SmokeEaterPilot
Active Member
- Jun 3, 2011
- 527
The archives at College Park shut down (again); before that, I copied some much-needed paperwork before that happened. Some of which was a shipping ticket to one of my rifles.
This rifle was a National Match manufactured in 1923; at some point, it was shipped to Fort Dupont and then sent back to Springfield Armory in 1924. I'm going to assume it was shipped to one of the Engineer shooting teams because there was an Engineer shooting team based out of Dupont. So it's my best guess at this point.
The rifle must've sat in storage until 1928 because that's the year of the replacement barrel. I think the stock is a replacement. There is no evidence of a serial number stamped into the stock. The rifle retains its original bolt with a headless-cocking piece and reverse safety. The receiver rails, raceway, and follower are polished.
1928 is an important year because nomenclature changed a bit. Between 1924-1927 a "Special Target" was nothing more than a service rifle with a star gauged barrel. These rifles were not popular, so they were discontinued in 1928. Anyone who could afford a luxury rifle during the Great Depression paid an extra $5 (or whatever the difference was) to get a National Match. The term "Special Target" then became a reconditioned match rifle. Which is what this is.
The index card says it's a National Match, but that is not necessarily "accurate." However, since the terminology changed that year, it's not surprising.
The rifle was then sold to James R. Ahl that December.
James Ahl was born in Pennsylvania, served in World War I in the US Navy. He then moved to Colorado Springs and eventually settled in New Mexico. According to census records, Ahl worked as a US Forest Officer in CO and a US border guard in NM. He died in 1974.
The index card is the same type that the Springfield Research Service provides with their letters, but this copy was acquired through a FOIA with the US Army. The Army still has records of the pre-WWII DCM sales. The problem was getting them to release a copy (unredacted). They were afraid of privacy rights violations. One of my subscribers was a FOIA officer and now is an attorney with US Army and handled all the denials (and there were several). He's also a collector, so he was a big advocate of fighting blanket denials the Army would hand out like candy.
This rifle was a National Match manufactured in 1923; at some point, it was shipped to Fort Dupont and then sent back to Springfield Armory in 1924. I'm going to assume it was shipped to one of the Engineer shooting teams because there was an Engineer shooting team based out of Dupont. So it's my best guess at this point.
The rifle must've sat in storage until 1928 because that's the year of the replacement barrel. I think the stock is a replacement. There is no evidence of a serial number stamped into the stock. The rifle retains its original bolt with a headless-cocking piece and reverse safety. The receiver rails, raceway, and follower are polished.
1928 is an important year because nomenclature changed a bit. Between 1924-1927 a "Special Target" was nothing more than a service rifle with a star gauged barrel. These rifles were not popular, so they were discontinued in 1928. Anyone who could afford a luxury rifle during the Great Depression paid an extra $5 (or whatever the difference was) to get a National Match. The term "Special Target" then became a reconditioned match rifle. Which is what this is.
The index card says it's a National Match, but that is not necessarily "accurate." However, since the terminology changed that year, it's not surprising.
The rifle was then sold to James R. Ahl that December.
James Ahl was born in Pennsylvania, served in World War I in the US Navy. He then moved to Colorado Springs and eventually settled in New Mexico. According to census records, Ahl worked as a US Forest Officer in CO and a US border guard in NM. He died in 1974.
The index card is the same type that the Springfield Research Service provides with their letters, but this copy was acquired through a FOIA with the US Army. The Army still has records of the pre-WWII DCM sales. The problem was getting them to release a copy (unredacted). They were afraid of privacy rights violations. One of my subscribers was a FOIA officer and now is an attorney with US Army and handled all the denials (and there were several). He's also a collector, so he was a big advocate of fighting blanket denials the Army would hand out like candy.
