NUMB3RS Vol. 3

Getting right to it:

37.) The Ithaca 37, aka the Model 37, looks extremely familiar as far as military shotguns go. I don't know much about it besides it being ambidextrous and based on an early 20th century patent by Browning, according to Wikipedia.

38.) Another Wikipedia entry-

"The Colt M1892 Navy and Army was the first general issue double-action revolver with a swing out cylinder used by the U.S. military."

It was chambered for .38 caliber cartridges.

Also, there's "The Smith & Wesson K-38 Combat Masterpiece, Revolver Model 15". (How did I miss that in Vol. 1?)

Wikipedia indicates that it was another .38 caliber popular among Military Police (MPs); especially those in the Air Force.

39.) The M39 Enhanced Marksman Rifle is essentially a suped up M14 rifle. It's "a modified and accurized version" as Wikipedia tells it.

40.) The "Devil Dogs" (U.S. Marines) again- Their beloved M40 sniper rifle was simply their version of the Army's M24 (see Vol. 2 of this trilogy). The "Leathernecks" (Marines) have at least a few variants supposedly.

In addition, out of the several weapons I personally purchased while I was in, almost all were .40 cal (caliber).

41.) "The M41 Walker Bulldog, officially 76-mm Gun Tank, M41, was an American light tank developed for armed reconnaissance purposes."- Wikipedia.

Side note: It apparently replaced the WWII era M24 Chaffee tanks that I somehow missed on Vol. 2.

At any rate, there's the Mark (Mk) 41 Vertical Launching System as well. My screenshot of the Wikipedia summary indicates that they're manufactured by Martin Marietta and Lockheed Martin; in service with the U.S. Navy (among others) from 1986 to the present day; and designed in the 1970s.

All matters considered, the Army's aforementioned MPs are more or less the most reviled and feared Military Occupation Specialties (MOSs) throughout the Branch. Of course, their motto since, I believe, their 26 September 1941 founding is "Assist. Protect. Defend."

Fourth and final item under this number- Pearl Harbor. It was 1941 also; tho, December 7th.

Rumor has it that Japan essentially telegraphed that "punch" to us and were goaded in an extreme way into attacking us on that fateful day. Had we not been so hellbent on getting into the war, a myriad of Americans's lives likely would have been spared death in the battles as well as from the internment camps for Japanese Americans...

Armchair quarterbacking notwithstanding, I believe that there's no way to imagine a world where the corrupt instigators in Washington DC didn't drag us into that costly and largely fortuitous war. One has to wonder if we all might not be speaking German, Japanese, and Italian had Great Britain, France, and the USSR succumbed to the Axis powers.

In the interest of full disclosure: "All wars are bankers's wars." Another largely esoteric fact: there would've been no moon landing nor, supposedly, a successful Manhattan Project without Operation Paperclip. "Do what you will with that information."

42.) "The M42 40mm Self-Propelled Anti-Aircraft Gun, or 'Duster,' is an American armored light air-defense gun built for the United States Army from 1952 until December 1960, in service until 1988. Production of this vehicle was performed by the tank division of the General Motors Corporation."- Wikipedia.

Side note- it apparently had either a M1919A4 machine gun (missed that one on Vol. 1) or an M60 machine gun as well; both chambered in 7.62mm.

More stats from Wikipedia: The M2A1 40mm twin anti-aircraft gun had a capacity for 336 rounds; 500 horsepower, 6-cylinder air-cooled gasoline engine; 4-6 man crew; 99 mile operational range; and a 9-25mm thick armor.

Last tidbit: it was used in only the Vietnam War and the Lebanese Civil War.

This doesn't necessarily have anything to do with the military, to the best of my knowledge, though, I was about three years into my enlistment contract when I learned about Douglas Adams' novel "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" which was "first published in London on 12 October 1979."- Wikipedia.

Based on my understanding of the series, 42 is the answer to "the ultimate question", and of course no one save the author, along with his best friend who's sworn to secrecy, actually know what that question is. I have my suspicions, largely about the late, great Jackie Robinson, who infamously broke the color barrier in Major League Baseball (the MLB) while rocking the number 42 on his jersey.

All things considered, the mystery may not go down in infamy like Pearl Harbor and shotguns; however, to quote Vice President Mike Pence, "America is a nation of miracles."