Customer Reviews

Johnson Rifles and Machine Guns: The Story of Melvin Maynard Johnson, Jr. and His Guns

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

the book would have scored higher if bruce canfield followed the layout of his previous books on the garand and carbine. it has a great history of melvin johnson and the controversy over his rifle. i was looking for a book with more in depth photos of the rifle and comparisons with other johnson rifles in known collections. it was an excellent history but fell short on the actual discriptions and photos of the rifle itself. i hope in the future, bruce canfield will creat such a book.

Excellent history and gun book. It demonstrates the Johnson rifle is somewhat more significant than thought. Canfield describes, in his usual excellent fashion, the various personalities involved. I have been a student of the history of this period for over fifty years and the majority of the information contained in this book was new to me. I thought it was fascinating on several levels.
The book's only flaw from my standpoint, is that it does not contain a really good description of how to correctly disassemble and put back together a 1941 Johnson Automatic Rifle. The 1941 Automatic Rifle is probably the only example of the various firearms described in the book a reader or collector is likely to actually encounter. This is particularly mentioned since there is no contemporary good source of this information other than the original 1941 owner's booklet which is confusing and available only in reprint.
Only after struggling to reassemble the rotary magazine or the trigger group are you made aware of the major fact the book correctly imparts: The contentious selection of the M1 Garand over the 1941 Johnson as the battle rifle for America's servicemen in WWII was totally correct.

Bruce Canfield's books are inevitably exhaustively researched, factual and a pleasure to read. Where such detailed history can be tiresome to read, the author manages to keep things from becoming dry. Or perhaps it is the result of Melvin Johnson's own dedication to forging his own way that inspires? Regardless, this book is a vital constituent of the library of any lover of firearms and their impact on our history. Reading this book reveals that instead of some being some minor inventor whose life's work is just a small technical detail meritorious of the quiet disregard he has received, Melvin Johnson rightfully deserves a place of equal standing with the giants of firearms development like Browning or Mauser.

For the collector or even the curious of the Johnson 1941 Rifle this book is the best out there. Every detail in the development of this very unique rifle and the grueling battle of "selling" this design to the military is explored. This could very well be the BEST compilation of facts on the 1941 JOHNSON found in print today. Bruce N. Canfield has produced another brilliant library reference.