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Make: Colt
Model: Service Model Ace
Serial Number: SM38558
Year of Manufacture: 1981
Caliber: .22 Long Rifle
Action Type: Single Action Semi-Automatic with Removable Magazine
Barrel Length: 4 3/4”
Sights / Optics: The front sight is a blade fixed to the front of the slide's rib. The rear sight is a square notch adjustable for windage and elevation in a base pinned to the rear of the rib.
Stock Configuration & Condition: The grips are two-piece checkered walnut with gold-colored Colt medallions. The grips have no notable wear or damage, only light handling marks. The checkering is sharp. There are no chips or cracks. Overall, the grips are in Excellent Condition.
Type of Finish: Blued
Finish Originality: Original
Bore Condition: The bore is bright and the rifling is sharp. There is no erosion in the bore, but there is some minor tool chatter on the lands. In this writer's opinion, the bore rates 9 out of 10.
Overall Condition: This pistol retains about 99% of its metal finish. There is no notable wear or damage, only light handling marks. There is scattered grease from the factory packaging. The screw heads are sharp. The markings are clear. Overall, this pistol is in Excellent Condition.
Mechanics: The action functions correctly. The slide has barely perceptible play to the frame. We have not fired this pistol. As with all previously owned firearms, thorough cleaning may be necessary to meet your maintenance standards.
Box, Paperwork & Accessories:This pistol comes with one vintage original Colt blued 10-round magazine stamped "COLT / .22 L.R." with a Rampant Colt on the bottom floorplate, the original octagonal yellow “WARNING” hang tag still attached to the trigger guard, and the original faux-wood cardboard Colt box with serial number matching end label, two-piece styrofoam insert, and factory paperwork including the manual.
Our Assessment: The Colt Ace was introduced in 1931 as a .22 Long Rifle pistol similar in shape and manual of arms to their famous 1911 Government Model. Though certainly a promising concept, the Ace suffered from a few major drawbacks. First, it could not properly mimic the .45’s recoil, and second, it could not generate sufficient blowback strength from the .22 cartridge to force the slide completely back for ejection and reloading. In 1937, the legendary inventor David Marshall “Carbine” Williams designed and patented the “floating chamber device”, and Colt introduced this marvel feature that same year on their new model of .22 LR 1911, dubbed the Service Model Ace. Williams’ device gave the Service Model Ace a recoil duplicating that of the Government Model .45, allowing shooters the use of relatively inexpensive .22 ammunition to simulate the larger cartridge. Being that the Service Model Ace was introduced in the depths of the Great Depression, the cost savings on ammunition was a significant selling point. Over 13,500 Service Model Aces were made from 1937-1945. As with many other Colt models, production ceased at the end of WW2, that is until popular demand encouraged their reintroduction, and post-War Service Model Ace pistols were made from 1978-1989.
This Colt Service Model Ace was made in 1981 and is in Excellent Condition. It features a 4.75” barrel, 99% of its crisp, original blued finish, gorgeous two-piece checkered walnut grips with gold-colored Colt medallions, a bright bore with sharp rifling (there’s some minor tool chatter on the lands), one original Colt blued magazine, the original octagonal yellow “WARNING” hang tag still attached to the trigger guard, and the original faux-wood cardboard Colt box with serial number matching end label, two-piece styrofoam insert, and factory paperwork including the manual. We rarely use the word "unfired", but it would be surprising if this pistol saw any use outside the factory. It would make for a very classy plinker, or be a wonderful addition to a Colt pistol collection, especially one which needs a post-war Service Model Ace to spice it up. Lastly, this pistol comes from the personal collection of inventor, founder, and President of Universal Firearms, Abe Seiderman, and should be of additional interest to collectors for that ownership lineage.