[Steelharp]

My Dad is 88 now, WWII vet, South Pacific, 43rd Maple Leaf div, "I" Company. We were talking about what he had back then. Pistol was a Colt, his first rifle was a Springfield 03. Later, they brought something new for him to try, he says it started with an "M," but he can't remember. Says it wasn't an M1, he just remembers it did nothing but jam. He hated it, and they kept their 03's. any idea what it might have been?

Thanks, Mikey D...

[Duke of Lawnchair]

M41 Johnson?

[bobs1066]

It could have been the M1941 Johnson. IIRC, the Johnson was a limited use item in the Pacific Theater. Don't have an image handy, sorry.

[Ian]

Here's a photo of the Johnson:http://www.angelfire.com/ca2/ClubDJs/files/usa/JohnsonM41.jpg

[Detritus]

the M1941 Johnson was a Marine Corps issue item and the majority went to the Paramarines and Raider units very early in the war. after Guadalcanal (or possibly BY guadalcanal, but i think it was after) the M1941 had been pulled from service and the garand became standard issue for all.

also i don't beleive that there was ever much record of the Johnson having function problems. and it certainly wasn't disliked. in fact many of the units that had to give it up in favor of the garand were VERY pissed about the change.

unless it was a weapon in 30-06, the gun in question might have been a Reising Sub-machine gun...... now THERE was a piece of garbage!! (but i don't think that that gun would have ever been used as a substitute for a 1903)

[another48hrs]

The subgun Detritus is talking about was given the name M50. So that could have been what your dad was talking about.

[telewinz]

The Johnson was a failure in the Pacific. The Marines were a great defender of the rifle as opposed to the Garand before the war. The Johnson (a Marine Captain) wasn't as sturdy as the Garand and the loading mechanism was prone to collect debris. The few issued were later exchanged for Garands, if available. The whole thing turned into an embarrassment for the Marine leadership who publicly championed the Johnson over the Garand in the pre-war years. To satisfy the Marines additional "tests" were conducted and the Garand was the agreed winner by all parties.

[AK103K]

This is a pic of the gun another48hrs is talking about. The Reising was issued to the Marines in the pacific and was quickly found wanting. If I remember right, the parts were not (readily) interchangable and they were not very reliable, at least not in a combat environment.

http://www.securityarms.com/20010315/galleryfiles/0200/258.htm

[Nero Steptoe]

When I was a teenager, the local sheriff had a Reising. I got to shoot it some. Really was a p.o.s. Of course, it was made by H&R, so you wouldn't exactly expect stellar performance.

[Old Fuff]

I wonder if it might have been an M-1 Carbine (not rifle). They were supposed to replace the .45 pistol in some circumstances. It had a reputation for jamming if it got sand in it, and many Marines considered it underpower and they didn't like it.

[Mike Irwin]

I know a guy who has two former military Reisings that spent time with the Pittsburgh, PA, police.

Both of them are EXCEPTIONALLY accurate, very reliable (if they are kept clean) and lots of fun to shoot.