M1917 Revolvers

[Adipose]

There are two different models that are often referred to as the M1917, one produced by Colt, the other by Smith and Wesson. During WW1 Pershing wanted all of our boys in Europe to have a .45 cal. handgun, and since there were never enough M1911s to go around, we issued both of the M1917 revolvers. By the end of the war, nearly half of our troops in Europe were carrying handguns chambered for the .45 automatic cartridge...so I've read. There is an anecdote which relates that the Germans were quite offended, since they felt that carrying a handgun was an officer's prerogative.

 

Of the three, I much prefer the M1911 and currently own two, one of which is a service pistol from WW2. Of the two revolvers, I prefer the S&W as it is more comfortable in my hand than the Colt.

 

The revolvers were loaded via "half-moon clips", although these days a so-called "full-moon clip" is preferred. During both world wars, uniquely designed clip pouches could be worn on the web belt, and ammunition was issued, pre-clipped, in boxes that held either six or eight ammo holding clips.

 

The revolvers can be loaded and fired using rimless .45 auto cartridges without the clip, however, the empty cases could not be mechanically ejected and one was forced to use a stick or rod of some sort to shove out each spent case. At some point a rimmed version of the .45 automatic cartridge was developed and made available on the civilian market for use in the revolvers. Using the rimmed version of the cartridge enables the fired cases to be ejected mechanically, however, reloading the cartridges is still considerably slower than is possible through the use of the clipped ammunition.