From the Vault: Colt Model 601 Rifle

Are Paul Levy and Keith Ford holding a Brownells BRN-601™ Retro Rifle™? No! It’s an ORIGINAL Colt Model 601 the guys discovered on their last visit to Rock Island Auctions. Making the most of this rare opportunity for “hands-on” time (wearing nitrile gloves, of course, to protect this valuable piece), they take us on a tour of this example of the original Colt / Armalite rifle adopted by U.S. Air Force in 1960. With its full-auto capability, original steel “waffle” magazine, slab-sided lower receiver (no “fence” around the mag release button), cast front sight base with raised lettering, Duckbill flash suppressor, nubby triangle-shaped charging handle, fiberglass stock and triangle cross-section handguard (both painted green), this 601 is all original. Model 601s in civilian hands are extremely rare, so the selling price for one is very high. The good news is you can get a Brownells Retro Rifle™ BRN-601™ replica with ALL the details Paul and Keith show us on this Rock Island gun for far less - and it’ll be a great shooter, too!
More Brownells videos: www.brownellsvideos.com
Rock Island Auction Company: www.rockislandauction.com/

[@RockIslandAuctionCompany]

You fellas definitely know your ARs! See you again soon.

[@chrischiampo7647]

Rock Island Auction Company Joel While There There Show Them The WW1 Lewis Guns 😊😀😊

[@mikeofwar2684]

Hey get out of here and go get Ian more guns to review. Break time's over lol

[@ODellEng]

The "dimples" in the take down pin and the selector were actually centres because both parts are actually ground to size. In the early days they were centred and ground to size and the centres were left (this was a carry over from the AR10 and you can see the same centre on the AI made guns) and for the takedown pin they held the bullet tip from slipping and marking the receivers. Later this was changed by the US Military to remove the centres. I worked with Colt and Diemaco so I knew some of the early Colt engineers and how these parts were made in production. In Canada we actually put in a change to put the centres BACK as they did significantly reduce the damage of slipped bullet tips on the anodize. The 601 is a beautiful gun and your repro parts are really well made, thanks for putting them out. Ever think of selling early 601 style takedown and pivot pins, bolt catches, and semi selectors?

[@Tunkkis]

How does a soft bronze jacket harm an anodized aluminum surface? Surely they weren't using SLAP rounds to disassemble rifles, were they?

[@ODellEng]

@@Tunkkis it had less to do with scratching the pin, although the tip of an M855 round is copper backed by steel and it can mark things, in particular if the bullet tip slips off the steel pivot or takedown pin and runs across the soft aluminum surface of the lower receiver. Th anodize is hard but the supporting material, aluminum, is not and the bullet tip can easily scratch the surface. The dimple places the bullet tip exactly centre and when you push the pin in you don't slip off and you press directly on the centerline of the pin. When some of the guns are new this also helps "ease in" the fit of the detents to the pivot and takedown pin tracks.

[@Liberty_76]

The raised plus sign is called an “Optical Indexing Mark” and I believe I was used for placement when they milled the forging (I could be wrong about the purpose though) I have a partial fence XM16E1 that has the raised plus on the fence also, there were full fenced XM16E1’s they weren’t all partial fenced

[@nathan_k]

Thank you for the close-ups of the special hardware, and historical explanations! And for making the reproductions for working folk who can't be part of the auction.

[@stevepoe3667]

Really Digging the O.D. GREEN 🇺🇸👍

[@rcairnut]

oh frak!!! oh man I shot one of these in basic! it was the oldest gun in the rack, loved the green color and still do.

[@Jason-iz6ob]

Air Force?

[@rcairnut]

@@Jason-iz6ob yes, 71 to 76

[@Mrgunsngear]

very cool!

[@patrick8116]

Thank you Brownells for your entire retro line.

[@brownells]

Thank you for enjoying it!

[@QuentinQuatermass]

Great video, thanks! Wonderful to see a genuine Colt 601 in excellent condition like this one. I love my Brownells BRN-601 that I bought two years ago. I have been upgrading small parts to make it look more authentic - 601 style dust cover, 601 style mag catch button, correct looking selector/safety, dimpled pins, 601 style bolt catch, no drain hole buttstock screw and flat slotted pistol grip screw. Haven't painted the lime green furniture yet because the color looks good with the too dark gray receivers. Heck, since it has the 1/12 twist barrel I could just put black furniture on it and call it an early 602! But it has a 604 upper, augghhh. ;-)

[@tomjones1967]

Beautiful rifle, thanks for sharing! I built up something using Brownells parts & others. GREAT series.

[@brownells]

Thank you!

[@hugogayozzo9568]

Excelente el 601 de BROWNELLS

[@OneShotNick92]

Wow!! Such classic beauty!

[@chrischiampo7647]

Really Cool Piece 😀😊👍🏼 Thanks Guys Great Rifle I Love The Non Forward Assist Models

[@kentuckyjustice1408]

I bet it goes for a $10, maybe a $20 bill. I love those older ones, but an original... DANG!

[@markjmaxwell9819]

I agree with Stoner I don't think the forward assist wasn't needed. I have seen some M16 rifles with the side of the receiver blown out due to using the forward assist rather than racking the rifle or pulling it apart to see what the issue was. 😎🇦🇺

[@RJM1011]

Beautiful ! :)

[@MrBioniclefan1]

There is one on gunbroker as well so I have an idea of how much this will go for.

[@toki89666]

Thats a Type B stock actually. The A and later B were on the 601, Type C was the 602 and early XM16E1, and Type D was later XM16E1, 604 and M16A1 then later the Type E with the trap door on later M16A1. And finally the "Type F" more commonly known as the A2 stock.

[@claytonandry]

That rifle is beautiful, I love my Brn-601.

[@brownells]

Thank you!

[@fschoneboom]

I love my Brownells 601. It handles better than the Colt AR15 I bought in 81 or 82'. The Colt I sold but the 601 is a keeper.

[@brownells]

Thank you!!

[@J__C__]

Back in the mid 80s, I had a plastic toy M16 that was this color that went brap-rap-rap-rap when you pulled the trigger. And it didn't even come with orange on the muzzle. It was all green 😁 80s toy guns > todays I've looked for one on the web for years but I never can find the right one. There's other colors but not green like I had. It looked just like the Mattel M16 Marauder, only green and not made in the 60s

[@radical026]

Will there ever be Type E stocks available from Brownells?

[@a.c.2499]

I'm surprised Ian didn't do a video on this

[@ablemagawitch]

Ian will probably have his own video on it. Ian always gets to put his grimy paws on every rare gun that goes through any auction house.

[@a.c.2499]

@@ablemagawitch probably

[@Mr_Makina]

Guess what.... kzbin.info/www/bejne/f6eaqXiribJmbNE

[@greentoast9125]

Looks like the firing pin cotter was on the opposite side of the bcg

[@wongnusabangsa6462]

I have delf 3x25 pnp585 scope for AR601 weapons ... the scope is dirty I can't disassemble the lens ... please make a video on how to disassemble the scope Im from indonesia

[@Kevin-ix4qz]

I wonder what it sold for

[@itsthatguyfromthething]

Ayyy

[@ollieger640]

Stoner never stops amazing me

[@MrSloika]

The stocks on that gun may well be fiberglass but I don't think fiberglass was the original material used. I read various sources that describe it as 'Bakelite'. but again I believe this is incorrect. The AR-10 stocks were made with a molded material that was composed of paper fiber and some type of resin. The very early AR-15 models also used this material for the stocks....the unpainted color is identical to the AR-10s. This material was prone to cracking and damage and was the chief complaint of the the AR-10 customers. When the AR-15 was eventually accepted as the M-16 the stock material was fiberglass molded in black.

[@Trumplican]

I thought the very first ones didn't have dust covers

[@0h_Noo]

Barbie Company’s plastic in a bullet spitter.

[@63grandsport11]

Shouldn't this 601 have a mag release with straight horizontal line cuts instead of the later circular pattern ?

[@QuentinQuatermass]

Great catch! (Sorry pun intended!) Yes the pictures I've seen of actual Colt 601s have mag catch buttons with straight lines. I don't believe any 601s came with the circular pattern button, probably more likely this 601 had it swapped out somewhere along the way. Again, good eye to notice this.

[@MichaelVanHeemst]

If you have $100k, it is up for grabs lol

[@cs-rj8ru]

Ah the 60's....the era of fiberglass....

[@dandutre2272]

Give me a second and I will dig around for that $100,000 that I left laying around the house the other day.

[@jonascastejon5888]

What? That's how much an original cost?

[@dandutre2272]

@@jonascastejon5888 I seen one one GunBroker awhile back and they were asking for almost $100,000. Full auto

[@Tula1940_LB]

Legend says if you put a Magpul Pmag in an original 601 Eugene Stoner will rise from the grave to redeclare war on communism.