The "FJA" on my (I should say my father's) Remington Rand is right side up as well, Bob. I didn't have a closeup of the slide markings for that response and used a file photo for expediency. The other photos are of course mine.
Most of the finish wear on that gun I put there nearly 30 years ago. I shot that gun in IPSC/USPSA competition one entire season while waiting for a custom single-stack to be built. I had sold the Colt Combat Elite I started with, to a buddy who wanted to get into the sport, then the inevitable pistolsmith delays left me without a gun for the upcoming season. The Rem Rand was pressed into service.
Even then I knew better than to alter the gun, so I shot it just as it was carried by my father in WWII, with nothing more than a strip of skateboard tape on the front strap and the addition of a half dozen Wilson 8-round magazines. This was in the days before there were seperate classes in USPSA and everyone competed heads up, whether you shot a stock single stack or a compensated, red-dotted, high-cap custom.
That old war horse never let me down, even though I shot lead H&G SWCs. I learned an awful lot shooting that gun that summer, moved up a full classification, and took great enjoyment when I was able to beat those with fancy $2000+ race guns. I got in the habit of, after a good run on a course of fire, and after "unload...show clear...hammer down", I would give the gun a little shake before reholstering, so all present could hear it rattle. It drove the "gamers" nuts.
I've never shot the gun off bags and to this day have no idea what it would do at 50 yards, but I do clearly remember a match in Kalamazoo that summer. One of the courses of fire was a classifier, the dreaded timed-fire 50 yard "standards"...6 rounds standing, 6 rounds kneeling, 6-reload-6 from prone...on three separate targets. I wasn't all too confident as I made ready...I never figured I could make good shots with those miniscule military sights in the time allotted... but a bit of cloud cover to minimize the glare, and what must have been a laser-sharp focus on that little nub of a front sight...conspired, and I beat the clock on all three strings. Following the RO down to the targets, I was only a bit surprised to find all the shots were solid "A" hits, resulting in a score that put me near the top for the course...and the match.
Nothing compared to it's service in WWII, I understand...but just another minor victory in what became a string of them that summer. I retired the old veteran at the end of the season, when my EGW-built custom finally arrived and continued competing until my daughters were born some years later. Do I regret the finish wear I put on that gun during that year? A bit at first...no doubt I lowered it's collector value a fair amount...but it matters not at all. My father's gun will never be sold. My daughters know it's history and it's importance, and have vowed to pass it on to my future grandchildren if I'm unable to do that myself. Besides, reminiscing over that bit of holster wear still brings a smile...and honestly, although I did quite well with the EGW and worked my way up to A class, I don't think I ever had as much fun competing as I did that summer with that old Remington Rand.
Roe
