Argentine 1927

While I have published many articles and books about 1911 pistols, I am willing to learn even more. One thing I have learned is that common descriptors such as "GI" and "Series 70" are not as exact as some may think. As an example, some pistols stated to be an exact clone of the of the Colt 1911A1, well, aren’t quite. And others aren’t a clone at all. The Argentine Modelo 1927 is one of those. In contrast to most 1911 copies and clones, the Modelo 1927 is a license-built Colt.

The Argentine Army took the route of consulting Colt and obtaining a license to manufacture the pistol. Let’s look at the history of the pistol first and then understand what the pistol is and isn’t in terms of fitting and function and interchangeability with the Colt 1911A1 and other GI guns. These pistols are as reliable and accurate as any GI 1911. Argentine 1927 pistols aren’t as inexpensive as they once were but it still is considered for re-builds and even custom work. There are better choices!

Perhaps a more exact concern is if the Modelo 1927 accepts modern after market parts. The Argentine 1911 was once a shooter grade pistol and a handgun that offered a break in price compared to the Colt 1911 with comparable performance. Now, they are more expensive, although still considerably less than a Colt. On that basis anew Colt Series 80 or Springfield Mil Spec may be a better buy as a shooter.

The Argentine pistol is better made of good material than the various Philippine guns based on much personal experience. Today, inexpensive 1911 handguns are offered primarily with cast frames and MIM parts The Ballester Molina, below, was a less expensive pistol to manufacture more similar to the Star pistols.

They are well made of good material. The pistol did not accept all 1911 magazines with good function. while the Modelo 1927 is made of carefully-chosen forged steel. The bottom line may be that the Modelo 1927 is a pistol of finite supply. There were only so many made and there will be no more. History When Argentina was looking for a service pistol their search led to the highly respected Colt 1911, then in service for just a few years in America.

By 1914 Argentina had purchased several hundred Colt pistols for evaluation. The Colt 1911 45 ACP pistol was adopted as the Argentine 1916. By 1923 the Argentine government elected to eliminate any dependency on foreign arms manufacture, a wise move for any nation. Depending on America for pistols and Germany for rifles was a good move for quality manufacture initially but not for continued supply in the case of war or political unrest.

A special commission negotiated a contract with Colt for manufacture of the pistol in Argentina. Colt supplied blueprints and machinery and helped train employees, machinists, and technicians. The Army adopted this new version of the Colt as their The magazines measuring closer to 0.53 in width worked best. Magazines with larger measurements were quite tight in the magazine well. Modelo 1927.

While many pistols were purchased from Colt, the Argentine military eventually began receiving their locally-produced version. The Pistol Sistema Modelo Argentino Caliber 11.25mm is a well made pistol and the original blue finish is comparable to the Colt. Checkering on the hammer spur and slide stop appears identical to Colt-made guns. The fit of the barrel hood, barrel to the barrel bushing, and the internal parts is good.

The pistols were manufactured by Fabrica Militar de Armas, however, assembly took place at the Domingo Matheu plant in Rosario, Argentina. The pistols were supplied to the police forces and the

Army, Navy, and Air Force. The extractors are tool steel, same as the Colt, and the mainspring housing is nicely checkered but in a different pattern. The grips are hard black plastic and the trigger face is serrated. While there are interesting legends regarding the steel supplied for these pistols, the steel was actually supplied by German, Swedish, and British sources. The pistols are heat treated in the same manner as American issued Colts: spot heat treating.

You may see Modelo 1927 pistols cracked in the same places that Colts crack, including around the slide stop. Like many military pistols, the Modelo 1927 have serial numbers engraved on the barrel, slide, frame, and, originally, the magazine. I have yet to see a completely matched set, magazine and all, but most of the pistols I have examined featured matching serial numbers otherwise.

I recently was able to examine and work with a nice Modelo 1927 made in 1953, allowing me to refresh my memory about the pistol and also make new observations. More than twenty years ago I upgraded a pistol of the same type with a set of King’s Hardballer sights, a nice combination. The Argentine and Colt pistols are generally interchangeable as far as internal parts and grips. However, there are differences, despite the Colt blueprints and careful manufacture.

I would rate the Argentine pistols of excellent quality and they are probably better finished than Parkerized American pistols. When I attempted a trigger job on my personal Modelo 1927 I learned that the ignition parts were quite hard compared to Colt parts. The trigger job was eventually accomplished after much work but the result was not acceptable. When the slide was dropped on an empty chamber the hammer followed to half cock, indicating I had taken too much material off of the ignition parts.

Even then I was experienced with Colt and other domestic 1911 handguns but I was still learning. Good or bad, the Argentine steel was harder and the experience with that trigger job taught me that it was better to install a high quality ignition set rather than use existing parts. I replaced the now-unsafe modified original parts with a complete Ed Brown ignition set.

I’ve never seen this happen in guns in as good shape as this one. My opinion about the hardness of Argentine parts compared to Colt’s has held true since, however, I have had experience with several handguns of the type that friends and customers have customized. The frame rails and frame horns around the grip safety seem softer than modern Colt pistols and the Modelo 1927 is closer to war time Colts which were spot heat treated.

I would recommend a shooter invest in a modern Colt for a custom build as neither Argentine and early Colts aren’t as suitable. Modern Colt Series 80 handguns feature excellent quality slide and frames, ideal to serve as the base for a custom project. If used as-is, I would trust the Argentine gun as a carry gun after putting in new springs as the basic gun is as reliable as any GI Colt, and that is a high standard of reliability.

Benchwork The pistol that came across my bench recently was bought in for a complaint common with the Modelo 1927. While a very nice pistol, in perhaps ninety five per cent condition, this one was having trouble using certain magazines. Most shooters will simply use a different magazine in a 1911 if a given one doesn’t fit. This owner wanted to know why his magazines did not fit his Modelo 1927 as all them fit his Colt, Springfield, Remington, Para Ordnance, and Rock Island pistols.

Some magazines, such as those from Wilson Combat, fit and functioned well while a few others, especially those with a thick base pad, did not. I took the opportunity to test the pistol with a dozen different magazines. True enough, several types of magazines were very tight going in. They would lock in place but were very difficult to push into the magazine well and then remove. I examined the grip screw bushings.

I have ran across pistols with grip screw bushings driven in too far causing the screw to contact the magazine. This wasn’t the case here. The magazines were tested and measuring revealed factional differences between some, yet, none of the other dozen 1911 pistols on hand failed to accept any of them. The only time I have encountered a magazine not fitting a 1911 pistol was a special magazine that Auto Ordnance used in their General’s Model due to its different design and magazine latch.

I still don’t understand why they did this… With this Modelo 1927 there was no possibility of filing the trigger bow as I did not wish to interfere with the trigger’s function nor to make a sloppy fit with other magazines. In the end we simply decided to use magazines that functioned, locked, and which were easily removed. I test fired the pistol using Fiocchi 230 grain full metal jacket

ammunition. A pistol failing to function with this very reliable load isn’t due to ammunition. Two magazines fired with no problem and the pistol held a 1.5" five-round group at 15 yards, which is good for this gun. After returning to the shop I locked the slide back to clear the pistol and clean it, only to find the plunger tube was loose. This is not something I’ve ever encountered in a lightly used pistol in such good shape, however, appearances can be deceiving.

This pistol is 67 years old and may have been handled or fired more than I thought. After removing the slide, I easily pulled the plunger tube away and then re-staked it. I undertook another experiment I had not done on this scale previously. To study the parts interchange more closely I removed the firing pin, firing pin spring, and slide stop, replacing them Wilson Combat parts. There was no problem with fitting.

I did not attempt to fit an extractor but by appearances the Wilson Combat Series 70 was also a good fit. Extractors must be fitted to the specific gun anyway, this was as sure a test. All of the original parts were in excellent condition. This well worn pistol is functionally excellent. I had a Bar-Sto drop in barrel on had that fit anew production Colt Series 70 slide well as well as a Colt Series 80 without any problem.

The barrel hood was too long for the Modelo 1927 and the locking lugs would not fit into place properly, again confirming this pistol is not drop-in for modern barrels. In general, I find the Modelo 1927 a very good pistol of the GI type. It isn’t easily worked, however, replacing the original ignition parts with quality aftermarket components makes for a good shooter. Any aftermarket barrels would require considerable hand fitting. As for magazines, Wilson Combat, Colt factory, and Mec-Gar fit well.

Some, including factory Springfield magazines and other good magazines, may not fit the Modelo 1927. It was interesting working with this handgun and I am glad I had the chance to closely examine it. Like many early 1911s, this Argentine pistol should be left in the original condition as much as possible. AG American Gunsmith Reader Services 1.