Firearms Classifications: Technically-Accurate vs Legally-Erroneous

[LRRPF52]

During the House and Ways Committee hearings on the NFA in 1934, many members didn’t even know the difference between rimfire or center fire, pistols, automatic pistols, automatic rifles, semi-automatic rifles, or machine-guns.

The Attorney General and Assistant AG wanted to regulate Thompson Submachine-Guns because they were perceived as being everywhere in the hands of a vast criminal underworld.

AG Cummings:
“It would be much fairer to say that there are more people in the underworld today armed with deadly weapons, in fact, twice as many, as there are in the Army and the Navy of the United States combined. In other words, roughly speaking, there are ar least 500,000 of these people who are warring against society and who are carrying about with them or have available at hand, weapons of the most deadly character.” (NFA Hearings 1934, April, May, page 4)

Later during the testimony, they learned that Colt had only manufactured 15,000 M1921 Submachine-guns for Auto Ordnance, most of which had still not been sold. The initial batch of Thompson Model 1921 SMGs were made from 1920-1921 and weren’t fully sold until the late 1930s. Most buyers were police departments, the postal service, and a small contract for the US Navy where they had been over-stamped Model 1928s without any new firearms being manufactured.

Mr. Cooper: “Pardon me, General, but what was the number you estimated?”

AG Cummings: “A half a million. Now to deal with that situation, or course, requires thought and study and a serious, concerted program.”

In reality, there was a tiny handful of Midwestern gangs robbing banks using V8-powered cars, armed with weapons they had stolen from police stations and National Guard Armories.

John Dillinger stole his Thompsons and Colt 1911 Automatics from police armories, including one famous incident when he weaseled his way out of jail with a wooden fake gun.

Clyde Barrow (of Bonnie & Clyde fame) used modified BARs with cut-down barrels and gas systems, while rolling with 100x 20rd mags and custom 40rd mags in the Rifle.







Assistant AG Keenan said they didn’t really care about Browning Machine-guns and longer automatic rifles because they were too hard to conceal. He was apparently unaware of Clyde Barrow’s choice of weapons.

In fact, Clyde Barrow didn’t like Thompsons because .45 ACP bounced off some of the vehicles of that era, whereas the BAR spitting .30-06 out on auto cut cars to shreds like Swiss cheese.

It brings up another point about machinegun vs automatic rifle vs submachine gun technical definitions, which are real.

At the time of the NFA hearings, the Sturmgewehr had not yet been developed. It was a decade away and was translated into English as the "Assault Rifle".