Series 70 (1973) Satin Combat Commander.

S

sarge912

New member
1-cc.jpg

Many years ago, early in my career, I carried a Satin Nickel Colt Combat Commander. It was pretty beat when I got it but it shot straight and true. Then the department banned any and all automatics for carry off-duty/backup.
I ended up trading if for a Model 60 S&W but always wished that I had kept it.

I came across this one in near perfect condition.
I already have an ATI Clone in blue, which is a wonderful shooter, but still does not hold the same level of nostalgia as the original Colt.

I hope to test them both against each other in the very new future but for now I am just glad that I was able to find it.

cc-both.jpg
 
Last edited:
Just back from the range. As I expected, it shot great, ate anything that I gave it including aluminum and reloads. I suspect I will get a tighter group when I add the Pierce finger grips.

Having said that, I find that I shoot my ATI a lot better. It has superior grips and better sights out of the box. The Colt has all Wilson Combat springs and it is very tight. The ATI is broken in and the action is like butter.

I would not hesitate to use either one.

I dropped the Colt off at a friend of mine's for a little polish work on the feed ramp. (He did wonders for my Thompson 1927 A1) Next trip out if will be all tuned up with better grips. Not much I want to do about the sights. They work and I don't really want to change them.
 
I was gonna ask the same thing, about the ramp, but I let it go.

One small point Colt listed there as "Satin Nickel Finishes" rather than chrome. Colt made blued and satin nickel versions of this steel framed gun.

tipoc
 
there were a few 'dig' marks in the feed ramp, even though it was feeding okay. He will smooth them out.

I have read that the SC in the serial number originally was described by Colt as Satin Chrome.
 
I also in the 70's bought a blued Combat Commander , I sold it to a friend for what I paid for it 134.00 brand new . I kick myself to this day for selling it . I think they made a Stainless Steel also at that time . They are a sweet and perfectly balanced pistol . If I happen to see one of those in a gun shop it would be hard not to bring it home .
 
I still have mine that I bought in the mid 70s. I have the blued version that I bought first. They are both still original and both function and shoot great.

If memory serves me, I paid about $345 for the blued one and maybe $75 more for the satin nickle model. Not much nowadays, but that was a lot back then.
 
That is definitely satin nickel. Electroless nickel looks more like stainless steel.
Colt did not offer chrome finishes back then.

Jim
 
Beautiful handgun. Congratulations. I suspect the satisfaction of having a piece of your past in hand is worth what you paid. Enjoy!
 
Great find...and, short of SS, about as indestructible a 1911 as you'll find. I had one in .45 ACP for 15 yrs or so, put 5000+ rounds of non-shooting-game practice through it, then gave it to #2 son who really wanted it for carry. Along the way I found a Series 70 pair of slides and barrels in 9mm and .38 Super that fit it well; and aside from changing out the ejector, required no other changes to function at near 100%. I also bought the Ciener .22 LR conversion upper for it, making it a 4-caliber Commander...a very versatile gun indeed.

Hope you have as much fun with yours as I did with mine over the years.

Best Regards, Rod
 
New grip extension came from Amazon. Hopefully have it up and running in a day or two. Need to get down in the shop and start loading up a bunch of ammo.
 
The barrel appears to be stainless or at least no plating, but I hear what you are saying. Nothing that reacts with nickle. (This is my second one.)
 
I treasure mine. I had a gunsmith install MMC fixed sights, shoots a lot better since, those satin nickel sights were too hard to see. Naturally I've been looking for another factory slide...
 
I have read that the SC in the serial number originally was described by Colt as Satin Chrome.
Click to expand...

I checked back with R.L. Wilson's book "Colt an American legend" on the serial number.

The Commander model gun was introduced in 1949 with an aluminum alloy frame. In 1950 Colt began the serial suffix LW to indicate Light Weight. In 1969 that LW became a prefix of CLW for Commander Light Weight.

In 1970 Colt introduced the steel framed Combat Commander with blued and nickel finishes. For blued guns the prefix was 70BSxxxx for Blued Steel and the SC for nickel. No one mentions it being for "chrome". It also obviously isn't chrome. They also produced two nickel versions the satin nickel and the standard shiny nickel.

The barrel appears to be stainless or at least no plating, but I hear what you are saying. Nothing that reacts with nickle. (This is my second one.)
Click to expand...

The barrel is carbon steel with a polished hood it's simply not blued. Colt was not making stainless steel barrels for a few more years as I understand it.

Your gun is an early one has only 3 numbers after the 70SC. Maybe 1970.

tipoc
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top