Colt Junior .25 vs. FN copy of Colt 1908 .25: Please choose

Hi all,

I am currently faced with the choosing one of the two following guns as a back-up piece:

Colt Junior .25

FN .25 "Vest Pocket" model (similar to Colt 1908)

Assume that both pieces are in good condition and price is pretty much the same.

Which would you choose?

I realize that I have to evaluate my own needs and ultimately choose based on them. But I'm interested in others' thoughts and possible experience with either of these guns.

Just one other thing: Please, please, let there be no discussion about the inadequacy of the .25 caliber. Please. I'm already well aware of its limitations.

Go with the Colt!! I've owned a couple of the Colts and have had good luck with both. Sold both to some guys for purse pistols for their wives. Wish I'd kept one for myself!!!:twak:

I'd buy the Colt.

Colt Junior was made for Colt by Astra of Spain. They're fine and reliable though not quite as nice as the older Colt 1908 which was made in Hartford. Does have an exposed hammer if that is important to the owner.

I've had both and would probably go for the FN. The FN wasn't a copy of the Colt 1908 since FN introduced this particular Browning designed .25 automatic a couple of years prior to the introduction of the practically identical Colt Model 1908.

Thanks all for the replies. Please continue!

bmcgilvray said:

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The FN wasn't a copy of the Colt 1908 since FN introduced this particular Browning designed .25 automatic a couple of years prior to the introduction of the practically identical Colt Model 1908.

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I appreciate the correction; I don't know why I jumped to the conclusion that the FN model postdated the Colt, instead of the other way around.

I edited the body of my post to reflect the correction but am apparently not allowed to edit the title. Don't know why :confused:.

I have never held or shot the Colt, But have owned and shot a Baby Browning .25. It was accurate and reliable. I kept it in the family by passing it on to my nephew.

-- Richard

I should have mentioned that the Astra Cub was the original model that Colt imported as the Junior.

I keep a lookout for an inexpensive Astra Cub in .22 Short. I had one once and it was a hoot to shoot. Less expensive than the .25 ACP.

As far as I know the FN Model 1906, which some sources say was first shipped beginning in 1905, and the Colt Model 1908 are identical. FN was licensed to make it over there and Colt was licensed to make it here and "never the twain should meet." The FN Model 1906 is a fairly uncommon pistol on this side of the pond which aids in its "cool" factor in my mind. If in good functional condition it'd be perfectly reliable as is any Colt Model 1908 I ever saw. The little stinkers may fire a weenie round but they're reliable. I'll give 'em that much.

There's nothing to recommend one of the pistols you are considering over the other when finding spare parts. Both the FN Model 1906 and the Colt Model 1908 are long obsolete. WWII killed off the Colt Model 1908. A few were assembled from parts after the war.

The Browning Baby replaced the Model 1906. I'm thinking that FN Model 1906 was discontinued in the early 1950s but am only pulling that out of my head so take it with a grain of salt.

The Colt Junior is obsolete, dropped sometime in the early 1970s. Astra is now out of business. Shame about Astra. They produced some interesting and high quality pistols.

Neither the FN nor the Colt Junior would probably ever require any repairs, even with a fair bit of shooting.

I like the Browning as well as the small Beretta Jetfire or Bobcat 25 acp, sorry I have no expierence with the FN, or the Colt.

NCH

The Colt Junior as it has a larger grip than the FN and would be easier to shoot IMHO.

I'll always take the original over the copy.That the greatest complement to manufacturer when a competitor copies your product.

Thanks for your input, y'all!

RKirk said:

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I have never held or shot the Colt, But have owned and shot a Baby Browning .25. It was accurate and reliable.

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I've heard that they are/were the absolute best of the small .25s. The shop that has the FN also has listed a Baby Browning - at $600.00. If it were cheaper, I'd get it in a heartbeat. But at that price I have to pass.

The Colt Junior and the FN 1906 are in two separate gunshops, and are both priced at $325.00. I haven't seen either in person, yet. I only recently found out about them through the dealers' online used gun lists. The Junior is rated at 90%, the FN I don't know. I'm going to check them out this week.

I'm not sure how those prices stack up against the rest of the country (depends on condition, I know), but this is the northeast. MA, to be exact. Part of the reason I'm looking at these .25s is that newly made, extremely small pocket guns are hard to come by in this state. We can get the Seecamp .32 and that's about it. But, for various reasons that are irrelevant here, the Seecamp is not an option for me.

So, I've turned to the oldies, of which there still aren't that many floating around in shops here. There simply are not a ton of options any way you look at it. And prices are never what you'd call cheap, no matter what you're looking at.

bmcgilvray said:

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FN was licensed to make it over there and Colt was licensed to make it here and "never the twain should meet." The FN Model 1906 is a fairly uncommon pistol on this side of the pond which aids in its "cool" factor in my mind.

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That I find kind of intriguing as well. By "never the twain should meet" are you saying that there were never any import arrangements (why would there be, with the Colt made here?)? If so, I wonder how this one made its way across. Bring-back, maybe?

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The little stinkers may fire a weenie round but they're reliable. I'll give 'em that much.

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The small .25's reputation for reliability is one of the chief reasons that I am considering these two guns. Most of the older ones seem to have been of very high quality.

crzy4guns said:

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The Colt Junior as it has a larger grip than the FN and would be easier to shoot IMHO.

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Actually, though I haven't handled either, the grip size difference is apparent in pictures that I've turned up online and has me leaning towards the FN, truth be told, because small size is of great importance to me here.

The Junior is easier for me to grasp than is the FN (well I'm actually considering the Colt). The Browning Baby is even harder to grasp. I have fairly large hands with long fingers though.

I'm thinking that some of the little FN .25s could have been bring-backs but most may have been brought in by returning tourists or post-war military personnel. One could bring in such items with relative ease in times past.