More weapons:
[Colt M1917][M1 Garand][M1 Carbine][M1A1
Carbine]
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Proof &
Acceptance marks on Ithaca pistols
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"Frank J.
Atwood" |
Ordnance
Department
"Crossed Cannon" |
"P" proof
mark |
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FJA
Left side of frame below slide stop
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Final Inspection Mark
1942 - 1945 |
P
1.
Top of slide,
2.
left side of receiver,
3. left
barrel lug
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Factory proof mark
symbols ^ stamped on the upper
left side of Ithaca trigger guards beginning
intermittently at about serial number 900,000, and
continuing through the end of production.
Numbers found on the upper
right side of the trigger guard were standard Ithaca
inspection marks. |
HISTORY
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This gun, #1890254, was shipped October 13, 1944 to Transportation Officer,
Benicia Arsenal, Army Point, California.
Ithaca started
production in December of 1942 and was the only established firearms
company to produce 1911A1s other than Colt. The total number of
pistols produced by Ithaca was 335,466. In early 1942 & 1943 Ithaca
did not have all the equipment necessary to manufacture the
components so they received parts from other contractors that
included 6,200 WWI receivers that Springfield had in storage. These
early Colt receivers (frames) can be quickly identified by the
cut-outs under the stocks. Colt also supplied many of the small
parts. Harry Howland of Ithaca designed a stamped trigger assembly
that was approved by the Ordnance Department. This stamped trigger
was fabricated by the Yawman Metal Products Co. of Rochester N.Y.
and became known as the Yawman Trigger. The new trigger was adopted
by all other pistol manufacturers by early 1943, except Colts who
changed in April of 1944. Changing to the stamped trigger alone
reduced the cost of the 1911A1 by about 5%. Later in the war
Ithaca also designed a serrated Grooved hammer as a cost reduction
but none of the other manufacturers adopted it. Ithaca pistols were
probably the coarsest finished pistols of any 1911A1. This seems
puzzling since they were previously a manufacturer of sporting
shotguns and as such they must have appreciated the importance of
cosmetic appearance. [See the Ithaca Shipping
Records soon]
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