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DAISY SPORT TRAINER

The Daisy Museum in Rogers, Arkansas was helpful in providing information on the Sport Trainer. Daisy introduced a line of sport trainers in April 1966 and produced them through 1969. There were five lever action models ( 626, 630, 631, 632 and 633). The 634 was a bolt action model and the largest of the line at 33 1/2”. This line was designed to compete for a market share with the Parris Mfg. Co. The Model 634 retailed at about $4.00. The design of the Model 634 is similar in many ways to the Parris Mfg. Co. TraineRifle models, although most of the parts are a slightly different shape. The short sheet metal barrel and the bayonet lug are nearly identical in shape and location to the Parris models. There is a short cartridge that retracts into the bolt face when the bolt is closed that is similar in principle to the Parris models. The model 634 uses two metal clips on the bolt face to retain the cartridge instead of a screw through the side of the bolt on the Parris models. It is uncertain which company first started using the retracting cartridge. The early Parris Mfg. Co. TraineRifles did not have this feature and it is uncertain when this practice started, as the early production information has been lost. The Parris Mfg. Co. was producing their TraineRifle models in the early 1950’s, which is well before the start of the Daisy production.

There are two features on the Daisy 634 that are significantly different from the Parris models. The base of the bolt handle guides the bolt in the receiver and becomes the locking mechanism when the bolt is rotated closed. This approach is more like a modern bolt action rifle. The butt stock has a pistol grip which also makes it look more like a modern rifle. It is uncertain if Daisy or Parris produced the metal parts that were used on their trainers or got them from a sub contractor. Due to the similarity of many of the parts, it is possible that both companies purchased the metal parts from a third party. I suspect that both companies produced the wooden stocks for their toy rifles and assembled them in their respective factories. The side of the receiver is marked:

DAISY MFG. CO.
ROGERS, ARKANSAS

There is a round paper label on the right side of the butt stock that is marked:

DAISY SPORT TRAINER

The model 634 was equipped with a rubber bayonet. It has been verified that Daisy purchased these from another company. The design of the bayonet mounting lug is identical on the Daisy and Parris rifles that were produced in the 1960’s. The early Parris TraineRifles had the bayonet lug mounted on the barrel rather than being inserted into the end of the forearm. The grip design of both bayonets are nearly identical. The Daisy bayonet is the same length as the Parris bayonet but the blade is double edged. I suspect that both Daisy and Parris Mfg. Co. contracted with the same firm to supply their bayonets. The following pictures clearly show the shape and marking of the Daisy bayonet.

Next installment: Haubert, H. Dummy Training Rife

From the paper, Non-Firing Drill and Training Rifles, by By Malcolm MacPherson

Rubber Bayonets and Kadets of America

Rubber Bayonets

I have spent considerable time and have made many contacts in the toy field and have found no definitive information relating to the production of rubber bayonets that were used on the Parris Mfg. Co TraineRifle and Daisy Sport Trainer. The Daisy Sport Trainer Model 634 was produced from 1966 through 1969 and all of this production had a bayonet lug on the fore arm and carried a rubber bayonet. The first illustration of the Parris Mfg. Co. rubber bayonet appears in their 1954 catalog. It is shown as a separate item but indicates that it can be attached to the #4, #2A and MO-1 TraineRifles, which were all lever action cork guns. All models that were later offered with a bayonet attached carried a B prefix (B-MO-1). There is no mention of the Model 23 or 30 bolt action TraineRifles in the 1954 catalog. In their 1956 catalog both of these bolt action models were offered with a bayonet attached. It is unknown when the Parris Mfg. Co. stopped providing a bayonet with their toy rifles. It seems likely that production stopped about the time of the Vietnam War in the early 1970’s.

During the 1960’s most of the companies that had been producing rubber toys had converted to the use of vinyl materials rather than rubber. This presents a problem as the bayonets are clearly made of rubber and this material is identified in some of the advertisements. There were several companies that had produced rubber toys prior to WWII that stopped producing any toys by the early 1950’s. It appears that the Auburn Rubber Co. which was located in Auburn, Indiana, is the only company that continued producing rubber toys into the time period in question. It is known that they produced toy rubber knives. However, there is no record that they produced any rubber bayonets. Unfortunately, there are no identifying marks on either the Parris or Daisy rubber bayonets. The Auburn Rubber Co. began utilizing vinyl material about 1954 and by 1957 was
primarily using this material for their toy production. Although this would have been very late in their production of rubber toys, I believe that there is a high degree of probability that both of these bayonets were produced by the Auburn Rubber Co.

It is hoped that additional information or advertisements will be discovered that will confirm this suspicion. In recent years, Parris Mfg. Co. has only produced a Kadet model (29-1/2” long) and a slightly shorter version of the M-30 model that is 42″ long. This model has less detail than the earlier M-30 rifles.

Some odd Trainerifles have surfaced that are marked differently or that have no identification of any kind. Most of the Trainerifles that have been produced have a decal on the right hand side the butt stock. The design of this decal has changed at various times but they all identify the as a Trainerifle. All of the full size Trainerifles that were produced in Clarinda, Iowa had a butt plate that is stamped with the name and the Clarinda, Iowa, address. Some of the models produced after the company moved to Tennessee have metal butt plates and do not. These butt plates may or may not have any identification markings on them. Unmarked specimens that were produced by the Parris Mfg. Co. are easily identified by the characteristic bolt and action which has remained unchanged since the 1940’s. White stocks became available for all models about 1958. Currently Parris is marketing several different toy rifles that carry the Parris name but are being produced in China.

The decal shown below has a distinctive BB on the Trainerifle logo. This does not appear on the early Trainerifle logo’s. Since it has the Kadets of America symbol it probably was used between 1960 and the early 1970’s. There is no documentation that clearly identifies the meaning of the BB letters. It is known that the Parris Mfg. Co. produced a lever action toy rifle that shot either corks or BB’s. Although the model No. 11 bolt action was designed to fire corks, there is no evidence to suggest that any of the later bolt action drill rifles had a mechanism to fire BB’s.

Soon after the move to Savannah, Tennessee, the Parris Mfg. Co. started using a wooden cartridge in the front of the bolt. This was spring loaded and retracted into the bolt body when the bolt was closed. As the bolt was opened the gold colored cartridge reappeared. It also applied pressure on the bolt to hold it in the closed position. In later production the wooden cartridge was replaced by a plastic cartridge. Often a cartridge is incorrectly called a bullet. I suspect that this was the case here. It appears that all of their early toy drill rifles had a bayonet lug. The BB may stand for – Bullet & Bayonet.

Kadets of America

It appears that the development of the different size Drill Rifles is associated with the formation of the Kadets of America organization. This organization was founded in the spring of 1953 by Cecil Parris to encourage boys and girls to become interested in being members of an organized drill team. There was a complete line of Kadets of America merchandise. This included Official Kadet Trainerifles. In their handbook it states that the Official Kadet Trainerifles had nickle plated metal parts. It appears that only the barrel, bolt body and bolt handle were nickle plated. During the same period they were also producing Trainerifles that had painted metal parts for the general toy market. Obviously the “Official” designation was a merchandising ploy to enable them to sell more drill rifles and related accessories, but it also appears that Parris believed that young people would benefit from a paramilitary experience. The following brief history appears in a 1960 copy of the Kadets of America Handbook.

I located the cover sheet and back page of “The Kadet News” which was a bi-monthly newsletter of the Kadets of America. It is dated June, July 1958 and has a picture of founder Cecil Parris on the cover. The Kadets of America stopped functioning in 1970. They very likely went out of existence due to the antiwar sentiment relating to the Vietnam War.

Next installment: The Daisy Sport Trainer

From the paper, Non-Firing Drill and Training Rifles, by By Malcolm MacPherson

PARRIS MFG. CO. -TOY DRILL RIFLES

My only interest in the Parris Mfg. Co. toy rifles is in their bolt action models that were generally patterned after the 1903 Springfield rifle. However, some general information is useful in understanding their development. It appears that Cecil Parris was the driving force in developing their toy gun market. He was younger that William Dunn and had a strong sales background and it would have been natural for him to have wanted to expand their market. In 1943 Parris approached Maurice Greiman about designing a toy gun that would fire small corks and the successful development of this first “pop gun” started them in their toy business. When Parris purchased the company in 1949 they already had a well-established toy business.

With each toy rifle you got a well-designed document that gave the standard military manual of arms and showed pictures of their line of toy guns. Unfortunately these documents were not dated but those that show the Clarinda, Iowa address were printed between 1944 and 1951. In one such booklet, they show two “clicker” models that were non-firing toys and seven models of different sizes that were “cork shooters”. They also show a “cork shooter” pistol that appears to have been patterned after the Colt Woodsman automatic pistol. This pistol was sold under the name of “Strait Shooter”. There were two different groups of rifles, one called “Trainerifles” and the other called “Cowboy Pla Guns”. Both used the same lever action cocking lever and had similar profiles. The main difference was that the Trainerifles came with a canvas sling attached. They also produced a “Shoot- Rite Gun” which was also cork firing. This was available singly or as a complete “Indoor Trainer Kit” which included movable “Ro-Target” that spun when the cork hit the target. This gun was substantially more refined and had front and rear sights. It is interesting to note that this booklet does not show any toys guns patterned after the 1903 Springfield rifle. At this time they were still producing a Drill Rifle similar to the full size military training rifle. I would assume that they felt that this model was too large to be appropriate for the toy market and as such was not included.

It should be noted that from the very start of the production of bolt action toy drill rifles there were minor variations in their size, shape and marking. All of these models carry the TRAINERIFLE designation. Although you may find drill rifles that vary slightly in length, it appears that there were only five different sizes of bolt action toy rifles produced. The smallest is the SMALL FRY TRAINERIFLE which was 23 ½” long and had a different type of bolt action. It had a trigger mechanism that made a clicking sound when pulled and is definitely a toy. This model appears to have gone out of production soon after the company moved to Tennessee. Production records no longer exist so it is impossible to determine precisely when specific models were introduced, modified or dropped from the line. For a short period of time about 1960 they list a model No. 11 cork shooting drill rifle. This is the only bolt action drill rifle designed to fire any form of projectile.

In the earliest listing of toy rifles made by the Parris Mfg. Co. in Clarinda, Iowa the prefix A is used on several of their earliest models. The prefix B has been verified to indicate models that had a rubber bayonet attached. The prefix K was used on models specifically designed for the Kadets of America. The Kadets of America were organized in 1953 and stopped functioning in 1970. The prefix M appears on bolt action models patterned after the 1903 Springfield military rifle. It appears that at various times the letters K and M were “mixed and matched” on the same models. (K-23, M-23, K-M-23). The number designations appear to be a means of identifying the relative size of the non-firing toy drill rifles. The smallest being #20 and the largest #30. It should be noted that their model No. 11 fired corks and does not have an M designation.

The following bolt action drill rifles all have the same action as the original military training rifles made by Parris-Dunn. They were introduced into the toy line in 1955-56 and were offered with a rubber bayonet at this time.

Approximate Overall Length and Model Designation

• 30″ K-21
• 33″ K-23
• 39″ M-K
• 43″ (Full Size replica) M-30

The early model K-23 illustrated below was made about 1956. What is unique with these early models was that they were designed to carry a rubber bayonet. You should note that on this model the barrel is longer than on later models and that it has a metal tab on the barrel near the forearm. This metal tab fits into small recess in the end of the bayonet handle. The barrel length is 3 9/16″ from the muzzle to the inside of the tab. The barrel length of later models ranges from 2 1/2 – 3″, which is too short to mount the bayonet. If the barrel has no tab, the toy drill rifle was not designed to carry a bayonet. It is uncertain when the change occurred but it is probable that after 1970 no bayonets were available.

The following appears to be a later variation for mounting a rubber bayonet on the muzzle of a K-23 Parris Mfg. Co. Toy Drill Rifle. You will note that there is a small bar inserted into the wood below the barrel. I suspect that this was the system that was used during the late 1960’s and early 1970’s as this would have been less expensive than mounting the tab on the barrel.

The next installment: Rubber Bayonets

From the paper, Non-Firing Drill and Training Rifles, by By Malcolm MacPherson

PARRIS-DUNN CORP. – CIVILIAN DRILL RIFLES

Following the completion of their military contracts for the Parris-Dunn Training Rifle in 1943, they continued making a similar model for the civilian market. In 1949, William Dunn retired and sold the company to Cecil Parris. Parris renamed the company the Parris Manufacturing Company and continued to produce toy guns and drill rifles in Clarinda until 1951. In 1952, he moved the company to Savannah, Tennessee. The company is still located in Savannah and continues to produce a variety of toys.

The earliest information concerning the civilian production of Parris-Dunn Corp. drill rifles is a flier showing what they called the Victory Trainer. This came in a Standard and Deluxe model. The Standard model has a fixed wooden bolt, a simplified trigger and a raised wooden platform for a rear sight. It was the same size and shape as the Parris-Dunn Training Rifle. The Deluxe model appears to be identical to their military contract Training Rifle. Both of these models have a metal butt plate marked:

In March of 1946 the Parris-Dunn Corp. celebrated the production of their 2 millionth gun. This number included (335,000) military contract training rifles, (200,000) similar civilian models, and (1,465,000) drill rifles and other assorted toy guns. Mr. Greiman indicates that they had production capabilities to produce over 3000 guns a day.

Parris-Dunn TraineRifle
This specimen is the only Parris-Dunn marked toy TraineRifle that I have located that is the same general size and shape as the military models. It appears to be a composite of features taken from both of the military models. It has traces of the original Parris-Dunn decal remaining on the right side of the stock. The stock has the identical profile and thickness of the Victory 1942 Army model. The radius of the curved surfaces on the top and bottom of the stock is slightly greater than the Army model and is more similar to the Navy model. This tends to make the sides of the stock to look more flat. The finger groove on the fore arm is 7-1/2″ long as compared to 6-1/2″ on the military models. The front and middle bands are painted on the stock, the barrel is made of wood and there is no bayonet lug which are all features found on the Army model. The wooden barrel on the TraineRifle is 3-5/8″ long as compared to a 3-1/4″ length on the military models. The swivels, receiver and bolt are identical to the military models. The trigger, trigger guard and adjustable rear sight are identical in appearance and function to the Navy model. The butt plate is the same size and shape as the Navy model but has different markings. This marking is also found on the Standard and Deluxe models of the Victory Trainer which were made for civilian drill groups following the completion of the military contracts in 1943. I would guess that this TraineRifle was produced between 1945 and 1948. It appear that Parris-Dunn was attempting to use up the parts that were remaining from their military contracts and decided to add a full size TraineRifle to their toy line. It is interesting to note that this size TraineRifle never appears in any of the Parris-Dunn advertising but surfaces in the Parris Mfg. Co. advertising in 1955-56.

Parris Mfg. Co. M-30 TraineRifle
This toy bolt action training rifle was made by the Parris Mfg. Co. It was part of a line of toy rifles that they produced after the company moved from Clarinda, Iowa to Savannah, Tenn. It was the largest in the line and was probably developed primarily for use by the Kadets of America drill teams. It has many of the same characteristics of the earlier Parris-Dunn TraineRifle. The following illustration shows their similarity.

There is a significant difference in the weight and quality of the materials. The stock is made of pine and stained to look like walnut. The front and middle bands are painted black on the wood surface and there is no recess in the top of the front band. There is no metal butt plate. The face and a strip around the butt are painted black. The barrel is a thin metal tube also painted black. The trigger assembly and trigger guard are made of thin sheet metal. The trigger makes a clicking sound when pulled. This is accomplished by snapping a lever over a thin wooden strip. The stacking and sling swivels are very similar to those on the original military training rifles. This model was designed to carry a rubber bayonet and has a thin metal strip attached to the under side of the barrel to hold the bayonet in place.

One unusual detail is the adjustable rear sight. This sight appears to be identical in material and workmanship to those used on the military contract training rifles. I am certain that every attempt was made to reduce the production costs of these TraineRifles. Most of the TraineRifle production had a decal on the side of the stock. Even when a decal was not applied or has worn off, they are easily identified as being very different from those produced by Parris-Dunn. They were produced from 1955-56 until at least 1970. The current M-30 model that they produce is a much simplified and a slightly shorter version but it retains the familiar bolt action.

The next installment: Toy Drill Rifles

From the paper, Non-Firing Drill and Training Rifles, by By Malcolm MacPherson

The Parris-Dunn Variant

This Parris-Dunn variant is unusual in many ways. This configuration is previously unknown and subject to speculation. At this time I believe that it is an early prototype of the Navy model. It is known that when the US Navy approached Parris-Dunn about producing a training rifle, they wanted several design changes from the Army model. Four of these changes were a functioning trigger, a bayonet lug, an adjustable rear sight and a steel barrel section. They also wished to increase the overall weight of the rifle as the Army model weighed less than 4 pounds. By making a cast iron trigger assembly, adding a steel barrel section and a steel front band with a bayonet lug, the weight was increased to over 5 pounds. It is my judgement that this prototype was designed to bring the weight of the rifle up to the weight of the 1903 Springfield. This was accomplished by adding a solid steel bolt and a cast iron upper hand guard. This brought the weight up to over 7-1/2 pounds. There were also some miner alterations to make the rifle appear more like the Springfield. The most obvious was a modified striker on the bolt. They also made the front portion of the hand guard integral with the forearm and scored along the bottom edge to make it appear as though it was a separate part.

Apparently the heavy cast iron hand guard and modified bolt were not adopted. I would guess that the additional cost of these features out weighed any perceived benefit. All of the other features are identical with the final configuration of the Navy model. The butt plate has unique markings that also lend credence to the fact that it may be a prototype. The PD 5 probably stands for Parris-Dunn and the fifth modification in the development process of the Navy model. If this proves to be a prototype it is, without a doubt, the most rare Parris-Dunn training rifle. Unfortunately, there is little likelihood that this can ever be verified.

The Parris-Dunn Variant 2

This is the second rifle of this type to have surfaced. It is identical to the one that I own with the exception that it has no markings on the butt plate. It has the number 77 stamped into the wood on the bottom of the fore arm near the stacking swivel. It is missing the middle barrel band but there is evidence on the upper hand guard that it originally had this band. It weighs 7 pounds 8 ounces, which in also very close the weight of my rifle. This rifle adds to the evidence that suggests that these rifles may have been prototype rifles. The following areas are unique to these rifles and are not found on any other Parris-Dunn civilian or military models.

• The 7-1/2 pound weight is about 2 pounds heavier than any other model.
• The cast iron upper hand guard.
• The steel bolt body and special cocking knob.
• The groove in the sides of the fore arm to simulate a separation of the upper hand guard.
• The lack of any consistent marking on the butt plate.

If these training rifles were designed to be sold in the civilian market, all evidence suggests that they would have had typical Parris-Dunn markings on the butt plate. They are clearly not one of the contract rifles that were used by the Army or Navy.

Parade Rifle
The following Parris-Dunn Training Rifle is a typical example of a Parade rifle. It has been extensively refinished and the metal parts chrome plated. This work was done at a later date as Parris Dunn never produced any training rifles finished in this manner. Such modifications are interesting but generally reduce the value as a collectors item.

The next installment: PARRIS-DUNN CORP. – CIVILIAN DRILL RIFLES

From the paper, Non-Firing Drill and Training Rifles, by By Malcolm MacPherson

THE PARRIS-DUNN TRAINING RIFLE

Victory 1942 model

Mark I Navy model

Unfortunately, no Parris-Dunn production records still exist, so all of the information relating to them has been pieced together from other sources. An early employee by the name of Maurice O. Greimann wrote short article in 1984 concerning the Parris-Dunn Corp and his information has been invaluable. In 1943 Mr. Greimann came to work for the Parris-Dunn Corp. as an electrical engineer. When the work shifted to making Training Rifles he became involved in their production and designed the firing mechanism for the first toy guns they later produced.

The Parris-Dunn Corporation was founded by William G. Dunn and Cecil L Parris when they formed a business partnership in 1937. Each of these men brought unique contributions to this partnership. Although Dunn had no formal technical training he, like many great inventors, could see the interrelationships that existed between different mechanical devices and could modify or combine them to solve problems. Parris had a background as sales manager for the Kari-Kleen company of Souix City, Iowa and was a talented merchandiser. Initially Parris was the President of the corporation and Dunn the Vice-president but during the war years their positions reversed.

William G. Dunn (1883-1968) ran a hardware business in Clarinda, Iowa in the early 1900’s. In 1917 he formed the Dunn Counterbalance Company operating out of the back of his hardware store. He eventually built a factory on South 15th Street in Clarinda and the name was changed to the Dunn Manufacturing Co. He was a very talented inventor and eventually held patents for 75 different mechanical devices, many of which were related to the early automobile and aircraft industry. In 1934 he developed a wind driven generator that was designed for farm use. His primary invention was a device to control the speed of the propeller on this device. In 1936 he formed a partnership with Cecil Parris in order to better promote his generator business. In 1937 they sold 37,000 of these units. When WWII broke out in 1941 their wind generator business was declared nonessential and they were only allowed to make repair parts for the units already in use. There was a severe shortage of military firearms at the start of the war and they were approached by US Army Ordnance to produce a non-firing training rifle. Shortly after, the US Navy also expressed interest in this project but they wanted some slight modifications in their model.

In July of 1942 the Army let contract 271 ORD for 35,000 training rifles of their pattern at a cost of $166,000. In August the Navy let contract NROS 10993 for 190,000 training rifles having their changes at a cost of $903,000. In October of 1942 the Army contract was completed and in November they finished the first Navy contract. In January of 1943 the Navy let contract NORD 808 for 110,000 additional training rifles and in June that contract was completed. The total cost of the 300,000 rifles produced for the Navy was $1,384,000. The cost per rifle for the first contract was $4.75 and for the second contract $4.37. By the time of the second contract, Parris-Dunn could no longer get walnut wood for the stocks as all of it was going to arsenals that were making functional military rifles. They had to start using a cheaper grade of wood during the last contract which lowered the unit price.

Prior to the start of the military contracts Parris-Dunn recognized that they did not have sufficient personnel to produce the required number of training rifles in a short period of time. They put together another organization called Parris-Dunn Associates to undertake this important project. I have a document that contains the following: “C.L. Parris, W.G. Dunn and H.E. Davidson, Copartners, doing business as Parris-Dunn Associates”. At this time I have not been able to identify H.E. Davidson. They immediately expanded into all of the available building space in the area and hired more employees. This number grew to 250 during the peak of their production. They sub-contracted much of the work to 14 different businesses. The wooden stocks and sights were manufactured at their Clarinda plant and all of the assembly and finishing was also done there. They had that capacity to produce over 3000 training rifles a day. They became so efficient that the company voluntarily returned $228,000 to the Government as excess on allowable profit. On July 23, 1943 Parris-Dunn Associates received the coveted Army-Navy “E” Production Award.

After the completion of their military contracts they continue to produce 200,000 of a civilian model for drill corps, schools and ROTC programs. The civilian model was essentially the same as the military models but had different markings. In November of 1945 The Nave classified their training rifles as surplus and offered them for sale at $7.75. This price included a plastic bayonet and scabbard. Nothing is known concerning the disposition of the Army training rifles. The Parris-Dunn Training Rifle is not a very accurate replica of the 1903 Springfield Rifle. It has a similar profile but is thinner in cross section and 3 pounds lighter in weight. The receiver, bolt and trigger mechanism are simple and crude by comparison to the Springfield. It has the general feel and appearance of a toy. It was reported that these training rifles were not very popular with soldiers and sailors that were required to use them during basic training. It must be noted that there were no other alternatives available at the time.

The Army model was marked on the butt plate:

The Navy contract rifles were marked on the butt plate:

The stock and the bolt mechanism are identical on both models and both models have two sling swivels and a stacking swivel. The following differences will help identify each model.

The typical Army Model

1. It have a simple trigger that does not move.
2. It has a sheet metal trigger guard.
3. It either had no middle barrel band or it had a painted black stripe to simulate this band.
4. It has no bayonet lug.

The typical Navy Model

1. It has a movable trigger that makes an audible click when pulled.
2. The trigger guard was made of cast iron
3. It has a metal middle barrel band.
4. It has a bayonet lug on the metal front barrel band.

Specimens with the Army butt plate marking have been found with some Navy model parts. This is probably due to the Army and Navy contracts overlapping. William Brophy indicates that there are unmarked specimens of these training rifles. An interesting fact appeared while I was examining a U.S. Training Rifle Co. Specimen. The rear sight on the Parris-Dunn Training Rifle is an exact copy of the rear sight on the U.S. Training Rifle which was produced in 1917. Because of the way they were mounted this cannot be chance or a case of interchanging parts at a later date. Maurice O. Greiman indicated that the rear sights were made in the Parris-Dunn plant in Clarinda. It would be interesting to know how Parris-Dunn got the tooling to produce them or if they possibly produced the original sights for the U.S Training rifle Co. All of the Navy contract training rifles were supplied with a plastic bayonet and scabbard. One of the changes specified prior to the start of the first Navy contract was to attach a bayonet lug on the forward band. This probably indicates that no bayonet lug was planned on the Army model. However, there a known specimens of the Army model that have a bayonet lug. This may have something to do with the Army and Navy production overlapping and that it was more economical to use one style of front band. Early in WWII there was a critical shortage of steel.

As little steel as possible was used in the manufacture of the training rifles and plastic was substituted for the blade of the bayonet. The bayonet was designed to fit the training rifle and they would not fit on any of the standard U.S. military arms. Pro-phy-lac-tic Brush Co. and Beckwith Manufacturing Co. each had military contracts to supply the plastic bayonets. Victory Plastics had a contract to produce scabbards for the bayonet. All of the bayonets are marked U.S.N Mk. I. on one face near the hilt and on the other side either B.M. or P.B.C. The scabbards are also marked U.S.N. Mk.I. The contract price of the bayonet varied but it ranged from $1.50 and $1.70 and the price of the scabbard was $0.75.

The next installment: Parris-Dunn Variants

From the paper, Non-Firing Drill and Training Rifles, by By Malcolm MacPherson

UNITED STATES TRAINING RIFLE CO.

The US Training Rifle Co. produced a non-firing training rifle during World War One. At the start of the war there was a severe shortage of serviceable rifles for training purposes. Krag rifles were brought out of storage and put into service as training rifles even though they could not fire the1906 cartridge. This shortage led to the development of the non-firing US Training Rifle. The United States Training Rifle Co. and the Wood-Art Machine Co. were involved in the production of the US Training Rifle. The relationship between these companies is an enigma. Examination of Boyd’s Philadelphia Business Directory, the Industrial Directory of New Jersey, and correspondence with the US Navy give some insight into their relationship. During 1917, both companies used the same business address at 420 Stephen Girard Building and early in 1918 they both moved to 1201 Colonial Trust Building in Philadelphia, PA. The Wood-Art Machine Co. also had a “factory” (at an unknown address) in Woodbury, NJ. During this period both companies had the same officers. James E. Baum was president, Wadsworth Cresse was treasurer, and Stephen Robinson was Secretary.

With few available records, it was impossible to find out much about these companies. However, I would speculate that these companies were in reality one organization that was operating under two different names for economic reasons. It is entirely possible that neither company produced any of the components that went into the US Training Rifle. They may have subcontracted all of the parts and merely assembled them in the Woodbury facility. To me this seems probable as they produced 10,000 training rifles in approximately 125 days. If they had produced all of the parts, I feel that it would have required a prohibitively large facility and work force. There is no record of any such large manufacturing facility in the Woodbury area at that time. The first listing of the Wood-Art Machine Co. appears in 1917 and the last in 1919. From this I must conclude that the Wood-Art Machine Co. was formed specifically to produce the US Training Rifle.

The US Training Rifle was an accurate reproduction of the 1903 Springfield rifle, which was the standard US military rifle of the period. It was not designed to fire but had the same weight and balance as the 1903 Springfield. The bolt was designed to operate in the normal manner. It was equipped with a bayonet lug that would mount a standard 1903 bayonet. The US Training Rifle Co. did not produce any bayonets or accessories for their training rifles. The top of the front receiver ring is stamped:

US TRAINING RIFLE CO., PHILADELPHIA

There are no serial numbers on any of the metal parts. Several specimens have 3/8″ – 1/2″ high block numbers stamped into the wood near the butt plate. They are not in a consistent location but they all are below the 10000 units that were produced. At this time I would speculate that they are a serial number.

On July 2, 1917, Ralph Earle, Chief of the Ordnance Bureau of the United States Navy, contacted the US Training Rifle Co. concerning their advertisement which had just appeared in the Army and Navy Journal. There were discussions within the Navy departments concerning value of a non-firing training rifle but it was determined that, due to the shortage of arms, it was the only available option. On August 22, 1917 the Wood-Art Machine Co. agreed to produce 10,000 training rifles for the US Navy at a cost of $6.10 each at their factory in Woodbury, NJ. At this time they estimated that they could start delivery on September 1, 1917. On September 19, 1917, the Bureau of Ordnance submitted a requisition to the Wood-Art Machine Co. for 10,000 Training Rifles. On October 25, 1917, Navy contract #32435, requisition 383, for 10,000 training rifles was let. The price per unit was increased to $6.15 due to the cost of shipping them to the Navy Yard in Brooklyn, New York. The first deliveries to the Navy Yard were to start November 1, 1917. It appears that the contract was completed in March of 1918. The total cost of this contract was $61,500.

In all probability the Navy sold off all of their serviceable training rifles as surplus following the war. With the availability of large quantities of surplus rifles, I doubt that there would have been much demand for non-firing training rifles. It is possible that the US Training Rifle Co. had a sufficient number of parts remaining after the completion of the Navy contract to assemble some additional training rifles and they probably continued to do so until the supply of parts was depleted. It seems likely that their entire production would have numbered less than 11,000 units. There are unmarked specimens of the US Training Rifle. It is probable that they were produced late in the production run or after the Navy contract had been completed.

There are photographs of two US Training Rifles that have slightly different contours of the hand guard. The contour that has a raised section near the rear sight is shown in the earliest advertisement in 1917. The hand guard that does not have this raised section is obviously a simplification and was probably later production. It is unknown when this change occurred. It seems likely that the majority of the training rifles would have had the simplified hand guard. Due to their scarcity it is impossible to make any accurate assessment.

In its day, the US Training Rifle was the most sophisticated training rifle ever produced and is an excellent replica of the 1903 Springfield.

The next installment: THE PARRIS-DUNN TRAINING RIFLE