New Book Review: US Small Arms In World War II

[dalbert]

All,

 

Tom Laemlein has privately published several photographic history books covering WWII small arms, tanks and airplanes. Mr. Laemlein has now published a new hardcover book through Osprey Publishing, titled, "US Small Arms in World War II: A Photographic History of the Weapons in Action." The foreword is by Captain Dale Dye, USMC (Ret.). We have probably all seen Mr. Dye in movies, and he often works as a technical adviser to military themed films.

 

I've met Tom Laemlein on a couple of occasions at the former SAR East Show in York, Pennsylvania, and I sold several of his Thompson WWII photographic history books when it came out. Mr. Laemlein fills a niche, in my opinion, as sometimes in other firearm books, good photos are edited out in favor of more written content. As the cliché goes, "a picture is worth a thousand words," so Mr. Laemlein's books can be quite engrossing, based on their visual stories that document the use of the weapons we like to collect, shoot and study. I really enjoy looking through his Thompson book, as it is full of never previously published images.

 

This new book is well worth purchasing. I give it 4 out of 5 stars. I particularly like the sections on the M1911 pistol, Shotguns, and the UD-M42 Submachine Gun. This book incorporates many images used in previous books covering specific WWIII weapons, such as Mr. Laemlein's books on the M1 Carbine, M1 Garand, Browning Automatic Rifle, Thompson Submachine Gun, and .30 and .50 Caliber Browning Machine Guns. It also has images of less frequently encountered combat arms, such as the Reising, UD-M42, M1941 Johnson Rifle and Light Machine Gun, and the M1911 Pistol. With the exception of the M1911 Pistol, photo books covering the lesser encountered arms are not likely to be published, based on the limited content, so this book brings them all together. It covers many of the same weapons that are covered by forums on this website.

 

I don't have any major criticisms of this book. I give it 4 out of 5 stars for some minor reasons. I realize it is a photo book, but I think the introductions for each weapon could be expanded slightly. I also found 3 editing errors on page 90. Three out of 4 photo caption numbers on that page do not correspond to the correct photos. I also disagree with statements made about the rear sight on the M1917 Rifle. I am a big M1917 Rifle fan, and I own 2 of them. Mr. Laemlein states that the M1917 Rifle was "equipped with excellent sights," and "The M1917's adjustable rear sight is in many ways superior to the sights on the M1903 Springfield Rifle." There is some merit to this statement, but it is so strongly stated that I have to disagree because the rear sight on the M1917 Rifle is not adjustable for windage. The only way that windage can be adjusted on the M1917 is by drifting the front sight. That being said, I like the front sight on the M1917 much more than that of the M1903. These minor criticisms are intended to be constructive, and do not take away from my recommendation, but they are the reason I reserve giving the book a 5 star rating.

 

So, this is a good one to add to the shelf, and I anticipate referencing it for examples of weapons usage and associated accessories and other equipment in WWII. It's available on Amazon.

 

David Albert

dalbert@sturmgewehr.com

[RoscoeTurner]

Tom is a super nice guy, he has always been extremely nice to talk to when I see him at the various shows.

 

 

http://www.armorplatepress.com/

 

 

http://www.armorplatepress.com/books/us-small-arms/

[RankStranger]

I have this book as well . picked it up after seeing an article in the American Rifleman . A good reference into the personel equipment used in combat along with the weapons themselves .