First to the Fight: The Marines' Reising M50 SMG

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  • čas přidán 3. 11. 2022
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    Eugene Reising developed a .45 ACP submachine gun in the late 1930s that was basically the opposite of the Thompson - it was light and handy, fired from a closed bolt with a delayed blowback action, and was inexpensive to produce. Reising contracted with Harrington & Richardson to produce the gun, and when it entered the market in early 1940 it found immediate interest form the USMC. Looking initially to equip the Marine Paratroop Regiment (Paramarines), the Corps wanted a gun that was light and compact. The Reising M55 with it folding stock was certainly those things and since the Thompson was essentially unavailable anyway (all production was going to the Army and foreign contracts), the Corp adopted the Reising with initial purchases of both the M50 and M55 in January and February of 1942.
    What we are looking at today is an early production M50. It is blued with 29 barrel fins and the early style of sights, stock screw, trigger guard, magazine release, stock (the lacquer coating and sling swivels having been added by a previous owner), and firing pin. Later production guns would be improved and strengthened in various ways, but the Reising would never quite meet the needs of frontline combat troops, much to the displeasure of the Marines who first used them in the Pacific theater. Lacking interchangeable parts and susceptible to fouling and malfunctions, the Reisings were quickly replaced by other arms - some Johnson M1941 rifles, some M1 and M1A1 carbines, and various other guns. Rotated back to duties like ship boarding parties, guards, and military police, the Reising served very well. They were indeed handy and accurate guns, just not built for the extreme rigors of Pacific beach assaults and jungle foxholes.
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Komentáře • 622

  • @Garrumx
    @Garrumx Před rokem +1174

    An SMG with 12 round mags. Someone was an Elbonian procurement officer before joining the marines.

    • @ricardokowalski1579
      @ricardokowalski1579 Před rokem +211

      plus non-interchangeable parts... peak elbonian.

    • @markdavis180
      @markdavis180 Před rokem +62

      I'm trying to figure out how that would be a good idea, maybe as like a police carbine?

    • @themastermason1
      @themastermason1 Před rokem +90

      ​@@markdavis180 Most likely. I wouldn't be surprised if police were thinking in base six because of revolvers.

    • @ricardokowalski1579
      @ricardokowalski1579 Před rokem +89

      @@markdavis180 A weapon like this, which is poorly suited for dirty conditions, would be ideal for police in small urban areas under threat by guerrillas.
      If the gun is captured or lost (ejem!), the rough life of insurgency would render them unusable quickly. The lack of interchangeable parts would also be a plus.. only in this sense.
      OTHER THAN THAT as a consideration... it is a very difficult sell.
      My 2 cents.... respectfully.

    • @hondolane3125
      @hondolane3125 Před rokem +38

      @@themastermason1 I think you may have revealed the secret. 12 rounds in base six is ..... 20!

  • @a.r.m.4you182
    @a.r.m.4you182 Před rokem +1273

    I was shocked to see this SMG in the series "The Pacific" over the Thompson. Someone was paying attention to detail though. Neat, simple rifles.

    • @chuckmangione4747
      @chuckmangione4747 Před rokem +56

      Was the Reising in that show? I don’t remember seeing it but definitely remember seeing the Thompson.

    • @corey3606
      @corey3606 Před rokem +83

      ​@@chuckmangione4747 They start to use Thompsons a couple episodes in, after the army lands.

    • @mr.seaotter-1429
      @mr.seaotter-1429 Před rokem +48

      @@chuckmangione4747 During Guadalcanal Campaign, If I'm remember correctly. Duo with Early Pattern Thompsons.

    • @ForgottenWeapons
      @ForgottenWeapons  Před rokem +509

      The Pacific did a really good job with technical details.

    • @bannedbycommieyoutube5time920
      @bannedbycommieyoutube5time920 Před rokem +98

      Also with stealing the Army’s supplies, using M1903’s and talking about WWI rations. Did a good job showing the Army was better equipped overall.

  • @ArmaliteSpade
    @ArmaliteSpade Před rokem +536

    My greatuncle was a Paramarine killed on Gavutu. For whatever reason, there's not a ton of great sources on the Paramarines I've been able to buy, with the only book I have being "Battalion of the Damned" (plus some Marine Corps docs), which I got 'cause my uncle's mentioned in it a few times. Anyway, according to that when the M55 first went into combat the Paramarines didn't really have the Johnson yet, except for some automatic rifles procured privately, and a lot of guys still carried the 1903 because even then they couldn't get enough Reisings (not that those guys minded, the issues with the M55 were known before they landed). And the fireteam was still based around the BAR until after Guadalcanal. The TOE changes to all auto guns came later. Before landing (I think when they were in NZ) some of the Marines figured out a way to modify some spring around the trigger group that greatly reduced the main failure to feed problem and increased reliability greatly, but they didn't have enough springs to fix everything before Guadalcanal. In the book it's mentioned a bunch of Marines armed with M55s acquired M1911s from the Navy on USS Haywood to supplement.

    • @BigWheel.
      @BigWheel. Před rokem +14

      Sorry, I'm not familiar with "TOE" Whats that mean exactly?

    • @Wolfshead009
      @Wolfshead009 Před rokem +31

      @@BigWheel. Table Of Equipment

    • @NemoBlank
      @NemoBlank Před rokem +50

      @@BigWheel. Table of Organization and Equipment. It's the officially ordained description of a formation's arms, equipment and manpower.

    • @karuskaltugov1992
      @karuskaltugov1992 Před rokem +3

      I would like to read more about the Reising modification, do you have any links to the sources?

    • @MichaelKingsfordGray
      @MichaelKingsfordGray Před rokem +2

      You lie about your name!
      Why should anyone believe you?

  • @AllAboutSurvival
    @AllAboutSurvival Před rokem +475

    I heard those things actually work pretty well in cleaner, drier environments, they just flopped in the pacific because of the humidity and dirt inherent to jungle warfare.

    • @chitoryu12
      @chitoryu12 Před rokem +48

      They can't really handle any environment worse than civilian policing. They're difficult to disassemble and clean and the open bolt slot right where you have to put your hand is a big danger to your fingers.

    • @Del_S
      @Del_S Před rokem +46

      @@chitoryu12 Yeah, a good reminder that most things are built and tested in nice clean labs and workshops by people who theoretically know how it works, and if you skip the next step of testing something will go wrong.

    • @murasame5071
      @murasame5071 Před rokem +15

      that as good as not working at all
      guns who dont work in shit conditions are guns that dont work.

    • @Jreb1865
      @Jreb1865 Před rokem +15

      12 round mags don't help...

    • @stevejohnson6248
      @stevejohnson6248 Před rokem +35

      I heard the same thing, from Ian, in this video.

  • @BeoZard
    @BeoZard Před rokem +197

    There is a magazine article from 1940/41 that went into great deal of detail about the Reising and its production. In the article it was stated the machine tools used to make the gun were 75 years old. That dates them to the end of the Civil War.

    • @johnplaid648
      @johnplaid648 Před rokem +6

      @@MichaelJohnson-tw7dq Yay! That's it! Stick it to 'em. Ask for documentation. When I completed my first AR-15 I was shocked on how flimsy it was. Then I thought, "Can you do better?" Then I thought that the AR-15 was never meant to be the Winchester pre '64 of the Eugene Stoner series.

    • @johnplaid648
      @johnplaid648 Před rokem +2

      @@MichaelJohnson-tw7dq And, so far, he has not responded so he stuck it to you,

    • @BeoZard
      @BeoZard Před rokem +38

      @@MichaelJohnson-tw7dq Popular Science, April 1941, Walter Holbrook

    • @Chopstorm.
      @Chopstorm. Před rokem +15

      @@johnplaid648 Yikes.

    • @ThePointblank
      @ThePointblank Před rokem +19

      @Fred brandon It also means that the tools could be pretty worn out, and thus production tolerances could be very loose as a result. Hence the need to hand finish and to individually fit parts for a complete gun. Not good in a mass production environment because that hand finishing takes a lot of time and manpower.

  • @George-vf7ss
    @George-vf7ss Před 9 měsíci +47

    My dad was in the 2nd Marines in WW2. Guadalcanal, Tarawa and Siapan. He carried this rifle. I asked him what he thought about it. He said, "Good enough," And if I wanted something else, once things got hot, there were plenty of other guns just laying around, next to the dead guys."

  • @bobjones5674
    @bobjones5674 Před rokem +36

    The Reising really is the perfect example of why guns that work great in the civilian context don't always measure up to being pressed into military context. Many people question why new firearms technology can take decades to go from commercially available to military adoption, and the Reising is a great example of what happens when a design that isn't fully matured and hardened for rough use is dragged into combat.

  • @MrGrimsmith
    @MrGrimsmith Před rokem +321

    The tale of the Reising shows some of the reasons why extended military trials exist - because someone's been bitten by it in the past. It sounds as though with some relatively minor changes it could have been a really good fit for the purpose but it was a solid performer despite that.

    • @jamessimpson4577
      @jamessimpson4577 Před rokem +28

      They didn’t have time. It’s that simple. They did well to get them what they had in sufficient quantity.

    • @johndaniels1197
      @johndaniels1197 Před rokem +9

      In addition to modifying the design of the gun itself, the entire manufacturing process needed to be overhauled from the ground up to produce tightly toleranced interchangeable parts and proper quality control. In order for the gun to actually be combat-ready in 1941, they would've needed to start this whole process in like 1934, when nobody in America was really seriously concerned about a war yet. Not only did they not have time, if they had started appropriately early finding the funding to actually do everything right would've been almost impossible.

    • @jamessimpson4577
      @jamessimpson4577 Před rokem +6

      @@johndaniels1197
      Then there’s the ‘unintended consequences’ aspect of any kind of revamp: ‘well, we fixed that, but now this other thing is screwed as a result’.
      So at the end of the day it seems to me they did the right thing by sticking with what they had.

    • @johndaniels1197
      @johndaniels1197 Před rokem +6

      ​@@jamessimpson4577 The right thing would've been to get properly re-armed with modern weapons during the interwar years so that crap like this doesn't happen. Short-sightedness and budget pinching stopped that.

    • @itsconnorstime
      @itsconnorstime Před rokem +3

      Even the most rugged and proven designs would struggle in the conditions of the Pacific war.

  • @jeremyspangenberg957
    @jeremyspangenberg957 Před rokem +84

    I was in a gun shop in Arizona years ago and got talking about WWII military arms (they had a lot of M1 carbines on display) and ended up talking about SMGs and the owner says check this out and goes in the back and brings out a m60 varient and hands it to me to look at. I've thought about that gun for years and could never remember what it was called but I could remember the unique charging "handle", thank you so much for this video the name if this gun has been bugging me for literally years

  • @Inflorescensse
    @Inflorescensse Před rokem +42

    I’ve got an original marine build!
    It almost never has issues if you grind down the rear of the firing pin a few mm to prevent tip breakage and clean it every 300 rnds.
    875rpm with Winchester whitebox. 4-5 inch groups at 100m on semi.

  • @carlinglin7289
    @carlinglin7289 Před rokem +60

    The Reising epitaph should be "I coulda been a contender!" It had a lot of good points. It just needed a couple years of rigorous testing and tweaking to make it more reliable, and it didn't have that time.

    • @scottpeters371
      @scottpeters371 Před rokem +4

      Same epitaph the Johnson 1941 could have had.

    • @88porpoise
      @88porpoise Před rokem +1

      It might have been able to be better than the Thompson, but that is a pretty low bar.
      The cheap mass-produced guns (such as the M3) would have replaced it still.

    • @sandemike
      @sandemike Před 9 měsíci

      Shades of the SA80.

  • @nickg4422
    @nickg4422 Před rokem +61

    My grandpa was in the 2nd Para-marine battalion. They weren’t at Guadalcanal, but deployed to Bougainville. He carried a Garand there, and also at Iwo Jima after the unit was dissolved and he was reassigned to the 5th.

    • @BullittGT40
      @BullittGT40 Před rokem +3

      Funny, my Grampy served with the 5th at Iwo Jima. I can't imagine the shit they saw, bad enough he never talked about it to his kids or us grandchildren.

    • @nickg4422
      @nickg4422 Před rokem +6

      My grandpa didn’t have a problem talking about Iwo Jima…sort of. Their officer and NCO’s all got hit in the first two days…he wouldn’t really talk about that part. A few days later, he was leading a section on patrol as a 17 year old pfc. They got cut off by a machine gun nest, so he charged it to draw their fire while the rest of the guys escaped. They got out clean; he got out with half a 7.7 round that ricocheted stuck in his skull. It was still there even when I was a kid. That’s about the only story he’d be willing to share from Iwo Jima…and that’s just because we all knew about it already from the newspaper stories and the medal citations.

  • @stevenparsons4464
    @stevenparsons4464 Před rokem +40

    In the day I interviewed Para Marines and Marine Raider veterans. They liked the Reising for its utility. They also talked about group cleaning policy and parts interchangeability issues you brought up.

    • @jeremybriggs1707
      @jeremybriggs1707 Před rokem +3

      Every Marine ive spoken to that was issued a Riesing said they were absolutely shit, they would rather heft the extra weight of the Thompson because it also ment a good weapon

  • @ericmitchell985
    @ericmitchell985 Před rokem +86

    I've always liked the Reising - I really think it could've been a nice gun with a bit more R&D, particularly with how it field strips.

    • @vitis65
      @vitis65 Před rokem +8

      Sturdier mags with stronger feed lips would have been a huge improvement and not too hard to do.

    • @vitis65
      @vitis65 Před rokem +5

      Ever hold a grease gun mag? Built like a tank!

  • @brandonha
    @brandonha Před rokem +66

    I have the 22 trainer version of this. Serial number “002” and it’s clearly in the prototype stage
    Its slightly different than the later leatherneck rifles, the stocks dint fit, and the magwells are not interchangeable
    Next time Ian comes up to film in Canada id be happy to make it available.

    • @drrisen-9442
      @drrisen-9442 Před rokem +1

      @@garmancathotmailcom It’s a historical artifact, and it isn’t scary looking.

    • @brandonha
      @brandonha Před rokem +1

      @@drrisen-9442 history doesnt matter to the lawmakers here anymore. This generation will be the last to own any handguns barring a change in law by subsequent governments. This includes artifacts from the wars.
      Your grandfather may have taken it off a nazi during the liberation of the Netherlands, or off juno beach. Your kid can’t inherit it. Either it gets welded up or smelted down.
      Its an attack on Americangun culture bogeynen directed at the most law abiding segment of the Canadian population as a theatrical vote grab from uninformed voters.

    • @stefanmolnapor910
      @stefanmolnapor910 Před rokem +4

      Email him!

    • @Gameprojordan
      @Gameprojordan Před rokem +2

      @@garmancathotmailcom it's an old .22lr rifle with a proprietary magazine. The Canadian government doesn't go after those, even with the new BS laws they've put in place recently they're still safe

  • @m2hmghb
    @m2hmghb Před rokem +44

    My dad was issued one of those when he started working for corrections in the late 70s. The M50 was their "wall" gun

  • @nucleargrizzly1776
    @nucleargrizzly1776 Před rokem +40

    When I was a little kid I remember those being sold in The Shotgun News for $295. All NFA rules applied of course.

    • @Stevarooni
      @Stevarooni Před rokem +9

      $485+S&H ain't bad for a slice of history!

    • @ethanwiley7605
      @ethanwiley7605 Před rokem +11

      I have a 1955 edition of American Rifleman and they had everything from johnson rifles to gewher 43's for like $50-$80 and even a British contract 1911 in .455 webley for only $30. Theres so many cool guns in there that are so expensive today, like that $30 1911 is only $332 in todays money which youd never see a gun like that go for anymore

    • @nucleargrizzly1776
      @nucleargrizzly1776 Před rokem +5

      @@ethanwiley7605 I remember thinkin $295 was crazy because between the tax stamp, sales tax and dealer fees the price was more than doubled.

    • @sharonrigs7999
      @sharonrigs7999 Před rokem +3

      @@ethanwiley7605 I inherited a British 1911 many years ago. I foolishly sold it because .455 Webley Auto brass was nearly impossible to find in the pre internet days.

    • @brettbaker5599
      @brettbaker5599 Před rokem +1

      In 1994, I bought a Mk. II Sten for $700. J&G had a couple Reisings for $400. Wish I'd bought one of those, too!

  • @jacknelson8601
    @jacknelson8601 Před rokem +12

    Years ago I worked for a police department that had three of these M-50s........but only had two 12 round magazines. Our chief carried one of the guns and one of the magazines in the trunk of his car. That left two guns in the arms room with only a single 12 round magazine between them. Ah.....the good ole days!

  • @Killjoy2071
    @Killjoy2071 Před rokem +39

    My department (Mass State Police) used the M60 semi auto carbine for many years, until the 1970s. They also used the Thompson and the M1 carbine.

    • @jeffkaczmarek3577
      @jeffkaczmarek3577 Před rokem

      Being a blue costume wearing gun grabber who has suckled at the teats of the taxpayers since his first day at the academy is not something you should be proud of.

    • @wingracer1614
      @wingracer1614 Před rokem +5

      I know the VA State Police had at least one actual M50 at some point. I know because I got a call from the ATF wanting to know why a dealer in NV was trying to do a transfer for one to a customer when their records showed it as ours. Fortunately we were able to figure it out and ATF approved the transfer. It seems when the ATF rules came down, someone at the state police registered it with the ATF not realizing that it had already been sold and whoever bought it, also registered it during the amnesty so it got double registered and no one caught it until then.

  • @aaronskuse2207
    @aaronskuse2207 Před rokem +8

    The best part of waking up isn’t Folgers coffee, it’s Forgotten Weapons with Ian.

  • @KnifeChatswithTobias
    @KnifeChatswithTobias Před rokem +8

    Reising Gunner: this 12 round magazine sucks!
    M1903 Rifleman: Uh... only 5 rounds here!

  • @nekobyoneko444
    @nekobyoneko444 Před rokem +19

    Gotta say I love gun history and how surprisingly small the gun world is. I have a H&R 999 and seeing the Reising magazine learning they manufactured Reising SMGs, FALs and M14s it's neat to say the least.

  • @marvindebot3264
    @marvindebot3264 Před rokem +40

    Sounds like they made over 100k of them so that's not a small amount really, especially for Mr Riseing at $2 a throw; 200 grand was a heck of a lot of dosh in the 1940s. IIRC the coast guard kept these for many years and was quite happy with them. Prisons were the other big user.

    • @Crawdaddly
      @Crawdaddly Před rokem +4

      200 grand is almost $3.3 million in todays money when adjusted for inflation, so I’d say he was living nicely

  • @gooondie
    @gooondie Před rokem +8

    This is crazy. I was just watching The Pacific last night and caught sight of an M50. I immediately searched for a video on it, and couldn’t find anything good. God bless this channel.

  • @jefferyvollers2705
    @jefferyvollers2705 Před rokem +11

    In the 1970's, my father was a police officer in Durham NC. He told me that the armory still had several of the 50 style Reising machine guns and he was able to shoot a mag. through one. He said it worked fine.

  • @armedmage
    @armedmage Před rokem +7

    Been playing a lot of Enlisted recently and I love how it has many of the lesser known guns that saw action in WW2, including the Reising. It's had me revisiting a lot of the Forgotten Weapons videos.

  • @kystartilleriet0270
    @kystartilleriet0270 Před rokem +14

    For instance the norwegian sea home guard used it until the mid 60s and it was quite popular among them because of its accuracy🙂

  • @garrettrizzo9869
    @garrettrizzo9869 Před rokem +14

    Your M55 video is what introduced me to your channel. Thanks for the years of great content, Ian!

  • @WindFireAllThatKindOfThing

    There's no story I love more than legends about some beancounter O-7 deciding to cut magazine sizes down to 'reduce ammunition consumption'.
    Which is a good way to reduce personnel costs, because once combat is over, you will definitely have fewer personnel left.

  • @about10ninjas
    @about10ninjas Před rokem +6

    The gun quickly became despised by front-line Marines, and Lieutenant Colonel Merritt A. Edson, Commander, 1st Marine Raider Battalion, ordered that his troops' Reisings be flung into Guadalcanal's crocodile-infested Lunga River, as his troops resorted to reliable bolt-action Springfield rifles.

  • @brianhall4182
    @brianhall4182 Před rokem +9

    There must be some sort of alternate reality where the Reising and Johnson became the US's ubiquitous WW2 guns instead of the Garand and Thompson.

  • @DDTMUKA
    @DDTMUKA Před rokem +12

    I have heard that some modest numbers of these M50 had been paradropped (by Polish 1586 Special Operation Squadron or other allis units) as supplies for Polish underground Home Army during WWII.

  • @Jfb-so8xj
    @Jfb-so8xj Před rokem +4

    Lmao I love that Ian didn't even attempt to pronounce 'Worcester' (also spelled wrong as "WORCFSTER") when reading the markings

  • @kenibnanak5554
    @kenibnanak5554 Před rokem +3

    In 1979 some of the GSA/FPS units pulled in to serve at the Ft. Indiantown Gap refugee center arrived with Reisings and Thompsons because they had been told to bring them (for unknown reason). After a week or two the guns were sent back to the different regions they came from and were probably destroyed in the 80s when FPS began torching weapons it felt weren't needed anymore.

  • @sanitater3271
    @sanitater3271 Před rokem +4

    My local RSL here in Australia has one of these in display, I always thought they looked quite iconic to the pictures of US Marines they also had.

  • @paulm7842
    @paulm7842 Před rokem +7

    One of the additional uses for these guns was equipping guerrilla units. There's at least one picture of Iliff David Richardson (of "They Were Expendable" and "American Guerrilla in the Philippines" fame) with a Model 50.

  • @untermench3502
    @untermench3502 Před rokem +1

    The Reising M 50 was also issued to OSS in Europe. My father, who was 82nd Airborne assigned to the OSS said the Reising was a piece of crap.

  • @535tony
    @535tony Před rokem +1

    I bought my Reising M50 in 1990. It was one of the last ones made in 1957, the year I was born. It came with the 12 round magazine and 12 round magazine housing. I replaced the magazine housing with a 20 round magazine housing. The 30 round magazines were made by a guy named Ken Christy in the early 90’s. They are good magazines, I have three of them and they fit in the M3 grease gun 3 mag pouch. I like my Reising. It has a distinctive sound while shooting. Just a unique SMG.

    • @Inflorescensse
      @Inflorescensse Před rokem +1

      Ive also got a ‘57 and some Ken Christies also. They work great! Ive got an extra barrel too, I have a secret dream of putting my Omega can on it sone day. Have you ever considered it or heard anyone doing so?

    • @535tony
      @535tony Před rokem

      @@Inflorescensse No I have a can on my M10/45.

  • @ben501st
    @ben501st Před rokem +3

    The first to the fight and the last to procurement. Semper Fi!

  • @bad74maverick1
    @bad74maverick1 Před rokem +2

    Another fun fact, model 60's were also used in combat being acquired for the marines. There are a few pics out there showing marines carrying model 60's, and at least two different marines carrying model 60's with the barrel sawn off.
    Another fun fact is if you want an additional mag and want something more than 20 rounds, 45 ACP UZI mags both original and reproduction will work in a Reising if you drill a new mag lock hole. The .45 UZI mags are based on the Reisings mags. That's also why you see aftermarket 30 round mags.

  • @Getpojke
    @Getpojke Před rokem +15

    Nice looking gun; shame they didn't get a chance to iron out the creases before throwing it in at the deep end. Really looking forward to tomorrow to see how it handles.

  • @BobSmith-dk8nw
    @BobSmith-dk8nw Před rokem +1

    Thanks Ian. That was interesting.
    My Dad was on Turnstile Duty at Bremerton during WWII where he was trained on and equipped with a Reising.
    .

  • @darvinclement3250
    @darvinclement3250 Před rokem +1

    I've got a couple of American Rifleman issues from WW II and one of them has an article on the Reising. There is also a full page "add" for it that says "Putting big red holes in little yellow men."

  • @akaJughead
    @akaJughead Před rokem +32

    When I was on the JROTC rifle team in the late 90s, we had many different brands of 22 single shot rifles in our armory. They were all pretty old, and starting to become unreliable. The Harrington and Richardson models however always worked the best, and rarely ever had a malfunction.

    • @Crustyguns
      @Crustyguns Před 9 měsíci

      How does a single shot 22 malfunction?

    • @JJ-eg4zm
      @JJ-eg4zm Před 9 měsíci

      ​​@@CrustygunsLight strikes, cases not ejecting and getting stuck, basically any malfunction that isn't a failure to feed can still happen to a single shot.

  • @GeorgiaNFA
    @GeorgiaNFA Před 4 měsíci

    I am lucky enough to own a Reising M50 and it is one of the most fun guns to shoot. I have one 20 round magazine and five of the 12 rounders. The only malfunctions I have ever had is out of two of the 12 round mags having worn springs. People forget that most weapons at the time had a mag capacity of 5 or 10 rounds. In semi, 12 rounds out of this being used like a semi-auto carbine would have probably seemed like decent capacity. The M1 Carbine only carried 15 rounds and would probably have been seen as filling a similar niche'

  • @stevenlowe3245
    @stevenlowe3245 Před rokem +2

    My dad carried the paratrooper folding stock model stateside and said they were absolute junk. Constant jamming, small magazine. He loved his Johnson Rifle though.

  • @paleoph6168
    @paleoph6168 Před rokem +3

    Nice to see Ian make a video on this gun again.

  • @gre3nishsinx0Rgold4
    @gre3nishsinx0Rgold4 Před rokem +7

    I like the Reising. As much like the M3 grease gun. It's problems could have been easily fixed and improved upon with further development. But alas it never went there. Still neat though

  • @user-ej4eq5im4r
    @user-ej4eq5im4r Před rokem +2

    Couldn't wait to see you review it!

  • @joshmeads
    @joshmeads Před rokem +3

    It's looks alot better than the folding stock version!

  • @Ashcrash82
    @Ashcrash82 Před rokem +2

    That video on the M55 was the only reason I noticed a certain .22 rifle on consignment at my LGS a few years back. The rifle was in a rack with the top side facing away, and I noticed the odd semi oval hole in the bottom of the forestock. I did a double take and thought hmmm, I've seen that before somewhere....It turned out to be an H&R - Reising Model 65, built for the Marines as a trainer for the M1 Garand in 44-45. Mine is unfortunately a late enough example (8000 range serial #) that it is not likely to have been actually issued to the Marines, but the gun is absolutely identical to those that were.

  • @2KCamaroZ28SS
    @2KCamaroZ28SS Před rokem +3

    We have one of these in the armory at the police department I work at. Really neat piece of history we bring out on range days from time to time. I guess the department has had it for a really long time that was procured from the military. It still fires on auto. Sweet piece of history.

  • @Craptacular77
    @Craptacular77 Před rokem +2

    5:50 Small factual correction, the Model 60 had an 18.25" barrel, not 16". The NFA wasn't modified to allow 16"-barreled title I rifles until the early 50's.

  • @RichardGoth
    @RichardGoth Před rokem

    Great video, you really got into the detail about the rust and interchangeability issues.

  • @alexriley55
    @alexriley55 Před rokem +9

    Love this Gun in the Pacific campaign for enlisted.

    • @laski-salonen2573
      @laski-salonen2573 Před rokem +3

      Im usually on the reseaving end of it, so I dont like it as much

    • @alexriley55
      @alexriley55 Před rokem +1

      @@laski-salonen2573 Japanese SMGs are really good less recoil to.

  • @mikepette4422
    @mikepette4422 Před rokem +3

    was always a little fascinated with the reising its just a cool looking gun i guess esp the model 55 with the bad wire stock

  • @spasticjackson9578
    @spasticjackson9578 Před rokem +2

    That thing is awesome !

  • @davidmcleod6032
    @davidmcleod6032 Před rokem +8

    I knew a retired Alabama State Trooper who had some tales to tell about a Reising he was issued in the fifties back when one trooper might work alone covering three or four counties.
    He said it was a great attention getter when called for the Friday night fights at the local tonks.
    Tonks=the basis for honky tonks minus the honkys

  • @joshuataft5541
    @joshuataft5541 Před rokem +8

    I want a ruger pistol caliber carbine ..the older I get the more I like traditional stocks..I started on shotguns as most kids in my area for bird and deer hunting on a budget so a small traditional stock jst feels right..I wish it was more common to have an AR like that but I know not without piston operation...love ya Ian ❤️👑

    • @corey3606
      @corey3606 Před rokem

      You might already be aware but if you want a traditional stock on an ARish platform, lookup the FiteLite SCR

    • @mattfleming86
      @mattfleming86 Před rokem

      Seconded on the SCR.
      I've always wanted to build a marksman style fitelite, and i'm in a free state.

  • @Jo.A.
    @Jo.A. Před rokem +2

    crazy, I literally just learned about this weapon yesterday and today it shows up here

  • @MG_Sid
    @MG_Sid Před rokem +2

    12446 isn't that early. I have a 6xx serial # Reising. ;)
    One thing about these Reisings, it is known for is the firing pin breaking due to it being bent between the hammer and bullet primer. There is flex firing causing metal fatigue and the pins would eventually break. Modification (modern modification someone did to Reisings) is to convert the firing pin to be a inertia driven firing pins. This is done by filing the back of the firing pin so it is a tad shorter and stop the compression between the hammer and the primer. The hammer would hit the pin and cause it to thrust forward, setting off the round. At no time the front and back has contact at the same time.

  • @michaelholmes3724
    @michaelholmes3724 Před rokem +2

    Love my M50. Mines part of the 3rd Marine Corps contract and it’s a transitional model based off features. I have the best results with 20 round mags. Every 12 round and repro 30s I’ve had feeding issues

  • @storytimedavidcollins2897

    Thanks again Ian.
    Once again you have brought us another very interesting piece of history.

  • @robertgoyette5863
    @robertgoyette5863 Před rokem +2

    no interchangeable parts, prone to dirt jamming, complicated take down, weak finish=forgotten weapon

  • @ripvanwinkle2002
    @ripvanwinkle2002 Před rokem +10

    i know its flawed and the tommy gun is the star but ive always wanted a Reising
    they "used to be" the "affordable" NFA weapon in the 1980s and i lusted after them but never could get enough money together when one was for sale..
    now i cant even glance at the price of one without getting sick in my mouth.

    • @majorpwner241
      @majorpwner241 Před rokem

      The NFA needs to fall so all machineguns go down to their actual value (scarcely more than semi autos). Your story is just further proof that the NFA is designed to keep autos only in the hands of the wealthy.

    • @vitis65
      @vitis65 Před rokem

      Yep. Current prices are around $9.5-10.5k. A few years ago they were $6-6.5k.

    • @ripvanwinkle2002
      @ripvanwinkle2002 Před rokem

      @@vitis65 when i was eyeing them i think they were in the 1k range though my memory isnt what it was in the 80s

  • @markyoung2981
    @markyoung2981 Před rokem +2

    Very nice presentation, interesting information. Thank you for your time posting this excellent content.

  • @ypaulbrown
    @ypaulbrown Před rokem

    Ian, very in-depth as usual...lots of great information, cheers from Florida, Paul

  • @ketchman8299
    @ketchman8299 Před rokem +9

    Question for a Q&A- Resing or Thompson, which would Ian rather have in battle.

    • @k3D4rsi554maq
      @k3D4rsi554maq Před rokem

      Indeed! An important question.

    • @wingracer1614
      @wingracer1614 Před rokem

      Can he vote for none of the above?

    • @ketchman8299
      @ketchman8299 Před rokem

      @@wingracer1614 No, the question is which of those 2 only.

    • @wingracer1614
      @wingracer1614 Před rokem +2

      @@ketchman8299 Then he's not going to be happy answering you. I can tell you what he will say. Of just those two, he'll take the thompson but would much prefer an MP40 or Beretta

    • @ketchman8299
      @ketchman8299 Před rokem

      @@wingracer1614 Sir, when I want YOUR opinion on Ian's thoughts and preference's I will address that question to you. Until then I will continue to adress my questions on Ian's thoughts in a manner such as I previously did. Thank you for your concern.

  • @cammobunker
    @cammobunker Před rokem +5

    The book "Battle Cry" by Leon Uris is a fictional story, but it uses many experiences that the author experienced as a Marine in WW2. He documents the Reising being issued to radiomen and their experiences with it. It was clearly not well liked even before entering combat, and the gun comes in for a lot of hate from the (fictional) characters. It was a fine second line arm, but was really not suitable for combat conditions. A 12 round magazine is clearly not of much use in a combat submachine gun, but it's fine for guards, boarding parties, MP units, rear security troops, etc. When kept clean the guns actually worked well, but it was not suitable for the role it was originally handed.

  • @aethertech
    @aethertech Před rokem +3

    We need an H&R history video.

  • @deciBit
    @deciBit Před rokem +2

    Never heard of this gun before. Thank you for an excellent video, and I'm definitely gonna see that shooting video.

  • @randalldunkley1042
    @randalldunkley1042 Před 8 měsíci

    In the 1980's there was a large quantity of M-50 carbines released by the Illinois Prison system. These were sold by a fellow by the name of Perry. They were $125.00 each plus the $200 tax stamp to own one. We had about five in circulation in my area. They were an interesting gun but as said, were frail in many respects and difficult to take apart to clean. Magazines were always hard to find even back then. The 20 round especially. Our guns were Parkerized with oil finish on the stocks. Some had property markings. None had any Military markings. Curious thing with these types of firearms. Whenever we sold a weapon, it had to go up at least $200 in value to recoup the tax cost. So now the $125.00 gun is $325.00 for the next transferrer. As can be seen, the cost goes up rather fast. If it was a truly much sought after weapon, then the cost could soar. New M-60 GPMG from Maremount Saco in those days was under a $1,000 each for dealers to buy. The Golden Age of Class 3 weapons in the USA was 1975 to 1986.

  • @KinkniK
    @KinkniK Před rokem +8

    I'd love to see you run a match with a model 60 or 50

  • @edm240b9
    @edm240b9 Před rokem +28

    I think it would’ve been interesting to see how this thing would’ve handled over in Europe. Since there’s more urban environments, I think it would’ve handled better. Also, Reisings are cool guns. They M50 is pretty darn accurate.

    • @88porpoise
      @88porpoise Před rokem +3

      Somewhat better, probably, but likely to still be far from ideal for front line use. There was still plenty of crawling around in dirt and such on any battlefield.
      And by the time the M1 Carbine and the dirt cheap M3 Submachine Gun are available, it almost certainly would have seen the same fate.

    • @Inflorescensse
      @Inflorescensse Před rokem

      Yeah! i can get repeatable 4 inch 5 shot groups at 100m on semi. Past 220m they get rather unstable though.

  • @basketofdeplorables4253
    @basketofdeplorables4253 Před rokem +3

    It can’t be a machine gun, it doesn’t even have the shoulder thing that goes up.

  • @ShotGunner5609
    @ShotGunner5609 Před rokem +4

    Really is a shame there wasn't more refinement into this lil guy. It's easy to forget current ar 15s have essentially 60 years of r&d up to this point, and it's a superior weapon system because of that.

  • @Mrgunsngear
    @Mrgunsngear Před rokem

    Thanks

  • @JP-lq7wi
    @JP-lq7wi Před rokem +4

    All it needed was a forward assist.

  • @bigtex4058
    @bigtex4058 Před rokem +1

    Some weapons are best forgotten.

  • @valleyscottblog2440
    @valleyscottblog2440 Před rokem +2

    This is a weapon I would use primarily as a carbine in semi auto, only using the full auto in the extreme situations (pretty much like I did with my M-4). It would certainly be a handy and effective weapon in CQB jungle combat.

  • @iknowmy3table
    @iknowmy3table Před rokem +1

    I appreciate the commentary in this video I've often pondered why a light weight self loading carbine with an exposed action and marginal reliability was a recipe for success with the m1 carbine but despised with the reising

  • @HenryVandenburgh
    @HenryVandenburgh Před 10 měsíci

    I remember reading about this way back as a kid.

  • @joshshelton796
    @joshshelton796 Před 8 měsíci

    Awesome video man!

  • @mikewinings4120
    @mikewinings4120 Před rokem

    Thank you for giving this unique sub gun some love,given the circumstances of its history,it saved more marines than we will ever know!

  • @ironwolfF1
    @ironwolfF1 Před rokem +2

    As a weapon, it was good starting point; all it needed was several of cycles of 'tuning' it to iron out the worst issues (IMO). Unfortunately, in wartime, that's not always an option...
    And yeah, it _looks_ like an 'early / pre-WWII' SMG (wood furniture edition), and definitely lighter than it's Euro / Slav cousins.

  • @alphatripduce
    @alphatripduce Před rokem +3

    Almost bought one of the newer police models off a friend my senior year of college

  • @iangreenhalgh9280
    @iangreenhalgh9280 Před rokem +2

    First to the fight - if you don't count the 3 years the other allies have already been fighting for. :)

    • @1pcfred
      @1pcfred Před rokem

      What took them so long to win?

  • @Amialythis
    @Amialythis Před rokem +2

    It's really cool how much it doesen't look like an smg

  • @jensenwilliam5434
    @jensenwilliam5434 Před rokem +1

    Thank you for your videos.

  • @jackusmc2542
    @jackusmc2542 Před rokem +7

    My dad is rolling in his grave! He HATED the Reising. He was issued one on guard duty in the SW Pacific. They took his Springfield and gave him an M50.

  • @doronstauber7285
    @doronstauber7285 Před rokem +1

    The person that ends up buying this weapon will 100% enjoy it. It is a fine implement of freedom.

  • @user-se1ro4sy4z
    @user-se1ro4sy4z Před rokem

    FINALLY!!!! Ive been waiting it for years

  • @peterowen1981
    @peterowen1981 Před rokem

    Very pertinent analogy with early M16 use in Vietnam. The Thompson was a dinosaur by comparison to the Reising

  • @andrewostrelczuk406
    @andrewostrelczuk406 Před rokem +3

    Ian I hope that you have a great weekend and Happy RED Friday!
    Remember
    Everyone
    Deployed
    Wear a Red Shirt on Friday’s
    Till they all come home!
    My Brothers and Sisters in Arms you are not Forgotten no matter how you reach home!
    All gave Some! But Some Gave All, least we forget that Our Country is Great as long as WE All Remember the Sacrifice that Soldiers, Sailors, Marines and our Uniformed services, History is not forgotten! Remember that for Veterans Day, their Names and stories deserve to be remembered and told! Veterans Day 11/11/2022 May just be the last time we have a WWII Vet in our Midst standing, or Bedridden.
    And I Doubt that in the Next Presidential election that there are Any Left to cast a Vote!😢

  • @68orangecrate26
    @68orangecrate26 Před 8 měsíci

    Great channel… I’m learning a lot😎

  • @bbcmotd
    @bbcmotd Před rokem +1

    Yay this one is in the game Enlisted!

  • @Kraakesolv
    @Kraakesolv Před rokem +27

    Ah, the Reising. A decent choice for space pirates in the 1990s.

  • @jeffm68
    @jeffm68 Před rokem +2

    Speaking as a Marine grunt, I'd like to say that reducing magazine capacity in order to lower ammo consumption sounds EXACTLY like the sort of stupid crap some log weenie REMF who has never heard a round snap over his head would pull. Probably got a promotion for it, too.

  • @chrismack4523
    @chrismack4523 Před rokem +1

    Very nice work as always, been looking at these for a while and you've really got me thinking about a few things that I didn't know, good entry level class 3 weapon compared to other's, maybe one day......

  • @katsu-graphics5634
    @katsu-graphics5634 Před 9 měsíci

    I remember seeing it on the TV show "Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea". . . .