Offered here is a scarce Pedersen semi-automatic rifle, manufactured in the early 1930s by Vickers-Armstrongs Ltd. of the United Kingdom. Originally conceived by American arms designer John D. Pedersen in 1924 and developed into the 1930s, the Pedersen self-loader was the strongest competitor to John Garand's rifle for adoption by the U.S. Army as their first self-loading infantry rifle. Both were originally developed around the Pedersen-designed .276 Pedersen cartridge to have a more compact, lightweight and easy-shooting operation than a .30-06 gas or recoil driven rifle, with the Pedersen using a novel delayed blowback toggle lock system (often compared to the Luger Parabellum system). While a novel weapon, and somewhat prescient in light of later efforts to introduce small bore high velocity infantry arms, Pedersen's cartridge was met with mixed response by the Army, which had concerns about lethality and the use of waxed cartridges to aid feeding and extraction, as well as the logistics burden of fielding infantry units with .276 caliber rifles and .30-06 caliber machine guns. The .276 failed to displace the .30-06 as the main infantry cartridge, and Garand scaled up his rifle to handle the larger round, in turn making history with what was officially adopted as the M1 Garand rifle in U.S. military service. While not closing the deal with the U.S. Army, the level of interest shown to Pedersen's design intrigued other nations eyeballing a semi-auto upgrade, leading to talks with the Imperial Japanese Army and the United Kingdom, the latter leading to a partnership with Vickers-Armstrongs Ltd., though in the end the British opted to stick with the Short Magazine Lee-Enfield bolt action rifle, shelving the semi-automatic question until after World War II. Pedersen rifles and carbines were made in limited quantities and earmarked for (often deliberately harsh or destructive) government testing, making surviving examples rare in any condition. Blade front sight, adjustable peep rear sight, with the deeply cut half-fluted barrel protected by a ventilated steel handguard. The top of the chamber is stamped with "C/2" in an oval proof, with "PEDERSEN SELFLOADER PA/VICKERS-ARMSTRONGS LTD." on the left side of the receiver and the serial number "218" on the right. A set of small "Lion" proofs are on the receiver and the bolt, the latter fitted with a "SAFE" and "REDY" marked crossbar safety. The smooth pistol grip stock is ventilated along the bottom front and fitted with an enlarged magazine floorplate to accommodate an en-bloc clip, with a checkered steel buttplate.

Fine, retains 85% original blue finish with areas of old dried brown grease, some areas faded to a smooth brown patina on the balance, with sharp markings. Stock is also fine as modified, with the front section removed, with scattered dents and scratches, a non-structural crack visible directly ahead of the magazine well, a non-structural crack on top directly behind the receiver, and defined edges. Absent sling swivels. Mechanically excellent. Pedersen semi-automatic rifles are very scarce in any condition, serving as a significant evolutionary piece in firearms history, and would make a valuable addition in any advanced military firearms collection.