Last month, 19FortyFive published an article of mine titled “Meet The Double Eagle .45 ACP: Colt’s Worst Gun Ever?” But, Upon further review, that title isn’t entirely fair to the Double Eagle; after all, as I’d noted in that piece, I knew of some gun experts who actually loved the Double Eagle, including my late friend & mentor Officer Dave Weiner (gone but not forgotten, R.I.P. and God bless) of the Pasadena (Calif.) Police Department’s Firearms Team.
Nay, Colt produced a far worse turkey, a far bigger flop with its very belated and ultimately abortive entry into the “Wonder Nine” market, the All-American 2000 9mm semiautomatic pistol.
Colt All-American 2000 History and Specifications
The Colt All-American 2000 made its much-anticipated debut in 1992. What set expectations for it even higher was the fact that the pistol was co-designed by the legendary Eugene Stoner – inventor of the AR-15/M-16 rifle – and the highly respected Reed Knight of Knight’s Armament.
The end result was a double-action only (DAO), locked breech, rotating barrel – akin to the Steyr 1912 – roller-locking, locked-breech 9mm pistol with a magazine capacity of 15+1 rounds with 3-dot fixed sights and either a polymer or aluminum alloy frame. Barrel length was 4.48 inches, overall length was 7.75 inches, and weighed either 29 or 32 ounces, depending on whether it was the polymer or alloy-framed version.
At least the Double Eagle lasted for eight years before going out of production; the All-American went kaput after a measly two years. Just under 20,000 of these pistols were produced during that short lifespan.
Okay, So What Went Wrong?
The ever-savvy Travis Pike of Pew Pew Tactical answers this question quite bluntly in an article appropriately titled “What Happened to the Colt All American 2000?”:
“As you’d imagine, the long, heavy trigger pull wasn’t desirable. However, a lousy trigger won’t necessarily sink a gun — what will sink a gun is an unreliable design…Colt All American pistols were notoriously unreliable and often failed to make it through an entire magazine without a malfunction…Additionally, in 1993 they were recalled due to a safety issue where the guns could fire when dropped or even struck hard…Accuracy was a major issue as well. Its long double-action trigger combined with a kooky front sight design did nothing to help in that department. The front sight sits on the barrel bushing, and as the barrel bushing wears, the lockup becomes a little loose… Mike Irwin of American Rifleman claimed the gun fired groups as big as 25 inches at 25 yards.”
Which leads me to this additional musing: how could Colt seriously attempt to pass the All-American off as this ultra-futuristic high-tech pistol when it still used a separate barrel bushing? Excuse me, but whilst separate barrel bushings worked fine on the classic M1911 pistol platform, but let’s not forget that the 1911’s very inventor, the late great John Moses Browning, did away with separate bushings when he designed the equally classic P-35 Browning Hi-Power! You just don’t see barrel bushings on post-WWII autopistols such as Berettas, SIG Sauers, Glocks, Heckler & Kochs (HKs), etc…yet the designers of the Colt All-American 2000 reverted to a barrel bushing.
Wow, just wow.
Want Your Own?
What, seriously? Are you some kind of masochist? So filthy rich that you’ve got nothing better to spend your surplus cash on? Or perhaps it’s the historical oddball/curio nature of the piece that appeals to you? (Kinda like how movie buffs will watch “Plan 9 From Outer Space” because “It’s so bad, it’s good?”) Well, okay, but don’t say I didn’t warn y’all; ”Buyer Beware” and all that good disclaimer stuff, yadda yadda yadda.
According to True Gun Value, “A COLT ALL AMERICAN 2000 pistol is currently worth an average price of $525.81 new and $476.42 used. The 12-month average price is $525.81 new and $476.42 used.” Guns.Com has one available for $649.99, whilst Rock Island Auction lists one at $690.00.
Christian D. Orr has 33 years of shooting experience, starting at the tender age of 14. His marksmanship accomplishments include: the Air Force Small Arms Ribbon w/one device (for M16A2 rifle and M9 pistol); Pistol Expert Ratings from U.S. Customs & Border Protection (CBP), Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE), and the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) Criminal Investigator Training Program (CITP); multiple medals and trophies via the Glock Sport Shooting Foundation (GSSF) and the Nevada Police & Fires Games (NPAF). Chris has been an NRA Certified Basic Pistol Instructor since 2011.
