The Johnson M1941
Believe it or not, when if came to military weaponry the US Army actually entered World War II behind the 8-ball with most military historians agreeing that US tanks and aircraft in 1941 were lacking overall when compared to those of Nazi Germany. America’s saving grace however, was a better standard infantry rifle—the M1 Garand, which firmly elbowed out the bolt action Mausers, Carcanos, and Arisaka of the Axis. Despite this, one inventor stateside, Melvin Johnson, would have had it differently and his rifle, the M1941 Johnson remains one of the great American could-have-beens of World War 2.
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