Which WWII-era handgun?

[Kendal Black]

...........could include the Philadelphia Experiment and time warp(s)

Outstanding!

"...And that, sergeant, is how I have a Glock and a phased-plasma rifle in the 40-watt range. Honest!" After all, it coulda happened.

My suggestion of how to justify a Victory Model S&W was far too tame. My hat's off to you, sir.

 

[stoky]

Gosh Mr. Black, sorry you took it so personally.
A Victory S&W would seem to require a somewhat less creative story than say..............a conquered country's WiS Vis.
The aim of the remark was jest. Reckon I missed. Had I realized how thin skinned you were, I would have reconsidered it.

 

[Kendal Black]

Gosh Mr. Black, sorry you took it so personally.
A Victory S&W would seem to require a somewhat less creative story than say..............a conquered country's WiS Vis.
The aim of the remark was jest. Reckon I missed. Had I realized how thin skinned you were, I would have reconsidered it.

Took it personally? Thin-skinned? Wherever are you getting that?

I got the joke. Isn't that obvious?

 

[stoky]

dang, missed again
musta been the Polish pistol allusion
or maybe I just got up on the wrong side of the bed

 

[D.B. Cooper]

Welllllll...starting to look like it's going to be a 1911 (probably NOT) a Colt =( or some type of Model 10. I've been watching Colt 1917's on various sites, and I bid on one, but they all seem to go for more than I want to pay for one.

I mean, it's just for fun. I can get a Kahr 1911 for under $500. smh

 

[Kendal Black]

I'd go with the Model 10, but that's merely my personal preference. I like shooting them.

It is less of a reach historically to do as you say and go with a 1911. McBride wrote that where he was in WWI, wounded men's pistols never went to the rear with them--always appropriated for use at the front. One obviously explicable source of a 1911 in WWII would be a GI who had no further use for it.

 

[Acera]

One more thing to mention, I heard the Canadians are finally giving up their issue Hi-Powers and going to get a new handgun for their armed services. So if you like Hockey and say sorry a lot.................I'll plug it again.



.

 

[Kendal Black]

One more thing to mention, I heard the Canadians are finally giving up their issue Hi-Powers and going to get a new handgun for their armed services. So if you like Hockey and say sorry a lot.................I'll plug it again.



.

That's another plausible gun, on the same logic as before. You may say Canadians are too polite or eat fries the wrong way or say "eh" too often, but they are not accustomed to run from a fight. So casualty-related battlefield pickup equipment is certainly possible.

 

[bersaguy]

For a very close copy of a M1911A1 at a much reduced price, try the Argentine Sistema Modelo1927. Side by side with a remington rand, they're nearly identical. The only differences I found are tang on the hammer is a little larger on the Argentine, but a surplus Colt hammer drops right in. The grips are walnut opposed to plastic, and they're blued opposed to parkerized. I ended up ceracoating mine as the bluing was pretty worn.

 

[eastbank]

i would not fire these ww-11 era handguns in the amounts that 3-gun requires. a clone springfield 1911 .45 would be ok. eastbank.

 

[Dr.Rob]

Arguably the BHP was the best pistol of the war. Both allies and axis loved it.

 

[D.B. Cooper]

i would not fire these ww-11 era handguns in the amounts that 3-gun requires. a clone springfield 1911 .45 would be ok. eastbank.

In the case of the 1911, a modern clone would probably be my choice, if for no other reason that price. That option is not available in the other two guns.

 

[Panzerschwein]

The Nazis made Hi-Powers and issued them when they captured the factory. I'm sure some GIs got ahold of one upon killing a German or two.

It'd be my pick.

 

[Dog Soldier]

The most sought after Trophy was the German P08 Lugers.

 

[MTMilitiaman]

Ditto the Hi-Power. It's not even close.

 

[Browning]

"...The Browning would have been..." Or Lugers. Logistics issue for a GI. Don't believe 9mm ammo was in the U.S. system then. BHP's weren't that common on the Brit side either. Mostly just The Para's.
"...FN produced HiPower with Nazi proof marks..." Collector's piece.
Using the thing for U.S. milsurp 3 gun matches pretty much says 1911A1. I think I'd opt for an SA Inc. "Mil-Spec"(that isn't. It's SS. They don't list the older "GI Mil-spec" any more.). Your budget being considered, first. There are other 'issue' clones too, but the sights are 'as issued' too. Crappy.

If you think about it, not really. In war if you're using a pistol something has generally gone incredibly wrong and it's a last ditch means to try to save your life or because your primary weapon has gone down and a replacement rifle or (in WWII) submachinegun isn't available. Battles aren't exactly won or lost with pistols, but individual lives can be saved.

What ammo you have in the pistol and in the (usually) two spare mags isn't going to get used the same way that your rifle and submachinegun gun ammo is. It'll just sit there unused until an emergency pops up. There's also ammo to be scavenged off of enemy dead or traded with the guys inside your unit or from other units. Those kind of souvenirs were pretty sought after and were traded around or bought outright.

In WWII soldiers, marines, sailors and airmen were often shipped pistols by their family because they weren't issued one. Many of the guns that they sent weren't in .45 ACP. It was the same deal with those pistols in 9mil (Lugers, Walther P-38's, FN GP-35's and Polish Vis 35 Radom's) picked up in the field. A small amount of ammunition was sent along with the pistol/revolver in the care package. Not enough to go popping off rounds at every opportunity, but enough to possibly save their life in an emergency. A .32 ACP or .38 Special wasn't exactly an commonly issued caliber, but they still used them if available.

So a Browning High Power/FN GP-35 scavenged off of German infantry, fallschirmjager, panzergrenadier or waffen ss trooper would have actually worked out pretty well and would have offered the user just about double the capacity of anything else available at the time in a reliable and fairly hard hitting caliber.

 

[kerreckt]

I second the the "Tokarev Comrads". An underrated handgun that will pierce the old steel "pot". Something the 9mm and 45acp will only dent.

 

[Roadkill]

I love old WWII guns. Took the German handguns off the wall for a range trip a few days back. :

1930 Commercial C96/1944 High Power/Pre war FN 35 Highpower/1943 Walther P38/1944 Mauser P38/1944 Spreewerk P38/1918 Erfurt P08/1937 Mauser P08/ and GSG MP40 9mm.

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