M1928 Thompson: Difference between revisions

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[[Category:Weapons]]
[[Category:Weapons of Vietnam]]
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! rowspan=2 | Leg ×
! rowspan=2 | Leg ×
! rowspan=2 | Arm ×
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! rowspan=2 | [[Bayonet]] 
! colspan=2 | Reload Speed
! rowspan=2 | [[Rifle Grenades]] 
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|38||×2.6 = 98.8||×1.4 = 53.2||×1.3 = 46.8||×0.8 = 30.4||×0.75 = 28.5||NO||NO
! Partial!! Empty
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|38||×2.6 = 98.8||×1.4 = 53.2||×1.3 = 46.8||×0.8 = 30.4||×0.75 = 28.5||2.766 Seconds||3.766 Seconds
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! rowspan=2 | [[Date]]
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! rowspan=2 | [[Armory]]   
! rowspan=2 | [[Manufacturer]]   
! rowspan=2 | Barrel Length
! rowspan=2 | Barrel Length
! rowspan=2 | Total Length
! rowspan=2 | Total Length
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The Thompson submachine gun, also known as the "Tommy gun," was invented by U.S. Army Brigadier General John T. Thompson in 1918. Although it missed World War I combat, it saw early use by the U.S. Marine Corps, the Postal Inspection Service, the Irish Republican Army, the Republic of China, and the FBI. The weapon became notorious during Prohibition as the favored weapon of organized crime syndicates. Widely adopted by U.S. and Allied forces during World War II, the Thompson's main models were the M1928, M1, and [[M1A1]], with over 1.5 million units produced during the war.
The Thompson M1928 is an American .45 ACP submachine gun in the Thompson family, built around the earlier Model 1921 pattern but tuned for military use. It is best known for its distinctive profile with a top-mounted charging handle, and for variants commonly fitted with a Cutts compensator and finned barrel. Unlike later simplified Thompsons, the M1928/M1928A1 pattern can use both box magazines and drum magazines.
=HISTORY=
==HISTORY==
Brigadier General John T. Thompson, of the U.S. Army's ordnance department, invented and developed the Thompson submachine gun to replace bolt-action rifles like the [[M1903 Springfiel]]d. He utilized John Bell Blish's 1915 patent for the Blish lock, leading to the foundation of the Auto-Ordnance Company in 1916 with Thomas F. Ryan's financial backing.
The Model 1928 grew out of the original Thompson Model 1921 after the U.S. Navy pushed for changes better suited to military service, including a reduced rate of fire and improved controllability. This was achieved by adopting a heavier actuator (to slow the cyclic rate), along with features such as the Cutts compensator and a horizontal fore-end on many Navy-configured guns. Early Navy guns were often “overstamps,” with an “8” stamped over the last “1” in “1921” on the receiver marking, and are commonly referred to by collectors as “1928 Navy” or “28N.”
 
Developed mainly in Cleveland, Ohio, by designers Theodore H. Eickhoff, Oscar V. Payne, and George E. Goll, the Thompson submachine gun used a friction-delayed blowback action and was chambered in .45 ACP. Initially named the "Annihilator I," it was rebranded in 1919 as the "Thompson Submachine Gun" after World War I ended before prototypes could be deployed.
 
The Model 1928, first widely used by military forces, was primarily purchased by the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps in the 1930s. Originally Model 1921s with added weight to the actuator to meet Navy requirements, these guns had the "1921" on the receiver stamped with an "8" over the last "1". Collectors refer to this model as the "Colt Overstamp," "1921 Overstamp," "28 Navy," or "28N."
 
The Model 1928 was the last small arm adopted by the U.S. Army with a year designation in its name. World War II contracts from several countries saved the manufacturer from bankruptcy. Savage produced a notable variant with an aluminum receiver and tenite grip, buttstock, and forend.


The M1928A1 variant entered mass production before Pearl Harbor, replacing the vertical foregrip with a horizontal forend and adding a military sling provision. Despite Lend-Lease shipments and U.S. military needs, only two factories produced M1928A1s early in WWII. It could use 50-round drum magazines and 20- or 30-round box magazines, but the latter were preferred due to reliability and practicality. A total of 562,511 were made. Wartime variants featured a fixed rear sight without sight guard wings and a non-ribbed barrel, similar to the M1/[[M1A1]].
In World War II, the M1928A1 became the main mass-produced military form of the 1928-pattern Thompson and saw extensive early-war service before being relegated as production shifted to the simpler M1 and [[M1A1]] variants. Wartime experience also drove preference toward box magazines over the heavier, bulkier drums for routine field use. In the [[Vietnam War]] era, Thompsons remained in circulation through older stocks and foreign inventories, and they appeared in the hands of [[South Vietnamese]] forces and could also be encountered in captured or improvised use.
<br>[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thompson_submachine_gun SOURCE]
===Sources===
* [https://www.nramuseum.org/guns/the-galleries/wwii%2C-korea%2C-vietnam-and-beyond-1940-to-present/case-40-wwii-more-arms/usauto-ordnance-model-1928-thompson-submachine-gun.aspx NRA National Firearms Museum — US/Auto Ordnance Model 1928 Thompson Submachine Gun]
* [https://www.americanrifleman.org/content/rifleman-q-a-u-s-model-of-1928-thompson-variants/ American Rifleman — Rifleman Q&A: U.S. Model Of 1928 Thompson Variants]
* [https://www.americanrifleman.org/content/thompson-submachine-gun-the-tommy-gun-goes-to-war/ American Rifleman — Thompson Submachine Gun: The “Tommy Gun” Goes To War]
* [https://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USA/ref/TM/pdfs/TM9-1215.pdf U.S. War Department — TM 9-1215, Ordnance Maintenance: Thompson Submachine Gun, Cal. .45, M1928A1]
* [https://www.americanrifleman.org/content/the-tommy-gun-in-country-the-thompson-smg-in-vietnam/ American Rifleman — The Tommy Gun “In Country:” The Thompson SMG In Vietnam]
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<div style="text-align:center; font-weight:bold;">Real-Life Photos</div>
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<div style="text-align:center; font-weight:bold;">Videos</div>
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Latest revision as of 05:59, 3 March 2026

Factions Weapon Icon Classes Ammo

US
M1928 Thompson		 Assault
 50 / 150
Damage Base Headshot × Chest × Stomach × Leg × Arm × Reload Speed
Partial Empty
38 ×2.6 = 98.8 ×1.4 = 53.2 ×1.3 = 46.8 ×0.8 = 30.4 ×0.75 = 28.5 2.766 Seconds 3.766 Seconds
Designation Weapon Type Fire Modes Fire Rate Bullet Spread ° Range Modifier Muzzle Velocity Projectile weight Weight
M1928 SMG Auto+Semi 700 RPM 7.2° & 1.95° ADS 0.85 285 m/s 14.9 g (229.94 gr) 6.7 kg (14.8 lbs)
Full name Caliber Place of Origin Date Manufacturer Barrel Length Total Length Weapon Script Name
Thompson M1928 .45ACP USA 1928 Auto-Ordnance Company
Federal Laboratories		 12 in (300 mm) (with Cutts compensator) 33.7 in (860 mm) weapon_m1928


The Thompson M1928 is an American .45 ACP submachine gun in the Thompson family, built around the earlier Model 1921 pattern but tuned for military use. It is best known for its distinctive profile with a top-mounted charging handle, and for variants commonly fitted with a Cutts compensator and finned barrel. Unlike later simplified Thompsons, the M1928/M1928A1 pattern can use both box magazines and drum magazines.

HISTORY

The Model 1928 grew out of the original Thompson Model 1921 after the U.S. Navy pushed for changes better suited to military service, including a reduced rate of fire and improved controllability. This was achieved by adopting a heavier actuator (to slow the cyclic rate), along with features such as the Cutts compensator and a horizontal fore-end on many Navy-configured guns. Early Navy guns were often “overstamps,” with an “8” stamped over the last “1” in “1921” on the receiver marking, and are commonly referred to by collectors as “1928 Navy” or “28N.”

In World War II, the M1928A1 became the main mass-produced military form of the 1928-pattern Thompson and saw extensive early-war service before being relegated as production shifted to the simpler M1 and M1A1 variants. Wartime experience also drove preference toward box magazines over the heavier, bulkier drums for routine field use. In the Vietnam War era, Thompsons remained in circulation through older stocks and foreign inventories, and they appeared in the hands of South Vietnamese forces and could also be encountered in captured or improvised use.

Sources

Real-Life Photos
  • M1928A1
    M1928A1
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