Anyone familiar with the Thomas .45 autopistol

M

ModIMark0

New member
I had just heard of this pistol in old Jack Lewis book on law enforcement weapons. It was a compact .45 ACP autoloader that was DAO and generally resembled a cross between a Heckler and Koch P9 and a Walther P38K. It also was discribed as having a unique breech locking system and being out of production since before 1980 (the date of publishing of the book).
Does anyone know more information about this handgun, who made it, heard any opinions of it by owners of one? It looks like it would be a desireable pistol for CCW holders in the present day, providing that it was affordable, accurate,and reliable.
 
Many years ago, my brother and I both owned Thomas .45's. They were very heavy and mine was totally unreliable. I could press the trigger all the way back, and the gun wouldn't fire, but when I began to release the trigger, it would go off. That wasn't satisfactory for an off-duty gun. On the plus side, it was relatively small and used a significant cartridge. The manufacturer's name escapes me right now ( another senior moment). They were sort of spacey in appearance. Accuracy was acceptable, but not remarkable. Magazine held six or seven rounds. All in all, not too great a pistol, but interesting.
 
The Thomas handgun was manufactured by A.J. Ordnance in Covina, CA until the mid-1970s. It was only chambered in .45 ACP, DAO using a delayed blowback action, 6-shot magazine, 3.5" stainless steel barrel, fixed sights and checkered plastic grips. The standard finsh was matte blue with chrome plating or stainless steel as an option. In excellent condition a Thomas handgun could be worth about $525-$600 with a 50% premium added for those with a chrome or stainless steel finish. Hope this helps!

Steve Mace

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After today, its all historical
 
The delayed blow-back was from a backstrap protrusion (like a grip safety) that when grasped forced a sheet metal cam up on the left side of the pistol at about a 40 degree angle into a notch on the bottom of the slide just behind the pistol grip's front strap where you sometimes see a takedown notch. The notch in the slide was supposed to cam down the lever when fired allowing the slide to continue moving back, ejecting, and rechambering a fresh cartridge. Other than being g*dawful heavy it looked like it should have been a nice gun. Mine worked for svl mags and then became manually actuated. No amount of polishing, no grease, reprofiling the cam, nothing made it right. Gave up and sold it
 
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