Dolf Goldsmith is one of the coolest old-timer gun folks we’ve ever had the pleasure of meeting. Not only is he a bona fide expert on a wide range of firearms and a prolific author (having written the definitive books on the Maxim and Vickers guns and now five volumes on the Browning machine gun), but he is also a joyful and outgoing gentleman who is always willing to share his knowledge and some great stories.
We had the opportunity to catch Dolf on tape not long ago sharing some of his experiences. In this case, buying and shooting a couple 37mm Bofors antitank guns way back in the day. We’ve all seen the ads from the 60s selling ordnance like this – don’t we all wish we’d been able to buy and enjoy those things? Well, Dolf did:
When I was a little kid I couldn’t wait for the day when I’d be old enough to buy a Lahti 20mm anti tank rifle. 1968 rolled around long before I was old enough. Also, by the time I was 7 the MP-44 and the Lewis machine gun were on the list.
Oh well. Some things I wanted when I was a kid I got, somethings not.
I hope those happy days return.
A great article on, and a great interview with, a very knowledgeable historian who is also a true gentleman with much generosity of spirit in his own right. I hope he is well on his way to full recovery and will be with us for a long time to come.