FN Model 1900

[Robert357]

Just got back from a gun show, where an FN Model 1900 jumped off the table and into my hands screaming "buy me!"  How could I refuse.  I am now the proud owner of an FN Model 1900 Serial Number 195,1xx.  It will join my other pre-WWI 32's.

I sure do like the handiwork of John M. Browning.

Can anyone point me to a website or provide me with some information so that I can find out the year of production (sometime between 1899 & 1910 is not close enough) and figure out more about the history of this firearm?  Oh, and anyone know where I might be able to get a new magazine and replacement parts if I shoot it?  It's not in my Numrich catalog.

Thanks!

[jhm]

Robert357 :  The early browning ser. # are as hard to track down as anything you start to do, here is kind of a guideline I and alot of others in the business do use its not exact but will be vary close, 724,500 manu. over a 11 year period that would make a average of 65,863 per year now your ser. # is 195,100 devided by 65,863 will give you a 2.96 year of production make that in the 3rd. year and you should be close to 1902 not rocket science but will be vary close.   JIM

[Robert357]

Thanks for the advice, but I suspect that it is a little newer or closer to 1905.   I think that your forumla puts me in the ballpark, but I suspect like with most things the sales start off slow at the beginning, get real fast and then tapper off as new-better models become available.

About a year ago, I was looking into buying another M 1900 and looked up date of manufacturing information for it on the web somewhere or in a book at a gunshow.  The serial number of the one I was looking at then, 51,5xx and the source I found said it was manufactured between 1902 and 1903.

Unfortunately, I can't find any Model 1900 mfg dates at the browning/belgian/fn websits I have bookmarked and it could have been from a gunshow book that I didn't buy.  All I can find is the email I sent to the person and his pictures of the pistol.  Arggggg!

Thanks for the help and confirming that it is likely prior to 1905.

[jhm]

Robert357 :  You could be correct and like I said serial #s on the old brownings is vary hard to date, and also sometimes a new product comes out and it goes like a wildfire then it slows down and regulates itself take the 17 cal that just hit the markets it has slowed some, anyhow keep that formula handy and let me know if you come up with a actual date, am curious to see how close it is.   JIM

[Robert357]

I just bought a book at a gunshow, The Bellgian Brownings.  It has taken about a year of gunshows before the book surfaced again.  The book states that Mod 1900 serial number 100,000 was celibrated on Aug. 4, 1904.  Therefore, we know mine was produced later than 1904.

The book also has approximate production of the Mod 1900 for various years or groups of years and from that one can estimate seial numbers for the years.  

From this I suspect that mine was manufactured in late 1905 or early 1906.

The following are approximate and should help others trying to track down the age of their FN 1900's.

1900-1901   10,000 FN 1900 pistols   serial #  1 to 10,000
1901-1902  21,700 pistols produced    10,001 to 31,700
1902- 1903  40,000 produced        serial # 31,701 to 71,700
                 Aug 4, 1904      serial number 100,000
1903-1907  328,300 produced     serial # 71,701 to 400,000
1907-1910 275,000 produced    serial # 400,001 to 675,000
1910-1914 49,550 produced    serial # 675,000 to 724,550

It also has a discusion on the slide legends stamped on the firearm and how they differed during the production run.  Mine is not the earliest, but the second earliest style of side legends.

I would recommend the book highly to anyone insterested in the FN Model 1900, Model 1910, Model 1922, or HP.