I "inherited" one these M-3A1s in early 1973 when I was on a "plain clothes" TDY assignment in Viet Nam before the Paris accords went into effect. I only had a couple of opportunities to fire it at the range and once when we were destroying assets and property that had to be left behind. There were a couple of issues with the original guns. The wire mesh tended to break down during use. The silencers became fairly ineffective after only a short period and needed to rebuilt depending on the use. This was due to the heat and carbon build up that ruined those screens. Also, the larger section of the silencer (the section closest to the receiver) became VERY hot and mine came with a wool padded, leather covered, laced on wrap so the shooter could hold that section during firing. But, even with that it got very uncomfortable to shoot. Not a fun gun to shoot beyond a magazine or two. Heaven help you if you lost that pad. BTW, Ian talked about the guide rod for inserting the screens... Well that was when they were originally issued. Didn't take long for that rod to get lost along with any inventory of those special screens. And, they were regular steel, not stainless so they rusted out just about as fast as they were shot out!!!
@@wernesgruder1 I don't understand. . .are not the M3 and M3A1 barrel interchangeable, Don't they both accept the 9mm conversion kits ? Why would it not mount on the other gun . . .
@@wernesgruder1 eh what are you talking about. Not only are you incorrect but it was clearly stated in the video that the barrels are interchangeable between the m3 and the m3a1. There was only minor differences between the 2 only the way of charging the gun and a magazine loader on the rear. If you don’t really know what you’re talking about just don’t say anything, you just end up embarrassing yourself…
@@wernesgruder1 yes they could, theres literally documented pictures of OSS M3A1s with the exact same suppressor, along with the leather covered wool pad DoneThat mentions
pft, low hanging fruit... be a giraffe and stretch a little ..."I was baffled about such early suppressors but then he took it apart and I saw how well the technology meshed with others of the time"...
Players of _Fallout 3_ and _Fallout New Vegas_ will be uncomfortably familiar with the concept of the Bushmaster device. Where do the Raiders get all those combat shotguns?
And Fallout 4. I'm careful not to stand directly in front of doors as I open them, but the *blam* of a trap going off is just a sigh and facepalm moment. Damn raiders.
BF1 : were making a game with lots of historical realism unlocks a gold skin for a Henry martini and a gold tank good work game devs really focused on the reality of war
When I was a boy I idolized my grandpa who was a WWII tanker with the 20th AD. I don’t know where I got the idea, maybe a comic book, but I built my own replica Greasegun, or as best a 10 year old could do. I took a regular caulk gun, cut some pieces of wood to shape the pistol grip and magazine then used some scrap sheet metal and a pipe for the barrel. I painted the whole thing flat black and showed my grandpa, he was impressed. Later on I found out the M3 was made in my hometown. I know it sounds funny but some people think of this SMG as a weapon but for me it’s a cherished childhood memory.
I will have to create a patreon account, because of this channel and others. Ian is so active lately, and his content so rich, that it is impossible to imagine myself as a "gun guy" without at least having some memory of a Forgotten Weapons video, serious gun-lore, serious tecnical stuff, serious fun... THANK YOU!
Hey! It's "community standards"! Whose "community standards"? Certainly not those of the majority of Americans (nor, probably of the rest of the world).
As an FMF corpsman with Marine Recon, I carried an M3A1. Mine must have been a later model. It didn't have a rod sticking out to cock it. It had a finger hole in the bolt you pulled it back with. Rust was a problem. Glad I didn't have to clean that suppressor.
When I saw the trip wire attachment, it reminded me of a gun or bub-bey trap called the Early morning wake up call. It was made by a company of the same name and was stamped EMWUC. People back in the stage coach days when traveling would have to stop at night and sleep. This device would screw into the door trim of your room and flip in front of the door so if someone entered it would fire. It was of small caliber so probley didn't kill the person instancey but the lead poison in the end was a very pain full death. This tells me two things. 1 With a name of EMWAC people back then had a sence of humor, and 2 That's a forgotten weapon. Love this channel.
even thats pretty reasonable for access to an automatic weapon, but is it a similar process to own a regular gun? like say you wanted a bolt action .22lr, would you require a special reason? (part of a gun club that does competitions)
If you're a hardcore collector, there's a way to get anything anywhere... its just a matter of greasing the right wheels and getting the right licenses/permits/whatever, and usually bucketloads of cash... Its the same everywhere.
Excellent presentation Ian. I always loved the M3 and read that when this gun was fired with the suppressor on , the bolt slapping back and forth was more prominent than the muzzle report.
from what i understand with air guns and paintball is its ok to do supressors now but they must be permanantly affixed, for example gamo sells some supressed 22 caliber air rifles but the supressor is threaded to the barrel, welded, and the whole thing is coated in a polymer sleve
I'd love to see an accuracy, control, and comfort test between that old grease gun and more modern submachine guns. Excellent video Ian, love this channel.
You have outdone yourself again, Ian. I'd read about these in OSS stories about the Jedburgh teams but never thought I'd get to see one of them? Thanks!
For those that wonder how a chemical timer works: no, it's not a chemical reaction that blows up eventually, or anything that fancy. It's far simpler: imagine a spring held back by a wire and once something breaks the glass vial an acid is released, slowly dissolving the wire. AFAIK, there were timers ranging from 5min to 48h. I wish, they built them in all aerial bombs. They did it in some, but we still got F-loads of unexploded bombs littering the earth, slowly corroding.
well that assumes the mechanism remains functional after ... you know... dropped from the air and crashing into the ground at terminal velocity. the problem with unexploded bombs after all is that their fuse failed to detonate the bomb and if they had self destruct mechanism (a lot of bombs do, some on purpose as a terror weapon as it makes their disposal difficult) then it may have failed as well, but the chemical timer is for all intent and purpose just another fuse really... so in order for it to work on aerial bomb to prevent a bomb from not exploding after the main fuse failed, then it must somehow be made stronger than the actual fuse the bomb had... which then begs the question of why not just make the original fuse for the bomb better and prevent it from failing to explode in the first place
Many bombs had more than one fuse, after they discovered that up to 20% failed to detonate. Using a chemical timer has two advantages: 1) it's simple. If the delay fails, it still detonates. 2) the delay makes the bomb unpredictable to the enemy. They thus can't just come back after the other bombs exploded.
yes we know that, but the question is... if the bomb suffer damage to such extent that the primary and secondary fuse failed, then will the chemical timer remain functional for it to matter? after all... while the mechanism in it usually is simple, they are not necessarily damage proof regardless... and the primary fuse in bombs are not exactly made of flimsy construction in the 1st place, and so does the secondary timer usually built on them (which i already mentioned) so the chemical timer needs to be sufficiently robust and durable enough to actually withstand whatever damaged the bomb to the point that both the other fuse failed...
which is great, but the thing is... a number of the fuse they use on the aerial bombs... technically are supposed to work even if just the percussion plunger and detonator remains intact... those work on impact detonation as well if even they can fail either from damage or any other reason, then what guarantee do we have that the striker in the chemical timer remains functional if subjected to that kind of damage? Other than of course... placing it in different location, and praying that it's enough to help spare the chemical timer critical component. i mean don't get me wrong, more backup self destruct mechanism is fine... but we're basically just layering more and more fuse onto the same bomb in order to hope that at least one of them worked... so we're just reducing the chance the bomb failed to explode completely by putting more redundancy in fuse.
Very interesting. Heard of these but never seen one. The suppressor design is genius in its simplicity. Easy to find spare parts too. That trigger device is slick- especially mating to standard gear like the M1 pull firing device ("old reliable" as most EOD guys call it). Tripping that would definitely ruin your day as u went through a door. Great video as always. Thank you
Ian. I read a book from the first Delta Force operational detachment in 1977. They used these and loved them. He said snapping your fingers was louder then the guns report.
One of the greatest warriors in Vietnam chose this as his favorite weapon (along with a sawed off shotgun, 9mm uzi, numerous grenades, scuba knife, and 5 or 6 pistols). JERRY "MAD DOG" SHRIVER was killed (mia) charging a machine gun post. He was the real life Rambo.
The point about wire mesh in supressor, is mainly of its great surface area, that surface cools down hot gases, wich helps a lot in reducing volume of gases. I think that is the main reason why they use a wire mesh. And that way to supress is working VERY well :)
Hi Ian, I own a W.Griffiths shotgun made in Manchester, England around the 1870s. I've done a little research on it but have come up fairly dry. If you're ever in the UK you're welcome to come and have a look at it.
There's the armored cavalry (scouting and security forces equipped with armored fighting vehicles) and the air cavalry (airmobile assault infantry, typically transported by helicopters).
The scariest job I had in the National Guard was being the NCOIC of a range training noobs to use M3s. The slow rate of fire and controlability were real pluses forva beginning shooter.
.45 A.C.P. was a very widely used round among the Western Allies. The Brits widely used the cartridge for clandestine/covert operations and actually designed and produced a bolt-action sound-suppressed rifle chambered for the .45 A.C.P. round for such operations as well as the American O.S.S. using it in their sound-suppressed M3/M3A1 submachine-guns. I believe it is even possible to fire the round in the British .455 Webley revolver using adapter clips to hold the chambered rounds in the revolving cylinder.
The rifle you are referring to is called the De Lisle Carbine. Extremely quiet, mostly used for sentry extermination. To fire 45ACP in a 455 Webley, the rear of the cylinder has to be machined off. This is needed to accommodate the full moon or half moon clips used to headspace the rimless 45acp properly. 45 Autorim cartridges may also be used for individual loading. (45 Autorim is a 45acp case made with a conventional rim for use in revolvers.) The Webley 45acp conversion was big in the US after the war. Thousands were brought in on the surplus market, which were then converted to 45acp. This was done to make them more popular with American buyers. 45acp was much more plentiful, especially at that time. (Pretty much how 9mm is today). If you ever acquire a 45acp converted Webley, it is recommended to shoot handloads that match the original 455 Webley loads. I believe that's something like a 250gn bullet at 700fps. The standard 45acp load of 230gn at 850fps isn't too much hotter, but constant use can lead to premature wear of the revolver. I definitely wouldn't use anything hotter than the standard 45acp load. Certainly no +P loads.
DeanmC261993 Which is the reason I like it so much! This type of design could make a comeback as a very inexpensive home build. If the HPA passes it would be pretty popular for pistol caliber carbines.
DeanmC261993 I'm not so sure. That mesh looks like it would be really annoying to clean. A cheap home build could easily use washers and other hardware odds and ends for baffles.
that's also kind of the point, if you got caught by someone with that in your pocket you might be okay. If you got caught with something that screamed explosives fuse device trap, etc etc you might have some explaining to do!
To clean the meshes you could easily just tie them together and toss them in with the laundry or something. I was gonna say "dishwasher" but I don't know if those existed in the 1940s.
Ian, thanks very much. I had heard of these guns, usually as a sidenote to material about the history of the M3. This is the first time I have seen the innnards exposed to see what really happens. Pretty cool engineering. Always funny to see the difference between the Hollywood versions of a "silencer" versus a real suppressor. Keep up the good work.
The U. S. was late to the suppressed M3 game. James Ballou, of his BAR book fame, was involved in the planning of the failed rescue of the American hostages in Iran in 1980. Many of the servicemen who were on that mission were armed with suppressed M3's with an early electronic sight mounted. I had the pleasure of meeting him and shooting with him about 15 years ago and even at his "advanced" age, he was still surgical with his suppressed M3. Ian - Thank you for spreading all this knowledge. I hope you are reaching today's younger generation and some of them will realize that the shooting sports are a lot more fun than playing those damn video games!
I had opportunity to fire one of these for familiarization in Vietnam in 1971. Returned it to the armory. The slap of the big M3 bolt going back-and-forth was loud enough that the benefit of the supressor was really marginal. It wasn't really effective as a silenced weapon in practice, and a combat load of ACP .45 ammo weighed so much that carrying more than a few mags would have been a pain. My opinion is that it is a better tool for the movies than for sustained combat and serious gun fights.
I owned a Beretta .25 acp Jetfire that had a suppressor mounted on it. The suppressor had front and back rubber wipes, but the center core was of bronze compressed "wool" that was shaped as a tube to slide in the suppressor cylinder. It was very quiet and was fun to shoot. It was also illegal as Hell as I didn't have any paperwork on it and taxes had not been paid. I later traded it off for a Bren Ten without a magazine, but that another story....
The M3 is one of my favorite guns. I know I'll never afford an original for my collection so I bought a Valkyrie arms M3 and I love that thing. It looks weird with a 16" barrel but it's a hoot to shoot!
Maybe you could put a dummy suppressor cover over the barrel? Something to make it look like this OSS suppressor. I really hate the SBR and SBS bullshit. Having to go 16 or 18 inches ruins the lines and functionality of a lot of carbines.
6:18 - Not difficult to measure the noise. Measure it in IMPULSE meter mode at the operator's ears, both left and right. I can't remember if you use Type A frequency weighting, but if pressed I would say YES.
As a matter of fact, I saw this model in an article of an Italian Military review in the 1980s that described the Italian Navy Special Forces (Comsubin) arsenal. It was described as being very popular among the teams.
Did this… get edited to comply with the new YT guidelines? Holy crap. Where are us regular viewers going to find an M3 grease gun and an OSS suppressor to swap out?
It's funny the debate between suppressor and silencer. The very first suppressor was called a silencer and was sold as a silencer. Suppressor didn't come until after silencer.
I heard one being fired and can tell you the report is very quiet, while the clatter of the bolt is quite noisy. This weapon was not meant to be used in a firefight but was very useful in covert ops. High Standard Silencers were actual silencers the muzzle report was very quiet.
What a total PITA it must be to go back and edit out all the youtube prohibition silliness. Good on ya for keeping these videos available here, though.
i showd my grandpa this and he said to add small bits of rubber to the bolt or wher the bolt strikes metal, he also said its better to have less than to have more
Not sure about today yet, but at ft. Wood for AIT in fall of 90,we had 2 12f (think it was F, cuz it wasn't b, c, or e) guys, tracked vehicle engineers. They had to qualify, or at least familiarize with the grease gun. (And yes, we made sure to specify that it was the smg and not the lubricating gun lol) So i always thought it was cool they still used them even that recently
What really intrigues me is threading on the perforated barrel but leaving off the roll of mesh and the over cover. I'd like to see what the weapon looks like when fired through just the perforated barrel.
I "inherited" one these M-3A1s in early 1973 when I was on a "plain clothes" TDY assignment in Viet Nam before the Paris accords went into effect. I only had a couple of opportunities to fire it at the range and once when we were destroying assets and property that had to be left behind. There were a couple of issues with the original guns. The wire mesh tended to break down during use. The silencers became fairly ineffective after only a short period and needed to rebuilt depending on the use. This was due to the heat and carbon build up that ruined those screens. Also, the larger section of the silencer (the section closest to the receiver) became VERY hot and mine came with a wool padded, leather covered, laced on wrap so the shooter could hold that section during firing. But, even with that it got very uncomfortable to shoot. Not a fun gun to shoot beyond a magazine or two. Heaven help you if you lost that pad. BTW, Ian talked about the guide rod for inserting the screens... Well that was when they were originally issued. Didn't take long for that rod to get lost along with any inventory of those special screens. And, they were regular steel, not stainless so they rusted out just about as fast as they were shot out!!!
M3A1 version could not take a suppressor, you must have had the M3
@@wernesgruder1 I don't understand. . .are not the M3 and M3A1 barrel interchangeable, Don't they both accept the 9mm conversion kits ? Why would it not mount on the other gun . . .
@@wernesgruder1 eh what are you talking about. Not only are you incorrect but it was clearly stated in the video that the barrels are interchangeable between the m3 and the m3a1. There was only minor differences between the 2 only the way of charging the gun and a magazine loader on the rear. If you don’t really know what you’re talking about just don’t say anything, you just end up embarrassing yourself…
@@wernesgruder1 yes they could, theres literally documented pictures of OSS M3A1s with the exact same suppressor, along with the leather covered wool pad DoneThat mentions
@@wernesgruder1
Yep they could, I know because I have one 😊
i love the simplicity of older guns. “yeah man its just a pipe that shoots metal out of it i dont know what else you want from me”
@@justforever96 thats a really long drawn out way of saying older guns are awesome
went from the finally machine tooled Thompson submachinegun to a stamped welded pipe that shoots .45 aka M3
You should see a disassembled bofors
I was baffled by that mesh.
Goat Lord You must be nothing but hot air then! 🤣
Goat Lord well, that joke went down the tubes fast. Now, the silence is deafening.
Oh you!
Ian @ 7:56: "Now this is a really cool piece of little OSS evil _triggery_"
pft, low hanging fruit...
be a giraffe and stretch a little ..."I was baffled about such early suppressors but then he took it apart and I saw how well the technology meshed with others of the time"...
But don't let this distract you from the fact booby trap spelled backwards is party boob.
I love you.
W O K E
You deserve 1 boob.
The More You Know. *swooooooosh-*
You can spell advertisements without semen between the tits.
I like how the baffle mesh screens match the table cloth.
Obviously designed to avoid casual detection by enemy forces!
Suppose his wife knows he uses her table cloth to disassemble firearms?
Nah. Surely not.
Players of _Fallout 3_ and _Fallout New Vegas_ will be uncomfortably familiar with the concept of the Bushmaster device. Where do the Raiders get all those combat shotguns?
And Fallout 4. I'm careful not to stand directly in front of doors as I open them, but the *blam* of a trap going off is just a sigh and facepalm moment. Damn raiders.
Now just add a ww2 red dot and laser sight and you've got call of duty ww2 multiplayer
123 456 No, you'd have a gun. Add two or more preteens, remove all intelligent thought, NOW you have a COD multiplayer...
No, I said "remove all intelligent thought" ;)
Kyle William s .45acp
123 456 no, that's bf1. Ww2 era equipment would be too old for cod, they would have plasma ak's (painted neon purple, only in supply drops)
BF1 : were making a game with lots of historical realism
unlocks a gold skin for a Henry martini and a gold tank
good work game devs really focused on the reality of war
Just imagine that German politician walking to his hotel room, triggering that booby trap with the door. Sounds like a 70's movie. :o
like a 70's movie? ... or a cartoon frog dancing on a 1940's typewriter ...
Or maybe like that one scene from home alone. 😪
You mean a snuke..
Very Tarantino.
When I was a boy I idolized my grandpa who was a WWII tanker with the 20th AD. I don’t know where I got the idea, maybe a comic book, but I built my own replica Greasegun, or as best a 10 year old could do. I took a regular caulk gun, cut some pieces of wood to shape the pistol grip and magazine then used some scrap sheet metal and a pipe for the barrel. I painted the whole thing flat black and showed my grandpa, he was impressed. Later on I found out the M3 was made in my hometown. I know it sounds funny but some people think of this SMG as a weapon but for me it’s a cherished childhood memory.
I will have to create a patreon account, because of this channel and others. Ian is so active lately, and his content so rich, that it is impossible to imagine myself as a "gun guy" without at least having some memory of a Forgotten Weapons video, serious gun-lore, serious tecnical stuff, serious fun... THANK YOU!
Thanks!
A great video, but an aside - how fucking stupid is youtube for making you censor just the act of putting a suppressor on
Hey! It's "community standards"! Whose "community standards"? Certainly not those of the majority of Americans (nor, probably of the rest of the world).
@@user-tt8xf9td6bIt's the standard of lifeless prudes in Corporate America.
As an FMF corpsman with Marine Recon, I carried an M3A1. Mine must have been a later model. It didn't have a rod sticking out to cock it. It had a finger hole in the bolt you pulled it back with. Rust was a problem. Glad I didn't have to clean that suppressor.
Someone realized the cocking lever was unnecessary. Later versions had a simple hole in the bolt, to stick your finger into.
That would be the M3-A1. Such a cool gun
Gun Jesus to save the day from boredom again
Salvation for boredom and ignorance!
Our Father, who art in Rock Island Auction Company..
Amen...
You dont know how true this is in 2020 lol
@@IIDEADBIRDII exactly what I was thinking
Thanks for all your hard work Ian. Really appreciate the content.
When I saw the trip wire attachment, it reminded me of a gun or bub-bey trap called the Early morning wake up call. It was made by a company of the same name and was stamped EMWUC. People back in the stage coach days when traveling would have to stop at night and sleep. This device would screw into the door trim of your room and flip in front of the door so if someone entered it would fire. It was of small caliber so probley didn't kill the person instancey but the lead poison in the end was a very pain full death. This tells me two things. 1 With a name of EMWAC people back then had a sence of humor, and 2 That's a forgotten weapon. Love this channel.
Why TF is RUclips censoring out the suppressor on an antique firearm that likely most people do not and will not ever possess 😂
Apparently, YT think that threading something in the front of the barrel is "modifying" a gun, that they included as a "how to make a homemade gun"
Yeah, RUclips executives being crybabies about it because they won't get ads if there are scary guns
Legend has it that lightbulbs can be replaced using the same method… can’t let that kind of knowledge fall into the wrong hands 💡
@@Azukaae RUclips is just another form of the ATF, makes rules about guns that aren't validated by constitutional laws.
*trip wire
"phutphutphutphutphutphutphutphutphutphut!"
"Did you hear that Klaus?........Klaus?"
At the end of the day there is nothing that brings me more joy than watching your informative and well thought out videos.
keep it up Ian!
The m3 is easily my favorite SMG. So sensible. Thanx for showing off this rare mod set. I used to love the dk spy books as a kid .
I wish someone would airdrop me the that M3 _and_ a welrod lol
Rather a FG42, or another rare, but cool gun.
You need Gun Santa, but only if you have been Good.
become an important resistance fighter in a major conflict, and you might get your wish
+Glam Stachee that escalated quickly
Heinrich Muller A DeLisle as well?
Thank you for posting this. My great-uncle was in the OSS during WW2. Neat seeing stuff he might have used.
I love the simplicity of the triggering device. To think, there was an international standard for booby trap trigger devices.
I love these shows. Short but very informative. Thank you.
Silencer tax+SBR tax+machine gun tax=too much regulated fun
On the one hand, once it's a registered machine gun the barrel length is no longer regulated. Also, where this gun is located, the NFA does not apply.
+Forgotten Weapons Where I live (Australia) the NFA means something worse 😂
Probably in France or the UK.
even thats pretty reasonable for access to an automatic weapon, but is it a similar process to own a regular gun? like say you wanted a bolt action .22lr, would you require a special reason? (part of a gun club that does competitions)
If you're a hardcore collector, there's a way to get anything anywhere... its just a matter of greasing the right wheels and getting the right licenses/permits/whatever, and usually bucketloads of cash... Its the same everywhere.
Excellent presentation Ian. I always loved the M3 and read that when this gun was fired with the suppressor on , the bolt slapping back and forth was more prominent than the muzzle report.
I have a retired Special Forces buddy who lives in Thailand that has one of these. It's his favorite goto weapon.
mate youre telling me i can go get a roll of fly screen and make a suppressor from aluminum tubing sounds like fun
sadly not weird enough
a car oil filter damp with oil, just stuck to the muzzle is also a effective suppressor
Yes, in classic BATFE fashion, they said it was fine because it would not fit a real firearm, then said nevermind we are regulating it all.
from what i understand with air guns and paintball is its ok to do supressors now but they must be permanantly affixed, for example gamo sells some supressed 22 caliber air rifles but the supressor is threaded to the barrel, welded, and the whole thing is coated in a polymer sleve
@@therideneverends1697 ...fucking killjoys.
Luckiest guy ever to just get a free suppressed M3 and Welrod, and then the government is like, "Yeah, just keep that."
not ever but lucky sure
As soon as I saw that, I got reminded of the movie 'Attack Force Z'.
that suppressor is amazingly simple. great video as always
I'd love to see an accuracy, control, and comfort test between that old grease gun and more modern submachine guns. Excellent video Ian, love this channel.
It's not even close. They've come so far it's mind blowing.
These guns are prominently featured in an Australian WWII movie called "Attack Force Z," which starred a very young Mel Gibson.
You have outdone yourself again, Ian. I'd read about these in OSS stories about the Jedburgh teams but never thought I'd get to see one of them? Thanks!
Now this one was actually dropped once and never fired.
Guess that drop safety's doing its job, eh?
ToastyMozart Yee
is it an Italian gun then
Lol too funny
NRSS Cheatham more french i would say
For those that wonder how a chemical timer works:
no, it's not a chemical reaction that blows up eventually, or anything that fancy. It's far simpler: imagine a spring held back by a wire and once something breaks the glass vial an acid is released, slowly dissolving the wire. AFAIK, there were timers ranging from 5min to 48h.
I wish, they built them in all aerial bombs. They did it in some, but we still got F-loads of unexploded bombs littering the earth, slowly corroding.
well that assumes the mechanism remains functional after ... you know... dropped from the air and crashing into the ground at terminal velocity.
the problem with unexploded bombs after all is that their fuse failed to detonate the bomb and if they had self destruct mechanism (a lot of bombs do, some on purpose as a terror weapon as it makes their disposal difficult) then it may have failed as well,
but the chemical timer is for all intent and purpose just another fuse really...
so in order for it to work on aerial bomb to prevent a bomb from not exploding after the main fuse failed, then it must somehow be made stronger than the actual fuse the bomb had...
which then begs the question of why not just make the original fuse for the bomb better and prevent it from failing to explode in the first place
Many bombs had more than one fuse, after they discovered that up to 20% failed to detonate. Using a chemical timer has two advantages:
1) it's simple. If the delay fails, it still detonates.
2) the delay makes the bomb unpredictable to the enemy. They thus can't just come back after the other bombs exploded.
yes we know that, but the question is... if the bomb suffer damage to such extent that the primary and secondary fuse failed, then will the chemical timer remain functional for it to matter?
after all... while the mechanism in it usually is simple, they are not necessarily damage proof regardless... and the primary fuse in bombs are not exactly made of flimsy construction in the 1st place, and so does the secondary timer usually built on them (which i already mentioned)
so the chemical timer needs to be sufficiently robust and durable enough to actually withstand whatever damaged the bomb to the point that both the other fuse failed...
Iono Sama If the wire ruptures prematurely, it detonates on impact. All that needs to withstand the impact is the tube containing spring and striker.
which is great, but the thing is... a number of the fuse they use on the aerial bombs... technically are supposed to work even if just the percussion plunger and detonator remains intact... those work on impact detonation as well
if even they can fail either from damage or any other reason, then what guarantee do we have that the striker in the chemical timer remains functional if subjected to that kind of damage? Other than of course... placing it in different location, and praying that it's enough to help spare the chemical timer critical component.
i mean don't get me wrong, more backup self destruct mechanism is fine...
but we're basically just layering more and more fuse onto the same bomb in order to hope that at least one of them worked... so we're just reducing the chance the bomb failed to explode completely by putting more redundancy in fuse.
Ah yes a bullet hose 🧐 what a pristine specimen of such simplistic design.
Very interesting. Heard of these but never seen one. The suppressor design is genius in its simplicity. Easy to find spare parts too. That trigger device is slick- especially mating to standard gear like the M1 pull firing device ("old reliable" as most EOD guys call it). Tripping that would definitely ruin your day as u went through a door. Great video as always. Thank you
There's a few pictures of MACV SOG operators carrying this exact setup.
Ian. I read a book from the first Delta Force operational detachment in 1977. They used these and loved them. He said snapping your fingers was louder then the guns report.
This is perhaps the coolest looking firearm I've personally seen.
One of the best looking guns from the mid century if you ask me
This was one of your best presentations yet.
One of the greatest warriors in Vietnam chose this as his favorite weapon (along with a sawed off shotgun, 9mm uzi, numerous grenades, scuba knife, and 5 or 6 pistols). JERRY "MAD DOG" SHRIVER was killed (mia) charging a machine gun post. He was the real life Rambo.
The point about wire mesh in supressor, is mainly of its great surface area, that surface cools down hot gases, wich helps a lot in reducing volume of gases. I think that is the main reason why they use a wire mesh. And that way to supress is working VERY well :)
The chance to see stuff like this is why I love this channel
The fact we you now have to blur out the best bit is ridiculous. I hate RUclips management
Damn... What a mesh
This peice of kit is so badass. The mission, even more badass
Hi Ian,
I own a W.Griffiths shotgun made in Manchester, England around the 1870s.
I've done a little research on it but have come up fairly dry.
If you're ever in the UK you're welcome to come and have a look at it.
Your historical videos are the best! I always feel like I have just watched an expert at work. We had the M3's in Vietnam in our cavalry unit.
1969-70 with 2-1 Cavalry.
There's the armored cavalry (scouting and security forces equipped with armored fighting vehicles) and the air cavalry (airmobile assault infantry, typically transported by helicopters).
ZGryphon There's 1 unit of classical Cavalry still left
The scariest job I had in the National Guard was being the NCOIC of a range training noobs to use M3s. The slow rate of fire and controlability were real pluses forva beginning shooter.
How to know if someone is a Vietnam vet: wait five minutes and they'll mention it. Or just look at the hat.
My great grandfather used an M3A1 Grease Gun during ww2.(He alsoused a Lee Enfield and M1911A1pistol)
.45 A.C.P. was a very widely used round among the Western Allies. The Brits widely used the cartridge for clandestine/covert operations and actually designed and produced a bolt-action sound-suppressed rifle chambered for the .45 A.C.P. round for such operations as well as the American O.S.S. using it in their sound-suppressed M3/M3A1 submachine-guns.
I believe it is even possible to fire the round in the British .455 Webley revolver using adapter clips to hold the chambered rounds in the revolving cylinder.
The rifle you are referring to is called the De Lisle Carbine.
Extremely quiet, mostly used for sentry extermination.
To fire 45ACP in a 455 Webley, the rear of the cylinder has to be machined off. This is needed to accommodate the full moon or half moon clips used to headspace the rimless 45acp properly. 45 Autorim cartridges may also be used for individual loading. (45 Autorim is a 45acp case made with a conventional rim for use in revolvers.)
The Webley 45acp conversion was big in the US after the war. Thousands were brought in on the surplus market, which were then converted to 45acp. This was done to make them more popular with American buyers.
45acp was much more plentiful, especially at that time. (Pretty much how 9mm is today).
If you ever acquire a 45acp converted Webley, it is recommended to shoot handloads that match the original 455 Webley loads. I believe that's something like a 250gn bullet at 700fps.
The standard 45acp load of 230gn at 850fps isn't too much hotter, but constant use can lead to premature wear of the revolver.
I definitely wouldn't use anything hotter than the standard 45acp load.
Certainly no +P loads.
that device looks like it could have been assembled out of washing machine parts which it probably was knowing the oss :P
DeanmC261993 Which is the reason I like it so much!
This type of design could make a comeback as a very inexpensive home build.
If the HPA passes it would be pretty popular for pistol caliber carbines.
no I mean the booby trap device :P
DeanmC261993 I'm not so sure. That mesh looks like it would be really annoying to clean. A cheap home build could easily use washers and other hardware odds and ends for baffles.
that's also kind of the point, if you got caught by someone with that in your pocket you might be okay. If you got caught with something that screamed explosives fuse device trap, etc etc you might have some explaining to do!
To clean the meshes you could easily just tie them together and toss them in with the laundry or something.
I was gonna say "dishwasher" but I don't know if those existed in the 1940s.
I get that vibe I used to get when I would hear the Modern Marvels or Tales of the Gun intro and I knew something good was going to be on.
Ian, thanks very much. I had heard of these guns, usually as a sidenote to material about the history of the M3. This is the first time I have seen the innnards exposed to see what really happens. Pretty cool engineering. Always funny to see the difference between the Hollywood versions of a "silencer" versus a real suppressor. Keep up the good work.
The U. S. was late to the suppressed M3 game. James Ballou, of his BAR book fame, was involved in the planning of the failed rescue of the American hostages in Iran in 1980. Many of the servicemen who were on that mission were armed with suppressed M3's with an early electronic sight mounted.
I had the pleasure of meeting him and shooting with him about 15 years ago and even at his "advanced" age, he was still surgical with his suppressed M3.
Ian - Thank you for spreading all this knowledge. I hope you are reaching today's younger generation and some of them will realize that the shooting sports are a lot more fun than playing those damn video games!
As far as sound I have heard that it's like a baseball bat hitting a wet sandbag.
JKCDLT That would sound cool
Tfw fell asleep videos ago listening to the liberator. What an awesome channel. Thanks Ian!
I think this is one of the coolest videos I've ever seen from you such a history on such a unique gun truly amazing
I had opportunity to fire one of these for familiarization in Vietnam in 1971. Returned it to the armory. The slap of the big M3 bolt going back-and-forth was loud enough that the benefit of the supressor was really marginal. It wasn't really effective as a silenced weapon in practice, and a combat load of ACP .45 ammo weighed so much that carrying more than a few mags would have been a pain. My opinion is that it is a better tool for the movies than for sustained combat and serious gun fights.
I owned a Beretta .25 acp Jetfire that had a suppressor mounted on it. The suppressor had front and back rubber wipes, but the center core was of bronze compressed "wool" that was shaped as a tube to slide in the suppressor cylinder. It was very quiet and was fun to shoot. It was also illegal as Hell as I didn't have any paperwork on it and taxes had not been paid. I later traded it off for a Bren Ten without a magazine, but that another story....
thank you, Ian. I love integrally suppressed weapons, especially submachineguns.
what a gem... and quite an interesting history
No joke that looks very easy to put together.
ahh it's interesting to see history from the perspective of firearms and devices to use firearms in a creative and interesting way...
I really love that painting...
Thanks for going to peace on that particular grease gun, very cool
After seeing the screen material I must say that substituting wave springs/washers would work much better and would be better on the nerves.
Thanks, Ian. I read about these weapons (in some fiction about a Jedburgh team) and have always wanted to see this one.
new insight on an old favorite
the Grease Gun just makes me happy
The M3 is one of my favorite guns. I know I'll never afford an original for my collection so I bought a Valkyrie arms M3 and I love that thing. It looks weird with a 16" barrel but it's a hoot to shoot!
Maybe you could put a dummy suppressor cover over the barrel?
Something to make it look like this OSS suppressor.
I really hate the SBR and SBS bullshit.
Having to go 16 or 18 inches ruins the lines and functionality of a lot of carbines.
@@tylerwilliams6022 If I had a spare barrel I would. But I haven't been able to get a hold of Val to see if she can make me one.
Great video once again. I love Ians (Iains??) technical breakdowns along with the history.
6:18 - Not difficult to measure the noise. Measure it in IMPULSE meter mode at the operator's ears, both left and right. I can't remember if you use Type A frequency weighting, but if pressed I would say YES.
As a matter of fact, I saw this model in an article of an Italian Military review in the 1980s that described the Italian Navy Special Forces (Comsubin) arsenal. It was described as being very popular among the teams.
Great Video Ian. Thanks. Love the segue into the booby trap mechanism.
When you find out that the M3 get's even cooler... If you have ever seen "Hell is for Heroes", you have great taste in movies.
Did this… get edited to comply with the new YT guidelines? Holy crap. Where are us regular viewers going to find an M3 grease gun and an OSS suppressor to swap out?
very impressive history, and description. Thank you.
This is my favourite video of yours I've seen, I'm really in to WWII weapons.
Nice one✌️
It's funny the debate between suppressor and silencer. The very first suppressor was called a silencer and was sold as a silencer. Suppressor didn't come until after silencer.
I heard one being fired and can tell you the report is very quiet, while the clatter of the bolt is quite noisy. This weapon was not meant to be used in a firefight but was very useful in covert ops. High Standard Silencers were actual silencers the muzzle report was very quiet.
I've learned so much. From all your videos...
Concise courteous correct & cool
Nice video! Keep it up!
beautiful piece of history
Ultra simple wire mesh suppressors coming to a Walmart neat you, pending the HPA.
I loved shooting the M3A1. Benefits of being a tanker in the 80s.
Those barrel perforations give off a strong MP5SD vibe
Wait. Where's spef!?
Ian killed him
Dave R I'm guessing it expired, since you said all 3.
Dave R thay doesn't explain why spef didn't post.
What a total PITA it must be to go back and edit out all the youtube prohibition silliness. Good on ya for keeping these videos available here, though.
Very cool piece, never seen one before.
Pretty sweet bit of kit. Want one.
Ian finds the coolest things!
i showd my grandpa this and he said to add small bits of rubber to the bolt or wher the bolt strikes metal, he also said its better to have less than to have more
Clever not only a booby trap but a very effective as as decoy
Not sure about today yet, but at ft. Wood for AIT in fall of 90,we had 2 12f (think it was F, cuz it wasn't b, c, or e) guys, tracked vehicle engineers. They had to qualify, or at least familiarize with the grease gun. (And yes, we made sure to specify that it was the smg and not the lubricating gun lol)
So i always thought it was cool they still used them even that recently
I love the story behind this one.
No one bothered to ask for them back so I kept it.
I would have also appreciated the nice big still photos that the auction videos have.
Really cool find Ian, especially with the booby trap parts
What really intrigues me is threading on the perforated barrel but leaving off the roll of mesh and the over cover. I'd like to see what the weapon looks like when fired through just the perforated barrel.