POTD: Large Capacity Long Recoil Rifle – The Special Police Remington Model 81
Sam.S 06.25.24
Welcome to today’s Photo of the Day! The Special Police Remington Model 81 resulted from an upgrade of the Model 8 rifle to suit police use in the 1930s. The Peace Officer Equipment Company in conjunction with Remington designed it with an enlarged foregrip and a fifteen-shot magazine, which were significant improvements over its original five-shot fixed counterpart. With cartridges like .35 Remington, it had the ability to deliver stopping power. From the very beginning up until 1936, conversion kits were produced by peace officer equipment company after which Remington adopted that design as a factory option. Nevertheless, despite having good designs, the special police model was unpopular and only found favor with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. This gun marked one of the earliest iterations of a combat rifle for law enforcement purposes that struck a balance between power and capacity. It was a bridge between old-style hunting rifles and contemporary ballistics weaponry signifying a major shift in policing armament development. In spite of its potential, relatively few Special Police Remington Model 81s were made.
“Introduced in the 1930s as a collaborative effort between Remington and the Peace Officer Equipment Company, the Special Police used upgrades that Peace Officer Equipment Company manufactured for the Model 8 and made them factory standard, including the extended forearm and 15 round detachable magazine. Intended to bridge the firepower gap between the lawmen and the lawbreakers, these Model 81s presaged the concept of the modern full power semi-automatic “battle rifle”.”
Lot 403: Remington Model 81 “Special Police” Rifle with Extended Magazine – Exceptional Remington Model 81 “Special Police” Semi-Automatic Rifle with Matching Number Peace Officer Equipment Extended Magazine and Los Angeles Sheriff Department Markings. (n.d.-n). Rock Island Auction Company. photograph. Retrieved June 24, 2024, from https://www.rockislandauction.com/detail/82/403/remington-model-81-special-police-rifle-with-extended-magazine.
