TD.

The hammer price for NO 103 at the September 10, 2024 auction was $26,000. Of note, NO 103 was also listed in the earlier May 8th auction and hammered at $30,000. I guess it did not meet the reserve and was re-listed. It will be interesting to see if it met the reserve at this auction. It was a former coal company Colt and there was a barrel issue. The below picture shows the condition. I like NO 103 but understand the prices received at auction.

PM sent.

Notwithstanding Doug Richardson's post. I believe PK is correct about the Colt era and Model of 1928 milled grip mounts all having a bend. The original contract between Auto-Ordnance and Savage Arms called for the Savage guns to manufacture Thompson guns "exactly as it appeared in the 1936 Catalog." The early Savage Commercials (collector term) certainly show this to be true. Could this have changed late in the production of the 1928 Thompson with the milled grip mounts? I seriously doubt it.

Rabbit57, I know for a fact Savage manufactured grip mounts. The first contract between Auto-Ordnance and Savage Arms was for 10,000 guns. For many months after signing that first contract, there was no indication any future contracts would be forthcoming. Based on what I have seen on the earliest Savage Arms Thompson guns, all the parts except the Lyman rear sight and Cutts compensator were manufactured by Savage Arms. This made perfect sense as Savage Arms did not need subcontractors for a 10,000 gun order. As we all know, future contracts did happen. However, the second contract was but for a modest additional 2000 guns. The third order of 26,250 guns opened the flood gates with many more orders on the way - see Great Britain - The Tommy Gun Story for additional information. It is at this point I believe Savage Arms reached out to subcontractors, whose sister company of Stevens Arms being first in line. Many more subcontractors were to follow including the Auto-Ordnance factory at Bridgeport (AOB) making their own Thompson guns and parts. I have owned and sold a lot of Stevens and Auto-Ordnance marked milled grip mounts over the years. I have never seen an "S" or Savage marked grip mount for sale (only mounted on the earliest Savage guns). The M1 series of Thompson guns is not my specialty (that is Frank's lane) but I strongly suspect there were no M1 Thompson submachine guns that left the two factories with Savage milled grip mounts. I encourage the members of this forum to speak out if my assumption is incorrect. I have seen Savage or "S" marked front sights. Savage Arms had a head start in the design of the M1 front sight with the small production run of 1928A or no compensator Savage Model of 1928 submachine guns in 1940. Of note, these early front sights by Savage for the 1928 model are unmarked. With Stevens and AOC also both making front sights for the M1 Thompson, I have to wonder how common Savage marked M1 front sights are. If me, I would want to find several original examples of M1/M1A1 Thompson guns with Savage front sights before engaging in your search. I believe you will find the Stevens and AOC marked front sights are much more common. Again, I encourage the members of this forum to speak out if my assumption is incorrect. All good stuff!!!

I have had a few requests for, A Thompson Compendium, of late so I am bringing this thread back to the top. I appreciate all the interest in my books. I do have books available.

I'm game. And thank you! Any chance you could get me an address? Perhaps, your friend may even know a phone number or email address (but I realize I am reaching).

A tiki hut...seriously?

I understand that the AR/AK style of rifles in Canada have been banned are supposed to be collected via a government buy-back program. However, the government has not been able to find a vendor to implement the program for over a year, so these rifles remain with their owners. If Canada is having problems banning AR/AK style rifles, imagine what a monumental task in would be in the USA. Easy to talk about, much more difficult to implement. Perhaps our forum members from Canada can provide some details. The adjustment of the $200 transfer tax could happen, but the tax could not be so high as to discourage ownership. Then the tax would be viewed as a penalty or punishment and would be easily challenged.

While late coming to the party with Sellier & Bellot (SB), I have found SB 230 grain ball ammo runs perfectly in my Thompson.

Does anyone know if Fred Vollmer is still with us and, if so, how to get in touch with him - or his son Rob. The latest information I have is Fred retired to Florida but nothing more specific such as a city. Any and all information would be appreciated. I am tracing back the history of one of our beloved Thompson guns and his name is in the chain of ownership. Thanks!

I believe this is one of Ron's old Shotgun News advertisements.

SparksNArcs, Any progress in using the above pictured Bowman parts kt to build a striker fired semi-auto?

Rekraps, I did not say I was not interested in "anyone's opinion." What I said was Andrewski's opinion on this issue was irrelevant. I did not have to consult with Frank on such a simple question; I read his book. See quotation above. (Do you have his book?) The answer was obvious all along. Long time forum member Bridgeport28A1 stated the correct answer early in the thread. I also listen to all the information on every topic and quickly filtered out your early opinion. There was no other position to consider on this question because no one offered any additional information to consider - only conjecture. That said, I applaud your efforts on the Lanchester finish question. You went right to the source and provided information that was not available in a published format (I assume because I know nothing about Lanchester submachine guns).

Bridgeport28A1 has answered the question based on all known information. Yes, you can believe what you want but all the very early M1 Thompson submachine guns I have seen in original configuration have paddle levers, a non-crossbolt butt stock and a 1928 style magazine catch release lever (made for a drum). M1 Thompson guns in original condition are difficult to find but they do exist. I have never studied the M1 or M1A1 Thompson guns but do rely on what I have observed and Frank's American Thunder books. On Page 163 of American Thunder, Third Edition, Frank states, "Early M1's were manufactured using the same paddle type rocker pivot and safety levers, without the knurled surfaces, as used on the late production U.S. M19298A1 model. These were eventually replaced with the simpler two-piece pin type." There is a picture at the bottom of page 163 of a Savage M1 Thompson, NO. 73224, with paddle levers, non-crossbolt stock and a 1928 style magazine catch. Unfortunately, there is a lot of misinformation in the Thompson community. If you are going to have a position on a subject in the Thompson community, I always suggest first looking at the known published information. The published information may not be correct or more accurately - complete. But it is a starting point. Those that believe pin type levers were installed on the late M1928A1 Thompson submachine guns from the factory, find some documentation or pictures of late guns in original configuration that indicate this. I am very open minded on this and every topic. But I am not interested in what Andrewski opines as documentation of anything. His opinion is nice to know and his work is impeccable, but he is not an historian when it comes to the technical aspects of the Thompson submachine gun. The above picture of A.O. 153119x is not a 1928A1 Thompson submachine gun. It is a 1928AC Thomson submachine gun manufactured from parts by the Auto-Ordnance Division of Maguire Industries after the Model of 1928 Thompson submachine gun was out of production at the two factories. If your really interested in the M1/M1A1 Thompson submachine gun spend 40 bucks and buy Frank's, Amercian Thunder, Third Edition. It is the authority on the subject. But don't just read it, study it. Highlight information, write in it, dog ear it, but more importantly, use it. If your interested in the 1928AC Thompson, buy a copy of, A Thompson Compendium, 40 bucks directly from me, 50 bucks at Amazon. These books are not collector's items. Use them to become well informed on the many different variations of the Thompson submachine gun. All good stuff!!!

Mike Hammer, It is well worth an airline ticket to attend a Show & Shoot at least once. If you like Thompson submachine guns (and we know you do) Tracie Hill's collection is something you will never forget. It is not just the exhibits and collections; the presentations were also very informative. And the contacts you can make are invaluable. Shown below is one of many exhibits missed by all that did not attend.