SHOT Show 2016 spawned many new innovative forearms. The Black Rifle Market is thriving as the AR15 continues to gain popularity and is still America’s rifle of choice. Lewis Machine & Tool continues to be on the cutting edge of Black Rifle developments and enhancements. Leading the industry with their Monolithic Rail Platform, LMT continues to add to their lineup in 2016 not only their new MARS rifle or Modular Ambidextrous Rifle System but their first complete PDW (Personal Defense Weapon). According to LMT, this is the shortest overall length of any rifle in the industry that uses a 10.5 inch barrel with an overall length of 24.3 inches with the stock fully collapsed and 27.6 inches with the stock fully extended. The PDW weighs 7.34 pounds empty! The PDW comes with a 10.5 inch barrel chambered in 5.56x45mm or 300 Blackout/Whisper. SAR was given a first look at the new LMT PDW. Our readers will be the first to look at and examine this exciting new development from Lewis Machine & Tool.

The lower receiver is offered in four different configurations. First is the standard Defender 2000 which is the standard semi-auto only mil-spec lower receiver. Next is the Guardian 2000 selective fire mil-spec lower receiver. Now it is available in the new MARS-LA which is the new fully ambidextrous selective fire lower receiver as well as the MARS-LS which is semi-automatic only. The rifle provided to SAR is the PDW with the MARS-LA lower receiver.

Starting with the upper receiver, the PDW uses an LM8CQB. The LMT MRP and LM8 series monolithic upper receivers are the only true monolithic upper receivers in the industry. Starting life with a solid 7075 T6 aluminum forging the upper receivers both have a continuous Mil-Std-1913 rail from the charging handle to the end of the upper receiver. The MRP has Mil-Std-1913 rails at 3, 6 and 9:00. The LM8 has removable rail segments which permit the user to only include rail where it is needed. This not only saves some weight but also width. There are rubberized grip pads that fit in the slots to provide a gripping surface for the hands. The upper receiver assembly has the forward assist, fired cartridge case deflector as well as ejection port dust cover. There are four quick-detach sockets for a sling adapter on the LM8CQB upper. The upper receiver is also equipped with LMT’s new folding back up sights. The front sight is the standard A2-type square front sight post. The rear sight is adjustable for windage as well as elevation out to 700 yards (also offered in metric). There is a “L” shaped aperture for short and long range. The windage drum is ambidextrous.

The charging handle is all new as well. LMT has introduced their ambidextrous charging handle. The Tactical latch is on both left and right side. There is also a gripping surface on the rear of the charging handle giving extra grip in harsh conditions.

The barrel in the test and evaluation rifle is the 10.5 inch CQB barrel for the MRP. This is the quick change barrel used in the MRP/LM8 weapons system. The front bolt is removed and rear loosened and the barrel assembly pulls straight out. The barrel assembly consists of the barrel, gas block, gas tube, barrel extension, crush washer and compensator. The barrel provided is the 5.56x45mm barrel with a 1 turn in 7 inch twist with 6 lands and grooves and a right hand twist. The barrel is chrome plated and test fired with a 70,000 PSI proof cartridge and then magnetic particle inspected to guard against stress fractures. Also offered is the 300 Blackout/Whisper barrel also. Same specification except 1 turn in 7 inch twist with 5 lands and grooves and a right hand twist. The faster spin is necessary to stabilize the 220 grain subsonic loads. Of course with the PDW using the LM8CQB upper, barrels can go from 10.5, 11.5, 14, 16 and 20 inches in length. The rifle can shoot 5.56x45mm, .204 Ruger, 300 Blackout/Whisper and 6.8mm Rem SPC.

The bolt carrier group is the first component we will discuss that makes the PDW different from anything else in the LMT line up. The receiver extension is significantly shorter than the standard receiver extension so this will require a much shorter buffer. There are some problems that arise with the shorter buffer. First is the action spring has to be altered also. Shorter buffer means shorter distance before the action spring will fully compress. The second issue is the shorter buffer will not have the space for the additional needed weight to cycle properly on fully automatic without bolt carrier bounce issues. So LMT figured out how to deal with all these issues. To deal with the recoil spring and shorter buffer, LMT switched to a flat recoil spring which allows more compression with less wire thickness and is stronger. So the combination of the new spring and shorter buffer took care of that issue. Now to deal with bolt carrier bounce. LMT designed a small insert that is inserted into the back of the carrier. This contains a large tungsten weight which absorbs the bolt carrier bounce like a standard H buffer would. This insert may go in any mil-spec bolt carrier without issue. It is held in the carrier by a rubber “O” ring. The PDW has been tested thoroughly on semi-automatic and fully automatic as well as suppressed with utter reliability. The cyclic rate of the PDW is 725 to 875 rounds per minute according to LMT.

As previously stated there are some options when getting a lower receiver. This rifle came with the brand new MARS-LA lower receiver introduced at the 2016 SHOT Show. This lower receiver is a natural product enhancement step but goes a little further for LMT. It has been accepted by the New Zealand Defense Force on their new general purpose rifles that are manufactured by LMT. The lower receiver has been reworked in several ways. Starting with the magazine well, it is flared and beveled to assist in low level to no light magazine insertion. The trigger guard has been made larger to accept heavy gloves in arctic environments. The rear of the receiver extension cap has a QD socket for a detachable sling swivel. The rifle has the LMT manufactured ambidextrous selector lever (safety lever). The ambidextrous magazine release is identical to their LM308MWS rifle. The button sits in front of the trigger on the left side of the rifle. The ambidextrous bolt catch sits right behind the magazine release on the right side and is easily reached by the right-handed shooter’s trigger finger. The ambidextrous bolt catch works very smoothly and is easy to use. The design of this lower is so that the shooter, whether right- or left-handed never has to release the firing hand from the pistol grip when reloading. The trigger in this lower is LMT’s proprietary selective fire 2-stage trigger mechanism. LMT makes these in-house with their newly acquired wire EDM machine. The trigger broke at 7 3/4 pounds on the T&E rifle. The pistol grip on this lower is the LMT Ergo grip which is the standard on all LMT rifles. This lower receiver is not a moment too soon, LMT now offers the most advanced upper receiver in the industry with the most advanced lower in the industry.

The receiver extension is part of the PDW system. Even being significantly shorter (2.75 inches) the receiver extension still has six positions as well as a drain hole. When the stock is fully extended it extends a total of three inches. The stock itself is a modified version of the famous LMT SOPMOD stock. The stock has been cut down and has eliminated the battery tubes. There is no rubber end plate to cut down on the overall length. The stock has two sockets, 1 on each side for a detachable sling swivel.

Not only does LMT offer this stock assembly on a complete rifle, they will be offering the subcompact PDW stock as an upgrade kit to mount on any lower receiver. Unlike the other sub-compact stocks on the market, there is no proprietary bolt carrier group. You just drop the weight pack in the back of your existing bolt carrier group. No special tools are needed for assembly. Just use a standard receiver extension nut wrench. LMT cut down on proprietary parts as much as possible. The same barrel extension plate and nut are used. The conversion kit will consist of the receiver extension, stock, buffer, action spring and carrier weight pack. The kit has an MSRP of $420.

LMT conceived the PDW to be ideal for VIP protection as well as military and law enforcement agencies in need of a smaller profile and increased maneuverability but with the accuracy and reliability of the AR-design. With a suppressor, the 300 Blackout/Whisper cartridge would rival any 9mm SMG on the market. The design was executed with a major emphasis on standard components with a combat system LMT has sold in over 35 countries.

The only product tested with the PDW was an Aimpoint Mod T-1 2MOA red dot scope. This is a miniature and lightweight optic ideally suited for such a small rifle. The site offers 1x magnification and the operating principal is a Reflex Collimator sight with an LED. The peak wavelength is 650± 10nm. The sight is night vision compatible and has a clear aperture of 20mm. The sight is powered by a CR123 battery with 5 years; 50,000 hrs of continuous use on position 8. The length of the sight is 2 7/16 inches in length with a diameter of 1 9/16 inches. The weight is just 3 ounces. The sight housing is manufactured from high strength aluminum and is anodized black. The LMT back up sights co-witness through the optic without issue.

The rifle was tested with a number of magazines to check for the compatibility with the new magazine well. The PDW was tested with Magpul Gen 3, Lancer AWM, Surefire 60 round, X-Products 50 round, Ultimag, Hera Arms, GI aluminum, Bulgarian IK-510, Hexmag and Elite Tactical systems. All magazines were loaded with the Mitusa USA Magazine Pump loader. When loading multiple magazines, it can get hard on the fingers. The magazine pump makes loading simple and easy. This author has been testing this loader for better than a year and loaded well over 10,000 rounds.

The LMT PDS was tested with several types of ammunition to ensure the short gas system with new buffer, action spring, bolt carrier weight and receiver extension worked properly. Ammunition was provided by Black Hills Ammunition, ZQI and HSM (Hunting Shack Ammunition). The Black Hills ammunition was 100 rounds of their .223 Rem 55gr FMJ new production ammunition as well as 50 rounds of their 5.56mm 77gr OTM (Mk262 Mod1). The 77gr is perhaps the most accurate factory loaded ammunition in the industry and most sought after load in SOCOM. The ZQI ammunition is manufactured by MKE in Turkey. It is 5.56x45mm NATO (62gr FMJ with penetrator core). This ammunition is quite popular and is competitively priced. There were a total of 100 rounds fired. The HSM ammunition is manufactured in Montana and they are known for high quality ammunition. They offer a large selection of loads in numerous calibers. This is new ammunition loaded to 5.56x45mm NATO specifications with the 62gr FMJ with steel penetrator core. The ammunition was loaded in Winchester primed military brass.

The PDW was tested on a 25 and 50 yard range. This is the basic close quarter battle distance. Anytime you have a short barrel you will get a large muzzle blast, the PDW was no exception. However it was not overpowering. The small size really made this weapon maneuverable. Much more so than a 14.5 inch rifle. For anyone mounted in a vehicle, this would be heaven sent. Many manufactures have gone with shorter barrels. LMT decided against this. The 10.5 is the shortest barrel you would want to go without sacrificing excessive terminal performance/penetration as well as reliability. Shorter barrels require shorter gas systems. This is hard on the components of the rifle due to higher cyclic rate and port pressures. LMT is very familiar with this issue due to Karl Lewis being the designer of the SOCCOM Mk18 10.5 inch barrel. Much research and development went into getting this reliable in all conditions.

During test firing, there were no malfunctions of any kind with either ammunition or magazines. LMT does not release a product until it has been thoroughly tested. The PDW functions as advertised and fits the roles for which it was designed. Now whether you are military or law enforcement, you have a new option for a super compact M4-type rifle. For commercial customers, they can get the exact same weapon in a semi-auto only configuration with either the standard Defender 2000 or MARS-LS lower receiver. Providing they get the proper NFA paperwork and tax stamp they can have the 10.5 inch barrel. Also, any of the mentioned customers can purchase the conversion kit and retrofit their existing rifle with the stock kit. It will function with any barrel length and most any bolt carrier variation as long as it is manufactured to mil-specifications. LMT continues to be on the leading edge of AR product development and we always look forward to seeing what Karl Lewis will come up with next.

The trend of external piston operated AR-type rifles seems to be in a descending period. They do not appear to have the flair they did 10 years ago. The AR-type rifle was not designed for this operating system. It was designed as an in-line construction, direct gas impingement rifle. The main difference is how the gas is introduced. The AR-family was designed to have the gas directed into the bolt carrier where the piston chamber is made up between the back of the bolt and back of the carrier giving it a perfectly centered drive rearward. When utilizing an external piston the bottom of the rear location of the carrier is tilted downward when it enters the receiver extension due to the off center strike of the operating rod on the top of the bolt carrier, creating the common “carrier tilt” issues. Other issues include the receiver damage of the cam locking cut inside the upper receiver where the cam pin cuts into the receiver. The end result is adapting a weapon, which is not designed for that operating system, and the designer must develop solutions to overcome these new problems. If you want an external piston gun, why not design it that way?? The first true reconciliation of this problem was Robert Faxon with his ARAK-21. A complete redesign of the upper receiver that will fit on an AR lower receiver that eliminates all the problems of converting an AR upper to the wrong operating system! The receiver is a long stroke piston which has a bolt carrier that rides in rails in the upper receiver keeping it properly aligned so there are no carrier tilt issues, utilizing an internal action spring while maintaining the strong multi-locking lug bolt.

In 2012, Sig Sauer was approached by an undisclosed special operations unit with a requirement for a 300 Blackout rifle that would function with both sub and supersonic ammunition as well as when suppressed. According to Chris Sirois, then Design/Engineering lead on the program for Sig “The goals of the MCX program were set by the customer. There were several design review meetings with the customer to agree on design performance.” Yes, you heard all this correctly, the MCX was designed from the ground up to be chambered in 300 Blackout and then later adapted to 5.56x45mm. All design, research and development was done at the USA subsidiary in Exeter, New Hampshire. The first prototypes of the MCX were tested in late 2012.

The lower receiver of the rifle is very similar to that of an M4 carbine with several changes. The lower receiver is manufactured from a 7075 T6 aircraft grade aluminum forging. The magazine utilized for both 300 Blackout as well as 5.56x45mm it the standard GI M16/M4 aluminum magazine. According to Chris Sirois, they tested numerous magazines for reliability. They settled on the standard US GI magazine with second preference for the Lancer AWM magazines. The lower receiver is equipped with an ambidextrous magazine release. There is a magazine release button located right beneath the bolt catch on the left side of the receiver. The magazine release button on the right side is at least twice the size of a standard AR, making it much easier to actuate. The bolt catch is modified as well and easier to actuate. The lower portion is extended upward and .790 inches to the left making it easier to actuate with and without gloves. The safely/selector is ambidextrous and very high profile. This is one of the finest this author has seen, it is easily actuated with and without gloves. The right arm is held in place by a spring pin. The trigger group is standard AR-type mil-spec trigger group. This can be semi-auto only or select fire. The test and evaluation rifle is semi-automatic only. The trigger on this particular rifle was on the high end at 8 1/2 pounds. The trigger guard is oversized and part of the receiver. The pistol grip is an ergonomic Sig design used on many of their different rifles. There is a door on the base of the grip permitting storage. The rear of the receiver has quick detachable sling mount sockets on both the right and left sides. The magazine well is flared and beveled.

Due to the use of a recoil mechanism inside the upper receiver, there is no need for a receiver extension. The rear of the receiver is solid. On the back is a Mil-Std-1913 rail segment to which one of five stock options will attach. The standard stock is a side folding fixed stock (folds to left side). The second is a telescopic stock similar to that of the H&K MP5. This is a 3-position telescopic stock which is slightly shorter than the standard side folding stock. The rear of the stock has both right and left side quick-detachable sling mount sockets. There is also a sling swivel located on the face of the stock’s mount to the receiver. Sig also offers a proprietary side-folding telescopic stock as well as a telescopic Mil-Spec tube which will permit any standard stock to be installed. The last is a pistol stock which can be had with and without the Sig Brace.

The charging handle is proprietary to the MXC design. It is ambidextrous and easy to grab on either side. It is also made from 7075 T6 aircraft grade aluminum.

The upper receiver is quite interesting. The receiver is one piece and manufactured from an extrusion of 7075 T6 aircraft aluminum. There are several unique features. The receiver does have a forward assist and a fired cartridge case deflector as well as an ejection port dust cover. Inside of the receiver are two rails that the bolt carrier group rides on which keep it centered when the bolt moves rearward, similar to that of an AK. This is normal in any external piston operated rifle such as the AK, FAL, H&K G36 and AR18 to just name a few. Added to the receiver is a steel reinforced cam path guard which keeps the cam pin from damaging the receiver. The top rail is continuous. There are both long and short aluminum handguards that slide along a rail in the top rail on the receiver. The handguard is locked in place by a tab that slides into a slot on the upper receiver and is held in place by the front pivot pin.

Most importantly, the upper receiver has a quick change barrel option. By loosening two T27 Torx screws, the two barrel clamps (screws are captive), the barrel assembly is pulled from the receiver. The barrels all have an adjustable gas valve which permits normal and suppressed settings. There is an open slot in the end of the rail on the upper receiver permitting easy access to this tilting valve.

The barrel is easily changed out at the user level with only the need for a torque wrench (60 in lbs). As of this writing the 300 Blackout is offered in 9- and 16-inches in length (1/6 twist, RH). The 5.56x45mm is available in 11.5- and 16-inches (1/6 twist, RH) and the 7.62x39mm is available in 11.5- and 16-inches (1/9.5 twist, RH). For caliber conversion, the same bolt and same magazine are used for the 5.56x45mm and 300 Blackout calibers. The 7.62x39mm requires a new bolt and different magazine. All barrels are topped off with Sig’s proprietary three-prong flash suppressor that will fit any of Sig’s new sound suppressors. The barrel assembly consists of the barrel, barrel extension, gas block, piston, gas valve and flash suppressor. Unlike most current external piston designs, the MCX does not use any gas rings on the piston to seal up the expansion chamber. According to Chris Sirois “Because of the short barrel lengths and having to tap gas earlier on the barrel, the gasses are much hotter and pressures higher and gas rings could not withstand much firing. We had to develop a ringless system which in the end created a much more durable gas system.”

The bolt carrier group consists of the bolt carrier, bolt assembly, operating rod, two spring rods, spring guide, spring plate, cam pin, firing pin and firing pin retainer pin. Looking at the bolt you would think it was proprietary but it is not, it is a standard AR15 bolt. The one provided has the rear turned down due to it not needing gas rings. If you need a quick replacement, you can put any mil spec bolt in and it will work properly. The two recoil springs are good for all three calibers the rifle is chambered for. The bolt carrier group is disassembled without any special tools. The spring guides pop out from the spring plate, they are lifted out of the slot in the plate. Then the recoil springs are slid out. The rods are then pulled out through the spring guide. Then the bolt disassembles like a standard AR15. Slide out the firing pin retainer pin, drop the firing pin out from the back of the carrier and then rotate the cam pin 1/4 turn and lift out of the bolt carrier. The bolt is then pulled out the front of the carrier. With the firing pin retainer pin, push the extractor pin inward to remove and then lift the extractor out of the bolt.

According to Chris Sirois, the MXC has approximately 40% parts commonality with the M4, which is important for customers who already may use the M4. It is far less of a logistical burden for parts. During the development Sig encountered two major issues. According to Chris Sirois “The two most challenging problems that we faced were finding the correct barrel twist rates to meet all accuracy requirements in all required bullet type and overcoming the bolt carrier bounce without the standard AR/M4 type buffer system”. The bolt carrier bounce is the real secret to the success of the MCX rifle. Few rifles out there chambered in the 300 Blackout cartridge will reliably cycle a subsonic round without a sound suppressor. The Sig MCX will. This is in why the gas port on the barrel is much closer than the standard carbine length gas system. The cyclic rate of the 5.56mm is around 800-950 rounds per minute with proper gas valve setting in both non suppressed and suppressed modes. The 300 Blackout cyclic rate ranged from 780 to 1100 rounds per minute. According to Chris Sirois “The requirement was to be able to run anything from subsonic unsuppressed to supersonic suppressed in either valve setting”.

The test and evaluation rifle was the Sig MCX Patrol rifle with a 5.56mm barrel. It came with a manual, 1 aluminum 30 round magazine, folding backup sights and magazine well block for safe storage. Ordered along with the rifle was the 300 Blackout conversion barrel. The barrel is all that is needed. The same magazine and bolt carrier group are used. A 7.62x39mm barrel was requested but was unavailable as of this writing. The fit and finish was superb which is what you would come to expect from Sig. It had the “AR” feel to it but it clearly was not.

Just about the time the rifle arrived, so did some of the new Sig Elite Performance Ammunition in 300 Blackout. These are a match grade ammunition. The first load is a supersonic load. It is a 125gr open tip match projectile with a muzzle velocity of 2200 feet per second and 1343 foot pounds of energy. The second load fired a 220gr open tip match projectile at 1000 feet per second muzzle velocity with 488 foot pounds of energy. There were three boxes of each fired. Along with that was Black Hills Ammunition 300 Blackout 125gr open tip match projectile with a muzzle velocity of 2200 feet per second and a muzzle energy of 1343 foot pounds. For the 5.56mm ammunition, 300 rounds of Black Hills Ammunition .223 Rem 55gr full metal jacket and 100 rounds of ZQI (Merkel) 5.56x45mm 62gr SS109 full metal jacket with steel penetrator core.

When firing the 300 Blackout, the EOTech Model 300™ Blackout was used. This is a non-magnified holographic sight specifically designated for the super and subsonic Blackout loads. The XPS2 offers a two dot ballistic drop reticle that allows the shooter to zero either subsonic or supersonic rounds in the same reticle pattern. There are two 1 MOA aiming dots. The top aiming dot, with a 16-inch barrel and 110gr supersonic round should be zeroed at 100 yards and the second dot will be point of aim at 300 yards. With a 16-inch barrel and 220gr subsonic round, the top dot should be zeroed at 50 yards and the second dot will be the point of aim at 150 yards. The sight is powered by a CR123 battery that has a 600 continuous hour life at nominal setting 12 at room temperature. The sight has an MSRP of $549. Also mounted to the rifle is an EOTech G33™ 3x magnifier mounted on a tilting mount. This has an MSRP of $589. For testing the 5.56mm barrel, an Elcan Specter DR 1x/4x was used. There is a lever with two positions, forward is 1x and rearward is 4x. This is a crystal clear mid range optic which is mounted with an ARMS throw lever mount.

First up was the 5.56x45mm variation. A total of 400 rounds were fired with no malfunctions of any sort. The range was limited to 50 yards due to some Texas flooding! At this limited range all groups were sub 1-inch. Both the Black Hills and ZQI ammunition were military grade ball rounds. The rifle was tested with various magazines for compatibility. These magazines included PMag, Lancer AWM, CProducts Defense steel, Hera, Hexmag, HK steel/plastic, ETS and D&H Tactical to name a few. There were no issues at all, the rifle functioned perfectly with all that was tested.

The barrel was swapped out to the 300 Blackout. A total of 380 rounds were fired with no malfunctions of any sort. GI aluminum, PMags and Lancer AWM, and a D&H Tactical 300 Blackout magazines were used. No feeding issues with any. There were 40 rounds of Sig Supersonic and 40 rounds of Sig Subsonic fired. The Supersonic was fired at 100 yards with an average group of 1 1/2 inches at 100 yards. The subsonic was fired at 50 yards and averaged just about an inch. Additionally there were 300 rounds of Black Hills Ammunition 300 Whisper 125gr OTM. This ammunition shot just over an inch at 50 yards. The rifle was placed in a Hyscore Black Gun ® Machine Rest. This took the human error out of it! I am sure this rest had a lot to do with the excellent performance of the rifle.

Also offered is an upgrade kit that may turn a standard AR15 lower receiver into a host for the MCX upper. The MCX upper receiver will just drop on any standard Mil-Spec lower receiver. You may even use your current stock assembly on the lower. However if you want to go to the side folding stock options designed for the MCK you may procure a adapter that fits onto the rear of the lower receiver which provides the Mil-Std-1913 rail needed to attach the MCX stock options.

The MCX has been adopted by U.K. Counter-Terrorism Police not to mention numerous other agencies and Special Forces units. The rifle is still rather new compared to its competition. It would be safe to say that the MCX is in a league all of its own. The stock modularity and barrel modularity make this perhaps one of the most mission adaptable assault rifles in the world. It has been heavily tested by Sig and is over-the-beach capable. The quality is second to none, what one would expect from Sig. Not to mention it is 100% American designed, tested and made right in Exeter, New Hampshire. The design team was made up of some of the finest engineers in the industry who have many years designing advanced military rifles. Sig has gone from primarily being known for handgun development to becoming an industry leader in advanced assault rifle and submachine development. Their MPX 9mm SMG is the most significant SMG since the MP5 but that is another story. The last few years have shown Sig diversifying their product line and will without a doubt be offering new and innovative updates to the MCX system and who knows what else!

FEDERAL AMERICAN EAGLE ANNOUNCES REVOLUTIONARY SYNTECH AMMO

Federal Ammunition is pleased to announce a whole new concept for range ammunition with introduction of American Eagle Syntech: A smoother way to shoot. Shipments of this new product are now being delivered to dealers. American Eagle Syntech is the first range-specific ammunition designed to reduce fouling and extend barrel life with a high-tech polymer bullet coating. Combined with specialized clean-burning powders, your gun will stay cleaner, longer, so you can shoot more—and shoot better. The exclusive Catalyst primer provides the most reliable, consistent ignition possible. The Syntech system offers target shooters the most advanced range ammunition available and the perfect way for handgun owners to protect their investment from the inside out. The features and benefits include the polymer-encapsulated Syntech bullet that prevents metal-on-metal contact in the bore, eliminating copper and lead fouling, while extending barrel life as well as an exclusive primer formulation that provides reliable, consistent ignition. Clean-burning propellants also minimize residue and fouling which significantly reduces the required frequency of firearm cleaning. The absence of a copper jacket minimizes splash-back on steel targets, making it perfect for target practice or competition. The new rounds also have less perceived recoil. The American Eagle ammunition is available in 9mm Luger 115 grain, 40 S&W 165 grain and .45 Auto 230 grain. Contact them at www.federalpremium.com.

IWI US LAUNCHES HIGHLY ANTICIPATED TAVOR X95

IWI US, Inc., a subsidiary of Israel Weapon Industries (IWI) Ltd., proudly debuts the compact, modern designed TAVOR X95 bullpup. IWI US introduced the X95 select-fire bullpup to law enforcement customers last year and now our civilian customers can buy a commercial version. The X95 is a modern, modular bullpup design emulating all the familiar features of the TAVOR but on steroids. The TAVOR X95 platform incorporates a tri-rail forearm covered by three removable vented rail covers. The TAVOR style trigger guard is modular and can easily be converted to a more traditional trigger guard with pistol grip. The charging handle has also been relocated closer to the shooter’s center mass, and perhaps the most significant departure from the TAVOR is the ambidextrous magazine release, located to a more traditional AR-15/M16 location on the X95. Like the TAVOR SAR, the X95 will be available in a 16.5” 5.56 NATO and .300 Blackout and 17” 9mm Luger Parabellum. All models feature interchangeable cold hammer forged (CHF) barrels manufactured and engineered to IWI’s demanding specifications. Conversion kits in .300 Blackout, 5.56 NATO and 9mm will also be available. The TAVOR X95 in 5.56 NATO and .300 Blackout uses standard AR-15/M16/STANAG magazines and is supplied with one black Magpul Gen III PMAG. It will be available in Black, Flat Dark Earth and OD Green. Watch future issues of SAR for a full test and evaluation of this new rifle. The price for the TAVOR X95 is $1,999.00 and the Conversion Kits are $899.00 in 5.56 NATO and 9mm and $499.00 in .300 Blackout. For more information, please visit www.iwi.us.

DANIEL DEFENSE RELEASES FIRST CHOICE 300 AAC BLACKOUT AMMUNITION

Daniel Defense, engineer and manufacturer of some of the world’s finest firearms and accessories, has released the first caliber of high-quality ammunition it will offer under its First Choice brand: 300 AAC Blackout. The company also has plans to expand its offerings to include the popular 5.56mm and 7.62mm calibers in the future. The new Daniel Defense 300BLK (7.62x35mm) Subsonic Ammunition is designed for target shooting and/or home defense. It is manufactured using the highest-quality components available, including durable brass cases and precision 220-grain Lapua Scenar-L OTM bullets, the first choice for serious target-shooting competition.

They’re passionate about the launch of their new 300BLK ammo, as it represents a whole new era for their brand—one where they can now ensure that the ammo that goes into their firearms is as high quality as the firearms themselves. To ensure the highest levels of quality, each and every First Choice round stamped with a “DD” must undergo and pass a thorough inspection to ensure critical dimensions that affect accuracy are met before it leaves the Daniel Defense factory. The Daniels have a long-standing philosophy on seconds and blemished product, “If it’s not perfect, it doesn’t go to market.” Daniel Defense 300BLK Subsonic Ammunition retails for $50.00 for a box of 30 rounds. It is currently for sale only directly from Daniel Defense online at www.danieldefense.com.

LIBERTY SUPPRESSORS INTRODUCES THE NEW CENTURION SUPPRESSOR

The Centurion is everything you want in a compact 9×19 pistol suppressor. It is designed to provide excellent suppression on 9mm handguns, dry or wet. They designed it to be taken apart since 9mm tends to run a little dirty, this by default makes it suitable for 22LR as well. If there was ever a suppressor that is perfect for the nightstand, the Centurion would be it. The length added to the host firearm is only about 6 inches so it fits really well with virtually every 9X19 handgun that has ever had a threaded barrel put in it. They made this suppressor 34% shorter than their outstanding Mystic X suppressor by reducing the footprint a full 3 inches from the silencer module. This makes for a very compact platform that handles very well. This suppressor also performs very well in rimfire calibers as well as the 300 Blackout carbines. Short, light and handy, this suppressor works well in many different roles. The Centurion breaks down into 3 basic parts (not including the mount) and due to the wavelok cut tube, can only be assembled one way. This makes reassembly a snap and virtually foolproof. The core is stainless steel, which makes it acceptable to being cleaned with harsh chemical solvents, stainless steel pins and ultrasonic applications (electrical tape on the Cerakoted end will protect it from the vibratory cleaning action). The outer tube is made from titanium so the entire suppressor weighs just 7.9 ounces. This unit comes standard with a 1/2-28 booster assembly installed and all of the Mystic X mounting solutions are compatible as well. This suppressor is sure to be a range favorite as well as being right at home on the nightstand at the end of the day. You can find out more at www.libertycans.net.

NEW AR9 9MM PISTOL CALIBER FROM WILSON COMBAT

The Wilson Combat AR9 9mm pistol caliber carbine was designed from the ground up as the new standard in pistol caliber carbine reliability. The use of common 9mm service pistol magazines makes it an ideal choice for patrol, home defense and cost-effective
tactical training.

Wilson Combat engineers have designed three unique AR9 lower receivers with last round bolt hold open that are compatible with the most popular 9mm service pistol magazines from Glock, Beretta and S&W. The Wilson Combat AR9 closed-bolt blowback operating system is soft shooting and reliable with a wide variety of 9mm loads and exhibits flawless feeding with all common pistol bullet shapes, including hollowpoint and +P tactical ammunition. The AR9 bolt hold open ensures reliable lockback on empty with your pistol’s factory magazines. The AR9 proprietary bolt carrier group with heavy duty claw extractor and plunger ejector is tuned for exceptional reliability. These new billet machined aluminum receiver models also accept standard AR accessories like furniture, triggers, charging handles, buttstocks and optics, and incorporate an integral trigger guard and flared magwell for fast reloading. The AR9 series of carbines has multiple unique patent-pending features that make it unique to the 9mm carbine market. The AR9 is also an optimized suppressor host with minimal gas blowback and enhanced accuracy over other designs. Wilson Combat carbon steel match-grade button-rifled 1-10” twist 9mm barrels ensure that the AR9 meets our stringent quality and accuracy requirements. The Wilson Combat AR9 can be ordered with your choice of Glock 17, S&W M&P or Beretta 92 magazine compatibility and configured as a pistol, carbine or short barreled rifle (all NFA rules apply). The AR9 is offered with your choice of fluted or non-fluted barrels in multiple lengths and various Wilson Combat designed muzzle devices. Not simply a converted AR-15, the Wilson Combat AR9 has been specifically designed for superior reliability and maximum accuracy, while retaining the familiar handling and controls of the AR platform. The AR9 is available with your choice of pistol magazine compatibility, barrel length, custom Armor Tuff colors and other accessory options to suit your specific needs. Find out more at www.wilsoncombat.com.

TACTICAL WALLS ADDS NEW RFID LOCKING MODELS

TacticalWalls continues to change the way people think about home firearms storage. Known for its Hidden in Plain Sight philosophy, each product in the TacticalWalls line is disguised as a fully functional piece of home décor – such as shelves, mirrors, marker-boards and much more. Now, users will have even greater security and easier accessibility thanks to TacticalWalls new Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) locking models. The RFID locking mechanism will be offered as an optional alternative to the existing magnetic lock on select TacticalWalls models. With the release of the new RFID models, firearms owners can access their guns even faster in an emergency. Opening up the hidden compartment is as easy as swiping the preset RFID card in front of the locking mechanism. Each unit will come standard with two key cards and one programming card used to match the key to the proper unit(s). Firearms owners can also order additional RFID cards if needed. One card can also be set to open multiple units, granting access to each firearm staged throughout the home. Another unique feature of the new RFID-locking models is a programmable Tattle Tale function. When turned on, the Tattle Tale function will start beeping after the unit has been left open for a period of time. This important safety enhancement helps firearms owners keep guns from unwanted users by reminding them when the compartment is left open. This feature can also be disabled if preferred. If the battery on the RFID locking mechanism runs out of power, the unit automatically defaults to an unlocked-but-still-closed position. Find out more at www.tacticalwalls.com.

4-22-2016 1500 hours: Longtime machine gun aficionado and gun culture personality James Lester Ballou died today at the age of 75. He was pre-deceased by his wife Pat, whom he married at the North Country Shoot in Stratford Hollow, NH. They were married during the machine gun shoot, sealed the nuptials by firing twin Thompson Submachine Guns, and then rode off for their honeymoon atop a live Sherman tank.

Jim was a regular at machine gun shoots around the country from the mid-1980s on, and he wrote articles for Machine Gun News and was a regular contributor to Small Arms Review among other magazines. His passion was for any John Browning invention, but in particular it was the 1918 series Browning Automatic Rifle. His pride and joy was a genuine, original transferable Colt Monitor, one of 150 or so made, the FBI’s first “Fighting Rifle” from the 1930s. Jim was extremely proud of this and the trip to Idaho he took to see his friend, the late Kent Lomont, when his transfer came in.

Jim may hold a world’s record of sorts, his personal hobby was to fire every known machine gun, have his picture taken doing so, and he would only top that if he could fire one in each hand. The count was well into the high 300s
when last reported.

He donated his excellent collection of 1911 series pistols to the NRA Museum, where they are on display.

Many who knew him will remember his kindness, and the time he would take to teach, explain, and demonstrate various firearms, interspersing the discussions with historic tidbits.

Jim considered his magnum opus to be the BAR book: Rock in a Hard Place: The Browning Automatic Rifle, with 500 pages and 751 illustrations. This has always been “The” book on the BAR, published by Collector Grade Publications.

Many of Jim’s articles from SAR are available online at www.smallarmsreview.com and we continue to post more there in The Archives on a monthly basis. Jim requested that we include his articles from the old “Machine Gun News” and we will do so in the future.

In this vast sea of black rifle manufacturers there has been a consistent island of innovation, Lewis Machine and Tool. Since the release of the MRP or Monolithic Rail Platform (2004), LMT has distinguished themselves as the next generation of the M16. Perhaps the most significant development in the weapon system since the release of the M4 carbine in 1995.

What was so ground breaking about the MRP system was it redefined the modular assault rifle. The M16/M4 series of weapons has always topped the industry in “modularity”. This was mostly based on changing the configuration to suit a particular need by swapping out upper receivers. You could alter barrel length as well as caliber by swapping upper receivers. LMT took this to another level. What if instead of changing uppers, you changed out just barrels?

MRP is a patented receiver manufactured from a solid forging of 7075 T6 aircraft aluminum. Monolithic means 1 piece. There are several manufacturers in the industry who claim to be monolithic but they have removable lower handguards. That is not one piece, that is two pieces. The barrel is held in place by two locking bolts; Torx head bolts tightened down to 140 inch pounds. The barrel when installed is completely free floated within the receiver. Thus, the operator cold hang multiple accessories on the rails and they would not affect the harmonics of the barrel. This increases accuracy of the rifle. There are six quick-detach sling swivel attachment points. The rifle also has the standard ejection port dust cover, fired cartridge case deflector as well as forward bolt assist. LMT has an additional MRP called the LM8 slick side upper. It has all the same features of the MRP but the rails on the sides and bottom have been removed. The user now has the ability to install detachable rail segments so rail is only where needed. The benefit of this is it is slightly lighter and the user will not have to worry about damaging unused rails on the receiver.

The barrels are the heart and soul of this design. The barrels are machinegun grade Chromoly vanadium barrels which are chrome plated. They come chambered in 5.56x45mm in lengths of 10.5, 14.5, 16 and 20 inches. This means the rifle can be configured in a Close Quarter Battle variation to an urban and then to a long range rifle by swapping out barrels. The 16 inch barrel sports a midlength gas system which assists and improved extraction by increasing time under pressure over the standard carbine length gas system. All barrels use a straight gas tube rather than the standard one which has several bends. This eliminates the hot spots in the bend areas, increasing the durability of the gas tube. Another innovation is that the gas port is drilled at an angle rather than straight. By having it drilled on an angle the cycle rate is far less affected by gas port erosion, thus maintaining the cyclic rate for the duration of the barrel life. Not only will the MRP system offer different barrel lengths but also different calibers. By just swapping barrels the user can have 300 Whisper/Blackout or .204 Ruger. By swapping out the barrel, bolt and magazine the user can have his rifle chambered in 6.8mm SPC. The barrel has the SAMMI spec (Spec 1) chamber.

Over the last decade or so there has been a section of the industry who wanted to get away from the Stoner direct gas system in favor of the external piston design. They claimed it shot cleaner and cooler thus was more reliable. Not necessarily saying Karl Lewis agreed with them but he was willing to give the customer what they wanted. The MRP can also change operating systems. By swapping out the bolt carrier and barrel assembly the rifle is now a short stroke piston operated rifle. The barrel has the gas block, piston and operating rod attached as an assembly. The standard buffer is replaced with an H2. LMT offers a 12.5 and a 16 inch 5.56mm barrel assembly as well as the same chambered in the 6.8mm SPC cartridge.

This is without a doubt the most modular configuration in the industry. One upper that can be configured to do several missions. For the soldier, he can swap out configurations to fit his battlefield condition. For the hunter, he can swap from shooting long range varmints (.204 Ruger and 5.56mm) to deer or hogs (.300 Blackout and 6.8mm SPC).

In 2014, LMT began working on their ambidextrous lower receiver. This would put the most advanced upper on a just as advanced lower receiver. At the same time this began, the New Zealand Army put out a requirement for a new infantry rifle that would replace the aging (28 years) Steyr AUG rifles. In May of 2014 the request was made public to the industry. The New Zealand Army felt the AUG lacked accuracy beyond 200 yards and wanted something better. Between March and June of 2015 trials were conducted. Rifle entries were made by Beretta, CZ, FN Herstal, Steyr, Colt Canada, Sig Sauer, Heckler & Koch and LMT. Also tested were grenade launchers with the listed manufacturers as well. At the time of testing, LMT had used their standard Guardian lower but the requirements were for ambidextrous so this requirement drove manufacturing and engineering to design, develop, manufacture and field their ambi lower quickly.

When the last shots were fired and the results came in the clear winner was Lewis Machine and Tool. New Zealand placed an order for 9000 weapon at a cost of $59,000,000. According to New Zealand Defense Minister Gerry Brownlee the LMT weapons are “combat-Proven” and “It gives our personnel a weapon they can rely on in any situation.” Mr. Brownlee also stated “Perhaps the strongest endorsement is that our own Special Forces will also use the LMT. Previously, they have used different rifles to the Army. They observed the trials carefully, and liked what they saw.” The Minister of Defense expects integration and replacement of the aging rifles to begin with the new LMT MARS-L in late 2016 and 2017. This is a significant contract for Lewis Machine and Tool. Not that they are new to military contracts by a long shot. They have supplied the L129A1 Sharpshooter rifle to the British MoD and have equipped numerous Special Forces throughout the world. This is their first order for a standard infantry rifle for a foreign country. This lets the industry know that LMT is now capable of producing large volumes of military grade rifles which up until now there were only a few companies set up to do.

The rifle chosen has been called the MARS-L. MARS stands for Modular Ambidextrous Rifle System-Light. The changes are so defining that LMT has designed and manufactured an entirely new forging for this lower receiver. The ambidextrous magazine release is identical to that of the .308 MWS weapon system. There is a lever on the left side that when the button is pushed inward the lever lifts up on the mag catch and releases the magazine. Very simple and very reliable. On the opposite side is the ambidextrous bolt catch. This is a standard sized bolt catch that has an arm that interlocks with a notch on the side of the bolt catch, a simple and robust design. The ambidextrous bolt catch lever assembly is held in place by two charging handle latch pins for parts commonality. The channel on the outside of the receiver is covered by a polymer cap. The lower receiver is equipped with the LMT ambidextrous selector lever which has been an option from LMT for well over a decade. The trigger guard has been redesigned as well on this lower receiver. It is oversized to accept heavy winter gloves. The last improvement was to the magazine well itself. It has a very nice beveling to it which will make magazine insertion easier, especially in low level to no light.

The trigger group in the rifle is also new. This is a selective fire trigger group but the trigger group is available in semi automatic only as well. This is a two-stage trigger in both semi and auto position. What makes this trigger new is that it is made by LMT’s new wire EDM machining capability. They are now cutting these triggers in house. It has a crisp break. The first stage of the test and evaluation rifle broke at 4 1/2 pounds and the second at 1 1/4 pounds for a total of a 5 3/4 pound trigger.

The rest of the lower is standard LMT. This model comes with the SOPMOD stock. The New Zealand rifle has two options, the Rogers Superstock or the SOPMOD). The receiver extension is hard coat anodized and then coated with dry film lubricant. This tightens the stock to extension finish to keep it from rattling and making noise. A standard rifle buffer is used. The pistol grip is the Ergo grip that is part of every LMT rifle. The selector markings are pictograms instead of words.

The rifle shipped to SAR is very similar to the New Zealand issue rifle but with several differences. The test and evaluation upper receiver is the CQB MRP. The rifle is produced for New Zealand in both the shorter CQBMRP (16 inches of top rail space) as well as the longer MRP (20 inches of top rail space). The submitted rifle has the standard 16” midlength gas system barrel with A2 compensator. The New Zealand rifle also has a 16” mid-length gas system (1/7 right had twist) but the barrel is specially contoured to accept a pinned on bayonet lug. The lug is on the right side of the barrel which means when the bayonet is mounted it is mounted at a 90° angle. It is the opinion of this author the 16 inch barrel is ideal, better than the 14.5 inch for military use. Granted that extra 1.5 inch may be slightly better for mounted personnel, the 16 inch barrel offers a good increase in accuracy. The average soldier would not see any accuracy benefit from a 16 to 20 inch barrel. The midlength gas system will offer a reliability and durability edge over the carbine length gas system. Like all LMT barrels they are test fired with a 70,000 psi proof round and magnetic particle inspected to guard against stress fractures. The muzzle is equipped with either a Surefire Warcomp flash hider or muzzle brake. All rifles are set up to accept the Surefire SOCOM 556 suppressor. Both 16 inch and 10.5 inch barrels will be part of the New Zealand Tender.

Another new product on this rifle is the LMT produced ambidextrous charging handle. Both latches appear to be slightly larger than the original LMT Tactical charging handle latch. Both sides are easy to grasp.

The rifle provided was using the LMT Enhanced Carrier Group. This is an improved bolt carrier assembly that was designed by Karl Lewis at the request of SOCOM. In the early 2000’s, SOCOM was experiencing a rash of broken bolts in their M4A1 rifles. This was not an army wide issue but confined mostly to Special Forces. These guys ran their rifles much differently than regular army. The M4A1 was also a fully automatic rifle versus the 3-shot burst of the common soldier’s M4. Due to the extremely heavy firing schedules SOCOM wanted something better. Karl Lewis gave it to them. The bolt was redesigned to address many issues. First, the material itself. LMT chose a material that was much stronger than Carpenter 150. This is a proprietary material to LMT. The bolt was finished with a proprietary nickel based finish. This dealt with the bolts breaking at the cam pin hole. To increase durability of the lugs was a combination of bolt lug stress relief cuts on the lugs as well as the geometry change. For over the beach requirements, the bolt face was changed so that the entire cartridge case base is supported. Extraction issues were dealt with from several different angles. On the bolt itself, the extractor was changed. It has the “Lobster Tail” appearance in that in the rear of the extractor there are two longer extractor springs rather than a single shorter spring. This gave more extraction spring force and lasted significantly longer. Next was the actual extractor claw itself. This was made to engage more of the extractor rip surface on the cartridge case with a more aggressive claw. The other changes were made to the bolt carrier itself to deal with extraction. The cam track was changed on the bolt carrier to allow more dwell time which meant the cartridge case had more time to contract prior to removal during the extraction phase of the cycle of operations. This permitted easier extraction and less wear on the extractor and springs. Also the way the gas was introduced into the expansion chamber inside the carrier was changed. Normally the gas is all introduced 180° directly into the chamber. LMT altered this so the gas would be split into a right and left side, more evenly distributing the gas which assisted in dwell time as well. Also the carrier face was changed, a rib was made around the front to fully support the bolt. There was an additional gas relief port added to help egress unneeded gas faster. The location of the rear gas relief port was moved further forward to help more gas eject out of the ejection port and less inside the receiver. The only negative thing about this enhanced bolt carrier group is that it would not cycle a full auto 20 inch bbl. The dwell time change is too excessive between the 14.5 and 20 inch barrels with the modified carrier. Keep in mind the port pressure is double that of a 20 inch barrel in the carbine. All LMT bolts, regardless if standard or enhanced are test fired with a 70,000 psi proof cartridge and then magnetic particle inspected to guard against stress cracks. Even though the Enhanced Bolt Carrier Group did its job and well it was never selected due to the interchangeability issue. The test and evaluation rifle was equipped with this enhanced bolt carrier group. New Zealand will be procuring both bolt carrier groups. They will not have any interchangeability issues due to them never procuring any 20 inch barrels. This carrier will work perfectly in the 10.5 and 16 inch rifles.

Both the test and evaluation rifle and the New Zealand rifles had been equipped with the LMT folding back up sights. The rear sight is adjustable for windage as well as elevation. It also has a long and short range flip aperture. The front is adjustable for elevation only. Both are quite compact. According to LMT the commercial MARS rifles will be equipped with LMT standard detachable sights which are not folding. The rear sight they use on the rifle is the same one they supply to the Navy for their Mk18 CQB rifles.

The magazines chosen for the New Zealand contract are the popular and at this point legendary Magpul Gen 3 PMag with Maglevel window. This is perhaps the most reliable magazine in the industry. This author has used them heavily since they were introduced and watched them evolve and improve over the years.

The test rifle was tested with several magazines for compatibility. This included the X-Products 50 round drum, Magpul D-60, Magpul PMag, Lancer AWM, Ultimag, Hera Arms, D&H Tactical, Hexmag, Mission First Tactical and Promag Rollermag to name a few. Testing ammunition was provided by Black Hills Ammunition who is a great supporter of SAR. Approximately 500 rounds of Black Hills 223 Rem new manufactured 55gr full metal jacket was fired for reliability. No malfunctions were found of any sort. The rifle was compatible with all of the magazines that were used. The Black Hills Ammunition Mk262 Mod1 ammunition, which is a 77gr open tip match projectile, produced consistent 1 MOA groups at 100 yards. The 55gr full metal jacket ammunition produced groups in the 1.4 MOA at 100 yards.

The new MARS rifle is significant to LMT in several ways. Not to mention with the introduction of the ambidextrous lower they complete their rifle as the most advanced AR-platform in the industry. Both top and bottom end. It marks the beginning of a new era of having the manufacturing capability to do major military contracts in large numbers. Not only with they have the capability to serve Special Forces and sharpshooters but the needs of a regular army infantry rifle as well. Cost of the MARS is going to be around $100 or so above the comparable Defender lower. Looking at the cost to equip a standard lower with this type of ambi features would bring you over that $100. The Norgon ambi-catch, which is military proven in both Canadian and US military, will run around $90 alone. Ambidextrous bolt catches can cost $20+ and some require modification of the receiver. With commercial and law enforcement looking for ambi features as well as military customers looking for something better than the mil-spec standards, here’s a good solution. Foreign customers are becoming more aware of other companies making rifles that exceed Mil-Specs and offer more features including modularity and increased reliability. The LMT MARS rifles are exceeding Mil-Specs and are what this author calls the 4th generation M16. First was the introduction of the Model 01, second the M16A2, third is the M4 Carbine and 4th the LMT MRP family of weapons. All generations brought the combat proven Stoner designed rifle to its next evolution.

“Speed” (1994)

In 1994, “Mad Bomber” Howard Payne took an elevator full of people hostage with a bomb, and then demanded a large amount of money. Two police officers, Jack Tavern and Harry Temple, manage to save the hostages on the elevator, but learn that Payne is not far away, in another elevator. They attempt to get to him by climbing down the elevator shaft above him, but Payne hears them and starts shooting his Mossberg 500 shotgun at them. He soon runs out of ammo, but manages to escape, where he plays a sick extortion game with a bus full of innocent people.

This is the plot to “Speed,” a 1994 movie that is considered one of the best movies from the nineties. Jack Tavern is played by Keanu Reeves and Harry Temple is played by Jeff Daniels. Howard Payne is played by Dennis Hopper, and Sandra Bullock plays a passenger on the bus. It’s a great movie and was a financial and critical success, even getting a sequel a few years later, though nowhere near as good as the original.

One of the prominent guns in the movie is a Mossberg 500. It was designed by Oscar Fredrick Mossberg and was put into production in 1960. It is currently being used in eleven countries and is popular for home defense or camping. It is a pump action shotgun, where the handgrip is used to pump back and forth to both eject spent cartridges and load fresh ones in. O. F. Mossberg and Sons has other models of the Mossberg 500, including the Model 505, Model 535, and the Model 590.

The Mossberg 500 used in the movie has a factory pistol grip. Traditionally, it is used as a riot control gun, and is called a Mossberg 500 Mariner. Its weight is 5.2 pounds and is close to 26 inches long, with a 16 inch barrel, so it is a registered Short Barreled Shotgun. It was made by Ellis Mercantile in 1993, along with the second gun (Backup). The safety is on top and it lacks a front sight. It has 5 shells in the tube magazine and one in the chamber for a total of 6) 12 gauge shotgun shells, despite the fact that in the movie, Dennis Hopper shoots 8 at the police
without reloading.

Other firearms in the movie include the HK94A3 and HK94A2, both of which were chopped and converted to look like other guns. Later in the movie, Dennis Hopper uses an HK SP89, mocked up as an MP5K in satin nickel finish. The two MP5K clones that Hopper used were serial numbers 2117134 with Fleming sear number H0569, and 211735 with Fleming sear number H0570. Ellis Mercantile obtained these in 1991.

Keanu Reeves uses both an M1911A1 and a Smith & Wesson 6904. A passenger on the bus at one point pulls out a Smith & Wesson Model 36, and LAPD Snipers are seen using Pre-1964 Winchester Model 70s. We don’t have a record of the serial numbers on these handguns or rifles, if we find this we’ll add it online later at www.smallarmsreview.com

As mentioned before, “Speed” was a big success in 1994. It truly launched Sandra Bullock’s and Keanu Reeves’s careers and made 350 million dollars worldwide. Both have great performances and are wonderful to watch. Dennis Hopper is excellent as the villain, in which he is shown to take vengeful joy in his victim’s agony. It is definitely a film worth watching.

The gunner’s kit for the MG 34 was originally designed for the MG 13 but since many of the tools were also usable on the MG 34 the kit was easily adapted for use for the MG 34.

There were five variations of the gunner’s kit through 1944, all top opening. The first early type, originally for the MG 13 and then for the MG 34, was an all leather box with a leather shoulder strap. This then changed to an all leather box but with belt loops on the rear instead of the shoulder strap (as shown here). As the war wore on leather was a commodity needed elsewhere for the war effort and later versions were made with substitute leather (ersatz-leder), which was a pressed paper material with a water-resistant leather-like finish.

The kit was simple with just a few components. Carried on the outside of the box and secured with the leather closure strap was the hot barrel pad (handschützer) made of asbestos and heavy duty wool. One side had a cloth strap to be slipped over the hand to help hold it in place when using it to change a hot barrel. All the other components were carried inside the box. On the inside there was a metal partition affixed at the back of the box that held the double-ended MG 13 wrench and inside the front of the box was affixed a metal partition for the anti-aircraft sight. The bolt rested vertically on the left supported by a leather pad that helped protect the bolt face. The oil can sat in the middle and the other components were carried vertically on the right side of the box.

Contents of the MG 34 gunner’s kit:

1) Leather box with single closure strap secured by a lone brass stud on the bottom (Werkzeugtasche).
2) Hot barrel pad (Handschützer).
3) Oil can (Ölkanne).
4) MG 13 wrench, double ended usable on the MG 34 (Schlüssel).
5) Spare bolt assembly complete (Schloss).
6) Broken shell extractor (Gerät zum Entfern von
Hülsenreissern u Hülsenklemmern).
7) Combined screwdriver and stuck case/cartridge
remover (Winkelschraubenzieher).
8) Anti-aircraft sight (MG Kreiskorn).
9) Two flexible muzzle covers (Mündungskappe).
10) Belt starter tab complete (Einführstück) used to
assist in barrel removal.

The Ukraine is a region that has suffered grievously over the centuries- first a part of this empire, then another, then split into different regions with different overlords. In 1917 through 1921 the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic was formed in a battle of independence parallel to the USSR formation. The Soviet Union quickly swallowed it up, and Joseph Stalin’s Holodomor (Massacre by starvation) of Ukrainians in 1932-33 had far reaching effects as World War II marched into the horizon. This is not to give the impression that Ukrainians are just victims, and everything is so bleak and dark that it’s a hopeless place- certainly not! Ukrainians have a wonderful culture, vibrant colors in clothing and dance, a long history of arts, poetry, and food that’s wonderful for the visitor. They also have a history as warriors, and have tremendous pride in that history.

During World War II, many in the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic fought against both the Germans and the Russian Soviets, and in some cases with the Germans against the USSR. This is despite the fact that the Ukraine was one of the founding states of the USSR. Terrible sacrifices were made during The Great Patriotic War, and in the days afterwards. The Ukraine SSR gained a UN seat after the war and a measure of independence, however the USSR was always in the background controlling and not to the benefit of the Ukrainians. In 1991 during the “Breakup” of the Soviet Union days, the Ukraine finally declared itself an independent country.

Plans for the museum started in 1943 during the war, and in the periods of the later 1940s, and 1950s, artifacts were gathered and displayed. It wasn’t until 1974 that the museum really progressed, and in the modern era receives hundreds of thousands of visitors every year. The large parade grounds are perfect for huge commemorative military ceremonies.

The statue “Motherland-Mother” is perhaps the most striking thing about the museum- it is visible for many miles. Sculptor Basil Boroday designed it and had many sculptors, architects and many other experts involved in his creation. The monument is a figure of a woman with a shield and raised sword- it is made from .5 mm thick stainless steel, with a total height of 102 meters. The statue is 62 meters of that height- and the entire display weights 500 tons. There are three layers- a core steel frame, a support frame of plating, and 70 tons of stainless steel on top. The sword is 16 meters in length.

There are two galleries of heroes in the buildings, and many displays of artifacts and mementos of service and sacrifice that are scattered throughout the buildings in very personal displays. It would take days to study the items in these displays. For our interests, there are hundreds of machine guns, cannon, mortars, rifles, pistols and other arms on display, many are very rare or of great historic import.

“Other wars”- There is a special building, off to the side, dedicated to “other wars” that Ukrainian soldiers have served in for the USSR. This was frequently through conscription if the USSR needed more soldiers. An example: in the 1980s Afghanistan was a quagmire that required large amounts of soldiers to be stationed in the unforgiving Afghan mountains. Ukrainian and Russian veterans (Called “Afgantsy”) speak of this time as “Their Vietnam” and there was a lot of desolation and drug abuse in certain parts of their military. There was no heroes’ welcome home, and many of these veterans are today fighting on one side or the other of the current Russian-Ukrainian conflict. Draftees from the Ukraine came home from the war zone with many alienated, and are still standoffish today. Also like American veterans of Vietnam, most are strong willed, filled with purpose, they simply don’t like to discuss the past with those who weren’t there. Most of the “Other Wars” displays are from their mementos and bringbacks, with lots of weapons and stories thrown in. These displays are in stark contrast to the rest of the museum displays about World War II with their monumental and heroic nature.

Tanks and Cannon:

There is a large section of the museum property that has vehicles and cannon parked in lines for visitors to view and photograph. Due to space, SAR can’t publish these pictures, but we decided to place as many as we could online for our readers to view. https://www.smallarmsreview.com/archive/reference.03-2016.cfm#03292016

National Museum of the Great Patriotic War
Address: m. Kyiv, str. Lavrska 24
Tel: +380 (0) 44 285-94-52
Website: www.warmuseum.kiev.ua
Hours: 10:00 to 18:00 daily,
closed on Mondays
Ticket office closes at 17:00
Metro Station “Arsenal” take bus No 24 or bus No 38 to the National Museum of Ukraine in the Second World War stop.

A belief commonly held among submachine gun historians is that the Italian Villar Perosa devised in 1915, was the very first submachine gun. This is to some extent true, but the Villar Perosa was originally manufactured to be mounted on aircraft or vehicles. The Villar Perosa was actually a scaled down machine gun, except that it used pistol caliber ammunition. Altering the Italian Villar Perosa into a personal shoulder fired weapon by adding a wooden stock, was done at a later date. So it remains controversial among historians as to which gun, the Villar Perosa or the German M.P. 18,I, was actually the first shoulder fired submachine gun. The Villar Perosa was originally chambered to fire the 9mm Glisenti cartridge, which is less powerful than the 9mm Parabellum round.

The requirements for a new type of weapon were set up by the German Rifle Testing Commission at Spandau in 1915. The using branches of the services wanted a lightweight, fully automatic, short range weapon. The proposed weapon had to be simple, robust and able to be easily carried by one man. Desired was a weapon that combined the handiness of a pistol, with the firepower of a machine gun. It was also requested that the new weapon to be chambered for the standard German pistol cartridge, the 9mm Parabellum. One of the early attempts at meeting these requirements was done by altering a long barreled Artillery Model of the 9mm Luger pistol. The modifications included a buttstock and adding a few internal parts to provide full-automatic capability. After an intense evaluation, the transformed Luger was deemed unsuitable for adoption. The weapon was considered to have too fast of a cyclic rate of fire and excessive muzzle climb. Adapting existing weapons to fulfill a specific requirement generally results in a compromise; an entirely new concept was needed.

By 1916, two German weapon designers, Andreas Schwarzlose of Berlin and Hugo Schmeisser of Suhl, both submitted prototype weapons that were deemed superior. Both of the weapons were thoroughly evaluated and tested. Schmeisser’s weapon was developed with the resources of the Waffenfabrik Theodor Bergmann, and was eventually chosen by the Commission in 1918. Schmeisser’s new weapon was designated as the Maschinenpistole (M.P.) 18,I. In 1918 the Prussian War Ministry ordered 50,000 of the new M.P. 18,I weapons.

The M.P. 18,I saw limited use with the German army in the final days of World War One. The 9mm weapon was issued to troops in 1918 to use for infiltrating and assaulting a dug-in enemy in their trenches. The standard bolt action service rifle was too awkward and slow firing for this style of close quarter combat. While the enemy would be using rifle-mounted bayonets to repel such an attack, the Germans would be using their rapid firing maschinenpistolen. The new German machine pistol was also useful for defending their trenches from similar close quarter assaults from the enemy. The troops using these tactics for assaulting the enemy trenches were known as Sturmtruppen, or Storm Troopers. These specially trained and motivated soldiers were armed with mortars, grenades, machine pistols and flame throwers, and would basically use concentrated firepower to open a narrow gap in the enemy’s line. After breaking through the defenses, regular infantry troops were then used to exploit the breach. These tactics were improved with the use of aerial reconnaissance and artillery support. Soon, with much protest from the Germans, Allied troops began to employ shotguns for repelling these close quarter assaults.

The M.P. 18,I machine pistol was affectionately nicknamed the Kugelspritze or bullet squirter by the German troops. Today’s common term “submachine gun” wouldn’t be used until American John Thompson coined the phrase in 1920 for his Thompson submachine gun. The term “submachine gun” was slow to catch on in Europe, and the nomenclature wasn’t used there until well after World War II. The basic design of the M.P. 18,I and its (box type) magazine would be very influential on many future weapons. The German M.P. 18,I was developed as a blowback operated, open bolt design. This new, revolutionary open bolt concept would soon be standard on submachine guns produced throughout the world.

Reportedly, Schmeisser originally designed the M.P. 18,I to feed cartridges from a 20-round box type magazine, however the German Rifle Commission wanted the weapon to utilize the existing high capacity 32-round Luger drum magazine. As a result of that directive, the production M.P. 18,I weapon utilized the same 32 round capacity Trommel magazin, or snail type drum magazine originally developed for the P.08 Luger pistols. An adapter sleeve was used on the magazine to keep the drum from being inserted too far into the magazine well and interfering with the operation of the breech bolt. The Luger drum magazine also required the magazine housing to be configured at the same 60-degree angle (rearward) as a P.08 Luger pistol grip in order to feed the cartridges properly. This odd magazine housing angle, and the weight (2.35 pounds loaded) of the magazine protruding horizontally from the left side of the receiver, made the M.P. 18,I awkward to handle. The heavy Luger drum magazine would prove to be the weak point of the M.P. 18,I machine pistol.

The M.P. 18,I machine pistol was a full-automatic only weapon, and fired at the relatively slow rate of 350-400 rounds per minute. An experienced shooter could easily accomplish single shots by careful trigger manipulation. A separate, moveable spring-loaded firing pin was used. A two-leaf flip style notch rear sight was fitted to the receiver tube. One leaf was calibrated for 100 meters, the second leaf for 200 meters. A very similar rear sight configuration would be used on the MP40. The front sight was an inverted V-blade dovetailed to the barrel jacket. The receiver was hinged at the front of the stock allowing it to tip up for easy disassembly and maintenance. A wooden carbine style stock with a semi pistol grip and grooved forearm was fitted. A sling swivel was attached to the underside of the barrel jacket, a rear swivel was attached by screws to the underside of the buttstock. The weapon’s overall length was 32.1 inches. The barrel was a six-groove, right hand twist, its length was 7.88 inches. The weight of the weapon with a loaded 32 round drum magazine was heavy at 11.61 pounds. The cartridge used in the weapon was the German Pistolenpatrone 08, better known as the 9mm Parabellum cartridge.

After the war ended, the design of the M.P. 18,I machine pistol was altered slightly by Schmeisser, in order to replace the troublesome and heavy Luger snail drum, with a box-type magazine. The new magazine was a double-stack, single-feed design. In order to fit the new magazine to the M.P. 18,I machine pistol, a new magazine housing also was developed and fitted to the gun at C.G. Haenel factory located in Suhl, Germany. The new re-designed magazine housing was marked “M.P. 18,I System Schmeisser”. The new magazines for the M.P. 18,I (modified) were manufactured in both 20 and 32 round configurations. In addition to the magazine housing and magazine, a new bolt safety was fitted and a lock was added to the barrel retaining screw.

The double-stack single-feed design of the MP box magazines would prove to be responsible for many weapon malfunctions. This was especially true when the magazines were exposed to dust and dirt. Despite the problems encountered with the double-stack single-feed design, it was used, with a few notable exceptions, on virtually all World War II submachine gun designs that followed. The horizontal magazine position was also less than ideal. The advantage was that it allowed the shooter to get closer to the ground during a firefight, resulting in less exposure to enemy fire. The disadvantage was the weight of the loaded magazine protruding from the side of the weapon. The magazine mounted hanging in a horizontal position was also much more likely to cause cartridge-feeding problems.

After the conclusion of World War One, Germany was stripped of almost all of her weapons. Many of the World War One produced M.P. 18,I maschinenpistolen were seized and subsequently destroyed by the Allies. Germany was permitted by the treaty to maintain a 100,000 man Reichswehr or self-defense force. This defense force was very limited on what type of weapons they could be armed with. Issue of machine pistols was very restricted and subject to approval by the Allied Commission. The German police were also permitted to have limited use of machine pistols. The M.P. 18,I machine pistol would be one of the weapons they were issued to perform their duties. The post war issue M.P. 18,I weapons were marked with a 1920 date.

The German based Bergmann Company was forced to cease manufacture of the M.P. 18,I. The company negotiated a licensing agreement with the Schweizer Industrie Gesellschaft (SIG) to manufacture the M.P. 18,I in Neuhausen, Switzerland. The weapon was manufactured with the modified magazine housing and box style magazine into the 1920’s principally for foreign sales. The Swiss made M.P. 18,I was marketed as the Bergmann Machine Pistol, and was produced in 7.65mm Mauser, 7.63mm, 9mm Mauser and 9mm Parabellum. The weapons were distributed by the Swiss firm Societe Industrialle Suisse. The majority of the weapon’s sales were made to Japan chambered for the 7.63mm cartridge. The Japanese contract guns were designated as the Type BE. There were at least two variants of the Japanese contract guns. One style had a removable collar that fitted on the barrel jacket for mounting a Japanese service bayonet; the second type was made with and without the bayonet feature, and were marked with Japanese characters. Over 25,000 post WWI M.P. 18,I weapons (modified) were produced for export.

Many of the pre-World War II submachine guns marketed by Germany were exported to South America where they saw service in the 1932-1935 Chaco War between Bolivia and Paraguay.

The M.P. 28.II

The M.P. 28.II machine pistol was a post World War I attempt to further develop the original Schmeisser M.P. 18,I design. The M.P. 28.II was also developed by Hugo Schmeisser, and was manufactured at C.G. Haenel Waffen-und Fahrrad Fabrik. The M.P. 28.II was very similar to the M.P. 18,I, and used the same 20 and 32 round magazines as the modified version of the M.P. 18,I. The M.P. 28.II weapon however had a few additional changes implemented into its design. The M.P. 28.II was capable of semi-automatic or full-automatic fire (select-fire), and had a faster cyclic rate of fire than the M.P. 18,I. The mode of fire selector was marked with a letter “D” for Dauerfeuer (full-automatic fire) and a letter “E” for Einzelfeuer (semi-automatic fire). The rear sight was designed differently, being optimistically graduated for 1000 meters. A larger diameter recoil spring that slipped over the outside rear portion of the bolt was used. The loaded weight of the M.P. 28.II machine pistol was 9.54 pounds. Overall length was 32 inches, barrel length 7.8 inches. The M.P. 28.II was given an illegal service test by the Reichswehr at the Kummersdorf testing facility in 1925.

There are many different variations of the Thompson submachine gun. What started life as a “trench broom” in 1921 has morphed into several different models and sub-models from different generations of production. For many, the differences are easy to recognize. There are the guns with round drums and pistol grips like Eliot Ness used in The Untouchables. And guns with the long stick magazine and sling like Sgt. Saunders carried in COMBAT! How those black & white television shows of the 1960’s made everything so easy. However, those of us in the Thompson community understand that nothing is simple with the Thompson gun. Pages of many books have been filled with information about the gangster and World War II Tommy guns. This story is different; it is about a lesser known and greatly misunderstood Thompson variation. One manufactured, some argue assembled, when the Tommy gun was fading fast from the limelight of World War II. These are the “NAC Thompsons,” sometimes referred to as the “crate” Thompsons. The mis-information about this variation began almost immediately after examples became available on the civilian market. The reason for the confusion is simple: the receiver markings. Some of these NAC Thompsons had genuine Colt’s Patent Firearms Manufacturing Company receivers, and were so marked! The confusion this caused exists to this day. The below information should lessen the many misunderstandings. First, a little history…

Auto-Ordnance Corporation (AOC) went through a change of ownership on July 21, 1939. Wall Street underwriter J. Russell Maguire assumed control of AOC and a new era for the Thompson gun commenced. Maguire sensed a major war was brewing in Europe and contracted with Savage Arms Corporation of Utica, New York, in December 1939 to place the Thompson gun back into production. AOC later opened its own factory in Bridgeport, Connecticut.

Production of the Thompson gun ended in February 1944. Savage Arms packed away all the left over Thompson parts, gages, prints and tooling, including all the left over items they obtained from the earlier Colt era production, and shipped these assets to AOC. Soon after production ceased Maguire took the first of many steps to convert AOC into a post war company. The corporate name was changed to Maguire Industries, Inc. The Thompson gun became a product of the new Auto-Ordnance Division of Maguire Industries, overseen by an employee who was hired by General Thompson during AOC’s earliest years, George E. Goll. The Auto-Ordnance Division was but one of several divisions in Maguire Industries. Thompson guns were assembled from left over Auto-Ordnance Bridgeport plant receivers and frames and sold for several years. These Thompson guns form another often misunderstood Thompson variation and are usually referred to by collectors as the “AC” variation or model. Fortunately, these guns are for the most part easily identified because the “U.S.” markings were ground off the receiver and a letter “C” was stamped over the numeral 1 in the receiver marking “A1” to form the new “Model 1928 AC” nomenclature. Please note the qualifiers “for the most part” and “usually” – exceptions are the rule after 1944. Like the NAC Thompsons, documented sales of the “AC” guns appeared to be primarily to law enforcement agencies. For the record, the NAC and “AC” variation guns were not and are not US military issued World War II Thompson guns – regardless of the receiver markings. And as you will see, their history is intertwined with the NAC Thompson guns.

Maguire Industries did not fare well in the post war business environment. By 1949, Maguire Industries was having severe financial problems. George Goll had retired a few years earlier and Thompson sales had ceased. Russell Maguire reached out to former AOC Vice-President Frederic A. Willis to sell the Thompson assets. These assets included all rights and interest in the Thompson gun Maguire acquired when he took control of AOC. Willis found a buyer – the Kilgore Manufacturing Company of Westerville, Ohio. Kilgore was an established toy company that had become heavily involved in the production of pyrotechnic munitions during World War II. Documentation from the then president of Kilgore Manufacturing revealed the original plan was to sell the Thompson assets to a foreign country, but the sale never took place. Kilgore transported some of the Thompson assets to its plant in Ohio and appeared to have an alternate plan to manufacture and market the M1A1 version of the Thompson. No new manufacturing of parts took place but several guns, assembled from parts or found complete in the crates, were sold. A large explosion of Kilgore munitions on May 19, 1950, in South Amboy, New Jersey, exposed the company to numerous lawsuits. Kilgore reached out to Frederic Willis to sell the Thompson assets – again. Willis formed a syndicate of buyers and purchased the Thompson assets from Kilgore on August 7, 1950. There is no indication Willis or his investment syndicate did anything with the Thompson assets during their period of ownership.

The Willis syndicate sold the Thompson assets to Mr. George Numrich, owner of Numrich Arms Company of Mamaroneck, New York (now located in West Hurley, NY) on October 23, 1951.

Some Thompson pundits espouse the AOC formed by General Thompson in 1916 ceased to exist at the end of World War II. Or the Auto-Ordnance Corporation was purchased by Numrich in 1951. Nothing could be further from the truth. The original Auto-Ordnance Corporation exists today and is located in Dallas, Texas. The Auto-Ordnance name was simply abandoned when the corporate name was changed to Maguire Industries in 1944. The corporate name was changed again in 1961 to Components Corporation of America (CCA). As with the Auto-Ordnance name in 1944, the Maguire Industries name was also abandoned. CCA is a privately held company whose majority shareholder is Cary Maguire, the son of Russell Maguire. CCA is not involved in the production of firearms and does not claim any ownership rights in the Thompson gun. That corporate product was sold off (to Kilgore) long ago.

When employees of Numrich Arms Company (NAC) began unpacking the crates of physical assets, they found a number of complete guns, and sufficient parts to assemble others. Included in this catch of parts were model of 1921 and 1928 Thompson receivers manufactured by Colt’s in 1921/1922, and Savage Arms in 1940/1942. Model M1 and M1A1 receivers were also present. Hence, the reason for this brief history lesson.

THE INVENTORY

The number of weapons found by George Numrich requiring registration with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has been an ongoing point of debate. The numbers of 86 and 95 guns have been cited with some authority for many years. The difference could be the number of Thompson guns found versus the number of Thompson guns plus other guns found requiring registration. Complete guns found in the crates have also been reported. Many have assumed that Thompson guns straight from the production line were found. Unfortunately, no details exist of exactly what type of complete guns were found but the below information may go a long way toward an explanation of these complete guns.

Recently, an inventory of weapons owned by the Auto-Ordnance Corporation, dated July 26, 1934, was found. The July 26, 1934 date is familiar to most in the Class Three community as that is the day and year the National Firearms Act (NFA) was signed into law by President Franklin D. Roosevelt. This law restricted the private ownership of automatic weapons, short barrel rifles, silencers and weapons classified as “any other weapon” by registration and taxation. It is believed this inventory was conducted to insure AOC was in compliance with this new law.

The beginning inventory lists 9 Birmingham Small Arms (B.S.A.) prototype Thompson submachine guns as being directly possessed by AOC. Included are 5 of the “new” B.S.A. models and 4 of the earlier and now “obsolete” B.S.A. models. Also shown is one “Thompson Submachine Gun, assembled from Colt’s scrapped parts, frame No. 2308, and receiver No. 7308.” Two more Thompson guns are also listed, one “belt fed” and one “for box magazine” without serial numbers.

The earliest prototype Thompson guns were manufactured one at a time at the Warner & Swasey Company in Cleveland, Ohio. These are mostly marked “Model of 1919” and so referred to by those that study the Thompson gun. The inventory of the “Cleveland made” Thompson guns begins at serial number No. 1 and ends at No. 40. However, not all numbers are accounted for. Only 33 “Cleveland made” Thompson guns remained in AOC inventory in 1934. Missing guns include Nos. 6, 9, 11, 17, 36, 37, and 38.

The inventory also contained weapons that were not Thompson guns. Firearms requiring government registration included (one each) Hotchkiss, Lewis and Vickers machine guns and eight (8) Maxim silencers. In addition, the inventory contained a listing of guns that were owned by AOC but consigned to individuals and companies. These are not included in the below total because it is not known if any of these weapons were ever returned to AOC.

How many of these 56 weapons noted on the 1934 inventory that required federal registration were packed away in the crates when sold to George Numrich is unknown. This inventory could have easily grown in number after 1934 with the known Savage M1 and 9mm prototypes, the AOC Bridgeport T2 prototypes and AOC Model of 1929 B.S.A. prototypes. Other known prototypes constructed after 1934 include at least two AOC experimental rifles in .30 caliber and .30 caliber carbine, both requiring federal registration.

The weapons referenced above could easily account for the majority of machine guns found in the crates and registered with the IRS by George Numrich. The existence of many of these weapons is not in doubt as Numrich donated several prototypes to the United States Military Academy at West Point, including the first prototype, named “The Persuader” by Auto-Ordnance engineers Theodore H. Eickhoff and Oscar V. Payne. Numrich also sold many of the surviving Thompson prototypes that grace collections today. Complete weapons found in the crates? There is little doubt.

THE RECEIVERS

After acquiring the Thompson assets, Numrich Arms advertised it was “the exclusive manufacturer” of the Thompson gun. Some self-described Thompson purists take issue with the statement that Numrich Arms manufactured Thompson guns. They claim all that happened was an assembly of already manufactured receivers and parts to create guns to sell in the marketplace. However, it has long been recognized that assembling parts into a complete working unit is by definition manufacturing, including the U.S. legal definition. All evidence found today indicates Numrich Arms sold complete working products, not bare receivers.

The prototype Thompson guns found by Numrich are not the machine guns that cause all the confusion in the Thompson community. The misunderstanding arise from the Thompson guns manufactured or assembled from receivers – and serial numbered for IRS registration requirements with the letters “NAC” as part of the serial number.

It is unknown how many receivers were found by George Numrich in late 1951 and registered with the IRS in 1952. While some limited information about the crate guns has been provided by Numrich Arms over the years, no records detailing the total number including serial numbers stamped by Numrich employees on the receivers have been released. What is known from the study of Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) information on various NAC guns is not all the receivers were found and registered at one time. Based on a sampling of dates of initial registration documents, many NAC Thompson guns were registered with the IRS at different times in 1952. However, it appears additional Thompson receivers turned up at Numrich from time to time – probably as more and more crates of Thompson assets were opened and inventoried. Like the AC variation above, it appears many, possibly most, of the NAC Thompsons were sold to law enforcement agencies. This kept the NAC Thompsons out of the public eye for many years. The NAC Thompsons referenced in this story have been identified one by one over the years by the author.

THE COLT NAC’S

NAC Thompsons with the Colt receivers are the culprits that caused most of the confusion in the Thompson community – and garner the most attention. For the uninformed, they appear just like an original Colt production Thompson. To complicate matters further, several Colt receiver variations have been observed. Imagine a so called Thompson guru that does not fully understand all the different Colt production receiver variants trying to explain the NAC variation to the uninformed. The most common Colt receiver variation for a NAC Thompson appears to be the last variation with the 1922 patent dates on the right side of the receiver.

Examination of FOIA documents from NAC Thompson guns indicate Numrich Arms sold a number of Thompson guns with Colt receivers to the Virginia State Police in 1953. These guns remained in police service for 21 years before being sold or traded to Class Three dealer J. Curtis Earl of Phoenix, Arizona.

The Class Three or machine gun community was very small during this time period. However, J. Curtis Earl soon became somewhat of a national celebrity. What brought Earl into such prominence with the American public were his advertisements and catalogs. He certainly understood the value of advertising and puffery; his prices for machine guns were at the top of the market. But Earl had something most of his competitors did not have – a very large inventory. And he showcased this very impressive inventory in a series of catalogs he sold throughout his career.

A review of a partial copy of Earl’s Firearm Dealer Bound Book revealed Thompson submachine guns with the serial numbers NAC – 2 through NAC – 15 were transferred to him on September 3, 1974 from the State Police in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The manufacturer for each one is listed as “COLT U.S.A.” with the model listed as “1921 THOMP” with the exception of NAC – 7, which is listed as a “1928-A1(1921).”

Unless otherwise noted, all the Thompson guns described in this story are in private collections. The following information is known about these 14 NAC Thompsons:

• NAC 2: NAC 2 was on display at the J. Curtis Earl Automatic Weapons Collection at The Champlin Fighter Museum in Mesa, Arizona for many years. Its disposition after the museum closed is unknown. Information released by Numrich Arms in 1996 revealed NAC 2, a Model 1921, was transferred to Numrich Arms in Mamaroneck, New York on December 1, 1951from Fred A. Willis, 25 Vanderbilt Avenue, New York, New York. NAC 2 was subsequently transferred to the Department of State Police, Richmond, Virginia on June 5, 1953.
• NAC 3: It is currently on display at the Idaho State Historical Museum, donated to the museum by the late J. Curtis Earl. It has a late Colt receiver with 1922 patent dates. FOIA information revealed NAC 3 was listed on an IRS Form 2, Return of Firearms Manufactured, Imported, Or Received By Manufacturer, Importer, Dealer (Other Than Pawnbroker), and Pawnbroker, Under Chapter 26, Subchapter B, Internal Revenue Code, as “manufactured, imported , or received” on December 1, 1951. Registration of NAC 3 was sent to the IRS by Numrich Arms on or about June 20, 1952.
• NAC 5: It has a late Colt receiver with 1922 patent dates. FOIA information revealed NAC 5 was listed as “manufactured, imported, or received” on December 1, 1951. Registration of NAC 5 was sent to the IRS by Numrich Arms on or about June 20, 1952.
• NAC 6: It has a late Colt receiver with 1922 patent dates.
• NAC 9: It has a late Colt receiver with 1922 patent dates.
• NAC 11: It has a late Colt receiver with 1922 patent dates. It has been professionally refinished to appear like a Colt production Thompson.
• NAC 15: The receiver is devoid of the normal markings but is believed to be of Colt manufacture. The receiver is hand-stamped on the left side toward the front: “M 1928” and “N.A.C. 15.” The top of the receiver is marked in three lines on the right side of the cocking slot: AUTO-ORDNANCE CORP. BRIDGEPORT, CONN. USA 45 CAL.

The frame is also unmarked except for the serial number, “NAC 15” and the letter “G” at the bottom of the trigger guard. FOIA information begins with the June 5, 1953 transfer to the Department of State Police in Richmond, Virginia. Apparently, the clerk in the ATF Disclosure Division could not locate the original IRS Form 2 as identified for NAC 3 and NAC 5, above. Information from Numrich Arms in 1996 shows the same past transfer history for NAC 15 as NAC 2, above, with the following additional information: NAC 15 is a Model 1928 and was originally transferred to Numrich Arms as a “Sample” marked “A.O.C.” and Numrich Arms “numbered it NAC 15.”

A continuous study of the NAC marked Thompson guns has revealed other Thompson guns with Colt receivers.

0049000 408 NAC: One can only imagine what IRS officials thought when Numrich Arms filed a Form 2 for this Model 1928 NAC Thompson gun with this serial number on June 21, 1968. The Colt era receiver is devoid of all markings except the serial number and the Auto-Ordnance early trademark logo, AUT-ORD-CO-, found at the top of the early square actuator slot receiver. This NAC Thompson has been professional refinished in the Model of 1928A1 format and is mated with a Savage Arms frame. There is no reason to believe this Thompson gun is not one of the original crate guns even though it was not registered with the IRS until much later.

533 NAC: This Colt era receiver also features the Auto-Ordnance early trademark logo, AUT-ORD-CO-. It has the commonly found patent dates ending at December 28, 1920. The standard model and serial number nomenclature markings are missing and the remaining factory markings are very weak. The serial number is hand stamped on the upper left side of the receiver toward the front. The frame has a Savage Arms serial number.

When other NAC guns within the serial number range of 1 through 15 are examined more information on these early numbered NAC guns may be obtained. All the NAC Thompson guns with Colt era receivers appeared to have been assembled with left over Colt and WWII parts to make complete submachine guns. No one is alive today that can describe exactly what parts were used and why. Suffice to say, there was no standardization of parts from one gun to the next. It appears whatever parts first found and available were used. The goal of Numrich Arms was to make a marketable product.

The NAC story is far from complete. Part Two of The NAC Thompson Guns will be presented in an upcoming issue of Small Arms Review!