Colt SSP pistol (USA)


Colt SSP pistol , 9mm

Type Double Action semiautomatic
Caliber 9x19mm Luger/Parabellum/NATO
Weight unloaded n/a
Length n/a
Barrel length n/a
Magazine capacity 15 rounds

9mm Colt SSP (Stainless Steel Pistol) was designed during late sixties and then shelved until XM9 trials, which began in late 1970s and in 1985 were won by Beretta M92FS pistol. It was then voluntarily withdrawn from trials by Colt for unpublished reasons, and never manufactured for commercial sales. This was a big mistake on part of the Colt's management, as back in 1970s and even 1980s this pistol had a great sales potential. However, this was not the only mistake made by Colt's top heads during that timeframe, which almost killed this once famous company by the turn of 21st century.

Colt SSP pistol was made almost entirely from stainless steel. It used traditional Browning High-Power type locking breech, short recoil action, and a double action trigger with exposed hammer and ambidextrous slide-mounted safety. Hammer en-bloc unit is made removable for ease of maintenance. Magazines were double stack, and held fifteen rounds of 9mm ammunition. Sights were fixed, with the rear sight being dovetailed to the slide