[shep854]

I came across this gem at The High Road ( Why has no one built a 38 super sub gun? - THR post #3) a few minutes ago:

The caption gives a thumbnail description, but is there any more background?

 

[Diamondback]

Foregrip looks like Thompson design...

 

[William R. Moore]

I can't read the date, but prior to the 1934 Firearms Act, conversion and/or manufacture of automatic weapons wasn't regulated. Obviously from the text, Himan Lebman was someone who was known to perform these conversions and quite possibly did so as an ongoing business. Legality may be another story. There were some folks who were kind of 'armorers to the trade' for folks in the armed robbery business.

There appears to be some type of crossbolt type device at the upper left hand corner of the grip. Possibly, this was the selector switch.

 

[Skeptic49]

As I remember old versions of "Small Arms of the World" showed a Mexican select fire version of the 1911 with a switch on the left side. No idea how it worked.

Geoff
Who is feeling his age in his right foot cramps.

 

[Charlie Petty]

I think photo shop is a great program

 

[shep854]

I think photo shop is a great program

So you believe that is not a real conversion?

 

[Daniel Watters]

It isn't photoshopped. Lebman's conversions for the Dillinger gang are well-documented. The 25rd magazine was from a Star MD.

 

[SpecialEd]

The question is why? If you want a handgun, get a handgun. If you want a Thompson, get a Thompson.

 

[TommyGunn]

The question is why? If you want a handgun, get a handgun. If you want a Thompson, get a Thompson.

I second that motion!:mrgreen: (is this a surprise?)

 

[shep854]

The question is why? If you want a handgun, get a handgun. If you want a Thompson, get a Thompson.

Concealibility?

 

[Daniel Watters]

Concealibility?

That, and the converted M1911 weighs a whole lot less.

 

[WaltGraham]

I got the chance to fire a Thompson a couple of weeks ago.

One of the happiest days of my life.

 

[Patrick Sweeney]

I recall seeing a photo of a Thompson in .38 Super. Or maybe 9mm. (Probably one of each.)

The biggest trick of converting a 1911 to full auto is figuring out some kind of cyclic rate slowing device. Otherwise, every "burst" is a magazine.

 

[William R. Moore]

Quite few years back, a gent at the first match of the year was trying out his kitchen table trigger work. Yup, full auto. He managed to keep his initial burst down to less than a mag-but not by much. Absolutely fascinated, a number of us were keeping him in mags till he completed the course. By the end he was quite adept at 2-3 shot bursts.

I expect the full mag bursts are the result of surprise and the startle reflex that clamps the digit on the trigger.

 

[Diamondback]

I got the chance to fire a Thompson a couple of weeks ago.

One of the happiest days of my life.

Welcome to the club, Walt! My first drum-dump with a Chicago Piano has the same place among my memories...

 

[phantom4570]

Welcome to the club, Walt! My first drum-dump with a Chicago Piano has the same place among my memories...

A number of years ago I located an indoor range in Sparks that had a Thompson for rent. It was an model that only took stick magazines so we didn't get to do a drum dump. We still burned through two hundred worth of ammo and rental fees in thirty minutes.

 

[WaltGraham]

A number of years ago I located an indoor range in Sparks that had a Thompson for rent. It was an model that only took stick magazines so we didn't get to do a drum dump. We still burned through two hundred worth of ammo and rental fees in thirty minutes.

Time and money well spent.

 

[RAJinSC]

Some years ago, I had a Springfield Defender which went full auto on me at MCRC. It had an 8 rd magazine, but I was able to get off the trigger after 3 shots in spite of my complete shock and surprise. Needless to say, it went to the smithy, posthaste. Daniel, you may remember this; this was the same gun in which later, the barrel lug separated from the barrel itself.

It is a cool looking gun, even if it is impractical. I used to be a big fan of the "Able Team" series of Mack bolan knockoffs, and remember Carl Lyons having what he called a "Frankencolt," a GM which had been modified in the same way as the Beretta 93R; enlarged trigger guard, fold-down grip in front of trigger guard, and a selector allowing for either semi or 3 rd. burst capability. Something along that line might have some practical but very limited applications.

 

[Charlie Petty]

I was guilty of activating keyboard before brain and should have read the caption. I am properly chastized.

As far as T shooters are concerned it was my great pleasure to watch Walt and some others have their first experience with a gun I have known and loved since my teens when the U.S. Navy let me play with one. I have been a fan ever since.

I am also not without some experience with full auto 1911s... not that I ever meant them to be... but sometimes learning how to do trigger jobs has surprising results.

 

[shep854]

CeePee, no problem. I've been fooled by computer trickery before.