DATA: Cost of Manufacturing WWII Weopons

SuppressionFire

Interesting figure$.

Priced out a plain M1911 Colt .45 ACP in Canadian dollars is 500$ +/-

Why change perfection? All the tricked out versions with fluted recoil compensator still are only as accurate as the shooter. When at the range that is the only gun I rent, the rest just do not compare.

 

While I love the 1911 .45 the original design by John Moses Browning was far from perfect hence the reason for the models built today with the goal of making the gun more enjoyable to shoot.  I have shot numerous WWII originals and find them merely utilitarian at best and downright dangerous at worst.

The biggest downfall was the full size hammer and lack of a beavertail grip safety.  Invariably after the first mag I usually get a bad case of hammer bite signalled by the two lacerations 1/4" apart in the web of my strong hand.  The original grip safety has no hump necessitating a low grip height causing excessive muzzle flip, although in Mr. Browning's defense he felt there was no need for a grip safety whatsoever.  Many times in battle fails to fire were reported and most of the cause was the shooter choking up on the grip thus not disengaging the grip safety.  This kind of failure can easily get a person killed.

The combat sights are a joke and almost totally useless.  Even in broad daylight the sights are hard to pick up as they rise barely 1/8" above the slide and most shooters agree they are far too narrow.  In combat shooting situations I like to at least get the front sight on target.  This is problematic at best with the original sights and in low light they might as well not even be on the gun.

Now I do agree that a fluted compensator as those found on full comp race guns is not necessary in everyday situations but as far as 1911s go, I'll take mine with a humped beavertail grip safety, bobbed Comander style hammer and Tru Glow or Tritium adjustable sights.  Oh yeah, and also make mine with a matched barrel and bushing.

Disclaimer:  I have never been in combat nor have I ever been in the millitary but I have shot in competition on combat style courses although I did most of my work with a tricked out Ruger Security Six as back in the '70s the cost of making a 1911 run reliably and accurately at speed was way out of my price range.

                                                                                            Pat. 

Edit:  Just checked and you can get a nicely tricked out Taurus PT1911 that will run all day with just about any ammo you want to put through it for about $600 and change.  My son has one and it's a pure joy to shoot.

You mentioned a Hellcat. I remember a documentary where they talked about workers VOLUNTEERING to build a extra Hellcat, working extra hours off the books. I wonder whatever happened to that plane.

The rental .45's at the gun range would most likely be worn to the extreme, a newly tooled version would be sweet to shoot!

I always get looks mounting a shoot & see gopher target over the standard torso silhouette. That soon fades as the .45 blazes holes in the smaller rodent!

SuppressionFire

Interesting figure$.

Priced out a plain M1911 Colt .45 ACP in Canadian dollars is 500$ +/-

Why change perfection? All the tricked out versions with fluted recoil compensator still are only as accurate as the shooter. When at the range that is the only gun I rent, the rest just do not compare.

The vast majority of the .45s we had in Germany were at least twice the age of the tanker using it. While it was once a great weapon, the old ratty things rattled when fired. We did have one brand new one and the commander took it. It was sweet to fire and extremely accurate. If you were used to your ratty .45 and knew where to point it, it was fairly dependable.

We switched to 9mm because of our European allies; they insisted on a standard 9mm ammo round.

SuppressionFire

Interesting figure$.

Priced out a plain M1911 Colt .45 ACP in Canadian dollars is 500$ +/-

Why change perfection? All the tricked out versions with fluted recoil compensator still are only as accurate as the shooter. When at the range that is the only gun I rent, the rest just do not compare.

The vast majority of the .45s we had in Germany were at least twice the age of the tanker using it. While it was once a great weapon, the old ratty things rattled when fired. We did have one brand new one and the commander took it. It was sweet to fire and extremely accurate. If you were used to your ratty .45 and knew where to point it, it was fairly dependable.

We switched to 9mm because of our European allies; they insisted on a standard 9mm ammo round.

Interesting figure$.

Priced out a plain M1911 Colt .45 ACP in Canadian dollars is 500$ +/-

Why change perfection? All the tricked out versions with fluted recoil compensator still are only as accurate as the shooter. When at the range that is the only gun I rent, the rest just do not compare.

We had a lieutenant have his M1911A1 pistol stolen during REFORGER 88. He had gone into a gasthouse for dinner and left the pistol under the seat of his Jeep. When he returned it was gone. The monetary cost to him was $12 for the .45. It ended his career though.

Our M3 Grease Gun submachine guns, which came 2 per tank, were somewhere around $25 a piece.

I think I'll cash in my allowance for the mg-42.

Anyone know how much a mosin-nagant rifle would have cost to produce back in WWII? Because nowadays they're only $100 or so here in the states.

I was hoping to someday purchase an mp-40... but its gonna be tough to spend 6-10k on one seeing as they only cost $24 to produce.

Just $60k for a Panther? hehe. I'd definitely plunk down $100 for an MG-42. The cost of ammo would kill me. LOL

This got me thinking, do I want that porsche, or that Tiger tank?