S.E. Overton woodworking Co.

[IRON WORKER]

Does anyone have any information about the S.E. Overton woodworking companies roll in late production stocks and possibly a sub for the T44E4 pilot production stocks .
Recently three different rare T44E4 stocks have been seen with the (o) stamp on the buttstock . Its hard to understand why Springfield Armory would have used a sub for stock making as they had an immense stock making department complete with wharhouse full of seasoned blanks .

[Bodyman]

There is a book on Overton's work with Ordnance on M1 Carbine and later Garand wood (I used to have it under my desk here at work but it is at home now); The M1 Carbine, A Revolution in Gun Stocking. It is an interesting read and does not cast such a favorable light on the inner workings of Springfield Armory. Maybe to spread out production as with IHC, Overton was contacted to make Garand stocks for the Korean era. There are many stories but Overton was amazed describing more people running around with clipboards than actually making things and wondered how they got anything done, and that for Garand stocks SA was still using a temporary gage made prior to WWII almost 15 years earlier. The book also gives some insight into how Springfield treated subcontractors, which seems to have been with considerable disdain and very much as second (or third) tier to themselves; at one point Overton was contacted with a complaint that an entire shipment of wood was out of spec and over-sized. so Overton drove overnight to Massachusetts from Michigan only to find the whole shipment from them sitting outside in the weather and soaked! Taking one of the soaked stocks and using the temporary gage, the Overton fella gaged it and not surprisingly, it was swollen and measured as over-sized. So he placed it on a cast iron radiator and said nothing as they went toa long lunch together, when they came back the unfinished wood had several hours to dry out, so in front of everyone he re-gaged to show them that it really was in spec, and explained that they needed to be properly stored and assured them that the whole shipment would be in spec also, once dried out and stored properly.

Such are the stories from companies like Winchester and Griffin & Howe before and during WWII, and they continued thru to Korea with Overton and IHC, ...

So while I don't have a good answer on the specific question, I would suggest this book as a good source to investigate. Somehow I am unable to post a link but they are available on ebay and such for 25 to 40 bucks.

[IRON WORKER]

That's very interesting ,I'll look for it