catnipman Posted February 12, 2004 Report Share Posted February 12, 2004 PieceOcrap I can see why the "winner" is being kept secret! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arthur Fliegenheimer Posted February 12, 2004 Report Share Posted February 12, 2004 That will wind up in ebay bidder "AIRMECHWWII" collection. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PK. Posted February 12, 2004 Report Share Posted February 12, 2004 Basil, this may be the real thing, there are photos of Thompsons in use in the pacific with this type of foregrip. He doesn’t say weather this one is original or re-pro, but the concept is WWII Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ron Mills Posted February 12, 2004 Report Share Posted February 12, 2004 I had one of those and sold it to Tracie Hill. I got mine from Sarco for $9.95, as I recall. Does anybody know if those actually made it to the battlefield (for mounting, as opposed to kindling)? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
21 smoker Posted February 12, 2004 Report Share Posted February 12, 2004 I wonder if it is an original vintage POS....HMMMMMMMM... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
catnipman Posted February 12, 2004 Author Report Share Posted February 12, 2004 Well, that's good to know, PK, but damn is that an *UGLY* mother! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PK. Posted February 12, 2004 Report Share Posted February 12, 2004 No argument there! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hawkeye_Joe Posted February 12, 2004 Report Share Posted February 12, 2004 I remember seeing a combat photo with a Thompson with this type of grip mounted.. Was in a sandpit I believe on a beach or something.. the caption pointed out the strange foregrip. I've looked in the old Thompson Newsletter archives where I thought I saw it but I can't find it.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Z3BigDaddy Posted February 12, 2004 Report Share Posted February 12, 2004 I'm a little confuZed... So is this an ugly collectible, or a bogus POS? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TSMG28 Posted February 12, 2004 Report Share Posted February 12, 2004 Like Hawkeye, I have seen a WWII photo showing a grip like this. However, this particular one "appears" to be of more recent manufacture. Who knows.... No question about the "ugly" description! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gijive Posted February 12, 2004 Report Share Posted February 12, 2004 There is photo documentation from WWII of the Marines using an identical grip on their Thompsons in the Pacific. Best estimates are that it was a "rigger" made item and not a standard procurement item. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hawksnest Posted February 12, 2004 Report Share Posted February 12, 2004 I've seen the WWII pacific picture of a marine using this grip. I have also seen a picture of Churchill holding one. Sarco had them for sale a few years back. Don't know if they have any more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
catnipman Posted February 12, 2004 Author Report Share Posted February 12, 2004 You know, gijive, the rigger-made idea makes sense. This might be something a soldier would do if they wanted the vertical front grip and all they had were the horizontal ones. It would be easy enough to hand carve one from some local exotic wood and use wood screws to attach the two parts. Even if they had a factory-made vertical front grip, they might not have the long machine screw to attach it with. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TommyFan Posted February 12, 2004 Report Share Posted February 12, 2004 Sure is an UGLY design on what looks like walnut with a nice, quarter sawn grain. It looks as if somebody took the rear grip and squared off the top of it to fit the horizontal front grip. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gijive Posted February 12, 2004 Report Share Posted February 12, 2004 Here is a photo I located showing a US Marine in WWII with his dog on Bougainville with a modified Thompson. This isn't identical to the grip on Ebay, but there are pictures from later in the war of Marines with a grip identical to the one shown on Ebay. Sutton Coffman had a picture at the last TCA Show showing that grip. http://members.aol.com/gijive/USMCgrip.jpg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Walter63a Posted February 13, 2004 Report Share Posted February 13, 2004 gijive, what a great WWII photo! http://www.machinegunbooks.com/forums/invboard1_1_2/upload/html/emoticons/biggrin.gif The young Marine looks a little emaciated, as many servicemen of that era did. Many were poor, jobless and half-starved, due to the Great Depression, yet they bravely fought for freedom, democracy, and a morally right cause. Well, at least, he had man's best friends with him, in the Tommy (ugly grip and all) and the beautiful German Shepherd. http://www.machinegunbooks.com/forums/invboard1_1_2/upload/html/emoticons/smile.gif http://www.machinegunbooks.com/forums/invboard1_1_2/upload/html/emoticons/rolleyes.gif http://www.machinegunbooks.com/forums/invboard1_1_2/upload/html/emoticons/cool.gif Regards,Walter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ron Mills Posted February 13, 2004 Report Share Posted February 13, 2004 I'll add my kudos to gijive for a great photo! Looking at that picture, I've wondered so many times how hard it must've been (and likely still is) to haul your weapon, pack, ammo, canteen, etc., and still be expected to be "on guard" all the time. Bless 'em all. Here's another question that I've been meaning to post: Did mags, either stick or drum, ever arrive "loaded" when they reached the troops on the line, or was it just crates of ammo and empty mags? I wonder how it's done today. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
full auto 45 Posted February 13, 2004 Report Share Posted February 13, 2004 My buddy that just got back from killing off several Mudslim bastards, I asked him if his mags came loaded or empty. He told me they all came loaded. He never had to load a mag while over there. Empty a mag, pitch it in a bag grab another. At the end of day, someone picked up the mags and dropped off new ones. Got to love the Marines. My Grandfather said all his M1 Garand mags were loaded when he got them in Italy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Incomplete Posted February 13, 2004 Report Share Posted February 13, 2004 (edited) I don't know if they come loaded the first time you get them, but when my grandfather got his 45ACP, he had to hand load it. He talked about somehow loading 51 bullets in a L drum and it getting jammed and stuck in the gun. What made it better is he was being bonzi(spelling?) charged. Edit: Now that I take a second look at that foregrip, it looks like a magazine wouldn't fit in the gun when it is. The forward pistol grip appears too far back. Edited February 13, 2004 by Incomplete Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hawksnest Posted February 13, 2004 Report Share Posted February 13, 2004 The great picture posted by gijive looks like they took a vertical foregrip, cut the top off of it and then used a vertical foregrip screw to hold both grips on. I have a verticle foregrip screw that is about 3/8 " longer than a normal vertical screw. Hmmm. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bisley45 Posted February 13, 2004 Report Share Posted February 13, 2004 The photos I remember of the extra grips in the pacific had them farther forward. Ugly is too kind to that abomination so corectly labeled peaceOcrap BB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike45 Posted February 16, 2004 Report Share Posted February 16, 2004 I saw a pic of a Marine firing into the mouth of a jap infested cave with a grip like in the pic (Marine), it was suggested that it could be fired (into cave) with less of shooter exposed. Makes Sense. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest LSu Tiger Posted February 17, 2004 Report Share Posted February 17, 2004 You would be surprised at what was made up by Navy Machinist's Mates for Marines on ships while traveling to where ever. An uncle who was a Marine had knife made for him on a ship going to the Pacific. It still holds an edge like crazy! http://www.machinegunbooks.com/forums/invboard1_1_2/upload/html/emoticons/smile.gif Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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