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THE COLT 45 AUTOMATICAND ITS DEVELOPMENT

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1.9 V \ M A A~620 ~

Glossary of terms16 I _

4 5

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Automatic The common name for a sell-loadinq or semi-automaticpistol, This has been used th,oug.hout the Profile Series to denote theabove.Backstrap (16) The pari of the f.rame which forms the rear of the grip,Barrel (2) The tube down which the bullet is g,uided.Bent (' 3) Notch in hammer.Breech Rea r portion of ba r re I.Chamber ParI of the gun that receives the charge 0ca,tridge.Disconnector (") A device to prevent raul tiple shots being fired ona single pull of the trigger.Ejector A part designed to assist the ramova! 01 the empty case,E",tractor (20) Same as ejector but more often applied to automaticweapons.Firing Pin (' 9) The pin that detonates the cartridge priming.Follower (' 6) Par t of the maqazins that guides the carnidqesupwards.Frame (6) Sea Receiver,Hammer (3) A device to detonate the primi~9 of the cartridqe Orac tua te Ihe f iring pin.

M .. g .. ~ine ('0) A container for cartridges used to reed a gunautomatically.Magazine Cat

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Commemorative Col! '1911 Alshowing the slide details(R. C . Thompson)A limited issue 01ColtCommemorative 45 automatic(R. C . Thompson)

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The Colt 45 Automaticand its Developmentby A. J. R. Cormack

The CoIt 45 has had a love- hate relati onsh ip withits users since its arrival was announced in 1905.Love, because it wi II f i re co ntinuously in the worstcombat condlrionsand give 100% stopping power;hate beca useof the heavy twisti ng recoi.l thatmakes the rookie gun-shy if not carefully trained. Itsaccuracy when 'tuned' by an expert is improbablygood for a service side-arm, The Colt 45 has beenin service with US Forces in two World Wars,throuqh the Korean crisis, and isin use in Vietnamas the firm favo UTileof the GI. It has bee n copi ed byrnany arms man ufacturers aIIover th e world and isused in combat by many nations today,Any history of the Colt must start with Ih I story ofJobn Moses Browning. Browning was born 'inUtah, USA in 1855 and after working withWinchester, where he designed a number of guns, heleft them following a disagreement The history ofBrowning foJlowedthat of George Luger, in thatBrowning had to leave the USA before he receivedthe commercial success that was his due, although.unlike Luger, Browning did return before WorldWar Ito help with weapon design. Browningjoined Fabrique Nationale d'Arrnes de Guerre, (FN),in Belgiu m . where he dlsigned the fi rst of his long

line of auto-pistols. (For details of Browning's FNdesigns see Profile No.2.)John Browning, who died in1 926, must go down inhistory as the most successful designer of small-arms, as his designs or their derivatives are still infront line service in most parts of the world.Model of 1900In 1896 Colt purchased four desig ns from Browning,which were to be the sta rt of a long lin e 01 su ccessfu Iauto-pistols. As Colt were already the su pplier ofthe 38 service revolver, they were in no hurry tobring out a design which being new and untriedcould be branded as unreliable.This resulted in a delay until1900 when Coltbrought out the Col! Modell' 900 with a newcartridge, the 38 Colt Automatic Canr.idge or38 ACP. Col! named the weaponthe 1900Sporting Model.The cartridge itsell was noteworthy, in that it was thefirst high velocity small calibre issued to theAmerican Army. The 38 revolver bullet which hadbeen used only produced avelocity of 750lps,whereas the Col! produced a hitherto unheard of1260fps.

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Left side of early type Colt 1900fitted with a lanyard ring(Major Borthwick)

Early type 1900 Colt, 38, N alice th espur ham mer and the Iinger gri ps onthe front of the slide(Major Borthwick)

Coil Modell 900 sight safety shown in raised position(Major Borthwick)

Colt Model1900 sigh! salety in safe position(Maior Borthwick)

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Colt Model 1 900 fitted 'lith a later type 1902 ro unded hammerand moulded grips (Pattern Room nfield)

The 1900 model was a seven-shot. recoil operated,locked breech weapon of excellent design andfinish. The weapon had a 6in. barrel and weighed350z. It was the first successful use of the systemusing locki ng ribs on th e barrel, wh ic h fit intocorresponding ones on the slide and are pulled out ofengagement on recoil by links. The differencebetween the link system of the Colt weapons up tillthe 1911 model is that a link is used at either end ofthe barrel as opposed to a single link after 1911.The only weakness in this and all subsequentmodels designed until the 1911 was that theslide is removed backwards and only held duringoperation by a small metal slide stop. Although thereis no reason to suspect the reliability of this part, theguns should under no circumstances be fired with38 Super ammu nition or before the slide stop hasbeen inspected, because, if tile stop fails, the slidewill come rearward off the receiver into the firer'sface.An interesti ng safety devi ce wa sempl oyed in thatthe rear sight folded down and blocked the hammerfrom the firing pin. The finger grooves on the slideare at the rear and the grips are of plain walnut.The US Army purchased 200 in 1900; the pistols allbear the mark US on the left trigger guard. A veryfew pistols were purchased by the US Navy andwere stamped 'U SN' on the left frame, and theNeptune trident on the right frame.The standard markings show the patent da!e-'BROWNING'S PATENT' PAT'D APRIL 20,1897and the calibre-' AUTOMATI C COLT CALI BRE38 RIMLESS SMOKELESS'. As less than 3000 ofthese weapons were manufactured they arecollector's pieces.At the end of the 1900 production a number offeatures which were to appear on the 1902 model

were tried out. The ll lustration shows a weaponwith the serrations on the slide on the front, arounded hammer, and 1902 grips.Sporting Model of 1902This weapon was a modified version of the 1900featuri ng the removal of the sight safety device andthe use of a shorter floating firing- pin which had to bestruck a fu II blow by the hammer to fire the cartridge.A rounded hammer, as opposed to the spur type onthe Model1900 (although on at least one or two thespur hammer was retained) was fitted and on the

Colt Mi litary Model1902early version with therounded hammer andchec kered slide grip(Pattern Room nfield)

An early type Military Model1902 showing the lanyard ringand the slide hold-open device(Pattern Room Enfield)

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early production the finger grooves were moved tothe front of the slide, On the later production thepatent date was changed to-' PATENTED AP R. 20.1897 SEPT9, 1902'.1902 Milita.ry ModelColt, obviously with a potential military market inmind, announced the '38,ACP Military Model (themilitary were at last thinking about automaticpistols) which had the following improvements orchanges-one round more in the magazine, alanyard ring. a longer squared grip and, moreimportant a hold open on the slide when the gunwas empty The weig ht was now 370z and theweapon production continued until1928 withmore than 18,000 produced. On early weapons theslide was grooved at the front and a roundedhammer used, 1 n 1908 modifications wereintroduced rnovinqthe slide grooves to the rear anda spur hammer substituted.

Right side of Call Military Model1 902 with the 1 908modifications(Pal /ern Room Enfield)

Military Model 1902 showing[he spur hammer and the fingergri ps a! [he rear of the s lide

Military Modell 902 late typewith serrated wooden grips(Weller & DuflY)

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Colt 1902 showing the barrel locking lugs. the ejector. and aninteresting 'not English made' stamp (Grieve)

The corresponding cut-outs in the slide (Grieve)

The slide lock in its lock position with the slide rearwards(Grieve)

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Colt Model 1902. fieldst ripped. Notice the lockingpin which is the only methodof reta in ing the slide(Grieve)

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Pocket Model of 1903A pocket model with a more practical barrel lengthwas announced in 1903, It had a 4 4in barrelagainst a Bin one allowing the gun to be shortenedfrom 9in to 71i nand the weigh Iedu ced to 31 oz.The early production weapons had a roundedhammer with a spur used on latter ones.Duri ng the Span ish -Americ an War there werecomplaints that the 38 revolver bullet wasineffective. leadi ng the US Govern men t to th econclusion that more stopping power was needed.The two catiores considered were ,41 and -45 ofwhich the latter was chosen. Before the 1906

Government Pistol Test the choice of a -45 revolverround or a -45 automatic round, both of which hadbeen designed by the Government OrdnanceDepartment at Frankfurt Arsenal, was given. Theround chosen by Colt was the 45 automatic roundwhich, was similar to. but longer than, the roundalready developed for the commercial sale of theModel 1905. The difference in length between thecases ma kes th e rou nd'snon -interch angea ble.Itis an odd qu,irk of fate that the round finallyadopted after various experiments was a derivationof the Colt commercial round and not theGovernment designed one.

lelt side of rhe Pocket Mod'eI1903. This is ~nearlvproduction weapon with a rounded hammer(Pal/ern Room Enfield)

Left side of a Pocket Modell 903 ea.rly ivpe(Pa/lem Room Enfield)

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John Browning was, by this time, back with his oldcompany, Winchester, where in collaboration withthem and the Army, he finalised the design of the1911 -45 automatic cartridge.Military Model of 1905The gun to fire the new commercial 45 round was anenlarged 38 Military model of 1902 and has thesame slide lock. Although there were only 6000or so of the 1905 Colts sold, these included 400 tothe Army in 1907, The weapons for the 1906 testswere rechambered forthe Government 45 round.The 1905 once again had the slide stop as the onlymethod of retaining the slide during recoil.The barrel was 5in long and as with the SportingModel of 1903 the bala nee of the weapon wasimproved, The author has found the 1902 modelwith the 6in barrel very muzzle heavy and thustending to point low when fired in a hurry.As the patent for this weapon was not grantedbefore December 1905 the patent dates on the slideare as on the 1902 models but after December theywere-'PATENTED APR. 20, 1897, SEPT. 9, 1902,DEC. 19, 1905'. The right hand side of the slide ismarked-'AUTOMATIC COLT CALIBRE-45RIMLESS SMOKELESS'.Military Model of 1911This was to be the turning poi nt for the auto-pistoland for Browning. The Army were so impressed

Left side of Colt Model 1905showing the early typerounded hammer

Early type Colt Model1 905Right Side

Colt Model1905 '45 stripped to show thelink system

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Left s ide .o f late type Coll1905showing lanyard ring and late typespur hammer(Pal/em Room Enfield)

Rightside of late type Coil 1905showing ' clearly the slide markings(Pill/em Room Enfield)

that they encouraged Colt and Browning to developthe 45 automatic into a combat weapon.The modifications which were carried out byBrowning were the strengthening of the magazine,a grip and subsequently a manual safety (as a gripsafety was netused by Browning on all of hisdesigns it may have been at the insistence of theArmy), a spur hammer, and the uprating of the 1905com merc ial cartridqe by increasi ng the bull et wei ghifrom 200 to 230 grains. With the upratinq of thecartridge and a need to strengthen the gun,Srowni ng took Ih e opportu nity to ch enge the slidestop wh ich wa sthe main we akness and redesi gnthe twin barrel links to Ihe single one of the Model1911.. These modifications appeared in a number ofexperimental pistols, each of which tried out andoften rejected new features. The Model1911 was,therefore, a completely redesigned pistol. although alogical development.These changes led to the successful adoption of theColt 1911 by the American Army. The trials includedthe Savage and the Luger amongst others, so it wasnot w ilh out stro ng oppositio n that the Colt finallywon through.During World War I the British were forced to buysupplementary arms from the United States and asone of the cartridges employed by the British wasthe A55 Auto (used in the Webley Auto-Pistol) theColt 1911 was chambered for this cartridge. Owingto differences in cartridge dimension the 455 Autowill not chamber in the '45 ACP, and althoughpossible to fire the 45 ACP in the -455 Auto this isnot recommended because of the excessive headspace. The bore dimensions are very similar.88

Lef t side of the Author'sM odel1911 showing clearlvthe patent dales and theinteresting British andGZ markings

The Author's own M odel1911which was produced by Colt in1914

Model1911 A1The next and final modifica.tions were to bring thegun up to the Modell 911 A 1 : these were done in1.921..The modifications were, inlact,i nter-changeable with the earl ier model. The rear 01 thegrip was arched and checkered. the trigger andtrigger guard altered, an easier to use safety device

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. . LThe Author's Model1911 Field Stripped

A USArmy marked Colt 1911fitted with a Mauser typeshoulder stock(Smithsonian Instilute)

RighI sideo! a Coll1911 which was supplied \0the RAF (Bowm ..n)Left side of the RAF issue Colt showing thatalthouq h originally chambered for' 455 au10 l t hasbeen rebarrelled in '45 ACP (Bowman)

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u..S.Army issue , 911 A 1 of wartime manufacture,notice the relatively poor finishBowman Profile Publications Limited

A Colt 1911 A 1 . rnanufactu red by Union Switchand Signal CompanyBowman Profile Publications Limited

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Colt 1911 as issued to G2 Intelligence Units Profile Publications Limited

A Colt 38 Automatic Model 1900.Notice the 1902 type rounded hammer Profile Publications Limited

British issue magazine pouch forColt 1911 and 1911 A1 Profile Publications Limited

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Col! Model1911 A1 manufactured by Union Switchand Signal Co (Bowman)

51 ide markings Irom 1911 Al (Pat/em Room Enfield)

and finally a change in the shape of the hammer. Theoriginal1911 continued until1913 when the newPatent by Browni ng simplified the design byreducing the total number of parts used, This is ofgreat importance when the following is considered.A standard 1911 of the latter type has 728 machiningoperations with 187 checks and inspections!The Patent Markings are asfollows-'PATENTEDAPR, 20, 1897, SEPT, 9, 1902, DEC, 19, 1905,FEB, 14, 1911' and after changes in 1913'AUG. 19, 19:13' was added.During the life of the Colt, and particularly duringWorld Wars I and II it has been manufactured byRemington Rand Co, Union Switch and Signal Co,Remington Arms Co, Ithica Gun Co, North AmericanArms Co Ltd, and Singer Sewing Machine Co.There were more Ian 2,500,000 unitsmanufactured before the end of World War II.92

Right side of a standardMilitarv issue 1911 Al(Bowman)

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On the left a British issue Magazine Pouch with standardmagazine and on the right a M agazi'ne Pouch for an extensionmagazine (J. B. Half)

Mk. IV Series 70 Government ModelThe one disadvantage with the locki ng systemencountered in the standard weapons of this type,is the method of lining up the barrel at the muzzleend. There has to be a certain amount of free playasthe barrel has to drop to unlock. This free playas theauthor has experienced, ranges from a good fit(just enough to allow the gun to function) to thebarrel floating about ,'ein. Many gunsmiths haveused their own special bushes to replace the factoryone, but most have had trouble with unreliablefunctioning. The Colt factory have solved the

A Colt Mk IV jSeries 70. Government Model (CoIl)

problem by using a four fingered bush bearing on aswelling on the barrel end. This method will becomestandard eventually on all production Colt 45 Autosas it has on the Mk IV Series '70 and the Gold Cup.As yet the parts are not available to convert theolder weapons, but this can only be a matter of time.A large number of variati ons and derivatives of the1911 A 1 have been made with the intention ofimproving the basic gu n fO T specific applications.They are as follows:

Colt National Matchand Gold Cup National MatchTarget shooters demanded a more accurate versionolthe standard weapon and this weapon wasprovided by a number of specialist gunsmiths.Diagram of the Series 70 Barrel Bushing (CoIl)

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Right side of Colt Commemorative issue 1911 A 1Pacific TheaterR. C. Thompson Profile Publications Limited

European World War II Colt. This was issued as alimited number collectors weaponR. C. Thompson Protite Publications Limited

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The Colt Series 70 Gold CupNational Match (Colt)

Colt, realising that this could be a lucrative market,decided to produce a weapon to fill the gap. Theresult was the Gold Cup,which was annou nced in1933, and was a meticulously assembled 1911 A1,with target sights, on the later production.Manufacture was terminated ouring World War IIand when it was resumed in 1957 the weapon wasrenamed the Gold Cup National Match. The onlymajor modification was the addition of a widergrooved trigger with a trigger stop.With the introduction of the Mk IV Series '70barrel bushing, the Gold Cup National Match wasupdated to include the bush. The dimensions of themodel 0- 5 are length 8 !in with a barrel of 5i n and aweight of 37oz.Colt CommanderThis weapon is the result of a request for a lighterweapon to fire the 45ACP cartridge. The receiverand main spring housing are machined from aColtalloy forging. This is a high tensile light alloywhich, combined with a ~in shorter barrel, gives aweight reduction from 390z to 26ioz. This reductionin weight makes the weapon difficult to fire with

A Colt Commander chamberedfor the 9m m Luger cartridge.This is also available in 45(Colt)

full load ammunition as there is a considerableincrease in the recoil. Many authorities consider itgood advice to fire light loads for practice and onlythe full loads for combat use. This will also save thealloy receiver from undue wear (this does notindicate any lack of strength, but alloy receivers dowear out more quickly than their steel counterparts).Production started in 1959 and it is a currentproduction Iine . bei ng offered additionally in 9mmparabellum and 38 Super. The Commander is 8i nlong and has a barrel length of 4 ;\-in.

The latest All Steel Colt CombatCommander (CoIl)

Combat CommanderIn 1971 the Colt Company after many requestsdecided to market an all steel version of the Com-mander. This weapon they named the CombatCommander. It features the same dimensions as theCommander but being all steel now weighs 330z.This addition means that the weapon will not sufferthe same wear as would the present when heavyloads are fired from the alloy version.

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Sectional view of Coll-22conversion unit i llustrating thefloating chamber (Colt)

As would be expected a number of small bore22 Long Rifle conversions were made for the Colt-45. Only the official Colt conversions areenumerated here:ACE 22 (0-22)In 1931 Colt, after a number of unsuccessfulattempts, announced a cheap to fire practiceconversion chambered for the 22 long rifle cartridge.This weapon was not issued as a kit, but as acomplete weapon. It operated on the blowbacksystem on a standard receiver.ACE SERVICE 22 (O-SM)One disadvantage with a simple 22 LR conversionin training is the lack of recoil and thus D. M.Wi.ll iams devised a boosted blowback. The boosteris a floating chamber which is recessed into the rearof the barrel and has the chamber in it. When the gunis fired the chamber moves backwards-a Ilowingthe gases to exert pressure against the front face ofthe chamber which, because of its greater areathan the cartridge, increases the recoil lour times.Once again this was not issued as a conversion butas a complete weapon, thus giving a need for therarest conversion of them all, the 45 ACP conversionfor the 22LR. The Ace -22LR was brought out in1937 and continued in production until1941although some were assembled as late as 1947.The current conversion is issued as a complete slide,96

having Calfs Acero target sights. A special magazineis issued and the parts are directly replaceable on thestandard receiver. 0 nee again the boosted blowbackis used 9 ivi ng a lou r times greater reco i I tha n withsta ndard 22 long rifle ammunition.Argentinian ColtsAlthough a great number of copies of the Colt havebeen manufactured, the Argentinian producedweapons are unusual, in thatthey were built underlicence. The Argentinia n Government decided onthe Colt 45 as standard issue and purchased largenumbers from the States.Colt Model1916This weapon is a standard, commerciallynumbered 1911 Colt. Thestandard Colt numbers andmarkings are supplemented by Seal of Argentineon the top of the slide and an extra serial number.Colt Model1927When the 1911 A1 became astandard productionthe Argentinian Government ordered more weaponsfrom Colt's commercial production. The-markingsare similar to those of the Model1916 but the slidemarkings are duplicated in Spanish.Systems ColtThis weapon is identical and fully interchangeablewith the standard 1911 A 1. The Argentinian

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Norwegian produced M/1914 showing theproduction date on the slide iPeuern Room Enfield)

Left side of M/1914 showing slide lock extension andthe Norwegian slide markings

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Ballester-Molina. This is a Colt copy. Notice thedeletion of the magazine safety(Pattern Room EF/field)

Government installed machinery licenced fromColt at the Government Controlled Arsenal ofFabrica Militar d'Armes Pontatiles and manufac-tured the 1911 A1 under direct licences from Colt.The final weapon manufactured in the Argent-inewas not a Colt but one of many derivations whichhave been produced throughout the world. This isdetailed under Colt copies.

Norwegian M/1912 and M/1914The only other real Colts produced outside theUnited States other than the various copies, werethe result of the Norwegian Government testing anumber of pistols in 1909-1912. Colt delivered300 standard 1911 pistols before the outbreak ofthe First World War stopped delivery. TheNorwegians decided to manufacture the weapon

The Authors Star which once again is a copy of theColt with the grip safety delated

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The l.larna copy of the Colt

themselves and ani nitial batch was produced at theGovernment-owned Kongsberg Weapons Factory,There were 500 produced between 1917 and 1919,serial numbered 1 onwards. In 1914 the slide stophad the finger piece lengthened. The production ispresumed to have stopped during the Second WorldWar, as after the War the Norwegians purchased thestandard Model from the USA. These weaponswere all chambered for the 11 25mm cartridge whichis identical to the 45 ACP.Colt CopiesAs there have been a large number of Colt copiesonly th ree represe ntative wea pan s wi II be covered.'Hafdasa' Ballester- Molina-This weapon is asimplified 1911 A 1 without the grip safety. It wasmanufactured for Hafdasa in Buenos Aires. byBallester- Molina who ar e no longer in business.Star ModelB-On this Spanish- made weapon theaction and outside appearance are identical to theColt, on Iy lacking the grip safety. The stri pping of theweapon is carried out in an identical manner to the1911 A1.The finish is not up to the high standardof the Colt.Llama-Another Spanish weapon with, unlike theabove; a grip safety but otherwise identical with theStar, Again the fine finish is lacking.

A late product ion Spori lnpModel1902 with spurhammer and checkeredwoodgdps(Pal lern Room Enf iefd)

Year1912

UNITED STATES MILITARY SERIAL NUMBERSFOR ,9", ,anA' '45 AUTOMATICS

Serial Numbers15005011000lOOt 1500

1501200020012500250135003501-38003801450045015500550165006501 75007501 8500850195009501-10600

105011150011501-1250012501 . I 3500, 3501 -17250172513640036401-3765037651 -3800038001 440004400'-60400

It now looks as if this old war horse will never die asno successor has been adopted. The continuous useas the standard American side arm for 60 years is theonly tribute necessary to the genius ofJ, M. Browning.

1913

ManufacturerColtColt USNColtCohUSNCoilColt USNCoil USMCColtCoil USNColtCoil USNCoilColt USNCoilCOilUSNColtColt USNColtCOltColt USMCCol.Coil USNCoil

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Year Serial Numbers1914 60401-72570

72571-83855

83856-8390083901-8440084401 -9600096001-9753797538-102596

102597 -1075961915 107597- 109500

109501-110000110001 -113496113497120566120567 -125566125567 -133186

1916 133187-1374001917 137401-151186

151187-151986151987 -185800185801 -186200186201-2U9536209587-210386210387-215386215387-21