The Colt Colt All American 2000 was produced from 1992 to 1994. Only 20,000 guns were made, so a gun that was considered a dismal failure by Colt standards ended up being pursued by collectors anyway. I purchased this unfired example, as new, in the box with papers for $750 in 2019. Oh, that price included three boxes of ammo. This was the first and only 9mm I had ever bought, at that time.
But before I had an opportunity to shoot some good photos, I had gifted it to my son who lives a good distance from us. He plans on taking it to a pistol range in the city where he lives and hopefully we'll get some good photos then.
The nomenclature was a misnomer in that the pistol fires an Austrian round, the 9mm Parabellum which was invented by Georg Luger. The name Parabellum is derived from the Latin motto of Deutsche Waffen- und Munitionsfabriken (DWM), Si vis pacem, para bellum ("If you want peace, prepare for war"). The All American 2000 was a unique and somewhat unconventional design for Colt. It featured a polymer frame, which was a departure from the traditional steel-framed pistols that Colt was known for.
1. Polymer Frame: As mentioned, the pistol's frame was made of polymer, which was a departure from the traditional steel frames found in many Colt handguns.
2. Double-Action Only (DAO): The All American 2000 was a double-action-only pistol, which means that each trigger pull both cocked and released the hammer, firing the gun. It did not have a single-action option.
3. Rotating Barrel Locking System: One of the unique features of the All American 2000 was its rotating barrel locking system, which was designed to reduce recoil and improve accuracy. This feature was intended to set it apart from other semi-automatic pistols.
4. Ambidextrous Controls: The pistol had ambidextrous magazine releases and slide stop levers, making it suitable for both right and left-handed shooters.
Colin Smith
GUNCC Guest Writer
