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Vietnam Thompson


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I bought a 1928a1 from a pretty reputable dealer. It is a well documented Vietnam chopper pilot bringback. Amnesty registered in 1968. It has blood pitting over the complete gun surface and a weld repair near the barrel. It was described as light pitting. I am not happy with the gun as described and he is willing to take it back. Without me giving the purchase price what do you think the gun is really worth. It was a battlefield pick-up and comes with all the owners info and how he aquired it and brought it back and registered it.

 

Bill

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Is that the one that Dennis Todd had? I would hang onto it and try to sale it on your own. Get a better sale and you can make a few bucks on it instead of a dealer. I would say about $16.5 for the gun. There was one in Indy that sold for that last fall.
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Yes it is. I made a deal on both thompsons that he had. They both came from the same guy. Pretty interesting story on how he got all the guns back. The M1 is definatly a keeper. But the 1928 just was dissapointing. Dennis and Jennie are both nice people to talk to. I was hoping to keep both. But I would rather spend more to get what I want.

 

Bill

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QUOTE (moparnascar @ Apr 18 2005, 04:00 PM)
It has blood pitting over the complete gun surface and a weld repair near the barrel.

Bill,

 

A weld repair near the barrel? That sounds more like a reactivated Dewat than a battlefield pick-up. Why would a gun still in service have a weld at the barrel? Maybe it makes for a better story saying it was a Vietnam bring back than saying it sat in a VFW hall as a Dewat until being registered in 1968.

 

Just food for thought, not trying to be critical of your post of the story that goes along with the gun. Sometimes the stories make for a good sales pitch.

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Another point to consider,..is that this a wartime production gun and rewatting/refinishing these types of Thompsons does not have nearly the negative effect that some would have you believe...that particular gun could have been arsonally redone several times and would not necessarily detract one dime in today`s market....if it can be fixed,I personally would do it and be proud of it...jmo... http://www.machinegunbooks.com/forums/invboard1_1_2/upload/html/emoticons/wink.gif
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There is too much background on the gun. The weld looks like a ark type weld. And no time was spent to machine the weld back flat. the weld is on top of the receiver and there are no other welds repairs.

 

I dont generally buy into stories. And I have no reason to belive that all five guns he had are fake. Hell if I was going to fake stories It would be of WW2 vintage.

 

I considered having the gun refinished but there would be no markings left if you did. It would be best to leave the gun alone in this case. I just wished that it was not rewelded and just had pitting here and there, not all over the gun.

 

I will probably look back years from now and see it bringing $50.000. There is no doubt that it will sell again and again.

 

Bill

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I remember seeing that gun with the story. I saw the spot I think you are talking about. I didn't have time to really inspect, but it looked funny. Now to see if they told the same story, The guy was a chopper pilot that carried the '28 with him everywhere. Stayed next to him in the bird. The M1 was a field pick up. And I think they said he had been wounded a couple times. Could account for your stains. When he left, he stuck the guns back in his footlocker bottom.
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Could you show a picture of the welded area? Other than using the gun as a pry bar (the stock would break first!) - I don't think I have ever heard of one with a crack there where you describe it. Could it be that someone was trying to remove the barrel and messed it up? Or is this area where a crack could appear from a dud lodged in the barrel (hence the need for a rebarrel!)?

 

Interesting to say the least! Keep it!

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I don't know if it was the same one or not, but, I saw one at the creek that had a significant crack in the front part of the receiver on the ejector side.

 

The crack / weld / was about an inch long. I figured it was caused from re-barrel job gone wrong.

 

STEN

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The 1928a1 was used by the ARVN during the Tet offensive. The pilot traded a camera and a tape recorder for it. He knew it was against regulations but he sent it back taken apart in a couple Akai (japonese) tape recorderboxes and sent to his dad. I have the story I could scan and e-mail if interested.

 

Bill

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