Pretty Woman is a fabulous movie. A hooker with a heart of gold and no social diseases? Well grow my hair and call me Rapunzel. One of Pretty Woman’s most mythic moments: when Edward Lewis introduces Vivian Ward (a.k.a. Sugar Lips) to opera. “People’s reactions to opera first time they see it is very dramatic,” Eddy intones as the lights go down. “They either love it or they hate it. If they love it they always love it. If they don’t, they may learn to appreciate it, but it will never become part of their soul.” I feel the same way about guns. The moment I cast my eyes on the Colt Automatic Pistol, Pocket Model, Caliber .32, Hammerless, I knew I’d found my funk soul brother. Check it out now . . .
The Colt 1903 Pocket Hammerless is not hammerless. The hammer is actually shrouded. I said, the 1903 doesn’t have a . . . oh forget it. Why bother with technical analysis or Bonnie-busted-out-Clyde-with-this-gun historical trivia when you can click and clock John Browning’s genius.
You don’t need me to tell you that the 1903′s design is as classic as the original Coke bottle: both of its time and timeless. Scope those elegant lines and perfect proportions. Like a Michelangelo sculture, you couldn’t add or subtract a thing. Like an Alden Bristol sailboat, the 1903 affirms the old adage “if it looks right, it is right.”
The 1903′s details are equally subtle, similarly beguiling. Colt manufactured our test model model in 1921, three years before the company started selling the standard weapon with contrasting walnut grips. This gun’s high-tech (for the time) Bakelite grips are monochromatic masterpieces that say “I was a black gun before black guns were cool.”
The Colt name embedded therein is sized appropriately, framed within the checkering, aligned with the bottom of the trigger guard. The rampant horse rears up on both the bottom of the grip and the left rear corner of the slide, where it’s etched with infinite care. Form follows function—with style!
Which brings us to the 1903′s once and future utility.
Those of you who worship on the altar of “stopping power” will dismiss the 1903 as an antique piece, less suitable for self-defense than a nearby table lamp. An eight-round .32? Yeah that’ll annoy ‘em. In this you are not alone. A few months after the Colt 1903 first saw the light of day, American Rifleman gun reviewer J. V. K. Wagar wrote that the Colt wasn’t powerful enough for “defensive purposes against great beasts or armed men of great virility.”
Fair enough on the beast front; I’m told that bears take some killing. As for armed assailants, today’s bad guys are more likely to be motivated by methamphetamine than manliness, and that’s not a good thing. But I would disagree with Mr. Wagar and latter-day proponents of the big ‘n fast school of terminating terminal ballistics who reckon the 1903 isn’t up to the job of personal protection.
Not all armed antagonists are indefatigable zombies that need to leave a good portion of their fetid brain matter dripping down a wall before they’ll end hostilities. In real life, a few rounds of carefully placed hollow-point .32s will de-motivate all but the most virile of men. Granted, there are 300-pound drug and adrenaline-crazed homicidal maniacs who can Mike Myers their way through a hail of lead to axe your ass. But are you preparing for the worst case scenario or the most likely assault?
If you’ve got an Armageddon mindset, well, fair enough. Get thee to a higher caliber. Follow Clint Smith’s dictum that a self-defense gun should be comforting, not comfortable. Muzzle Tov! If, however, you place carrying comfort, accuracy and speed over simple caliber considerations, this 89-year-old Colt 1903 is as good a self-defense gun as anything its size.
Needless to say, I’m cheating. There isn’t a similarly-sized, latter-day .32. No modern gunmaker would try to sell a 24-ounce .32 caliber carry gun with a 3 1/4″ barrel to a market hooked on palm-sized plastic pistols holding a plethora of 9mm bullets, or an octet of .45s. But the jacket-pocket-compatible Colt’s configuration offers two important advantages that give it modern relevance.
First, extremely low recoil. You can count on the fingers of one stinging hand the number of small concealed carry guns that don’t punish your paw for daring to fire them. Even the Colt 1908—the seven-shot .38 caliber variant of this design—is a bit “peppery” in action. The Colt 1903 is as smooth as silk. And that means you can fire eight rounds through the Colt 1903 really, really fast. Here’s Wayne from The American Firearms school, doing to do.
As you can now imagine, dry firing the Colt 1903 offers only a marginal improvement in the muzzle flp department. And this is where accuracy comes into the mix. Not only can you fire the 1903 quickly, but you stand an excellent chance of hitting what you’re aiming it; albeit using some of the smallest iron sights ever fit to a handgun (snaglessness has its price).
In the video directly above, Wayne was aiming, obviously. But I can assure you that the 1903 has the kind of point-and-shoot accuracy that’s more than welcome in real world combat, where you just might forget to line-up your shots. Or run out of time to do so. Or find yourself firing from the floor with your weak hand with blood pouring out of a brand new orifice. Or throwing the gun to someone who doesn’t know jack about guns and sights and Mr. Weaver’s stance.
Last but by no means least, there’s reliability. My man Solomon recently reviewed a box-fresh Springfield EMP which displayed not one but two egregious failures to fire. So much for bigger bullets. In contrast, I shot over 500 rounds through this 1903 without one problem. Not one. And 300 rounds through another 1903 with similar results. Would I bet my life on an 89-year-old Colt? Yes, I would.
With pleasure. And that, for me, is what seals the deal. The 1903 is an extremely pleasurable gun to fire. It’s not one of those small(er) concealed carry guns you take to the range and shoot at the end of your session just ’cause you have to maintain proficiency with the little snub-nosed bastard. It’s one of those guns you handle with, dare I say it, love.
And that builds confidence—one of the best things you can take into a gun fight. I’m not saying that everyone would feel confident carrying a 1903 Colt Hammerless .32 Pistol, or using it in most concealed carry self-defense situations. (I could see where a target’s heavy winter outerwear would be a problem.) I’m saying I would.
The fact that the 1903 is a gorgeous weapon favored by historically-significant gun-slingers (Al Capone, General George S. Patton) is neither here nor there. You can have your original Colt boxes and authentication papers. Just give me a mint condition Colt 1903, a couple of hundred rounds of ammunition and some quality time on the range. Done.
If you’re interested, find one (Colt manufactured over 530k of them) and try it. If you don’t like the Colt 1903 after the first shot, well, allow me to paraphrase the Archie Bunker conservatives of the 1970′s. The Colt 1903 Hammerless Pistol. Love it or leave it.
[Thanks to Steven Fusco at Estates Unlimited for loaning us both of his personal 1903s]
STATS:
Caliber: .32
Magazine Capacity: 8
Overall Length: 6″
Barrel Length: 3″
Height: 4″
Width: ¾”
Weight: 24 ounces
Sights: Fixed, rear half-moon, front peg
Muzzle Velocity (factory stats): 950 ft./sec.
Price: Approx. $1000 for mint condition example
RATINGS
Style * * * * *
One of the best examples of anti-style style extant. John Browning’s rep is well-deserved.
Ergonomics * * * * *
Loads, racks and shoots like a pair of sharp scissors, if you know what I mean. No fuss, no muss.
Reliability * * * * *
Not a hitch, not a glitch in 500+ rounds—in a nearasdammit 90-year-old gun. Do they still make ‘em like they used to?
Customize This
Don’t you dare. You’ll even have to commission a holster.
OVERALL RATING * * * * *
You’re in my heart, you’re in my soul.
NOTE: I’ve read one story (perhaps apocryphal) where a 1903 owner dropped his gun, shot himself and died of his injuries. While the 1903 has a grip safety, I’d recommend leaving the chamber empty when carrying.
It’s like the old Packard car slogan, “just ask the man that owns one” “A sweet firearm ,” discribes it best.
ps…where would one purchase a clip for that Colt 32?
You can get clips for the .32 at the Sportsmans guide site, a 5 pack for around $60.00 plus shipping.
Magazines too!
To those out there who comment on “stopping power” or “knock down power” better wake up and read some facts (Marvin Fackler’s book are a good start). No handgun made will knock a man off his feet, if it did it would knock YOU off your feet. Shot placement is much more important than caliber. If a .40 or .45 bucks in your hand and knocks off your sight picture so you miss every shot, that bigger round does you no favors, but iff you hit your opponent 5 times in the heart with a .22, you will probably go home that day.
all you neeed is to learn a failure drill. two to the chest one to the head is going to stop anyone. caliber isn’t everything
Great review. I love my Colt 1903 and shoot it often. I do need to get a new recoil spring for it. Does anyone know were I can get parts for it.
I have a 32 Pocket Colt S/n: 517459. I have a serious problem with mine. It goes off
quite often without pulling the trigger. If I pull the slide back and release it sharply it will go off 5 out of 10 times. Suspect wear on the sear. Haven’t disassembled the gun
to that point thus far, but talked to a gunsmith today and he said the guns were not made from very good steel and were subject to wear….It doesen’t completely eject the spent case always either..
Have any thoughts on this matter would be greatly appreciated………
B.S.
Take the gun to a different gunsmith and don’t sell it. This is a COLT firearm designed by Browning. The steel is probably of a greater quality than what you can expect from El, Cheapo today. I shoot all kinds of rounds, usually the cheapest I can get. It does not jam and at the Public outdoor range I shoot ridiculuosly small targets at 25, 50, and 75 yard. I regurlarly hit a 5 gallo0n buket at 75 4 out of ten shots. You should not even be able to come close
I have a 1903, it’s a legit 1903, as the serial number is 2180, which puts it in the first year of production. Is this gun valuable?
Yes
I have a Colt 32 Automatic in mint condition probably hasn’t had two box’s of ammo shot through it, was cleaning it today, put it in lock position released the lock now it won’t slide back, it seems locked, Dec 03 416362 serial # I have had the gun for 50 years, it is locked closed
One of the finest pistols I own.. I just had mine re-blued, not really because I wanted a perfect one, but because I wear this one with a clipdraw so often that I wore the finish off of it. The re-bluing cost more than I bought the gun for, but I love the way it looks, and I get many “wow’s” out of it! A very pretty, functional, reliable gun! This gun is smooth as a baby’s bottom and tucks in the waistband and is comfortable to carry all day.
I can’t say this enough: do NOT carry one in the chamber. It will drop fire.
My wife brought one of these home today, it is reasonably clean for the age, dated apr 20, 1897 Dec 22,1903, ser number is 288953. The magazine is missing where may I find one? I already have one of these in .380 and am looking forward to shooting this one.
Bought one at Midwest Shooters Supply. Won’t accept hollow points. Just got one from Bob’s Gun Parts. Expensive ($40) but accepts all fodder.
Keep your powder dry– It’s gonna get ugly!!!
My father had one of these. Stupidly, we sold at his estate auction after he passed away about five years ago. It went for $150. Man, I wish I would have kept that thing. Incredible balance, small enough to fit in a pocket with barely a bulge and a great piece of machined art. Now, I’d love to buy one.
Mine was manufactured in 1911 and was carried by my grandfather on the B&O Railroad. My dad gave it to me a few years ago. It is one of the most reliable handguns I own: feeds and ejects flawlessly. Completley accurate at short ranges (that nub sight). When I cleaned the magazine, I realized it had never been disassembled before. Should have checked for grandad’s fingerprints!
I just inherited one of these .32 caliber pieces of art from my father in law. Built in 1918, it has very little blue left on it, but it is tight in lock ip and very, very sexy to hold and point.
I had a local gunsmith look at it and he has pronounced it safe to fire. And offered to buy it. Several buddies are terrified to shoot it but my father in law left me 3 full boxes of .32 ammunition for it and a test target. He carried it regularly…I suspect that a couple of generations of my inlaw kin carried it as well judging by how well used and loved it is.
I’m gonna shoot it. I love the damn thing and I bet I can put 6 rounds of .32 thru a perps face at 30′ in less than 5 seconds with it.
Video to follow eventualy…I love this gun and might have it rebuilt/reblued if I can come up with 1100 bucks to get it done.
I was given a Type V 1903 chambered in .32, by my grandfather. It is nickled but it has about a quarter wide portion of the nickel rubbed off on the rear portion of the grip (I assume from holster wear). Is that something that can be fixed, or is it even worth it? I don’t plan on ever selling the pistol.
As far as stopping power, shot placement is more important than bullet size, but if it can’t be safely carried with a round in the chamber, it is not suitable for defence carry.
I have a very early Type 1. The frame is a 1904 but the slide is a 1903 design. It is a pure pleasure to fire.
I have two, that is how much i love them. one is a 1921 daily carry had it parkerized grey and put nice original wood grips. People can`t believe it is 100 year old gun ask why I carry it I say cause it works EVERYTIME. The second is type III parkerized Black with wood grips. Lookin for a decient priced 1908 in 380.
I have a Model 1903 32 auto. Parkerized finish. Marked U.S. Property. Wood Colt grips. 95% Could you tell me a value? Thank you.
I got a colt from an uncle. Serial number 2018. I don’t wanna sell it hell never really shot it. Is it worth anything??? Just curious.
I just got mine from my Dad he is 88 years young. He has owned it sense 1947 his uncle got it in a Pawn shop in Compton CA. in the early 40s. As far as punching power, it will knock bowling pins completely of a table at 25 ft. every time in 5 sec. and you never loose your sight picture. Best shooting gun I ever owned.
Sometime during the war my father who had joined the navy in January 1941 and was discharged some eight months later because he broke his collar bone while carring five inch shells while stationed aboard the USS St. Louis decided he wanted to buy a handgun. He found two for sell one was a S&W .32 long and the other was a S&W .38. The problem was that the 38 had a swell in the barrel. My father said that the swell was caused by bad ammo a common occurrence during the war. So, he went to his uncle and asked him which gun he should buy. His uncle told my father if he shot someone with the .32 he would just make them mad to buy the .38. and send it back to S&W and they would replace the barrel. So my father followed his uncles advise and bought the .38. You see Uncle Doc was a poker player and a good one. And when men lose at cards, they are not always happy about it. And Uncle Doc had killed two men and wounded a third in gun battles. He was called Doc because his mother named him after one of her favorite uncles, Dokter a Swedish name giving to him by his Swedish mother. My great grandmother Caroline Peteersson.