[ EPU Foyer ] [ Lab and Grill ] [ Bonus Theater!! ] [ Rhetorical Questions ] [ CSRANTronix ] [ GNDN ] [ Subterranean Vault ] [ Discussion Forum ]

Eyrie Productions, Unlimited

Subject: "Never Meet Your Heroes, I Guess"     Previous Topic | Next Topic
Printer-friendly copy    
Conferences Gun of the Week Topic #51
Reading Topic #51
Gryphonadmin
Charter Member
18630 posts
Mar-25-17, 07:07 PM (EDT)
Click to EMail Gryphon Click to send private message to Gryphon Click to view user profileClick to add this user to your buddy list  
"Never Meet Your Heroes, I Guess"
 
   LAST EDITED ON Mar-25-17 AT 07:20 PM (EDT)
 
I was at my local guns-n-canoes-n-outdoorsy-stuff store (not to be confused with my semi-local milsurp-n-guns-n-range store) the other day, chatting with the younger of the two guys who work there about this and that, when he said, "Here, check out my new toy," then went out back and returned with a hard-sided rifle case, from which he produced one of these.

Now, it will probably come as no great surprise to anyone here that I am a fan of the Thompson gun. I like its aesthetic; I like the odd principle of its action;¹ I like the crazy vintage ads in which Auto-Ordnance tried to convince the firearms-buying public of the 1920s that a small machinegun costing half as much as a new Ford was something they really, really needed. I'd never seen one in person before, though, and I found myself making a really disappointing discovery about them when Jim handed me his.

I knew already that they are very heavy. That was one of the chief complaints against the military M1 version of the Thompson, which was used extensively in World War II: weighing in at around 10 pounds (and that's before you add between 20 and 50 rounds of .45 ACP ammunition), they're no lighter (and in some configurations a little heavier) than a Garand rifle. They were a lot lighter than the 16-pound Browning Automatic Rifle, which they largely replaced in most of the BAR's roles that didn't involve actually being a light machine gun, but but still, that's a heavy gun; and it seems even heavier than it is because it's so compact, if that makes any sense.

What I wasn't expecting was what a length of pull they have. The length of pull on a shoulder arm is basically the distance between the butt of the stock and the trigger—how far forward the shooter has to reach in order to grip and operate the weapon. The Thompson isn't a particularly long gun, and yet both the pistol grip and the forestock are really far forward. I expect for a taller, longer-armed person it wouldn't be a problem, but I'm of average height or just a little shorter (depending on whether you believe the authorities that say the average height of a white American male is 5'9" or the ones who say it's 5'10"), and I found it terribly awkward and uncomfortable in firing position.

Ah well! I guess I can cross that one off the list.

--G.
-><-
Benjamin D. Hutchins, Co-Founder, Editor-in-Chief, & Forum Mod
Eyrie Productions, Unlimited http://www.eyrie-productions.com/
zgryphon at that email service Google has
Ceterum censeo Carthaginem esse delendam.

¹ It's a delayed blowback system where the delay comes from the friction between angled metal surfaces. The patent holder on this idea, one John Blish (not to be confused with sci-fi novelist James Blish ) seems to have believed that what made it work was that they were two different metals, so you'll sometimes see it referred to as a bimetallic friction system, but later investigations have shown pretty convincingly that it's really just about the angles. As it turned out, some Army ordnance people were convinced the the Blish lock didn't really do much of anything in a Thompson anyway, a surmise borne out by the fact that the military M1/M1A1 Thompson doesn't even have it.


  Alert | IP Printer-friendly page | Edit | Reply | Reply With Quote | Top
eriktown
Member since Jan-28-06
172 posts
Mar-26-17, 00:26 AM (EDT)
Click to EMail eriktown Click to send private message to eriktown Click to view user profileClick to add this user to your buddy list  
1. "RE: Never Meet Your Heroes, I Guess"
In response to message #0
 
   That is *really* good to know, and satisfies my (admittedly mild) curiosity about the use of the Thompson. Your footnote about Blish is also appreciated because that was completely my first thought. (In fact I caught the Blish name while scanning, and went 'Wait, whaa?')


  Alert | IP Printer-friendly page | Edit | Reply | Reply With Quote | Top
Gryphonadmin
Charter Member
18630 posts
Mar-28-17, 01:13 PM (EDT)
Click to EMail Gryphon Click to send private message to Gryphon Click to view user profileClick to add this user to your buddy list  
2. "RE: Never Meet Your Heroes, I Guess"
In response to message #1
 
   >That is *really* good to know, and satisfies my (admittedly mild)
>curiosity about the use of the Thompson.

In fairness, I've only just learned—and I probably should have realized this earlier, if you look at the design it's kind of obvious—the Thompson wasn't originally meant to have a shoulder stock. It was added later, when it became obvious that it wasn't going to be particularly controllable without one, but by then the geometry of the receiver was fixed. That's presumably why it has that big overhang at the back, where they had to attach the stock underneath.

Mind you, if I had one, I would be tempted to saw an inch or so off the back of the stock and see if that helps. Replacements are a bit expensive, but they are available, and the difference is not so extreme as to suggest that a little customizing wouldn't go a long way.

--G.
-><-
Benjamin D. Hutchins, Co-Founder, Editor-in-Chief, & Forum Mod
Eyrie Productions, Unlimited http://www.eyrie-productions.com/
zgryphon at that email service Google has
Ceterum censeo Carthaginem esse delendam.


  Alert | IP Printer-friendly page | Edit | Reply | Reply With Quote | Top

Conferences | Topics | Previous Topic | Next Topic

[ YUM ] [ BIG ] [ ??!? ] [ RANT ] [ GNDN ] [ STORE ] [ FORUM ] [ VAULT ]

version 3.3 © 2001
Eyrie Productions, Unlimited
Benjamin D. Hutchins
E P U (Colour)