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The rotor and track assembly was also designed like the originals.
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The markings on the West Hurley 50 round drum closely emulated those of an original 1920’s era New York address drum, and is often mistaken as an original early manufacture drum. This particular drum is the one that has caused much confusion among enthusiasts. Reportedly the original blueprints and tooling were used to produce them. 45- caliber 50-round Thompson drum magazine in 1988. In response, the West Hurley Auto-Ordnance Company introduced their.
#Auto ordnance 50 round drum for sale full
While the 39-round drum satisfied some Thompson owners, there was a desire by many others to have a more authentic, full capacity 50-round “L” drum. In 1980 the price of the “XL” drum was increased to $64.95, and production of the “XL” drum was discontinued around 1987. While the outside dimensions were similar to an original “L” drum, the internal track and rotor design was quite different from the original manufacture 50-round drum. The West Hurley 39-round drum is easily identified due to its lack of markings on the slide plates, and the markings “AUTO-ORDNANCE CORPORATION WEST HURLEY, NEW YORK, U.S.A.” that were placed on the magazine’s cover just under the winding key. The 39-round drum was called the “XL” drum and retailed for $44.50 in 1975. The drum was reportedly made by altering a drum that was originally designed for a Japanese manufactured blank-firing replica Thompson.
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To satisfy the needs of their customers they offered a facsimile of the 50-round “L” drum, but the early West Hurley drum only had a 39-round capacity. They immediately realized that most purchasers of their Thompsons also wanted a classic drum-style magazine to use or display with their guns. 45 caliber Thompson Submachine Guns for the civilian market. In 1975, the Numrich Arms Company of West Hurley, New York began to manufacture their first Model of 1928. These drums were marked with the actual names of the companies that manufactured them.Īuto-Ordnance, West Hurley Thompson Drums The drum contractors were The Seymour Products Company, The Crosby Company and Worcester Pressed Steel. The drums were contracted directly with the companies, without any involvement of the Auto-Ordnance Corporation. In addition to the Auto-Ordnance marked drums, there were a substantial number of 50-round “L” drum-type magazines manufactured by several military contractors during World War II. Both of the drums were manufactured by the United Specialties Company under contract with Auto-Ordnance, and these 1940 era drums can be usually be easily identified by a letter U stamped on the cover and body slide plates. One had a New York address, the other a Bridgeport, Connecticut address. There were also several similar Auto-Ordnance marked drums manufactured during World War II. The Colts Patent Fire Arms Manufacturing Company and Worcester Pressed Steel manufactured the first drums, but both were Auto-Ordnance Corporation marked. The drums from the 1920 era will have a New York address on their body’s slide plate. Oscar Payne designed both the “L” drum and the “C” drums while employed as a designer by the Auto-Ordnance Corporation. The original drum-type magazine was offered as an option for the Colt Thompson Submachine Guns, first marketed in the early 1920’s. Hopefully this article will serve to enlighten both buyers and sellers alike. The use of the “Auto-Ordnance” name is generally the source of the confusion. Often it is due to an uninformed buyer, seller or both. These drums are sometimes mistakenly sold as original World War II types or even of earlier manufacture. As with the West Hurley Thompson Submachine Guns, manufactured from 1975 to 1986, there seems to be a LOT of confusion out there regarding these drums. The impetus of writing this piece was to give collectors and shooters a guide to the markings and variations of these “late manufacture” drums. This article is directed at identifying the Thompson drum magazines that were made by the “modern” Auto-Ordnance of West Hurley, New York in a timeframe that ran from 1975 to 1994. My previous Thompson-related article focused on the drum-type magazines manufactured during World War II for U.S. The Thompson Submachine Gun ID Guide, Part X: The Thompson Drums of West Hurley, Auto-Ordnance