Daniel Watters
New member
Actually, some units did remove the Blish lock from their early model Thompsons. In one Australian unit, the trick was that their armorer cut a machine bolt to the width of the Thompson's bolt and then screwed on a nut. The bolt and nut could then be dropped in to replace the Blish lock. I've also heard of armorers machining the locking flanges off of each side of the Blish lock.
Certainly, the Blish lock did not work for the exact reason that Commander Blish had given. And for a SMG, the Blish lock was an bit of over-engineering, just like the roller locking pieces on a MP5. The Thompson 'Auto Rifle' .30-06 used the same locking system. However, like other delayed blowback weapons, it had problems with extraction. For the Thompson .30-06, this was solved by either waxing or oiling the cases. Neither solution was considered to be suitable for military service. One wonders how well the rifle would have worked if it had a fluted chamber like the G3.
Certainly, the Blish lock did not work for the exact reason that Commander Blish had given. And for a SMG, the Blish lock was an bit of over-engineering, just like the roller locking pieces on a MP5. The Thompson 'Auto Rifle' .30-06 used the same locking system. However, like other delayed blowback weapons, it had problems with extraction. For the Thompson .30-06, this was solved by either waxing or oiling the cases. Neither solution was considered to be suitable for military service. One wonders how well the rifle would have worked if it had a fluted chamber like the G3.