Nat King Cole carrying an M3 grease gun!

I have almost zero experience with these, other than one time I paid to put a couple mags through one while at a conference in Vegas. It was an M3A1 I believe, and the RO was so close to me that I thought I should at least know his first name or have received some flowers from him. It was accurate enough that I was impressed (within an indoor range). I liked it, and if given the chance I'd pay to own one. I assume it was well-used, even though the current trend is towards more modern, tacticool stuff when visiting Vegas and blowing money.

I claim no expertise with these, maybe those who had them issued to them over the years know more. For the brief time I held one in my hands I loved it. The grease gun is one reason I wish that I lived south of our border.
 
Old TexMex said:
M3A1s are still ghosting around in Central America. I believe some conversion to 9mm was around, too.
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There was a conversion kit to 9mm but I have never seen one. Probably a new bolt, barrel and mags. My experience with the M3A1 is very limited, just a few hundred rounds, but I thought it was a very neat SMG. I had no problem hitting the target and the relatively slow cyclic rate makes it controllable.

If it were anywhere nearly as bad as previously described in #8, the Army would never have fielded it.
 
DWalt said:
There was a conversion kit to 9mm but I have never seen one. Probably a new bolt, barrel and mags.
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Yes, there was a 9mm conversion kit made for the M3 Grease Gun. These were built at the request of the OSS. Use of captured 9mm ammunition would eliminate the necessity of resupply resistance fighter with .45 cal. ammo. The conversion kit consisted of a barrel, bolt, a magazine well adapter and several STEN sub-machine gun magazines. The adapter was a sheet metal form which was place into the magazine well of the Grease Gun and once inserted, it would self-lock in place. The sheet metal form converted the magazine well to accept the STEN sub-machine gun magazines.
 
The M3 was our version of the Sten Gun. Somewhat crude, but easy to manufacture, using stampings, etc. in place of machined parts. I fired one once, when I was in a mech battalion in the National Guard they were in the M88 Recovery Vehicle.
 
Too bad no one makes a semi-auto replica of the M3. I'd buy one.
 
BLACKHAWKNJ said:
The M3 was our version of the Sten Gun. Somewhat crude, but easy to manufacture, using stampings, etc. in place of machined parts. I fired one once, when I was in a mech battalion in the National Guard they were in the M88 Recovery Vehicle.
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Well, the Sten I got to shoot. It was nice.:D

I also got to shoot a Thompson M28. It was nicer.:D But I didn't have to carry it around.:rolleyes:
 
PALADIN85020 said:
The subgun Nat is carrying is a 1942-vintage M3, not an M3A1. Hard to tell from the still pics, but in the flick - when he gets up from sitting, you can clearly see the bolt retraction handle on the right side, the main identifying feature.

This would have been proper for a WWII-era film, as the M3A1, which used a hole in the bolt so a finger could be used to retract it, did not appear until 1944. It was seldom if ever used in the war. The earlier bolt retraction mechanism was cheesy and often failed. The M3A1 was primarily used in Korea and Vietnam.

Here are photos of the two guns for comparison.

John

M3_SUBMACHINE_GUN_zps6fdyk3kf.jpg


M3A1_SUBMACHINE_GUN_zpsf572dgce.jpg
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I wonder what Colin Doane could have added to this great discussion? :o
 
Telecaster said:
Too bad no one makes a semi-auto replica of the M3. I'd buy one.
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They do, but I forget who makes them? Ive seen them at gun shows a few years ago-along with PPShs and PP 43-Cs etc. I may have a spelling incorrect but, I know a dealer from Rockport who sells them and when comes to gun shows here-sometimes has them with him. They go for about $400.
 
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Kurusu said:
Well, the Sten I got to shoot. It was nice.:D

I also got to shoot a Thompson M28. It was nicer.:D But I didn't have to carry it around.:rolleyes:
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THIS Sarge got stuck with them because-his Lt was the gun guy when the show was being czsted and was the smarter of the two-which is why he chose to carry the Carbine.
:)

9081e9765ac1c21a96c68a0ebd191bc5--tv-series-television-program.jpg

Rick Jason wasn't stooopid. :D
 
the ringo kid said:
THIS Sarge got stuck with them because-his Lt was the gun guy when the show was being czsted and was the smarter of the two-which is why he chose to carry the Carbine.
:)

9081e9765ac1c21a96c68a0ebd191bc5--tv-series-television-program.jpg

Rick Jason wasn't stooopid. :D
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If it's for fighting. I'll suck up and take the extra weight.:D
 
Personally, (and ditto) ill take something with more stopping power over lightweight anyday as both are more for close quarters anyhoo. When I was in LE, I chose to carry a Winchester 30-30 over the darned AR-as I love Western guns over modern plastic anytime anywhere any day-dont care if the other thinks its a better tool?
 
I never carried one but did get to shoot one enough to know that it was a decent back up gun. I remember that the safety was in the dust cover or bolt cover. There was sheet metal V welded to the bolt cover that fit into the finger hole in the bolt when it was cocked. a couple guys on my team carried them as back up on fork lifts and K- loaders.
 
ACP230 said:
There have been semi versions.
One was by an outfit called Valkrie Firearms.
I don't know if they are still being made.
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Valkrie Firearms went out of business several years ago. The problem with making M3 replicas today is new BATF ruling -- Open bolt firing weapons can no longer be manufactured. It has to be designed to be a closed bolt firing gun which requires an internal hammer which a very long way from the original Grease Gun.
 
Farmer17 said:
I know they were cheap to produce and fairly reliable but the M3 Grease Gun really seemed like a cheezy piece of ordnance to give our troops, I'm glad they didn't last long.
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True story, in France, shortly after the Normandy breakout, pop was detailed to escort six kraut prisoners back to the battalion PW collection point. He had a trench knife, and an M3. The M3 was damaged, something bent in/on the magazine well, and was unfirable. He bluffed his way back, turned his charges over, managed to strip the magazine out, whacked it against a tree hard enough to total it, and drew a Carbine for the "rest of his war"... He loved his Carbine, hated the M3.
 
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