POTD: Second Type Springfield Armory Gallery Pistol – Bring This Back!
Sam.S 09.07.21
Welcome to today’s Photo of the Day! This is one of those items that I come across in my internet scouring that just needs to be brought back! This is a Springfield Armory Gallery Pistol or “practice pistol”. The design of the Springfield Armory Gallery Pistol was submitted by J.H. Carl in 1914 and the frame was pleasantly an M1911 frame so that made the rest easy enough. Like most 22 Long Rifle pistols this one was not very efficient or reliable and these problems are what led to the Springfield Armory Gallery Pistol ending up on the cutting room floor.
“This is a very rare example of a prototype Second Type .22 caliber Gallery Practice Semi-Automatic Pistol manufactured by Springfield Armory in January 1919. Springfield Armory Manufactured a total of twenty-five Second Type, .22 Long Rifle Gallery Practice Pistols. Although the pistols performed adequately in tests at Springfield Armory; troop trials by the Infantry School of Arms and the Cavalry Board revealed problems with ejection, feeding and binding breech blocks. As a result of the initials tests the magazines were modified and the pistols were re-submitted for testing in 1923. When the second trials resulted in additional functioning problems; the Army re-examined the design and made the decision to abandon the Springfield Gallery Practice Pistol and await the development of the Colt Ace. The Gallery Practice Pistol was based on a design submitted by J.H. Carl in 1914 and utilized a standard M1911 receiver, fixed slide and barrel, sliding breech block and seven-shot magazine. The pistol has a blue finish and is fitted with standard, checkered, walnut grips. The pistol is complete with a Second Type magazine with a loading assist button on the right side. “
Lot 3180: Rare Second Type Springfield Armory Gallery Practice Pistol [Photograph found in Auction Catalog #53, Rock Island Auction Company]. (n.d.). Retrieved September 6, 2021, from https://www.rockislandauction.com/detail/53/3180/rare-second-type-springfield-armory-gallery-practice-pistol
