Reading Materials for WW1 Milsurp
- Thread starter HFreedman
- Start date
M98 Rifle and Carbine by Dieter Storz. The book for the German Model 98 Mauser from 1898 to 1918. Pricey but worth every penny!
Allied Rifle Contracts in America by Luke Mercaldo. Covers WW1 rifles made by U.S. manufacturers for France, Britain, Russia, Canada and Belgium. This is a fascinating, well written book. You can order this one from Wet Dog Publishing in the USA and at the same time pick up FN Browning Pistols by the same publisher. Earlier FN pistols were in production before WW1.
Allied Rifle Contracts in America by Luke Mercaldo. Covers WW1 rifles made by U.S. manufacturers for France, Britain, Russia, Canada and Belgium. This is a fascinating, well written book. You can order this one from Wet Dog Publishing in the USA and at the same time pick up FN Browning Pistols by the same publisher. Earlier FN pistols were in production before WW1.
The Lee-Enfield Rifle by Major E.G.B. Reynolds, 1960. Book was written with full access to original paper before it was shredded.
Shoot to Live! - The Johnson Method of Musketry Coaching, 1944. Remains today the finest single book on accurate shooting with the Number 4 Rifle; most is applicable to many other rifles.
You can download both of those, and a library of others, from the Military Knowledge Library over on milsurps dot com. There is a Sticky at the top of this Forum to it. Mre information than you can ever assimilate..... and it's all FREE.
Text Book of Rifles -1909, His Majesty's Stationery Office, London. Rare and very expensive but utterly authoritative. Diagrams are irreplaceable, chapters on external and internal ballistics are wonderful. I have an original copy and am scanning it preparatory to having it posted for free download at milsurps dot com. This book gives you the exact state of the world's military firearms just prior to the outbreak of the Great War.
For ammunition, any of the British military TEXT BOOKS or POCKET BOOKS are Gospel as far as they go.
For Ammunition Development, the Absolute Authority was the late Major Peter Labbett. ANYTHING he wrote is utterly authoritative, partly because he was personally involved with much of that development, although he did not mention this in his books (he did in private letters). His writing style is almost incredibly condensed but the information is pure gold.
And, of course, Hatcher's Notebook by Maj/Gen Julian S. Hatcher. Available in 3 editions since 1948, the 3rd recently reprinted, it is absolutely authoritative on a myriad of difficult questions. Hatcher numbered among his personal friends such luminaries as John Garand and Melvin Johnson; he was the man who identified the problem with the 1903 Springfield and later condemned a million rifles.
And, of course, THE GUN AND ITS DEVELOPMENT by W. W. Greener, 1910. Utterly essential.
Hope this helps.
.
Shoot to Live! - The Johnson Method of Musketry Coaching, 1944. Remains today the finest single book on accurate shooting with the Number 4 Rifle; most is applicable to many other rifles.
You can download both of those, and a library of others, from the Military Knowledge Library over on milsurps dot com. There is a Sticky at the top of this Forum to it. Mre information than you can ever assimilate..... and it's all FREE.
Text Book of Rifles -1909, His Majesty's Stationery Office, London. Rare and very expensive but utterly authoritative. Diagrams are irreplaceable, chapters on external and internal ballistics are wonderful. I have an original copy and am scanning it preparatory to having it posted for free download at milsurps dot com. This book gives you the exact state of the world's military firearms just prior to the outbreak of the Great War.
For ammunition, any of the British military TEXT BOOKS or POCKET BOOKS are Gospel as far as they go.
For Ammunition Development, the Absolute Authority was the late Major Peter Labbett. ANYTHING he wrote is utterly authoritative, partly because he was personally involved with much of that development, although he did not mention this in his books (he did in private letters). His writing style is almost incredibly condensed but the information is pure gold.
And, of course, Hatcher's Notebook by Maj/Gen Julian S. Hatcher. Available in 3 editions since 1948, the 3rd recently reprinted, it is absolutely authoritative on a myriad of difficult questions. Hatcher numbered among his personal friends such luminaries as John Garand and Melvin Johnson; he was the man who identified the problem with the 1903 Springfield and later condemned a million rifles.
And, of course, THE GUN AND ITS DEVELOPMENT by W. W. Greener, 1910. Utterly essential.
Hope this helps.
.
The book M98 Rifle and Carbine by Dieter Storz. The book for the German Model 98 Mauser from 1898 to 1918. Pricey but worth every penny. I se two of them on ABE Books Here is a link. Just close the space between the two t ts
ht tp://www.abebooks.com/servlet/SearchResults?sts=t&tn=M98+Rifle+and+Carbine&x=62&y=16
It took me 7 or 8 years to find The Lee-Enfield Rifle by Major E.G.B. Reynolds before the internet. This one is also on ABEbooks
You can also use Amazon, or chapters.indigo.ca The chapters indigo site has books that aren't on the store computers. They have a wonderful selection of military subjects available.
I have most of the books mentioned except the W.W. Greener, and the Mauser book.
ht tp://www.abebooks.com/servlet/SearchResults?sts=t&tn=M98+Rifle+and+Carbine&x=62&y=16
It took me 7 or 8 years to find The Lee-Enfield Rifle by Major E.G.B. Reynolds before the internet. This one is also on ABEbooks
You can also use Amazon, or chapters.indigo.ca The chapters indigo site has books that aren't on the store computers. They have a wonderful selection of military subjects available.
I have most of the books mentioned except the W.W. Greener, and the Mauser book.
maple_leaf_eh
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
I find the reference books by experts are long on detail, but thin on practical knowledge. My suggestion is a hokey sounding book called, Testing The Weapons of War. Written by a Vietnam veteran infantry officer, the guy has his biases, but gives each of the guns he tests a fair going over.
He hates noisy sling swivels. He prefers detachable magazines. He likes safety catches. He likes carbines (but he looks kinda short in the pictures). However, he really likes some of the guns the so-called experts barely sniff at. For example, he likes the crooked bolt handles on the P14/M17 because the knob is in the right place for the second shot. He surprised himself by liking the old Remington Rolling Block for speed of firing. And on it goes.
He hates noisy sling swivels. He prefers detachable magazines. He likes safety catches. He likes carbines (but he looks kinda short in the pictures). However, he really likes some of the guns the so-called experts barely sniff at. For example, he likes the crooked bolt handles on the P14/M17 because the knob is in the right place for the second shot. He surprised himself by liking the old Remington Rolling Block for speed of firing. And on it goes.
Try to find an early version of, “Small Arms of the World”, by W.H.B. Smith.
The version from the 1950’s and 1960 is mostly WW 2 and before.
The public libraries some time have the old versions in their stacks and you might try the used book stores.
The version from the 1950’s and 1960 is mostly WW 2 and before.
The public libraries some time have the old versions in their stacks and you might try the used book stores.
