Arthur Fliegenheimer

The lot was passed as it didn't sell. The bidding stalled at $55 000 with 5 bids. McQueen's screen BAR carried a pre-sale estimate of $$80,000 - $150,000. It failed to meet the seller's undisclosed reserve price. Ok. No mention of a reserve in ad. The Barrett-Jackson auto auction allows sellers to have a fail safe secret reserve (of course known to Craig Jackson) that is frequently in no danger of being reached. Then when bidding stalls in the neighborhood of the reserve. the auctioneers appear to goad the seller to lift the secret reserve and that seems to be incentive for continued bidding as the prospect of buying the vehicle is no longer an exercise in futility.

Mike, Stembridge Gun Rental also supplied the Darren McGavin twin M50 Madsens for the 1970 ABC Movie of The Week "The Challenge." It sold on SUBGUNS in 2005. One Madsen was modified to eject from left side of receiver.

Change from "MACHINE" to "AUTOMATIC" was discussed here. The McQueen Marlin Rockwell is an early serial number. 25,000 block. Per Orion in this thread: "The earliest documented serial number for Marlin -Rockwell was serial # 40286." McQueen MR BAR beats that.

This is from RECOIL online magazine interview with C. Reed Knight, II. Perhaps SOT board members could provide the method used to get BATFE to add to the registry this particular Colt TSMG #11943 (currently on a Form 3) that was never registered prior to the 1968 Amnesty period. Knight makes a point in the interview about selecting pre-ban 1986 machine guns from the Colt storage room.

Too bad Knight doesn't show photos of the stripped (no internals, no frame, no barrel/ring sight, no Lyman Sight, no wood furniture, yet serial numbered, completely stamped wih Colt, AOC, and Patent information- blued receiver) as he found it in Colt's Patent Fire Arms Manufacturing . What does require some further explanation are the 12 patent dates on a Colt receiver under serial number 14,000. Every example of Colt Thompsons in this #11943 range have the usual 9 dates ending with December 28, 1920.

Even though RIA didn't include a pic of the frame # they did bury the # at the bottom of the description: "trigger housing is numbered "4959" on the stock rail, with knurled controls; per page 510 of Herigstad's listing, this number tracks to a 1921AC that was part of the first U.S.M.C. contract in 1926, which in turn would pass through China, Nicaragua, Paris Island, San Diego, and Quantico." I guess this 1990 find of stripped receiver #11943 inside a small room at Colt's Patent Firearms was a Colt employee's failed attempt to smuggle out a "lunch box special." It is odd AOC (who at the time had been granted a facility on the Colt premises) paid for 15,000 Colt 1921 TSMGs, yet tnever noticed or inquired about missing #11943. Or maybe they did which stymied the employee's plans to remove the receiver from it's hiding place.

Estimate $55K -$85K May 9, 2026 https://www.rockislandauction.com/detail/4097/1302/colt-1921-thompson-class-iiinfa-cr-machine-gun GH Serial Numbers 1995: #11943 1921A (but auction shows Cutts Compensator) Knight Industries Vero Beach, Florida "Receiver cane from Colt Factory collection without lower frame and rear sight. Appears to be in new and unused condition."

Small Arms Review article on the Stenbriidge company that Hollywood relied on to supply them with weapons. In 1973 they were beginning to sell off their inventory. https://smallarmsreview.com/stembridgegunrentals/

It's a Marlin-Rockwell. http://auctions.morphyauctions.com/_n__fantastic_gary_cooper___steve_mcqueen_film_pro-lot667612.aspx

2023 thread on Colt Thompson in Cuba during filming of 1959 "Our Man in Havana."

Chester and Lester Longacre from Bethany Oklahoma.

Enterprising Gunbroker seller Atlas Collectible Firearms purchased this at RIA for $4200 in October 2025 https://www.rockislandauction.com/detail/1049/1745/shostle-engraved-erfurt-artillery-luger-pistol-with-ivory-grips Then turned around on Gunbroker with penny starting bid for $22,500 in December 2025 to one of their frequent customers. https://www.gunbroker.com/item/1143989916

Several reasons to confirm #15025 was shipped without any Cutts Compensator. The non factory boss threading on the original barrel, GH's correct description of #15025 including the "A" stamping and the Lyman sight in meters, and your own March 2011 SAR article on Swedish Manuals where you show their 1939-40 Colt TSMG order specified no Cutts. You also stated in the 2019 "Amateur's Guide" that #15025 "may have originally been prepared for sale to a foreign government or customer, perhaps initially part of the Swedish contract." Does this other 1928A Colt have the identical hideous muzzle boss threads? Doubtful. The vendor identity is public knowledge as GH states it was Ohio Ordnance Bob Landies who did the reactivation post 1970. Do you have a copy of GH's final two volume serial numbers? Your next TSMG publication can confirm the identity of the manufacturer of the "H" stamped barrels. G.E. Hudak Inland Arms Company Austin, Texas. See photo.

On 4/8/2021 at 10:33 PM, M17ap said You mentioned Hudak back in 2021. Now you solved the mystery of the origin of the "H" marked barrel. Outsanding!

Tom, Yes, GH does specify the MODEL 1928 with a 1921A barrel. His deviation from the FOIA is that it sold in 1940 not 1939. What source was GH using that gave near identical FOIA info? At some point after receiving #15025 the Government entity owner sent it back to the Maguire owned AOC for the Type II Cutts installation? Or some time between 1940 and 1972 the Cutts was installed? So who is responsible for the Cutts fitting to the original Colt 1921A barrel before or after #15025 was dewatted. Arizona Class Three dealer Tom Stewart provided you with the photos of #15025 for your 2008 SAR article and that you also used in your "Amateur's Guide", yes? He stated he was able to get the original factory barrel, then fitted with the Type II Cutts, from the seller. Did he tell you why he, or the seller, removed the Type II Cutts to show the mangled muzzle boss threading for the pic to be included in your article. There isn't a complete photo of the original barrel in the publications as only the muzzle with Type II is depicted. Whomever removed the barrel from the receiver replaced it with the repro "H" barrel and West Hurley Cutts Compensator? Did Numrich rewat #15025 with the "H" barrel and his Cutts? Unfortunately all the retro work done on #15025 precludes determining how the threads differ on a 1921A barrel and a 1932 barrel when a Type II Cutts was installed by AOC/Fenn. Back to Square 1...