Crossfire October 2019
Hidden MP40
Dear Mr. Venturino,
Since you are an MP40 nut, re: GUNS Magazine May 2019, you may find my MP40 Saga of some interest. In May ’55 while on patrol duty out in the country, a German came yelling at us to come over to his work area, he had something for us. He was tearing down an outside brick smoker. He had found two MP40s stuffed up the chimney. They were wrapped in burlap and had five or six loaded magazines with them. The surface rust wasn’t too bad, probably shootable. We put the guns on the floor of the jeep, my side, and I had a chance to examine them. The headstamp on the ammo was 1945, black tipped. They were probably concealed at the end of the war. I asked the corporal what are we going to do with them? “Turn them in,” was his reply.
Name withheld by request
Via U.S. Mail
Rubber Bullet Fun
Thirty-five years ago when I was still living in Austin, Texas I bought a box of .38/357 rubber bullets. The only directions were a sized brass case and standard small primer and we never had any issues with primer setback. Our backdrop was a large thick cardboard box at 7 yards to catch the bullets with a paper target taped over the open front. I remember one time three shots into an old couch pillow from about 25 feet pretty much shredded it. Think I’ll load a few up and step out back to do some plinkin’.
Rick Schulkens
Via Email
Hi, I just read the rubber bullet story by David Freeman. Very interesting. He mentioned drilling out the primer pocket of .45 Colt brass with a 1/8 drill bit to prevent malfunctions due to the primer being pushed backwards, jamming a revolver’s cylinder from turning. My question is, would you use the same size drill bit with .38/.357 cases as well (which is what I am thinking of using), or a smaller drill bit because it is a smaller primer pocket than the .45 Colt?
Guy Waller
I read with interest the article on shooting rubber bullets powered by just a primer (August 2019), as I had done this many years ago and had forgotten I even had them. Used to shoot in the basement into a target box I built to recover the bullets and minimize the ricochet. On the caveat to keep the drilled-out brass separate, I used aluminum cases like CCI Blazer, as you aren’t ever going to reload them anyway, so no chance of inadvertently building unsafe ammo. Thanks for the memories.
Mike Jury
Via Email
Via Email
Sending the Python Home
On the .357 article (by John Taffin), I had a Python in .357 and took it with me to Vietnam. Big mistake, it did not hold up and I had to send it home. I ended up being issued a .38 cal Model 1917 from two wars before. I then bought a 45 and a Thompson from our South Vietnam army guards and sold them to the guy replacing me when I left. I did own a Security Six in .357 some years later and found it adequate until I became a federal officer and traded the Python for a SIG P220!
Joseph Schvimmer
Via Email
Webley Wondeful
Great article on the big Webleys, John! I love them, and I have one of each Mark except the Mark III. I believe in them enough as combat guns that my “bedside boomer” is a blued commercial Mark V (no broad arrow markings). I also have one of their stubby brothers, the Webley 2 1/2″ Royal Irish Constabulary in .450 Adams. It is old enough that it is black powder only, using cut down .455 cases and a 200-gr. lead wadcutter over 12 grains of FFFg. If you have big pockets, it could be considered a “pocket revolver,” and was likely what Sherlock Holmes would have carried in his greatcoat. It has one advantage at spitting range. If you miss with the bullet, you will singe your adversary’s eyebrows and likely set fire to his clothes!
Clete Davis
Via Email
