@@oldgysgt That would have made it a $1,500 to $2,000 gun in today's money. I would gladly pay $1,500 for one today in .308 caliber, but back then, it was not a large market.
This rifle, specifically the Johnson automatic, means the most to me. It was what my grandfather in WWII was issued as a Marine Paratrooper. He was in Bougainville, Vella la Vella, Guadal canal, and Iwo Jima.
He died two years ago. He was 94. He still fit in his Marine’s dress clothes when he died. He was buried in them. They don’t make men like that anymore.
Your grandpa was a fucking bad ass man. 4 whole battles? Jesus man. I'm glad we had people like that to fight for us. We're all where we are now because of heroes like your grandpa. Thank you.
@@danielaramburo7648 while the 1903 is a good rifle who wouldnt want a semi auto with larger capacity? Particularly when facing the japanese army of the 40's
I was in Civil Air Patrol in Red Wing MN as a teenager and a WWII vet Marine came in to do a talk. He described getting a hold of a rifle that he could load single cartridges into that had a rotary magazine. He said he made sure not to turn it in for entire war because the Japanese would count shots from an M1 and pop up while you were reloading. I thought he was full of it until now, this is a very cool video.
Anywhere from 1 to many guys just fired off 8 rounds of .30-06 each..given how loud the round is, I don't think listening for a ping is high on the list.
@@OpenMawProductions Absolutely. On the other hand there are many combat scenarios involving a lot less people than that. Once your down to only 2 or 3 people per side, firing from different positions, then you can count shots and listen better. I've played paintball (woodsball) in games with more than 20 people per team, yet you can still end up one on one or one on two pretty easily, especially in the backwoods areas, or in endgame. In those spots it makes a huge difference if you're facing someone with a tipman 98 vs a tipman 98 with a flatline much less some other type of gun.
@@fredjonson5781 In paintball, you dont have the sheer volume of a gun battle going on around you. Even with 4-6 combatants, if half have .30-06 semi-autos and the other half 8mm rifles, its gonna get really, REALLY loud.
Surprisingly I was able to buy one of these original M1941 Johnson rifles here in Canada a couple years ago. It hasn't been sporterized and has a VERY low serial number, below 2000 and no letter prefix. Shoots great but the sights don't quite zero perfectly, but this could be due to it being used in the Pacific. The rifle has obviously been used, the stock has a number of dings and scratches and the metal has a nice patina. I'm sure there aren't many people here in Canada who own one of these AND an M1 Garand as well.
Too bad that here in Canada the 10-round capacity isn't allowed, the magazine has to be pinned to 5 rounds. Garand is allowed to keep its full 8-round capacity though.
Yes very much so. Thankfully not too much damage besides one small hole drilled to pop in a small rivet to stop the follower at 5 round capacity.... but still will hurt the value if i go to sell it some day. But i doubt I'll ever sell it, unless someone offered an insane amount for it. Haha
I own both in Canada as well. M1941 Johnson Serial number is halfway between 2000 and 3000, no letter prefix. Beautiful condition. Plan on making a video or two this summer for my channel. The M1 Garand is Springfield,1954. I see "Collectors Source has an M1941 for sale at $7500.00. The Johnson and Garand were part of a larger purchase that also included an SVT 38. I have made a video on that one.
For future reference of anyone with one of these rifles, the way to remove the bolt handle is to grab that pin with the extraction groove of a 30-06 case and hold it between your thumb and the groove. Pull, and slide forward. Easy-peasy.
Very good vid. My dad, a WWII Marine aviator with VMB-612, like all aircrew was issued a pistol; in his case a .45. Some time after his squadron assembled on Iwo Jima, several of the ground crew ended up with the Johnson - presumably because the 'Mud' Marines considered the M-1 Garand the superior rifle - due to it's grenade, bayonet and 'club' characteristics, and overall simplicity when compared to the Johnson. I believe the breakdown barrel is the primary reason one of those Johnsons is parked in his gun safe today.
Having owned and shot a nice example of an M1941 for the past 30 years, I can say that it works very well. If you're going to acquire one, be aware that most of the M1941s you'll see were worn out in foreign service and refurbished. Many of these were "sporterized" and then converted back to military configuration. Your first clue is a replaced barrel. Worn guns will usually have a violent action and are often missing parts.
+confuseatronica again,a cover would cause the same issue,something like the bayonet on an fg-42 or a swinging bayonet like an sks could have worked very well on this rifle and may have been able to have gotten this adopted alongside the m1 Garand
breech loading and the cartridge killed the bayonet, to me it's a non-issue!!! why they still have that relic in service is beyond me? it would have been a great paratrooper piece!!! and I've heard the arguments for keeping that pig-sticker, the 3 or 4 times a charge has happened since W.W.1 doesn't warrant keeping it!!!
Primary use of the bayonet if for guarding prisoners. While few and far between there have been bayonet charges in the Vietnam War and in Desert Storm for the US.
Yes Johnson rifles are not well known outside of a small community of historians and collectors. This is why I couldn't understand the rejection and odd reactions when I would ask my shooting buddies if they wanted to check out my Johnson. Thanks Ian for a good informative video on a under rated great rifle.
I feel like one major advantage the M1 has over this is the reload speed. I couldn't possibly see a soldier under duress being able to load the Johnson with a stripper clip as fast as an M1 with its en bloc clip
@@LaatiMafia I always thought that was a poor design feature on the Garand. Why even design the rifle to do that? I always thought someone in the design process should have said 'Wait, as soon as you shove the clip in the bolt releases? Even if your thumb is still there? That sounds stupid. Let's just make the bolt stay locked while you reload then you have to pull back on it to release it or add a button to release it or something." If it made it through the design process it looks like the first test shooter would have come to the same conclusion. When they explained to him "Yeah, shove the clip in and get your thumb out of the way asap because the bolt will close immediately when you push the clip down all the way", it looks like he would have "Wait, you're serious? Why'd you design it that way? Couldn't you have just added a button to push or something?"
@@genxer1 With a little practice, it's fairly easy to avoid getting pinched by the Garand. Mainly because unlike its eventual successor the M16, its charging handle is attached to the bolt carrier group. So what you do is hook your ring and pinky finger over the charging handle as you're pushing the clip home, thus restraining the bolt from closing until your thumb is out of the way.
10 rounds (11 if you start with one in the chamber) beats 8. Especially when you can top up every 5 or 6 shots without ending up with a pocket full of clips and loose rounds.
@@genxer1 I have owned an M-1 and a 1941 Johnson for a lot of years and never got my thumb pinched. The M-1 bolt will not release upon inserting an enblock clip, as long as you push down on the clip the bolt stays back. It's only after the clip is locked in place and the downward pressure is released that the bolt comes forward. Even than, because of the clamping force of the spring steel clip and the resulting friction on the rounds the charging handle will need a push for the gun to charge the first cartridge. AND, just in case the bolt comes flying forward, it's shoving the top round into the chamber so there is no room for your thumb to be there, the bolt will simply push your thumb out of the way. The only way to get Garand thumb is by sticking your thumb into an empty magazine and touching the charging handle.
Dominus Victoriae I lost my mount....... *sniff* Friedrich was his name........ that french bastard killed him! So i took my mace and gave him something to think about! Then i swore to never ride again.
well nothing wrong with being a zweihander or a walking tank instead of a lancer. and we all dislike the french for their disgusting practice of targeting a warriors greatest companion. That is why we end them rightly with atomic pommels!
the M1 "Garand" ? ... yea ok, i'll give it to you. ... if he'd not been working in America with all those Americans, any rifle he'd have made would probably not have been the M1... and he lived in America since the age of 11. After all, "Majority Rules".
My great grandfather was the lead engineer on this project at Johnson / Cranston Arms. He held multiple patents for the parts he designed. He was with Johnson for the hearings in DC as well as a trip to the Marshall Islands. He kept one for himself and used it to hunt deer in Connecticut for years. His name was Horace St Amant
My father was a paramarine in WW2 and carried one. He said it was far superior to the Garand. They also used the Johnson Light Machinegun and H&R Reising submachine guns. He said the Reisings were crap and constantly jammed.
The Reising was a poor combat weapon...functions well under normal conditions like police/guard duty but in filthy combat conditions it was subject to malfunctions.
For anyone looking for a rifle like this today in function as well, you can check out the Fightlight SCR (Previously ARES SCR). They replaced the AR15 buffer and bolt with a modified bolt and a more traditional stock system, but use a spring in that stock to buffer the bolt on a pivot which looks to have been taken directly from the design of the original Johnson bolt that preceeded it. Just goes to show you that the more they change things, the more they stay the same. The SCR was made in response to AWBs and CA's arcane firearm laws, since the SCR is literally just like any other hunting rifle, except it takes AR mags and apart from the bolt, the rest of the upper is stripped directly from an AR-15, and you can buy standalone SCR receivers to convert existing guns or build one yourself
I have owned a number of Johnson Rifles and I really liked them - but as a competitive shooter I noticed an issue that would have hurt it in combat: The barrel (with the front sight) has to fit exactly within the barrel sleeve to align consistently with the rear sight at the back of the receiver. To function properly, the rifle has to have a smooth fit to keep friction low/resist sand, debris - but that smooth fit makes a very slight difference in the position of the sights in relation to each other. At the close-in ranges the rifle was carried by the Marines in Guadalcanal, Bougainville, and even Iwo Jima where the rifle saw combat, the ranges were very close so that amount of dispersion would have been negligible. But at greater ranges - 300m and further, the Johnson would have been more of a "to whom it may concern" weapon. I considered using one of my Johnsons as a competition rifle in a local military rifle match - primarily because of its very smooth and easy reloading during rapid fire stages and to show off - but I couldn't get it to group as well as my M1 or my M1A. Oh well.
Wish this outstanding video had been available a few decades ago when I owned one of these. It is a nice rifle. Mine was inherited, shot well but the safety was broken, the lever just rotated 360 without engaging a "safe" position and when firing the trigger 'doubled' discharging properly on a pull but hazardously upon release. Good for rapid fire but a problem if the second discharge was undesired. Sold it for $500 to a friend who was an advanced collector. Hope he was able to correct those flaws.
Early in WW2 the Marines, being at the end of the supply chain, went into the Pacific Theater with 1903 Springfield bolt action rifles still in front line service. The Johnson M1941 would have been a real step up if a Marine could get his hands on one.
This would be really cool to run in a 2-gun action challenge. The ability to easily top off on the run seems like a good feature to leverage. If nothing else, it would be sweet to see if this could hold its own these days.
@@returnofbeaux STFU! Nobody cares about a freaking spelling error (out of an 841 word article)! Is this kind of crap all you can contribute to society?
A suggestion on the removal of the bolt handle. Use the aft end of a cartridge or cartridge casing to pry the pin up on the bolt handle. You can lever the cartridge case on the outer rim of the Bolt Handle, and the handle slides off quite easily. Also, the extractor and the base of the Bolt handle may be used as very light usage screwdrivers.
It really is fantastic to see the history of the mechanical systems in a platform like the ar-15 weather it was Mr Stoner or the people working with him. The ar-15 and ar-10 are fantastic in their simplicity when compared to mechanically complex systems that proceed them. The bolt and bcg in ar platforms seam so basic. But it really does allot of the same things that this Rifle does.
I had a friend that was a career Airborne paratrooper. Being an Army brat myself we had some great conversations. He was part of a training program that went from 1948 through 1950. Their first assignment was a trip to Korea. His unit got the name "Rakasahn". I hope I haven't misspelled this too badly. He liked the Johnson. Unique problems for his unit was jumping out of great planes with everything you might need. He thought a folding stock was needed. His unit had some leeway on equipment not being "Standard Issue". Retired as a Lt. Colonel after being hit in his face and upper body by a land mine in Vietnam.
I like the simplicity and fewer parts to disassemble and assemble for cleaning, as well as the ease of replacement of burned out barrels and broken extractors. I will add though that with my three years of experience with the Garand I never had a mechanical problem at all. I think that you could get an eight round clip into a Garand as fast as you could get a five round stripper loaded into a Johnson.
After doing some reading about the US Cavalry right at the start of the war, Ive decided that if the Chief of Cavalry had been a better bureaucrat and managed to save some of the Horse Soldiers from the tide of mechanization, THIS would have been the rifle he would have wanted to advocate for. Easier to load, more ammo, better balanced, better handling; the Johnson's advantages over the Garand are slight, but as a Cavalry/Scout Rifle, it would have been PERFECT.
I am still kicking my self for letting my $55.00 1941 Johnson's go. In Vermont we are limited to 6 rounds for center fire big game rifles. So before going to South Vietnam I sold off my 5 Johnson's. I had bought them thru an add in one of my gun magazines in 1963 for a cost of $55.00 each delivered to my door in Brandon Vermont in a wooden crate with manuals and cleaning kits; plus the little bayonets with sheaths. They were in NRA Excellent rated condition(?). This was my first exposure to cosmo!!!!!!!!
Slight correction to Ian’s description of the unlocking moment. The camming surface forces the bolt head to rotate back into line with the bold carrier via a cam machined into the top of the receiver. During initial rearward travel that cam forces the bolt head to rotate/unlock AND pushes the bolt/carrier apart, which acts as an accelerator. This cam surface in the top of the receiver is why the Johnson had to have its own magazine. The receiver is solid and can’t accommodate an en bloc clip style vertically loaded magazine. That en bloc system was long adopted by the time the Johnson was assembled, had Johnson’s rifle been able to use the same clips it’s possible formal adoption could have been achieved. For example; as a paratrooper rifle.
I'm always surprised at how much these guns flex and wobble when fired. Look at the rear sight vibrate, for heaven's sake. Remarkable that they achieve the accuracy that they do.
Awesome rifle. It seems your opinion has slightly changed since your first review about the Johnson rifle. I enjoy mine and while I like M1's I think it was every bit it's equal. Superior in some ways and lacking in others. Still an awesome shooter.
I have a 41' no letter prefix 4 digit serial and no bolt hold open. The pride of my collection. Well tied for first place with about 3 or 4 others. Melvin Johnson in the end would get the last laugh over John Garand (in a way). After the closing of his business he teamed the Eugene Stoner and used his designs from the 41' and incorporated them in the AR rifle. His operational mechanism and design is still in use by the military today.
One reason (beyond the M-1 was in service) the Government might of been reluctant to adopt this weapon is the large section of naked barrel. Heard it was a fine shooting weapon.
I’ve never liked the look of the M1 so it’s always nice to see other rifles that can do the same job. Not denying that the M1 was a good rifle, oh boy it was. But I would love to see this in more media
THIS is my Grail Gun, beyond the Luger, the Mauser C-96 "Han Solo" pistol, or even the Krag-Jorgensen. The only one that comes close is the military M1897 Trench Gun, with the extra long bayonet, and even *that* is just a few feet behind this one. This is one helluva rifle. I want one. I NEED one.
I've been wondering this, but which is more common: Left-handed shooting or Right-handed shooting? I'm wondering because I shoot from my left shoulder.
"In my view" there are more right handed shooters simply because the world at large is right handed so most but not all firearms are made to be shot right handed. I am left handed and had to adapt. I take the time to learn to shoot any firearm I own from both sides. After 40 plus years of shooting there are firearms I shoot left and some right. Be willing to safely experiment to find what works best for you then practice practice practice and have fun.
I for one demand the return of the universe disassembly tool!! Every other method clearly is inferior since every gun that need carriages to open needs different cartridges. So universal disassembly tool all the way!
What a dumb statement! If you have the weapon, don't you (normally, esp. in a military setting) have the appropriate cartridges that go with it? Also, universal disassembly tool = Swiss army knife = EVERY tool EXCEPT the one you need.
Glad you addressed the numbers built question. Wikipedia and other sources state 70,000 built, but 30,000 or less would be correct. No letter prefix for first 10,000, followed by prefix "A" and "B". No one has shown evidence of a C, D, E or F. Great video as usual Ian. Thanks for the info!
TBH, a reproduction Johnson chambered in .223/5.56, .308/7.62 NATO, and 7.62x39 with some rails would be a perfect California/Restricted State Gun. It would probably sell well in non-restricted states (assuming it can undercut the AR or offer something that the AR doesn’t) due to the simplicity, cleanliness compared to gas guns, and ease of disassembly, through muzzle brakes, flash hiders, and suppressors could be a problem but still likely work considering you can get away with a suppressor on most pistols.
The only thing I saw missing in the disassembly is that I would’ve liked to have a look at the trigger group. I’m assuming it’s a hammer fired rifle based on the firing pin return spring. Then again, assuming has never worked well for me in the past. Great video to learn something from. Thank you sir
This got recommended to me exactly after BFV introduced the gun into the game. I swear DICE take ideas from Ian's channel for weapons to add into the games.
I don't think any of those riffles got shipped to Holland after the fall of the Dutch Indies. The Germans were sort of crawling all over the place a year earlier.
It's funny the US government didn't want infantry to have a detachable box magazine because it would impede prone shooting. Because today, most professional/competition shooters use their detachable box magazines as a monopod for increased accuracy while prone. So it actually is a benefit the government just couldn't understand yet in more than one way. The Johnson SAR was ahead of its time in a lot of ways. Forgotten Weapons is such an awesome channel, thanks for all the information you provide to so many people.
Ian, thanks for all your hard work. I don't understand why you only have 300k subs while someone who just unboxes new cell phones or whatever, has millions. Anyway, kudos on a great channel.
Yes and marines in ww2 have a tendency to to just grab what ever is available to them or they want and use it. Look at the stinger for another good example of that. Hell the pacific is usually just summarize with aircraft carriers but a lot is usually forgotten by today’s history and military
Interesting rifle. i knew a little abt them from various reading, but had never seen them field stripped or the bolt functioning thoroughly explained. Thank you. I expect the Johnson would have at least a bit better barrel cooling than the Garand, since it has so much exposed and a vented shroud at the rear. Not sure if there is any weight saving, since the Johnson stock is more pot bellied and the magazine drum is larger than the Garand mag. Amazing design though. It is always fascinating to see where preceding designs later led us. Love all your videos. Thank you
Omnihil777 No, there is nothing to properly get a hold of with a cartridge. Fingers or tweezers are your best option, which would be pretty terrible in really cold, humid, or hot environments I guess.
Mirdarion, i think you're wrong. if you look carefully at 13:20 you can see that the charging handle pin does have a notch. it might be too small to work with a cartridge rim. a spent cartridge should work though
Excellent. Thanks for this look at the Johnson M1941. I have been fascinated with this rifle (and others) ever since I received "The illustrated Encyclopaedia of Firearms (1978), in the mid 80's. That is a book that has so many forgotten weapons in it!!! You made my day mate👍
The 2nd marine parachute battalion was requested and was approved for 650 Johnson 1941 rifles. These guns were received by quarter master in San Diego. The table of organization and equipment for the 1st parachute regiment (formed from the 1,2,3 battalions) lists 242 of those 650. (American Rifleman article July 2019)
Having any type of semi automatic in a time when your enemy was stuck with a late 19th century bolt action rifle was a huge advantage but I believe this rifle is much better than the M1 Garand. That 10 round rotary magazine is a major improvement over 8 round clips that you could get garand thump with and you can use the same stripper clips from the 1903 Springfield.
@@patrickcrosley6179 Patrick, obviously "Spare 15" doesn't have the attention to spare, or he would not have asked the question. Ian was gracious enough to answer the clown.
Seems like it would be easier to bend the barrel with the use of the bayonet or rough treatment that military rifles receive. A M16A1 barrel could be bent by tapping the muzzle on a hard surface a few times. This M1941 seems to have a lot of moving parts to wear or get lost in the field.
This, like the Madsen M47, is one of those rifles that make me question why it wasn't targeted at the civilian market after failing military adoption.
War.
Because most Americans had no use for a 10 shot battle rifle? The SMLEs sold a million or two of them here in the US because they were $10 each.
In the 1950's there were magazine ads for surplus Johnsons for $175.00.
@@oldgysgt That would have made it a $1,500 to $2,000 gun in today's money. I would gladly pay $1,500 for one today in .308 caliber, but back then, it was not a large market.
@@samobispo1527; So would I.
This rifle, specifically the Johnson automatic, means the most to me. It was what my grandfather in WWII was issued as a Marine Paratrooper. He was in Bougainville, Vella la Vella, Guadal canal, and Iwo Jima.
smphillips87 if your grandfather is still alive, please thank him for his service. If he has passed away, you have my sympathies.
Dude he must have been a badass to survive all of that.
He died two years ago. He was 94. He still fit in his Marine’s dress clothes when he died. He was buried in them. They don’t make men like that anymore.
@@sphill_edc I am sorry to hear that.
Your grandpa was a fucking bad ass man. 4 whole battles? Jesus man. I'm glad we had people like that to fight for us. We're all where we are now because of heroes like your grandpa. Thank you.
Considering the USMC went to war with the Springfield 1903 I can see them grabbing any available firepower available.
Not that thing.
Could only function when using lubricated ammunition. In combat lubricated ammunition tends to get dirty and jam the rifle
Daniel Aramburo because they are literaly full coppys of the mauser rifles
Tha last real Springfield rifle with its own action was the trap door one
@@danielaramburo7648 while the 1903 is a good rifle who wouldnt want a semi auto with larger capacity? Particularly when facing the japanese army of the 40's
The M1903 was still a better rifle than the Japanese Type 99.
@@orcinus6802 very late production 99 yes... but trust me you grab an early 99 insted of 1903 if you know both rifles well...
"Enterprising Marines' lol!we hade a acronym when I was in STEAL"Stealthfully Transport Equipment to an Alternate Location"
bigblockchevy454
Reaproperate.......
As all good MARINES do.
Semper Fi !
Today we call it an "undocumented equipment transfer"
Doesn’t the saying go “ gear adrift must be a gift”?
@Therein lies your first problem it was clearly a quarter master error
@Dirk Pitt Hey, nice job with those Japanese robots!
Watching a grown man play with his Johnson is one of my favorite pastimes
I prefer to see a young mans body just being wrecked by a few Johnson’s at a time
Its all about what comes out the end of the Johnson and penetrates a young man in uniform
😂😂😂😂😂🙃😉
@@ExtremiSS88 Johnson was barking up the wrong branch of the military, he should've shilled it to the Navy instead.
I'm sorry... what?
I was in Civil Air Patrol in Red Wing MN as a teenager and a WWII vet Marine came in to do a talk. He described getting a hold of a rifle that he could load single cartridges into that had a rotary magazine. He said he made sure not to turn it in for entire war because the Japanese would count shots from an M1 and pop up while you were reloading. I thought he was full of it until now, this is a very cool video.
Anywhere from 1 to many guys just fired off 8 rounds of .30-06 each..given how loud the round is, I don't think listening for a ping is high on the list.
counting 8 shots is going on the list though. @@akmarksman
@@fredjonson5781 If you have a half dozen men firing, you're not going to be able to count who fired what. I question that.
@@OpenMawProductions Absolutely. On the other hand there are many combat scenarios involving a lot less people than that. Once your down to only 2 or 3 people per side, firing from different positions, then you can count shots and listen better. I've played paintball (woodsball) in games with more than 20 people per team, yet you can still end up one on one or one on two pretty easily, especially in the backwoods areas, or in endgame. In those spots it makes a huge difference if you're facing someone with a tipman 98 vs a tipman 98 with a flatline much less some other type of gun.
@@fredjonson5781 In paintball, you dont have the sheer volume of a gun battle going on around you. Even with 4-6 combatants, if half have .30-06 semi-autos and the other half 8mm rifles, its gonna get really, REALLY loud.
Surprisingly I was able to buy one of these original M1941 Johnson rifles here in Canada a couple years ago. It hasn't been sporterized and has a VERY low serial number, below 2000 and no letter prefix.
Shoots great but the sights don't quite zero perfectly, but this could be due to it being used in the Pacific. The rifle has obviously been used, the stock has a number of dings and scratches and the metal has a nice patina.
I'm sure there aren't many people here in Canada who own one of these AND an M1 Garand as well.
Too bad that here in Canada the 10-round capacity isn't allowed, the magazine has to be pinned to 5 rounds.
Garand is allowed to keep its full 8-round capacity though.
Yes very much so. Thankfully not too much damage besides one small hole drilled to pop in a small rivet to stop the follower at 5 round capacity.... but still will hurt the value if i go to sell it some day. But i doubt I'll ever sell it, unless someone offered an insane amount for it. Haha
I own both in Canada as well. M1941 Johnson Serial number is halfway between 2000 and 3000, no letter prefix. Beautiful condition. Plan on making a video or two this summer for my channel. The M1 Garand is Springfield,1954. I see "Collectors Source has an M1941 for sale at $7500.00. The Johnson and Garand were part of a larger purchase that also included an SVT 38. I have made a video on that one.
Very fine rifle my friend, lucky you! 👍
Oouuuu better not tell your gubbament!
For future reference of anyone with one of these rifles, the way to remove the bolt handle is to grab that pin with the extraction groove of a 30-06 case and hold it between your thumb and the groove. Pull, and slide forward. Easy-peasy.
elitearbor Slick!
BINGO!
While watching the video, I thought that also.
Everytime battlefield releases a new gun Ian pops up with the exact gun years prior
Because the weapons in battlefield are based off real guns
@@felonytaxevasion2773 no shit.
@@felonytaxevasion2773 mind blowing
It actually because everyone starts plugging the algorithm.
Guns aren't real, what are you talking about?
Very good vid. My dad, a WWII Marine aviator with VMB-612, like all aircrew was issued a pistol; in his case a .45. Some time after his squadron assembled on Iwo Jima, several of the ground crew ended up with the Johnson - presumably because the 'Mud' Marines considered the M-1 Garand the superior rifle - due to it's grenade, bayonet and 'club' characteristics, and overall simplicity when compared to the Johnson. I believe the breakdown barrel is the primary reason one of those Johnsons is parked in his gun safe today.
Having owned and shot a nice example of an M1941 for the past 30 years, I can say that it works very well. If you're going to acquire one, be aware that most of the M1941s you'll see were worn out in foreign service and refurbished. Many of these were "sporterized" and then converted back to military configuration. Your first clue is a replaced barrel. Worn guns will usually have a violent action and are often missing parts.
With the bayonet issue,I wonder if they could have used an integral bayonet that folded out?
The idea being that the weight stays the same.
That is a good idea. As long as you know what the weight is going to be, you can tone the system to work with it.
yeah, i was thinking that too- or even a permanently sharp barrel, with a lightweight cover of some sort. Front sightyonet!
+confuseatronica again,a cover would cause the same issue,something like the bayonet on an fg-42 or a swinging bayonet like an sks could have worked very well on this rifle and may have been able to have gotten this adopted alongside the m1 Garand
breech loading and the cartridge killed the bayonet, to me it's a non-issue!!! why they still have that relic in service is beyond me? it would have been a great paratrooper piece!!! and I've heard the arguments for keeping that pig-sticker, the 3 or 4 times a charge has happened since W.W.1 doesn't warrant keeping it!!!
Primary use of the bayonet if for guarding prisoners. While few and far between there have been bayonet charges in the Vietnam War and in Desert Storm for the US.
Got a Gary Johnson ad on a video about the Johnson, coincident, I think not.
:D
I'm Gary Johnson, and I approve of this Johnson.
I got an advert for Grindr on one of Ian's other Johnson videos. Probably just a coincidence though ;)
gary Johnson showed up on our lawn so we had to get weed killer to get rid of him lol
DUDE
WEED
LMAO
I get the feeling this is in my recommended because of the new Battlefield V patch
Me too
Yos
plentyness yep
That's what happens when you get women into games, it get's ruined. Had they made a REALISTIC WW2 game, holy fuck, super duper sales.
RIP BF franchise, politics and broken promises killed you.
Yes Johnson rifles are not well known outside of a small community of historians and collectors. This is why I couldn't understand the rejection and odd reactions when I would ask my shooting buddies if they wanted to check out my Johnson. Thanks Ian for a good informative video on a under rated great rifle.
I feel like one major advantage the M1 has over this is the reload speed. I couldn't possibly see a soldier under duress being able to load the Johnson with a stripper clip as fast as an M1 with its en bloc clip
@@LaatiMafia I always thought that was a poor design feature on the Garand. Why even design the rifle to do that? I always thought someone in the design process should have said 'Wait, as soon as you shove the clip in the bolt releases? Even if your thumb is still there? That sounds stupid. Let's just make the bolt stay locked while you reload then you have to pull back on it to release it or add a button to release it or something." If it made it through the design process it looks like the first test shooter would have come to the same conclusion. When they explained to him "Yeah, shove the clip in and get your thumb out of the way asap because the bolt will close immediately when you push the clip down all the way", it looks like he would have "Wait, you're serious? Why'd you design it that way? Couldn't you have just added a button to push or something?"
@@genxer1 With a little practice, it's fairly easy to avoid getting pinched by the Garand. Mainly because unlike its eventual successor the M16, its charging handle is attached to the bolt carrier group. So what you do is hook your ring and pinky finger over the charging handle as you're pushing the clip home, thus restraining the bolt from closing until your thumb is out of the way.
10 rounds (11 if you start with one in the chamber) beats 8.
Especially when you can top up every 5 or 6 shots without ending up with a pocket full of clips and loose rounds.
@@genxer1 I have owned an M-1 and a 1941 Johnson for a lot of years and never got my thumb pinched.
The M-1 bolt will not release upon inserting an enblock clip, as long as you push down on the clip the bolt stays back.
It's only after the clip is locked in place and the downward pressure is released that the bolt comes forward.
Even than, because of the clamping force of the spring steel clip and the resulting friction on the rounds the charging handle will need a push for the gun to charge the first cartridge.
AND, just in case the bolt comes flying forward, it's shoving the top round into the chamber so there is no room for your thumb to be there, the bolt will simply push your thumb out of the way.
The only way to get Garand thumb is by sticking your thumb into an empty magazine and touching the charging handle.
This always reminds me of what the Krag wanted to be when it grew up.
My grandfather keeps one of these on his mantle, he says he used it during the Revolution
He was talking about Castro's Johnson not the rifle.
Your grandfather keeps his Johnson on the mantle?!
Good lord...
What revolution?
@@LisaAnn777 the cuban one, he fought with Che's column in the Sierra Maestra
Yey! An American rifle that isn't an M1 variant!
Not that i don't like the M1 variants.
well your choice of armor certainly is good but hows your riding?
Dominus Victoriae I lost my mount.......
*sniff* Friedrich was his name........ that french bastard killed him! So i took my mace and gave him something to think about! Then i swore to never ride again.
well nothing wrong with being a zweihander or a walking tank instead of a lancer. and we all dislike the french for their disgusting practice of targeting a warriors greatest companion. That is why we end them rightly with atomic pommels!
the M1 "Garand" ? ... yea ok, i'll give it to you. ... if he'd not been working in America with all those Americans, any rifle he'd have made would probably not have been the M1... and he lived in America since the age of 11.
After all, "Majority Rules".
Yah, almost every American rifle seems to be based pn either the M1 or M16.
My great grandfather was the lead engineer on this project at Johnson / Cranston Arms. He held multiple patents for the parts he designed. He was with Johnson for the hearings in DC as well as a trip to the Marshall Islands. He kept one for himself and used it to hunt deer in Connecticut for years. His name was Horace St Amant
My father was a paramarine in WW2 and carried one. He said it was far superior to the Garand. They also used the Johnson Light Machinegun and H&R Reising submachine guns. He said the Reisings were crap and constantly jammed.
The Reising was a poor combat weapon...functions well under normal conditions like police/guard duty but in filthy combat conditions it was subject to malfunctions.
For anyone looking for a rifle like this today in function as well, you can check out the Fightlight SCR (Previously ARES SCR). They replaced the AR15 buffer and bolt with a modified bolt and a more traditional stock system, but use a spring in that stock to buffer the bolt on a pivot which looks to have been taken directly from the design of the original Johnson bolt that preceeded it. Just goes to show you that the more they change things, the more they stay the same. The SCR was made in response to AWBs and CA's arcane firearm laws, since the SCR is literally just like any other hunting rifle, except it takes AR mags and apart from the bolt, the rest of the upper is stripped directly from an AR-15, and you can buy standalone SCR receivers to convert existing guns or build one yourself
Also used by the US/Canadian First Special Service Force - often referred to as the Devil's Brigade (incorrectly).
I thought that was the Johnson LMG.
@@sethmoyer well, maybe it was both
@@TheTiberianWolf I think it was only the LMG. A deal of 125 Johnny guns for explosives from the USMC.
I have owned a number of Johnson Rifles and I really liked them - but as a competitive shooter I noticed an issue that would have hurt it in combat: The barrel (with the front sight) has to fit exactly within the barrel sleeve to align consistently with the rear sight at the back of the receiver. To function properly, the rifle has to have a smooth fit to keep friction low/resist sand, debris - but that smooth fit makes a very slight difference in the position of the sights in relation to each other.
At the close-in ranges the rifle was carried by the Marines in Guadalcanal, Bougainville, and even Iwo Jima where the rifle saw combat, the ranges were very close so that amount of dispersion would have been negligible. But at greater ranges - 300m and further, the Johnson would have been more of a "to whom it may concern" weapon.
I considered using one of my Johnsons as a competition rifle in a local military rifle match - primarily because of its very smooth and easy reloading during rapid fire stages and to show off - but I couldn't get it to group as well as my M1 or my M1A. Oh well.
Such a unique looking weapon, looks like it would fit in perfectly in the Fallout universe.
A lot of never adopted weapons from the WW1-WW2 time period fit into that category.
Today, every damn gun looks the same.
Wish this outstanding video had been available a few decades ago when I owned one of these. It is a nice rifle. Mine was inherited, shot well but the safety was broken, the lever just rotated 360 without engaging a "safe" position and when firing the trigger 'doubled' discharging properly on a pull but hazardously upon release. Good for rapid fire but a problem if the second discharge was undesired. Sold it for $500 to a friend who was an advanced collector. Hope he was able to correct those flaws.
Early in WW2 the Marines, being at the end of the supply chain, went into the Pacific Theater with 1903 Springfield bolt action rifles still in front line service. The Johnson M1941 would have been a real step up if a Marine could get his hands on one.
This would be really cool to run in a 2-gun action challenge. The ability to easily top off on the run seems like a good feature to leverage. If nothing else, it would be sweet to see if this could hold its own these days.
Does this rifle use Springfield stripper clips?
Yes.
Yeah, strippers are great for a johnson.
I own a Johnson M1941 and I love it! I also own 2 M1 Garand. The M1 had a TON of modification!
this weapon was used by one of the soldiers in the movie Assembly.
not a bad movie, and an interesting rifle.
www.forgottenweapons.com/movie-review-assembly-2007/
Talkin about popular culture, this was also featured in the original Hidden & Dangerous. Probably innthe sequel too.
@@returnofbeaux
STFU!
Nobody cares about a freaking spelling error (out of an 841 word article)!
Is this kind of crap all you can contribute to society?
The Johnson rifle was also used in some episodes of Dr Who in the 70's.
@@stevecolley6750 He was just pointing it out
A suggestion on the removal of the bolt handle. Use the aft end of a cartridge or cartridge casing to pry the pin up on the bolt handle. You can lever the cartridge case on the outer rim of the Bolt Handle, and the handle slides off quite easily. Also, the extractor and the base of the Bolt handle may be used as very light usage screwdrivers.
It really is fantastic to see the history of the mechanical systems in a platform like the ar-15 weather it was Mr Stoner or the people working with him. The ar-15 and ar-10 are fantastic in their simplicity when compared to mechanically complex systems that proceed them. The bolt and bcg in ar platforms seam so basic. But it really does allot of the same things that this Rifle does.
I had a friend that was a career Airborne paratrooper. Being an Army brat myself we had some great conversations. He was part of a training program that went from 1948 through 1950. Their first assignment was a trip to Korea. His unit got the name "Rakasahn". I hope I haven't misspelled this too badly. He liked the Johnson. Unique problems for his unit was jumping out of great planes with everything you might need. He thought a folding stock was needed. His unit had some leeway on equipment not being "Standard Issue". Retired as a Lt. Colonel after being hit in his face and upper body by a land mine in Vietnam.
Ian, you deserve many more subscribers and much more contributions to the channel for all the work you put in. Excellent program.
As a Brothers in Arms 3 fan, it's really cool seeing this gun on your channel.
This is one of the best gun channels on youtube.
I think your wrong, but we all have our opinions.
Please show me a channel that’s better.
Even with being three years later.
@@amazoniancustodian I mean...I said that 3 years ago. Now it's the best.
I was looking forward to an update to the old johnson rifle video and this certainly didn't disappoint!
It looks like a pregnant M1 Garand
I like the simplicity and fewer parts to disassemble and assemble for cleaning, as well as the ease of replacement of burned out barrels and broken extractors. I will add though that with my three years of experience with the Garand I never had a mechanical problem at all. I think that you could get an eight round clip into a Garand as fast as you could get a five round stripper loaded into a Johnson.
After doing some reading about the US Cavalry right at the start of the war, Ive decided that if the Chief of Cavalry had been a better bureaucrat and managed to save some of the Horse Soldiers from the tide of mechanization, THIS would have been the rifle he would have wanted to advocate for.
Easier to load, more ammo, better balanced, better handling; the Johnson's advantages over the Garand are slight, but as a Cavalry/Scout Rifle, it would have been PERFECT.
No words to describe the awesome job you guys do. Thank you!
I am still kicking my self for letting my $55.00 1941 Johnson's go. In Vermont we are limited to 6 rounds for center fire big game rifles. So before going to South Vietnam I sold off my 5 Johnson's. I had bought them thru an add in one of my gun magazines in 1963 for a cost of $55.00 each delivered to my door in Brandon Vermont in a wooden crate with manuals and cleaning kits; plus the little bayonets with sheaths. They were in NRA Excellent rated condition(?). This was my first exposure to cosmo!!!!!!!!
REED POND Best example I’ve heard of Seller’s remorse. Feel sad for you as well.
@@johndix1820 considering they are 8k now yeah i would be kicking myself in the ass better hope the wife never finds out lol.
Never sell your Johnson
Slight correction to Ian’s description of the unlocking moment. The camming surface forces the bolt head to rotate back into line with the bold carrier via a cam machined into the top of the receiver. During initial rearward travel that cam forces the bolt head to rotate/unlock AND pushes the bolt/carrier apart, which acts as an accelerator.
This cam surface in the top of the receiver is why the Johnson had to have its own magazine. The receiver is solid and can’t accommodate an en bloc clip style vertically loaded magazine. That en bloc system was long adopted by the time the Johnson was assembled, had Johnson’s rifle been able to use the same clips it’s possible formal adoption could have been achieved. For example; as a paratrooper rifle.
The amount of Johnson jokes is just fantastic XD
What can I say, people like playing with Johnsons'.....
I’m just here for the comments!
I'm always surprised at how much these guns flex and wobble when fired. Look at the rear sight vibrate, for heaven's sake. Remarkable that they achieve the accuracy that they do.
I feel like m3 carbine, PPK and Chauchat is going to be on my recommendation
My eternal thanks for covering this weapon; a favorite of mine to look at, and even better to learn more about.
Awesome rifle. It seems your opinion has slightly changed since your first review about the Johnson rifle.
I enjoy mine and while I like M1's I think it was every bit it's equal. Superior in some ways and lacking in others. Still an awesome shooter.
a side grade if you will
I have a 41' no letter prefix 4 digit serial and no bolt hold open. The pride of my collection. Well tied for first place with about 3 or 4 others.
Melvin Johnson in the end would get the last laugh over John Garand (in a way). After the closing of his business he teamed the Eugene Stoner and used his designs from the 41' and incorporated them in the AR rifle. His operational mechanism and design is still in use by the military today.
2:17 "Both for himself and for his country"
;_;7
*0*/
Such a cool concept gun. I love Garand, but the engineering of this one is damn cool
Johnson: we can't put a lug 14 inches back on the stock
Marines: bring back the WW1 18 inch Hun Cutter we'll be good
He should have just given it a full length fore end.
@@zacharyrollick6169 that would've made it too heavy and negated the advantage of having a removable barrel.
So his Johnson wasn’t 14”?
One reason (beyond the M-1 was in service) the Government might of been reluctant to adopt this weapon is the large section of naked barrel. Heard it was a fine shooting weapon.
Gear left adrift, consider it a gift.
the first video of the johnson m1941 on forgotten weapons was the first video i watched on this channel! i love seeing this rifle in action
8:07 "...spike bayonet kinda like you'd see in an FG-42 or a French MAS-36...... or a musket from the French and Indian War....."
I’ve never liked the look of the M1 so it’s always nice to see other rifles that can do the same job. Not denying that the M1 was a good rifle, oh boy it was. But I would love to see this in more media
I would love to see reproductions of this gun being made that are of good quality. So many older rifles just have a very cool operating system.
THIS is my Grail Gun, beyond the Luger, the Mauser C-96 "Han Solo" pistol, or even the Krag-Jorgensen. The only one that comes close is the military M1897 Trench Gun, with the extra long bayonet, and even *that* is just a few feet behind this one. This is one helluva rifle. I want one. I NEED one.
You were shooting the rifle right handed. Was that for the camera or is easier to fire right handed?
Just for the camera.
I've been wondering this, but which is more common: Left-handed shooting or Right-handed shooting? I'm wondering because I shoot from my left shoulder.
what do you mean which is more common?
there are a lot more right handed people so naturally a lot more people fire right handed..
"In my view" there are more right handed shooters simply because the world at large is right handed so most but not all firearms are made to be shot right handed. I am left handed and had to adapt. I take the time to learn to shoot any firearm I own from both sides. After 40 plus years of shooting there are firearms I shoot left and some right. Be willing to safely experiment to find what works best for you then practice practice practice and have fun.
Give it a try. You may enjoy learning to shoot all over again
Why is the first few seconds of this video so satisfying!?
I for one demand the return of the universe disassembly tool!!
Every other method clearly is inferior since every gun that need carriages to open needs different cartridges.
So universal disassembly tool all the way!
Why would you want to disassemble the Universe?
@@panzerabwerkanone So you can make a new universe where K-pop doesnt exist.
What a dumb statement!
If you have the weapon, don't you (normally, esp. in a military setting) have the appropriate cartridges that go with it?
Also, universal disassembly tool = Swiss army knife = EVERY tool EXCEPT the one you need.
So if your out of bullets, you don't have a disassembly tool. interesting......
Glad you addressed the numbers built question. Wikipedia and other sources state 70,000 built, but 30,000 or less would be correct. No letter prefix for first 10,000, followed by prefix "A" and "B". No one has shown evidence of a C, D, E or F. Great video as usual Ian. Thanks for the info!
Did you say around 3:40 that some were shipped to Holland or Poland? It was hard to tell
Holland.
Thank you
TBH, a reproduction Johnson chambered in .223/5.56, .308/7.62 NATO, and 7.62x39 with some rails would be a perfect California/Restricted State Gun. It would probably sell well in non-restricted states (assuming it can undercut the AR or offer something that the AR doesn’t) due to the simplicity, cleanliness compared to gas guns, and ease of disassembly, through muzzle brakes, flash hiders, and suppressors could be a problem but still likely work considering you can get away with a suppressor on most pistols.
Marines do love johnsons
You're thinking of Sailors
With that great big long and thick stock I'm surprised the navy did take a poke at that Johnson.
Are mean green spirt can not be defeated
The only thing I saw missing in the disassembly is that I would’ve liked to have a look at the trigger group. I’m assuming it’s a hammer fired rifle based on the firing pin return spring. Then again, assuming has never worked well for me in the past. Great video to learn something from. Thank you sir
Could be that the bolt handle pin is designed to be pulled up with a cartridge rim.
13:13 has anyone tried levering the pin up with a cartridge rim?
This got recommended to me exactly after BFV introduced the gun into the game. I swear DICE take ideas from Ian's channel for weapons to add into the games.
Same lmao
The literally have him in a consulting role. He's in the credits of both bf1 and bf5. So, yes, they do
In fact, I think the sound for the chauchat in bf1 is recorded from Ian's personal collection's choo choo
Whaaaaat
Johnson: short recoil, ten rounds with clip, easy to use, lighter and kiled by soldiers
Garand: *PING*
Military: yeah...we'll take that one thanks
I don't think any of those riffles got shipped to Holland after the fall of the Dutch Indies. The Germans were sort of crawling all over the place a year earlier.
It's funny the US government didn't want infantry to have a detachable box magazine because it would impede prone shooting. Because today, most professional/competition shooters use their detachable box magazines as a monopod for increased accuracy while prone. So it actually is a benefit the government just couldn't understand yet in more than one way. The Johnson SAR was ahead of its time in a lot of ways. Forgotten Weapons is such an awesome channel, thanks for all the information you provide to so many people.
But I guess if you used your Johnson LMG's box magazine as a monopod, you'd have to shoot everything sideways. lol
Ian, thanks for all your hard work. I don't understand why you only have 300k subs while someone who just unboxes new cell phones or whatever, has millions. Anyway, kudos on a great channel.
I am impressed with the Johnson Rifle. Easy to change barrels and the rotory magazine is easier to load.
What would ultimately make me choose an M1 Garand over a Johnson is the distinctive ping from the M1.
The outline of this rifle is so cool and unique, even if it wasn't safe to fire it would make a nice wall hanger.
@Superdude70 I had completely forgotten about this comment.
Nice review … history, hardware, operation. Well done.
So, did a bunch of Marines get these guns early on because they were still using Springfields and hadn't yet been issued the M1?
Yes and marines in ww2 have a tendency to to just grab what ever is available to them or they want and use it. Look at the stinger for another good example of that. Hell the pacific is usually just summarize with aircraft carriers but a lot is usually forgotten by today’s history and military
Interesting rifle. i knew a little abt them from various reading, but had never seen them field stripped or the bolt functioning thoroughly explained. Thank you. I expect the Johnson would have at least a bit better barrel cooling than the Garand, since it has so much exposed and a vented shroud at the rear. Not sure if there is any weight saving, since the Johnson stock is more pot bellied and the magazine drum is larger than the Garand mag. Amazing design though. It is always fascinating to see where preceding designs later led us. Love all your videos. Thank you
BFV just got this as a gun wonder why it's in my inbox
Every time battlefield v has a leaked gun or a gun comes out I always get a video from this channel about the gun on my recommendations
same lmao
Very nice rifle, reminds me of my model 8 35 Remington, I despised mags. Try shooting from a dirt pile
Some Johnson's were issued to specialized Marine Corps units. in WWII. The reports on the dependabilty and performance were all very good.
New bfv gun and now he pops up
*_Thanks UA-cam!_*
The Johnson rifle looks cool.
Is it possible to grab the pin on the charging handle with the rim of a cartridge?
Omnihil777 No, there is nothing to properly get a hold of with a cartridge. Fingers or tweezers are your best option, which would be pretty terrible in really cold, humid, or hot environments I guess.
Mirdarion, i think you're wrong. if you look carefully at 13:20 you can see that the charging handle pin does have a notch. it might be too small to work with a cartridge rim. a spent cartridge should work though
@@spamboli there's nothing on the pin
Good to know that no special lube is required, but do you need to use BOTH hands to work the rim?
Excellent.
Thanks for this look at the Johnson M1941.
I have been fascinated with this rifle (and others) ever since I received "The illustrated Encyclopaedia of Firearms (1978), in the mid 80's.
That is a book that has so many forgotten weapons in it!!!
You made my day mate👍
Well well well I get this in my recommandations right after it gets added to BFV, what a coincidence :D
The 2nd marine parachute battalion was requested and was approved for 650 Johnson 1941 rifles. These guns were received by quarter master in San Diego. The table of organization and equipment for the 1st parachute regiment (formed from the 1,2,3 battalions) lists 242 of those 650. (American Rifleman article July 2019)
16:14 HEY, Ian is left handed and always shoots lefty.
That quick change of the barrel is amazing!
I remember this gun from the movie “assembly” about the Chinese civil war.
Having any type of semi automatic in a time when your enemy was stuck with a late 19th century bolt action rifle was a huge advantage but I believe this rifle is much better than the M1 Garand. That 10 round rotary magazine is a major improvement over 8 round clips that you could get garand thump with and you can use the same stripper clips from the 1903 Springfield.
Isn't there also a LMG version of the M1941?
Yes.
he said that in the video
@@patrickcrosley6179
Patrick, obviously "Spare 15" doesn't have the attention to spare, or he would not have asked the question.
Ian was gracious enough to answer the clown.
What a neatly designed rifle. Thank's for your no nonsense style of narrating, Ian.
I wonder how far their full auto variant results led to?
The Johnson was also used by the 1st special forces group in limited numbers.
Seems like it would be easier to bend the barrel with the use of the bayonet or rough treatment that military rifles receive. A M16A1 barrel could be bent by tapping the muzzle on a hard surface a few times. This M1941 seems to have a lot of moving parts to wear or get lost in the field.
Bfv released this gun and gun jesus done this years prior
Appreciate the thorough sections on function and field stripping ❗👍🏼