9 replies to this topic

[deerslayer]

I know this topic may have gone round before, but I couldn't find it. Anyway, I picked up a drum the other day. Definate Colt "NO" drum body but the cover is giving me fits. Dougs excellent drum manual would indicate this to be a matching colt cover. Then looking at Tracie's book, it appears to be a Worchester press first model drum. Both books show an excellent picture with the C in Cal nicely centered below the CH in submachine (as opposed to below the H). My drum cover definately has three spot welds above the printing and though not as visible in the picture, a spot weld on each side of where the cartridge would slide out the very top.

Anybody care to be the definative source?
Dan

[gijive]

Dan,

It is a Colt 1928 Navy drum due to the "Wind to 9 Clicks" instructions. The font style and spot welds on the face cover indicate it is a Colt drum.

Normally the body with the NO_______ (no serial number) would have a similar face cover with only the winding instructions for the 1921 Model. Either the covers got switched over the years by someone or the drum was shipped with the new winding instruction cover on an older model drum body.

What color is the rotor? It should be a nickel colored rotor for that model drum. If it is blue, the rotor has more than likely been replaced.

I maintain that the publisher inadvertantly placed some photos on the wrong pages in Tracie Hill's book leading to some confusion about the font posistion on various Colt and Worcester drums.

I believe you have a Colt drum with a mismatched cover.

[deerslayer]

The rotor was not correct at all. West hurley one stuck in there.

The drum cover and body match up correctly with Dougs book for a 1928 colt drum. Tracies book really shows variation on the covers on the worchester drums, but your explaination for the photo switching sounds plausable.

I should have included the back one so its posted here now.

[Arthur Fliegenheimer]

Deerslayer,
No mystery at all. Back cover is a second pattern Colt "NO." type while the front is the Colt third pattern blank type. You already determined thr rotor as a WH. A true Navy Drum front cover would have, "FOR U.S. NAVY MODEL 1928 WIND TO 9 CLICKS ONLY" stamped between the rivets.

[gijive]

Dan,

Arthus is correct about the variation with the 1928 winding instructions between the rivets. I forgot about that model. My point was that back and cover are Colt 2nd and3rd variations as Arthur mentioned.

[deerslayer]

Thanks for the insight guys!!!
Dan

[deerslayer]

You know what we need? Some sort of a drum ID key, kind of like the plant identification keys I've used. I can see it now... if has wind to 9 clicks go to next page, drain slots page 3......

[colt21a]

it really is a wonder how all these drums turn up rusted pitted and dented up..........or refinished over the dents and pits................then again they had been used in gang war's, real war's, movie studio movie's,and countless shootout's..........

i had met a lady in burbank il.{nellie case}who worked at united specialties during the war.......this was around 1973-74....

and her telling me of the process.......of making them....then she go's on to tell me about the crate {cardboard box of drums she had in the garage} i freak out,{you could do that in 73"}and i say, i will buy them........we go out to the garage to look at them.......and her hubby says i threw that crap out a few years ago.....left it on the street for the local pick-up........

then he proceeds to show me some ww2 bayonet.....w/o scabbard.............i sell them the insurance..........and scram............they became good friends for 20 years......

anyways enuff malingering...........take care,ron

dan be proud. its a drum!!

[Zamm]

Dan,
Excelent idea! Kind of a drum magazine "taxonomy".
An easy way to identify anything is with a key that has determining
factors which exist or do not with the specimen you are identifying.
When you finish going through the key, you know exactly what you have...
Zamm

[deerslayer]

OK, that enough encouragement for me. I'll put it together if I can get help from willing drum owners to send some pictures. We can all debate the fine points in open forum then I'll put it on a web site for all to access. I'll start a new post to get the project rolling.
Dan