Discuss the Colt Double Eagle

S

Sevens

New member
This appeared in another thread as it often does -- a model tossed in to the discussion that helps represent and illustrate one of Colt's many failures. But to put it simply, I want to know more and hear more about the Colt Double Eagle.

Good, bad, otherwise? Your hands on experience or things you've thought or read or were told by folks you trust.

I can't seem to find much discussion on this pistol here on TFL.

In a related topic, it appears Colt is offering a double action 1911 Government Model that is certainly not a Double Eagle, but is double action and appears to otherwise pretty much be a 1911 but without a thumb safety and a non-standard trigger and I haven't seen it discussed here, either. I ran across a new one in a gun store a couple weeks back and I seriously had to do a double-take. :p Ha, sorry for the pun.
 
Is the double action 1911 actually on the market? I fondled one in the factory a good two or three years ago, and then I wondered whatever happened to it.

The Double Eagle is essentially a mass-produced version of the Seecamp conversion. IIRC, the Double Eagle uses a draw bar of some sort that's hidden inside the slide. There are also two very fine "hairpin" type springs, one under each grip panel. Those are easy to lose or mangle if you remove the grip panels without knowing to be careful.

http://thefiringline.com/forums/showthread.php?t=265651

As for the new double action "certainly" not being a Double Eagle, I'd suggest not betting the ranch. The trigger guard on the new one is standard 1911 profile so the pistol will fit standard 1911 holsters, but under the hood my recollection is that the new pistol seemed very similar, mechanically, to the Double Eagle.

I'll have to harass my friends at Colt for not telling me they started to ship.
 
Aquila,

Better talk to your Colt friends now because as of Monday the company may default on $10 million plus due its bondholders. A grace period extends to
mid December, according to the WSJ. Colt only has about $1 million in cash
right now, the paper reported.
 
That's Colt Defense. The "civilian" handguns (actually, all the handguns) are made by Colt's Manufacturing, which is a separate corporation owned by the same holding company.
 
I saw examples of both last weekend at a local gunshow.

I have always been curious about the Double Eagle; I get why many people disliked it but I think it might be a pistol I could appreciate.

The new double action Colt is a bit startling when you first see it, it gives you a quick "What the..?" moment before you realize what it is.

Of the two, appearance-wise, I actually prefer the much-lambasted DE.
 
I have a Colt Double Eagle Commander in SS.

My only complaints with mine have been that the front sight was a little loose (which a local smith corrected) and the shape of the trigger guard and dimensions can make finding a holster a little more difficult. I solved that with a holster designed for a different weapon (not sure which).

The folklore I've heard:
When I bought the gun, I was was warned to never remove the grips due to the way the spring was designed.
The smith who fixed the front sight told me there had been some type of quiet recall due to the grips swelling and causing failures in the field so they were rare finds.
If I can believe the book I saw the Commander size in SS is fairly rare and has some value associated with it in relation to other models.

I like the fact they use standard 1911 mags and I honestly can't remember a failure with mine.
 
I've never owned, or shot a Double Eagle. I have handled a couple. I never cared for the looks, and the feel is "off" from what my mind says it should be (which is a 1911).

While "essentially" the Seecamp conversion, IIRC Colt did a few things mechanically different from Seecamp to create the DA Double Eagle. I can't remember exactly what (its been too long since I looked), but memory tells me that Seecamp essentially fitted his conversion over the existing SA trigger, while the Double Eagle system replaced the SA trigger with its own parts.

Personally, I found the Double Eagle to be a fine example of Col Cooper's opinion about DA/SA autopistols in general.

"A solution in search of a problem."
 
Aguia,

I'm sure you have more info than I but here's one passage from the WSJ story:

Colt blamed its financial troubles on market trends including declining demand for commercial rifles and handguns and delays in sales to the U.S. government.

The story did specifically state Colt Industries.

With the soft market right now in all guns, all manufacturers, I've got to wonder just what share of the civilian market Colt has now considering all
the AR makers and 1911 makers. Just so many makers in the game and so few active buyers right now.

Any way, Colt is offering $100 rebates on new 1911 GMs.
 
I went through the police academy and spent the first two years of my career with a Double Eagle. Its a good gun, its just that it can't be carried cocked & locked. It fits in a 4506 holster. The double action mechanism is under the cheap plastic "zytel" grip panel. Ended up replacing it with a Kimber.
 
The Colt Double Action has been out for at least a year. I purchased this one in November 2013.
 

Attachments

  • Colt 1999DA c.jpg
    Colt 1999DA c.jpg
    52.5 KB · Views: 98
in the early 90s Strongsville P.D. (Ohio) issued the Colt Double Eagle. it was a D/A stainless .45acp. some guys liked it, some didn't.
 
Yep, just with the two pictured in this thread, I don't think they look that close, for all of these reasons:

Serrations farther forward on Double Eagle
Decock lever--especially how it's crowded with slide stop
Visible hammer/spur
Obvious late 80s looking trigger guard w/thumb rest

This new one looks like a 1911 that was born a little "special" while the Double Eagle looks more like a product of the era that spawned it.

Certainly one version of an answer to a question that was asked, BIG TIME. That question being, "please build a duty gun that we can spend taxpayer dollars on that must be double action because double action semi-auto is what society currently believes LE should be issued for duty."
 
The Double Eagle always reminded me of the S&W Model 39/59 series. Colt went all in on the DE, offering them in full size, commander size & officer size pistols. I know they were offered in 45 ACP, 40 S&W, & 10 mm Auto calibers, but not sure about 9 mm.

Colt also had plans to offer the New Agent as a DA model but haven't seen one of those either. I have wonder if they changed their mind about that one.
 
Last edited:
I wonder, had Browning had come up with a DA/SA pistol in 1911 if the Army would have adopted it or if they would have been a bit afraid of the idea.

Jim
 
It's been some time since I handled a Double Eagle. I never had any problems with them ergonomically, although I found the trigger reach to be just a bit much...

If I remember correctly, though, there were some vital components that were held in place by one of the grip panels. If the grip was broken or dislodged, it could render the gun unfireable.

One of the police officers in a town I covered when I was on the newspaper carried one in .45.
 
I wonder, had Browning had come up with a DA/SA pistol in 1911 if the Army would have adopted it or if they would have been a bit afraid of the idea.

Jim
Click to expand...

Double-action in an auto pistol, in contrast to revolvers, is a retrograde step rather than an advancement. It wouldn't surprise me if Browning never considered DA, for that reason; when you have what is supposed to be an "automatic" weapon, why require the shooter to use the trigger to manually cock the mechanism?

I have a Seecamp converted 1911 (based on an ODI Viking frame, which was a production pistol with the Seecamp mechanism integrated from the get-go), and it's a pretty ingenious design, fitting the DA mechanism into a pistol not designed for it.
Colt apparently at least investigated licensing the Seecamp design for what would become the Double Eagle, but instead went with a design that works in a similar way - a drawbar runnin along the right side of the frame connecting hammer and trigger, a la Beretta 92.
People who have Double Eagles appear to think pretty highly of them, based on what I see on 1911forum.
I handled the new DA Government Model at SHOT in 2008, and also didn't know that it had finally made it into production. My impression at the time was that it was patterened after the Para LDA in a manner similar to how the DE was patterned after the Seecamp; similar, but different, and undetermined as to which is "better".
 
I think the new Colt double action is more closely patterned on the Double Eagle than it is on the Para LDA. My recollection is that the new Colt is a true double action, meaning that it has second strike capability. EVERY pull of the trigger moves the hammer.

The Para LDA is not (IMHO) a true double action, in that the slide "pre-cocks" an inner hammer assembly. The trigger pull only moves the outer hammer, and releases the sear. One try is all you get; there is no second strike capability.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top