Shooting the Thompsons: Comparing the 1921, 21/28, and M1A1

[Bob Riebe]

These Thompsons are all being sold by Morphys on October 30, 2018: Model 1921 (transferrable), Model 1921/28 overstamp (transferrable), and M1A1 (pre-86 dealer sample).

Having gone through the whole series of Thompson submachine guns, not it’s time to take them out to the range! I was quite curious to see how the different variations would handle side by side, since they have several significant differences. The Cutt’s Compensator and the changing rate of fire can both be expected to have a noticeable impact on the shootability of the guns.

I went in expecting to prefer the World War Two M1A! pattern, and was rather surprised to find myself actually liking the 1921 model best. It’s very high rate of fire actually worked very well, with less noticeable vibration and sight disruption than either of the other types. Its sights are close to useless, and it is both heavy and awkward to handle – but I can see why it developed the following it has!