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Machine pistols
( note: the specifications are in the data table ! )
The machine pistol was born in the Great War - it would have been great as a powerful close-combat sidearm for every infantryman, but wasn’t up to the task. The concept of the MP18 submachinegun proved to be better and rose to its peak in WW2. But the machine pistol continued its history and the fascination of full-auto fire from a pistol is still strong. Techniques have been found to make them more controllable while they fire several bullets in a second; especially muzzle compensator, removable or folding buttstock and fore grip. Machine pistols are also built now for cartridges that defeat soft body armour much easier than normal ball ammo - I included this particular breed of machine pistol here.
The border line between machine pistols and submachine guns isn’t very clear. Both use pistol cartridges and are capable of full automatic or burst fire. To exclude burst fire weapons from the SMGs to the machine pistols doesn’t make sense due to burst-fire limited assault rifle conversions with pistol cartridges... Let me quote the Wikipedia:
“A machine pistol shares several properties of the semi-automatic handgun and the sub-machine gun. Machine pistols are ordinarily magazine-fed and self-cocking. Such a pistol is designed to be held and used in a single hand but almost always requires the use of both hands to control.
Originally machine pistol derived from Maschinenpistole, the German term for the sub-machine gun. Today it is more often used to describe very small sub-machine guns such as the MAC-10 and the Mini-Uzi, although the line between machine pistols and sub-machine guns is quite blurry. Additionally some fully automatic handguns such as the Glock 18 and obsolete Mauser C96, would qualify as machine pistols.”
Yeah, you see how much we’ve learned? Seems as if I have an excuse to draw the line between SMG and machine pistol freely for this chapter. Any selective-fire pistol qualifies, empty weight over 2 kg is prohibitive and the rest is a matter of taste (my taste)!
OK, and now about handling; the muzzle climb is usually strong but several extras are in use to control it. Shooting full-auto over more than typical pistol combat ranges (25 m) is still no good idea - and in very close combat (5 m), the full-auto will likely result in multiple expectable hits. The Chinese even exploited the tendency of their Mauer machine pistols to climb in their civil war: They held the weapon sideways so that it did not spray its bullets vertically but horizontally. This endangered more than one enemy and is finally a sound reason why the ‘cool gangsta’ style of horizontally holding a pistol (or even better: two pistols) might be something else than “stupid and cool”. Very narrow applicability of this weird stance, agreed.
Beretta 93R
This is the successor of the Beretta 951 - the shoulder stock is detachable and the fore grip does in folded state not interfere with correct holsters. It’s the select-fire variant of the beretta 92, with single-action trigger.
world.guns.ru/handguns/hg137-e.htm
Beretta 951 R / (Model 1951 A) / (Model 1951 R)
The cool-looking fore grip can be folded backwards. Egypt produced a licensed copy as “Helwan”. The select-fire ability is kind of useless because the magazine (even the extended one as on the photo) does only hold 10 cartridges. This seems pretty stupid because high-capacity magazines 814 cartridges) were known since the Browning HP 35 / GP 35 of the 1930’s.
world.guns.ru/handguns/hg94-e.htm
securityarms.com/20010315/galleryfiles/2500/2548.htm
CZ 9mm Model 75 fully automatic pistol
The select-fire variant of the Model 75; it is recognicable the ability to use a magazine as fore grip. Also an interesting approach to keep the gun compatible to holsters. The compensator was only to be found on early production examples.
Glock 18 and Glock 18C
This is basically the select-fire variant of the famous Glock 17 pistol. The “C” model has a compensator.
world.guns.ru/handguns/hg15-e.htm
remtek.com/arms/glock/model/9/18/index.htm
HK P9 StK 0004
This was only a prototype spin-off development from the P9 pistol. It had select-fire capability and used its shoulder stock (in the photo behind the pistol) also as holster.
HK VP-70 and VP-70 M
This was a very interesting pistol from HK. They innovated with the plastic frame, gave it a double-action trigger, some simplicity, and a shoulder stock that doubled as holster. The shoulder stock had the fire selector, that allowed both single and three-round-burst fire. Without the shoulder stock attached, it was only a self-loading pistol.
world.guns.ru/handguns/hg84-e.htm
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/heckler_&_koch_vp70
www.waffenhq.de/infanterie/hk-vp70.html (in German)
IMI Micro UZI
IMI had huge success with its UZI submachinegun and enlarged the design to a whole family ranging down to a pistol. These are UZI, Mini UZI, Micro UZI, and UZI Pistol. Let’s have a closer look at the Micro UZI because it’s most obviously a machine pistol. It has the same internal action as the submachinegun, yet a much shorter barrel and is much more compact. This weapon is clearly in use as a PDW with Israeli non-combat military personnel and also in limited use by Israeli special forces. Both Micro and Mini UZI have been modified for special force with add-ons.
www.imi-israel.com/imi/doa_iis.dll/serve/item/english/1.1.2.12.2.1.htm
www.israeli-weapons.com/weapons/small_arms/uzi/UZI-MICRO.html
www.isayeret.com/weapons/smg/uzi/micro.htm
users.belgacom.net/jm.armes/uzi/UZI.htm (in French)
Further UZI machine pistol models are the Mini UZI
www.israeli-weapons.com/weapons/small_arms/uzi/UZI-MINI.html
www.isayeret.com/weapons/smg/uzi/miniuzi.htm
www.imi-israel.com/imi/doa_iis.dll/serve/item/english/1.1.2.12.2.1.htm
... and the rather new UZI-PRO
www.securityarms.com/20010315/galleryfiles/2900/2902.htm
Mauser C 96 Modell 1932 / Modell 712 and Astra Modelo 901 / Modelo 902 / Modelo 903 and NORINCO Type 80
Select-fire versions of the successful Mauser C 96 pistol were quite successful, too. Besides the German production, these models were nearly copied in Spain as the Astra 901 to 903 series. China did also produce such machine pistols as Type 80. Due to the forward magazine, their appearance is very recognisable. Some machine pistol and also self-loading pistols of these series have a shoulder stock attached.
world.guns.ru/handguns/hg90-e.htm
www.gunsworld.com/mauser/c96_us.html
Parker-Hale IDW
Astonishingly low rate of fire of around 400 rpm (controllability!), fixed fore grip, select-fire trigger, rail, detachable shoulder stock - it seems as if they have done some things right.
www.parker-hale.com/specdev.htm
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/parker_hale_pdw
Scorpion vz.61
This is the famous Czech machine pistol which was definately in use as non-combat military personnel self-defence weapon with the CSSR/Czech and other militaries. It fires rather weak pistol cartridges.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/cz-skorpion
www.kitsune.addr.com/firearms/subs/skorpion.htm
www.waffenhq.de/infanterie/skorpion.html (in German)
users.belgacom.net/jm.armes/skorpion/SKORPION.htm (in French)
Stetchkin APS
This is a classic Russian machine pistol. Acceptable rate of fire (600 rpm), OK magazine capacity (20), detachable shoulder stock (doubles as holster) make is useful, but it was nevertheless removed from soviet service due to its bulkiness and lack of comfort for the wearer. It had revivals in the 1970’s and 1990’s as accurate rapid fire pistol for special forces.
world.guns.ru/handguns/hg22-e.htm
www.waffenhq.de/infanterie/stechkin_aps.htm
makarov.com/graphics/others/stechkin.jpg
Steyr Modell 1912 / P16
The original machine pistol, really the first one. Not really famous today, but it has its place in history. It could have become important as trench weapon in World War 1, but didn’t come early enough and in sufficient quantity for the Austrian-Hungarian army.
Steyr TMP (now Brügger & Thomet TMP) and Brügger & Thomet MP9
This plastic-frame weapon from Austria is said to be relatively controllable for short distance shooting due to the good grip layout. A modernised version is called MP9. There was also an attempt to convert it to the TMP-46 for 4.6 x 30 mm, but this seems to have been abandoned.
remtek.com/arms/steyr/tmp/tmp.htm
www.securityarms.com/20010315/galleryfiles/0400/439.htm (photo with shoulder stock)
bruegger-thomet.de/de_waffen.htm (in German, photos of MP9)
users.belgacom.net/jm.armes/steyr/STEYR.htm (in French)
VEB Fahrzeug- und Jagdwaffenwerk Erst Thälmann, Suhl “Maschinenpistole 11. Parteitag der SED”
I couldn’t resist to show this machine pistol with its really awkward name and producer name. It’s pretty heavy and has only very limited magazine capacity, but a spare magazine in the detachable fore grip. The reate of fire is limited by mechanical means to almost constant 800 rpm.
info: Wehrtechnische Studiensammlung Koblenz (museum of the Bundeswehr on military technology)
www.personaldefenceweapons.com
contact me by e-mail for additions, corrections, questions!