Posted January 29, 2011 · Report post I acquired a JSAR a couple of days ago. A walk-in at a friend's local gun shop. The serial is 5637, no prefix. I would appreciate help with any information regarding shipping and part numbers, if available. Thanking you in advance. Doug Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted January 30, 2011 · Report post Here is the data on JSAR #5637 Received from Cranston Arms 2/20/42 Stock #2 BBl #5987E Hammer block #7166 Hammer #9320 Bolt #8041 Locking cam #6987 Firing pin #A3575 Extractor #4803 Magazine #8904 Transferred to Netherlands Purchasing Commission 2/23/42 Let us know if anything matches. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted January 30, 2011 · Report post Brian.....Thank you for providing the information so quickly! What does it mean or how does it affect the value of the rifle if the parts do not match the numbers in the records? I'm new to Johnson's so I would appreciate information to understand how the (additional)"mismatched" parts affect the gun in the eyes of a collector? Thanks again. Doug Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted January 30, 2011 · Report post Doug Welcome to the site I will try and answer some of your questions. First, let me direct you to the following site http://johnsonautomatics.com/ If you have not already been there, please visit the site, and read what information is available. While there are some broken links in the pages, the site is highly informational. If you have not purchased one, I highly recommend the book "Johnson Rifles and Machine Guns" by Bruce N. Canfield with Robert L. Lamoreaux and Edward R. Johnson Another recommended item is the video produced by Joseph Scott. You can obtain a copy from him by contacting Joe through the link on this message board. On pages 89-90 of the above named book, the author goes into considerable detail about the serial numbers of the rifles and parts. Paraphrasing it, while the rifle and parts are serial numbered, there seemed to be no reason for matching serial numbers, so rifles were assembled using available parts, but the used parts were documented on assembled rifles at least in the 0000-9999 range. There is no available record of assembled parts on subsequent rifles in the A or B prefix series, (See pinned note on message board) There was some speculation about the serialization being a way for the Netherlands Purchasing Commission to account for material owned by them during a period of war, as all metal was considered a valuable war asset at that time. As you will see, no serial number of your rifle parts match the serial number of the receiver. That in no way affects the value of your rifle. That being said, if by chance your rifle has some or all the parts included when it was delivered to the NPC beyond the receiver, that would make your rifle an oddity. As with other military rifles of the time, many went through an armory, where they were disassembled, cleaned, repaired and re-assembled. The disassembled parts having been tossed into bins, were grabbed at random and re-assembled. The Johnson was no exception, but more than likely was not done at an armory, but possibly by one of the many post war owners of the company or later by owners of the liquidated parts. I hope that this helps you. ArtR Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted January 30, 2011 · Report post Art and Brian, Thank you again for the information. I want to compliment you for how cordial and approachable you make this Forum. I knew the parts were mismatched when originally shipped but the additional "mismatched" iinformation is very interesting. Looks like I need to add some reference material to my collection. Doug Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
