship, and unlike the Delta Elite at the same show, had no cosmetic blemishes.
Colt lists the following features for the Combat Elite:
Frustratingly, there were few Colt sales people at their SHOT Show exhibit. So, I didn’t get one for long, and what information I got was not terribly helpful.
The re-introduction of the Colt Delta Elite is a special run only. It is in the 2009 catalog, but only as a special run item. Colt is not planning on them being a permanent addition to the line-up. So, if you want one, don’t wait. It sounds like “when they’re gone, they’re gone!”
The Colt rep did not know when they were shipping or what the MSRP was going to be. In fact, they weren’t even sure how many would be produced.
Mostly it seemed like Colt was pushing the black rifles, and the handguns were an afterthought.
Regardless, there was a Delta Elite on the display rack (I had to hunt for it.) I do not have one of the originals, though I have had the chance to play with them in the past. The floor model seemed to be the same as the original, which is to say, it is a 1911 platform firing a 10mm cartridge. It is a well balanced gun, and the trigger on the example I held was great.
The one problem that I spotted immediately was a cosmetic issue with the front sight. The front sight had white paint smeared all over it. It looked as if someone added the white paint to the front sight for the “dot” and then dragged their finger through the paint and onto the sight.
While the paint on the sight doesn’t alter how well the gun works, I have to wonder about Colt’s quality control. Something that obvious should be caught before the gun leaves the assembly plant. Surely someone should be checking these guns before they put them on the floor at the SHOT Show?
Hopefully, Colt will issue additional information about shipping dates, MSRP, etc. soon.
