Remember these? Maybe some of you have never even seen one. This is the Colt Colt Double Eagle series 90 pistol. Made from 1989 to 1997 it was colt’s too late attempt to get in on the double action/single action auto market. This was a time when DA?SA autos were on the rise. The Police had been dumping 6 guns like crazy and buying the DA/SA autos with higher magazine capacity. The DA/SA made lawyers and bean counters rest easier and make people afraid of condition one carry of SA pistols feel all warm and fuzzy inside. Things like awful DA triggers with decockers were ascendant.

Unfortunately the time was not a very good time for Colt and as they have done a few times over the years, they came out with it a day late and a dollar short. They were just a little too late for this one.

The gun uses the same magazines as the 1911 and slide and barrel.

I recall when they first came out, my Dad wanted one bad. Always a fan of Colt and Colt pistols, something about it really spoke to him. Then one day we went into a K-Mart ( if you are a certain age, the idea of K-mart selling any guns is probably a shock. In fact, now that I think about it, you might be thinking “what the hell is K-mart?”) we walked to the gun section and they had a couple. A commander and full sized. Dad’s desire to own one ended as soon as we had it in our hands.

You can see the frame and tell it does not lend well to modern pistol gripping doctrine. That looooong trigger pull was also pretty atrocious.

The series 90 quietly died and went away in 1997. By then the AWB was on and Colt went back to making 1911s the way God intended.

The Double Eagles came in a variety of chamberings, the rarest in 40 S&W. The officers model in 40 S&W is probably the rarest. If some one offers to sell you one some day, buy it for resale.

A few years ago Colt tried another version of a DA/SA and I don’t think it lasted a year. I have never even seen one of the new ones in person or know anyone who has that doesn’t work at Colt.

For the market they wanted , above is the pistol Colt should have refined for LE sales and commercial sales to catch on to the wonder 9 and DA/SA craze. The Colt submission for the “offensive pistol.” for one of the military’s big ideas. No light/laser mount and dumping the break/suppressor mount and a being out in the early to mid 80s would have probably seen a lot more success.