Remington Model 51 - Pocket Pistol

Am Shooting Journal ^ | 5/27/20 | C Cocole

[w1n1]

Blast from the Past - A 20th Century Pocket Gun that was ahead of its Time - At the beginning of the 20th century semi-automatic magazine fed pistols were a novel concept. However, this era gave us the iconic M1911 and the German Luger just to name a few. There were many others that popped up into the scene but were left behind as time went by. One pistol that was forgotten but had a really good design was the Remington Model 51 which was developed during the prohibition era of the United States.

At this time John Browning may have been the most well known firearms designer. But, a lesser known John Pederson, who in his own right should have had the same notoriety. John Pederson had collaboratively worked on many successful guns with different designers (including J Browning), his most successful is the Remington Model 51 that reached full production level.

Pederson designed the Model 51 in 1917 as a pocket gun which at the time the market was dominated by the cheaper and reliable revolvers. The pistol was somewhat successful, it did not dominate the market.
The U.S. military did take a look at the Model 51 as a possible combat handgun before WWII. From a production level perspective. The more cheaper and reliable direct blow-back design was the order of the day. The Model 51 production eventually wound down.

Remington Model 51 Features
The Model 51 was design as a pocket pistol. The exterior is sleek and smooth.

• -The sights were filed down to be snag free when drawn from the user’s pocket.
• -Another fine feature is the “safety,” which was created from the entire back strap of the pistol, held in the hand comfortably with no sharp edges. When depressed, it lines up smoothly with the rear edges of the grip.
• -The grip uses a smooth single stack magazine like the M1911.
• -The original Model 51 houses 7 rounds of .380ACP cartridge and the magazine release the same as the M1911.

Due to the Model 51 sleek design, the revolvers were no match from a concealability stand point.

Internal Design for Concealability Many people like the looks of the Model 51 but gunsmithers will appreciate the internals design of the gun. The design uses a fixed barrel design vs a barrel-base short-stroke recoil system of the time. The breach itself tilts to impart momentum so the slide can effortlessly carry through the operating cycle.
The barrel doesn't tilt, so there’s no need for a separate guide rod for the return spring. In the operating cycle most semi-automatic pistols of the era used an under-over placement for the return spring that provided the forward pressure to chamber the next round. This increases the height of the handgun (a bigger pistol), and makes it a little harder to conceal in a pocket or holster.
With the recoil spring around the barrel the gun could be much thinner with an extremely low bore axis…an edge over the competition. A huge advantage for concealed carry. Read the rest of Remington Model 51.

[I cannot think of a name]

One of the bad guy gangsters back in the day was a big fan of this gun. I think it was John Dillinger but it could have been Clyde of Bonnie and Clyde fame.

[yarddog]

It is one of the more attractive pistols.

[yarddog]

My memory may be bad but didn’t it have a semi locked breech where the resistance to the bullet against the rifling held it closed until the bullet left the barrel.

[mylife]

Ugly little bastid, I want one!

[SkyDancer]

Dillinger's gun:

[Yo-Yo]

Stay away from Remington's modern recreation, the R51. It was a lemon from right out of the box.

[MeneMeneTekelUpharsin]

When found with nice original bluing, they look like this:

[Joe 6-pack]

"But, a lesser known John Pederson, who in his own right should have had the same notoriety."

His name is actually spelt "Pedersen." IMHO, his most clever design was the Pedersen device, which was like a mini-submachine gun adapter for the Springfield rifle, and would give the average infantryman a high volume of fire for short range engagements in the trenches of WWI.

Pedersen Device

[yarddog]

I had a French model 1935 which used a cartridge identical to the one used in the Pedersen device.

It was beautifully machined and had a locked breech similar to the 1911. I wish I still had it.

[mylife]

Seems a bit excessive for .380 ACP

[SkyDancer]

Thinking it’s a modified 1911A1 in .45 - was posted here awhile back.

[FLT-bird]

I’ve heard great things about the Remington model 51. They are said to be very smooth shooters. They came in .32 as well as 380. I may get around to getting one some day but my current list is so long it will take me at least 4 or 5 years to work through.

[mylife]

Yeah, still LOL

[Tallguy]

Looks like the piece carried by the hit-man in that Tom Hanks Depression-era movie, “Road to Perdition.” I was admiring it and thinking that I’d never seen that particular semi-auto before.