The M1941 rifle used the energy from recoil to cycle the rifle.
As the bullet and propellant gases move down the barrel, they impart force on the bolt head which is locked to the barrel.
The barrel, together with the bolt, moves a short distance rearward until the bullet leaves the barrel and pressure in the bore drops to safe levels.
The barrel then stops against a shoulder allowing the bolt carrier to continue rearward under the momentum imparted by the initial recoil stage.
The rotating bolt, with eight locking lugs, would then unlock from the chamber as cam arrangement rotates and unlocks the bolt to continue the operating cycle.
 The Johnson rifle utilized a two-piece stock and a unique 10-round rotary magazine, designed to use the same 5-round stripper clips already in use by the M1903 Rifle.

This system had some advantages in comparison to the M1 Garand rifle, such as a greater magazine capacity combined with the ability to recharge the magazine with ammunition (using 5-round clips or individually) at any time, even with the bolt closed on a chambered round.
Finally; that the Johnson rifle did not—unlike the M1 Rifle—eject an en bloc clip upon firing the last round in the magazine, was considered an advantage by some soldiers.
A widely-held belief among US soldiers (when surveyed in 1952, 27% of soldiers held this opinion) was that the M1 Garand's distinctive clip ejection sound, the well-known "M1 Ping", presented a danger when fighting an enemy force, as the sound purportedly signaled to the enemy that the solder's M1 Rifle was empty and they could no longer fire in defense.
Regardless any anecdotal beliefs and despite the popularity of the story—which persists to this day—there are no verified cases of an enemy using the "M1 Ping" sound to their advantage up through the Korean War.
Unfortunately, despite the several advantages the Johnson Rifle design had over the M1 Garand rifle, the existing disadvantages were too great to change US rifle production from the M1 Garand.
The Johnson's short recoil reciprocating barrel mechanism resulted in excessive vertical shot dispersion that was never fully cured during its production life, and was prone to malfunction when a bayonet was attached to the reciprocating barrel (short recoil weapons require specific barrel weights to cycle correctly).
Additionally, the complex movements of the barrel required for proper operation would be subject to unacceptable stress upon a bayonet thrust into a target.
The Johnson also employed a number of small parts that were easily lost during field stripping.
Partially because of lack of development, the M1941 was less rugged and reliable than the M1, though this was a matter of personal preference and was not universally opined among those that had used both weapons in combat.

As was Johnson's practice, he gave all of his weapons a "pet" nickname.
Johnson christened his semi-automatic rifle Betsy and the Light Machine Gun Emma.

Melvin Johnson continued to develop small arms.
He worked with ArmaLite and Colt's Manufacturing Company as an advocate for the AR-15.
The AR-15 used a similar bolt design to the M1941 Johnson.
The M1941 rifle used the energy from recoil to cycle the rifle. As the bullet and propellant gases move down the barrel, they impart force on the bolt head which is locked to the barrel. The barrel, together with the bolt, moves a short distance rearward until the bullet leaves the barrel and pressure in the bore drops to safe levels. The barrel then stops against a shoulder allowing the bolt carrier to continue rearward under the momentum imparted by the initial recoil stage. The rotating bolt, with eight locking lugs, would then unlock from the chamber as cam arrangement rotates and unlocks the bolt to continue the operating cycle.  The Johnson rifle utilized a two-piece stock and a unique 10-round rotary magazine, designed to use the same 5-round stripper clips already in use by the M1903 Rifle.
This system had some advantages in comparison to the M1 Garand rifle, such as a greater magazine capacity combined with the ability to recharge the magazine with ammunition (using 5-round clips or individually) at any time, even with the bolt closed on a chambered round. Finally; that the Johnson rifle did not—unlike the M1 Rifle—eject an en bloc clip upon firing the last round in the magazine, was considered an advantage by some soldiers. A widely-held belief among US soldiers (when surveyed in 1952, 27% of soldiers held this opinion) was that the M1 Garand's distinctive clip ejection sound, the well-known "M1 Ping", presented a danger when fighting an enemy force, as the sound purportedly signaled to the enemy that the solder's M1 Rifle was empty and they could no longer fire in defense. Regardless any anecdotal beliefs and despite the popularity of the story—which persists to this day—there are no verified cases of an enemy using the "M1 Ping" sound to their advantage up through the Korean War. Unfortunately, despite the several advantages the Johnson Rifle design had over the M1 Garand rifle, the existing disadvantages were too great to change US rifle production from the M1 Garand. The Johnson's short recoil reciprocating barrel mechanism resulted in excessive vertical shot dispersion that was never fully cured during its production life, and was prone to malfunction when a bayonet was attached to the reciprocating barrel (short recoil weapons require specific barrel weights to cycle correctly). Additionally, the complex movements of the barrel required for proper operation would be subject to unacceptable stress upon a bayonet thrust into a target. The Johnson also employed a number of small parts that were easily lost during field stripping. Partially because of lack of development, the M1941 was less rugged and reliable than the M1, though this was a matter of personal preference and was not universally opined among those that had used both weapons in combat.
As was Johnson's practice, he gave all of his weapons a "pet" nickname. Johnson christened his semi-automatic rifle Betsy and the Light Machine Gun Emma.
Melvin Johnson continued to develop small arms. He worked with ArmaLite and Colt's Manufacturing Company as an advocate for the AR-15. The AR-15 used a similar bolt design to the M1941 Johnson.
M1941 Johnson rifle