My Dad started off with a Johnson then they handed him an M1 and he wanted his Johnson back.Better shooting and easier to carry with more capacity were his complaints against the M1.

"Let's see how that Johnson feels" 😂

Very few rifles can steel the scene when a garand is in frame, but this is one of them.

"Let's see how that Johnson feels" uh huh huh huh uh huh huh huh

I have a Garand and I love it, but never heard of the Johnson. Nice to see the comparison.

Actually, with the M1941's bolt forward, all you need to do to eject the rounds from the magazine is to depress the loading gate. Like loading with stripper clips, you can get really good at it, until you're pressing with one finger and the rounds eject right into the palm of your hand.

The only true flaw that the Johnson had was it's bayonet feature as the sliding barrel could not operate fully with a sturdy bayonet piece. Aside from that is was Garands equivalent.

For such a small channel, you guys sure seem to find many odd ball and rare guns. Nice!

Great video! Rarity to say the least of even seeing M1941s in action. I actually own both the M1941 and Garand for over +10 years now. And for the life of me I cannot decide which I like best..it is like asking a parent "which of your kids is your favorite". I'd like to chime in on a few things. Every person or video I've seen will always show and say the Johnson is so "cumbersome" to load with the clips. I like the fact your buddy pointed that out in mid video, you really need the seat time, eventually it becomes extremely smooth and ridiculously fast loading with clips once you get the mechanics down. Sure you can top off with the Garand too, but the M1941 is way faster and easier, as well as on a closed bolt w/ loaded chamber. Agreed also that it is much better to load with the bolt closed, and there is documentation to support that Marines have taken out the "bolt catch" so it no longer has a BHO on last round. The bolt catch is a L shaped metal piece that is easily removed with no tools required. As for unloading the Johnson magazine, you do not need to cycle to eject each round as you guys have mentioned in the end. You can finger the loading gate, and it will shoot the unspent casing out the gate since it is spring loaded..just need to find the sweet spot. This can be done with one hand fingering the gate, and the other hand catching the cartridges. Regarding the history, most do not know that Melvin Johnson later became a consultant at Armalite and worked alongside Eugene Stoner during his development of the AR15 rifle...note how similar the lugs look on the bolt as well as the buff system, near identical. Some go so far as to say the M1941 Johnson is the grandfather or father of the AR15 rifle...just as the Garand is to the M14.

I believe Dan was quoting General Patton. Garand a fabulous weapon. I was very impressed with the Johnson. I heard of it but this was the first time I had the opportunity to hear them in action. Wow! Thanks guys. Really enjoy your presentations.

I've never owned a Johnson but, bought my M1 from the DCM many decades ago for the total of $165 to my door and still own it.

I like both rifles as well. I have shot an M1 but not a Johnson. If I had to choose which to take into battle though, I would pick the M1 for a few reasons (not because of its history or the ping). First It's easier and faster to reload. The barrel has better protection and support. Finally the bayonet is actually functional. The Johnson 1941 looks a little awkward to reload especially in the heat of battle, that exposed barrel could be damaged or bent without much support not to mention the barrel is reciprocating (for lack of a better term) since it actually moves back with the recoil to unlock the bolt between shots. And that spike bayonet that was added was a terrible afterthought. At the time, the military required a bayonet and the Johnson's action won't work properly with too much weight added to the barrel, so a cheap lightweight spike bayonet was created to check that box but it sucked. Truth be told though, minus the bayonet issue, the Johnson is the Garand's equal, but I can see why the military chose to stick with Garand. Mainly due to it already being adopted and it was just better and cheaper to stick with the first choice. At least we can credit the bolt design of the Johnson rifle for the AR10 and AR15 locking design bolt designs, since Johnson would go on to work with Eugene Stoner at Armalite in later years. Both rifles are awesome with great history and I would give my left nut to own both both rifles personally.

Great shooting guys.Thanks for taking the time to do the comparison between these 2 great American firearms.

when i was a young man, there was a gun store that had a bargain consignment rack and there were three of the Johnson's on there. The owner / smith test fired everything b/c he didn't want a single person saying he sold garbage. They were $135 ea. (in 1998) I didn't get any as i didn't want to buy another caliber, i kinda regretted it at the time but with 30.06 hovering from 0.80 to 1.00 per bullet when you can find them, I think i made the right choice for me. Hell, haven't seen surplus 8mm for 15yrs now, once my supply is gone, my mausers are just for show.

Finally the 3 Oregon Boys out and about in the woods shooting 2 Great Rifles. Official : Jealous ^^ Looks like you had a great time. Want more of such videos with you guys in the future :-D pls make it happen. !!

I have both a Johnson and an M1 I traded a 16ga Ithaca pump shotgun for the Johnson. When I've taken it to the range it gets a fair amount of attention. Nice video.

Johnson is definitely on my wish list, unlikely that I will ever get my hands on one though. Keep up the good work, Very interesting.

Ah, the beautiful 1941 Johnson ! Thanks guys

Not sure there is any other such video produced of these 2 legendary rifles shooting it out. Thank you and stay safe!

Rare rifle. Thanks for showing it off.

nice...I have a first series one. Love the comment that its easier to load with bolt forward...some folks dont get that and give it a bad knock.

The Johnson is better. It's got holes in it. Holes make the gun work better. And they're cooler.

General Patton said of the M1 Garand “In my opinion, the M-1 Rifle is the greatest battle implement ever devised.” Couldn't find what he said about the Johnson.

You can get the hang of topping off the Garand just fine. It is only done with loose rounds, but once I got practiced with it, I can do it pretty quickly.

The M1 Garand rifle would jam every seventh round if the top round in the clip was loaded on the right. Springfield engineers discovered this problem and solved it in late 1940 or early 1941.

IMAO the factory (or factories) that tooled up to make the Johnson should of been paid to keep making them till their tooling wore out. They also should’ve re-issued the couple of million M1917 Enfields they had left over from the 1st WW. Afterall they all add up, & it would’ve been cool to to see footage of all 4 (the M1903, the Garand & the previously mentioned 2) being used together.

In the Netherlands we had them in the army in and after WW2 our government used them in our colonial war in the dutch Indies , they ended up as training gun in the salty North Sea .

Two more rounds capacity and easier reload vs. a better bayonet- I will take the rounds. If only Melvin had decided on a double column magazine for his light machine gun...

I saw a Johnson at a gun show about 10 years ago...$2500 =)

Also the AR foundation, read your history, meaning the rotating bolt

Been a while since I have watched buddy still love the videos. now I want a Johnson! Need to get out and shoot with you sometime! 👍🏼

I imagine the Embloc and Stripper even out in utility while running the gun. The top off is what sells the Johnson to me as well, topping it off is probably as efficient as reloading the magazine in an M1A and you cannot do that with a Garand. The Johnsons were going to the Dutch East Indies when the Marines picked them up off the dock to arm themselves going out to Guadalcanal. There was also a Light Machine Gun Version and that quick replacement of the barrel feature made it much preferred over the BAR in addition to the lightness.

I love this channel

I have a .270 win bbl for mine too. Rifle shoots lights out in both calibers

The Johnson has a reciprocating barrel due to the recoil action, causing bayonet issues. It had to have a special light spike bayonet so it didn’t effect both the action & accuracy too much. So IMAO it should’ve come with a (SKS style) folding bayonet. So if could be zeroed with the bayonet fitted & then just left on, but folded back till necessary. Bayonet could also be purposely made to suite the gun as it would just stay on & not be used on other firearms.

Some people simple don't understand the Garand's safety. Putting your finger inside the trigger guard will not make the rifle fire. You can yank on the trigger till the cows come home, she won't fire with the safety engaged. The safety is disengaged by pushing FORWARD with your trigger finger ( Forward, as in AWAY from the trigger ). AWAY... Once disengaged, your finger is at the very front of the trigger guard, far from the trigger. It'll take deliberate effort to move your trigger finger back to the trigger. Designed by JM Browning, so it IS Correct. ( peasants... ) ☆

using 4 fingers on your left hand over the top to push the rounds in the johston gives a more controlled pressure .......I watched someone do it that way and it was effortless

Some people have a double jointed thumb and cannot push the 8 round clip into the Garand. They probably would do better with the Thompson or M1 Carbine. Perhaps a non infantry job. I saw someone on KZfaq who had that problem. Their thumb was like a piece of rubber. Personally I don’t like magazines. SKS , JOHNSON, & GARAND are favorites for me. That tin box ( magazine) with a spring gets in the way. RUGER should make a mini 10 round clip Garand. The M1 MINI GARAND.🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉 GREAT VIDEO!

I would take the Johnson rifle over the Garand. I don't like the idea of the enemy knowing I'm out of ammo when they hear that ping.

I really like your videos, you deserve more views and likes, your videos are so beautiful and pretty background

So, the US Para-marines preferred a short Johnson to jump. Isn't that interesting.

Right when Battlefield 5 adds the Johnson rifle.

John Garand was French Canadian. Whilst Melvin Johnson was a Bostonian, therefore the Johnson must be the superior rifle as it's more AMERICAN

if the Johnson came out sooner I think it would have beat the M1 Garand

Your finger is only in a bad spot if you put it in a bad spot and have no finger control. I love the M1 and M14 safeties.

It's very accurate

I like both.

That’s 4 1/2 million to several thousand!

Very cool video!

Garand an Johnson 1941 hour in 276 petersen would have been better. Another MacArthur foul up

THE U.S. NAVY HAD A .50 CALIBER JOHNSON SUB MACHINE GUN.

Used to shoot in the woods like that in the West Washington area Olympic Nat'l forest

my guess is you could carry a live round in the left hand for topping off and you might twist the rifle to the topping off round instead of twisting your hand to reach the loading flap. then practice "repetition top off loading" till it is muscle memory---> the 41 looks easy to lug around when nearly dead-tired/thirsty+lost

I would give up a Garand for an M1941 any day. A bayonet is situational, an extra 2 rounds isn't. Add onto that the unique load mechanism of the M1941, easier top off, less weight, no requirement to have a clip at all times, detachable barrel, the action that would go on to serve in the AR platform, the side eject instead of the top... Downsides are slower reload, worse accuracy, a bit less reliable, and no bayonet. Ffs, the Carbine could have been an M1941 with a lower power cartridge, perfect for backline personnel. But no. At least the Johnson action got its due on the M16/AR15 platform.

Great vid, thanks.

You can top of a Garand hit the eject button on the left side of the receiver put one hand over the bolt to catch the inblock clip after pulling the charging handle back push the inblock clip in the magazine use one hand to load and the other to hold open the bolt and start loading rounds in the inblock clip after topping off push the inblock clip back in the magazine theres a video on KZfaq called M1 Garand myths by Blowk on the range I learned a bunch of tricks from him if you own a Garand I highly recommend his video.

You can top off the Garand easy as pie. Open the bolt and stuff in single rounds.

So badass

So what’s a Johnson going for in 2024? I know most Garands are in the 3 plus range

Good video.

I still love my M1 Garand

The bayonet was a problem with the Johnson.

you need to wear tight-fitting gloves with the johnson and the reload is lightning fast with the gloves

As GOOD, as the "Garand" is . . . after a SIDE by SIDE evaluation, it becomes clear, that the "Johnson" rifle, is the BETTER of the two . . .

Maybe "rotary" magazine rather than "helical"?

Such a Great Rifle,,

so George S Patton said...

The Johnson loads easier if you load it with the bolt locked back.

Was David on a recent podcast talking about the Johnson? Great video guys

What was the "Inspection Arms" with the Johnson?

The Garand….

I wonder if the Johnson would have worked better with a conventional 10 round box magazine loaded from the top like an M14 or FN49

0:35 - What is the rifle or MG of the guy at right in this picture?

The only advantages this noob can see that the Garand has over the Johnson is that loading seems easier and only one reload is needed to fill the magazine. I bet precious few marines bothered loading two stripper clips during a fire fight. Still, the Johnson is a worthy competitor.

I'd like to see you guys do a video on the French Lebel 1886, please?

You can top off the garand also, I’ve done it. but it would take some practice to do it while moving

Wouldn't you call the magazine in the Johnson capsulated? Like they did the Krag's magazine?

Would ya'll ever do a video with the best Thompson vs. best M3 Grease Gun Vs. M50 Reising. Because not that many people know about that last one.

It's so obvious neither of you have ever handled a Johnson

agree but not impossible.

If tthe johnson holds 10 and garand hilds only 5,,,,,, in a fast combat situation. Now i dont know how hot barrel gets to warp. I have to remember the insane recoil, and re- targeting takes way to long 3 seconds on iron sights.?? You would really have to ask real life combat vets whis actually used them to get a clear real answer!! At least to me

The Johnson uses a rotary magazine not helical .

Comparing these two is like comparing a mig 15 and an f86

Cool

you can top off m1 grand ccheck out bloke on the range m1 myths

Seems his Johnson is bigger.

I will keep with my M1 GARAND.

4th like

The problem with that ping though is that it tells the enemy you're out.

That ping killed a lot of gi s

Acknowledging both rifles are great, personally id give the win to the M1. The 8 rd clip seems more fluid compared to two separate 5rd ones. Granted, i was never under fire with either so my opinion is moot.