Savage Arms 1928A1 Thompson S-263xxx submachine gun (Original WW2)

WWII Savage Arms Corp Model 1928A1 Thompson

A Thompson 1928A1 machine pistol produced by Savage Arms in very good condition and early production (1941).

- 1928A1s manufactured before February 1942 were equipped with an adjustable "Lyman" rear sight.

- The letters "U.S." also began to appear on the frame after the passage of the Lend-Lease Act in March 1941.

- The Savage guns on the left side of the frame feature the standard "R.L.B" markings of the Inspector for the Rochester Ordnance District from 1940 to about 1942, the circled initials "GEG" of George E. Goll, Chief Inspector of Auto-Ordnance, and the letter S in front of the serial number, as well as the "firebomb" acceptance stamp of the Ordnance Department.

- This Thompson also passed the British "London" proof house, and bears the crowned GP mark = Final Smokeless Powder Proof.

- The frame and trigger numbers are identical, and the wood is original.

They were issued to American, British and Allied forces and Home Guard units during the Second World War.

It is supplied with an original "Seymour Products Co. Connecticut 30-round straight magazine and a Crosby "L" 50-round drum;

Crosby Co. 183 Pratt St., Buffalo, N.Y., was originally contracted by the British government in 1940 to produce the "L" drum.

Crosby received $25,000 for tooling and $42,000 for drum production under Defense Assistance Contract No. . DA-W-894-740-ORD-2.

By war's end, Crosby had produced some 243,000 "L" drums.

!!! In 2007, reproductions of Crosby "L" drums, which are almost exact copies of the drums produced during the Second World War by the Crosby company, were imported from Korea.

The most obvious difference is the two-point alignment on the faceplates of the reproductions.

The faceplate markings use a slightly different font, and a dot has replaced the comma after the word "Buffalo" on the original rear faceplate (photo page 586), and for the reproductions (photo 934 page 586) on the front faceplate the dot is missing in front of the number 45. Quality and reliability were very good.

Reference: See pages 569/570 and 586 "THE UTIMATE THOMPSON BOOK" Tracie L. Hill "COLLECTOR GRADE PUBLICATIONS" 

It's possible that the magazine offered here is a reproduction, or not, given that it has a period in front of the 45 and a comma after "BUFFALO" as described above for a Crosby original.