Never forget that the .22LR pistol is the Assassin's Weapon of Choice in the underworld of places like Chicago and New York.
Posted on 01/12/2011 6:58:01 PM PST by marktwain
Friends, experience shows it always pays to scout around a bit... See what’s out there, keep your eyes open, and investigate your surroundings.
That is what happened one morning when I had some hours to pass with no pressing duties. I did an internet search for local gun shops, picked a few that looked interesting, and took a drive to see who was open. As it happens, that part of Indiana had enough small gun shops to keep me going all day long, if I had wished.
One waypoint on this morning’s journey turned up a neat little small town gun shop, with a knowledgeable and friendly proprietor. Amongst his fairly decent mil-surp inventory, tucked away in a glass case used for ‘display’ vs. sales, was this bit of history; A FP-45 Liberator Pistol.
Built by the GM Guidelamp Company during WWII, these pistols have a well known history. The plan was to saturate German occupied territory with many thousands of these cheap little gems, hoping to get at least some into the hands of partisans and resistance fighters. Inaccurate, difficult to load, usable only as a single shot short range pistol, their purpose was simple. The resistance fighter would hide the powerful little pistol in his pocket, walk up to a German soldier, and then shoot him and steal his weapons.
It was also part of the plan for the general morale of German troops to drop, knowing sudden death was at hand from any passerby. Disarmed occupied populations were to be given the means to resist, to the detriment (and fear) of the occupying forces.
The plan, like many of the odder war time ideas, never really came to fruition. Most of the liberators were never delivered to war zones, staying instead packed away in boxes, unused. After the war most were destroyed, leaving only a few examples as war time historical relics, an important part of our nation’s history.
Now, to the story behind this particular piece….
Gentle reader, you may wish to stop now, and spare yourself the agony to follow….. Somewhere there is a special level in hell designated for whoever ordered this destruction of history.
At some point in the past, several things were discovered at the Guidelamp factory where the liberator pistols were made. Found were a case of M-3 grease guns (fully automatic machine pistols) and a case of unopened Liberator pistols.
The M-3 grease guns went to a local police department, where they mysteriously vanished. The Liberators met a far worse fate than mere theft. There were ordered destroyed by the ATF, as they had no serial numbers. Also discovered were the original stamping tools to make the pistols, and these were ordered destroyed as well since the company was not licensed to make firearms.
The pristine objects of US military history were ordered crushed, and then melted down. This particular liberator pistol was waylaid between crusher and furnace, and found its way to the display case where I discovered it that day.
What Good Can a Handgun Do Against An Army?
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-backroom/2312894/posts
The ATF has been looking for that gun, now they know where to find it.
the king giveth, the king taketh away...
Many guns manufactured prior to the Gun Control Act of 1968 did not have serial numbers. There is nothing unlawful about possessing one of these guns.
After 1968 a serial number was required for all newly manufactured guns.
A liberator pistol still at the manufacturer's facility would either be a pre 1968 firearm not requiring a serial number or a firearm manufactured after 1968 to which a serial number could be etched by the manufacturer. Under neither scenario would the firearm have to be destroyed. Under the latter [probably dubious interpretation] If the manufacturer elected not to a affix serial number, the gun could be considered unlawful to possess. Under that scenario, General Motors, not the ATF would be responsible for the action which made the gun unlawful to possess.
bump for later
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