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“PDW” submachineguns
( note: the specifications are in the data table ! )
Some submachineguns (SMG) were named “PDW”, misunderstood as “PDW” or models that are interesting as inspiration for PDW design. I do present a small set of samples here - the number of submachinegun types is simply too large and most of them are of little interest (concerning PDWs) for an attempt of a complete list.
Agram 2000
This Beretta-derived submachinegun lacks a shoulder stock and only became famous as a weapon of criminals in Europe. The fore grip seems pretty interesting - he won’t get entangled with other gear as easily as a normal fore grip can.
www.securityarms.com/20010315/galleryfiles/1600/1628.htm
HK MP5K / MP5K- PDW
Heckler & Koch developed a short-barrel, buttstockless version of its famous, successful and excellent MP5 (the MP5K) that had a foregrip and usually a short magazine. The introduction was in 1976. The sales of this package weren’t stellar, but improved when it got a special folding shoulder stock and was renamed “MP5K-PDW” in 1991. The weaknesses of this weapon in comparison to the ideal PDW include usually small magazine capacity, short sight radius/only iron sights, no high-penetration, no high-velocity bullet with good ballistic coefficient, only pistol-like 9x19mm wound ballistic potential. Therefore, it’s rather a submachinegun that was optimised for small dimensions and good single-shot accuracy at short distances than a PDW that could penetrate soft body armour (except the lightest ones that shall only protect against fragments).
www.hkdefense.us/pages/military-le/smg/mp5/mp5k-pdw.html
www.world.guns.ru/smg/smg15-e.htm
www.knox.army.mil/center/ocoa/armormag/mj02/3PDWs02.pdf
remtek.com/arms/hk/mil/pdw/pdw.htm
users.belgacom.net/jm_armes/HKmp5/PDWMP5.htm (in French)
Jati-Matic / GG-95 PDW
This is a commercially quite unsuccessful submachinegun which looks quite weird because of the barrel location. This allows the bolt to recoil up an inclined plane at angle to the barrel -that shall compensate for some of the muzzle climb. It has a select-fire trigger and a (albeit rudimentary) folding fore grip, two desirable features for a PDW. But the cartridge is a normal 9x19, so the same limitations as for the MP5K-PDW are in action (plus its blowback action isn’t as accurate as the MP5K-PDW’s delayed blowback closed bolt operation). The weapon was marketed as Jati-Matic in 1980-1987 and as GG-95 PDW since 1995 (by a different corporation).
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/jatimatic_gg-95_smg_pdw
www.securityarms.com/20010315/galleryfiles/2600/2646.htm
This is a multi-caliber pistol project for a unique weapon with a top horizontal high-capacity magazine.
www.defensereview.com/crane1/Marshal Arms Pistol PDW Horizontal Magazine Feed Cycle.jpg
www.defensereview.com/crane1/Marshal Arms Pistol PDW Promo_Front.jpg
www.defensereview.com/crane1/Marshal Arms Pistol PDW Promo_Back.jpg
www.marshalarmsinc.com/Products_2.html
www.marshalarmsinc.com/HorizontalMagazine.html
airbornecombatengineer.typepad.com/airborne_combat_engineer/2006/11/horizontal_feed.html
PDW PS-2000
Why I mention this Slovakian gun? Its name begins with PDW, yet it’s just a normal 9x19mm submachinegun. It’s only unusual feature are fully ambidextrous controls - left- and right-handers can use it with no (different) problems. So I consider this as a typical attempt to improve SMG sales by adding “PDW” somewhere into the name.
PM-63 / Wz 63 / (“RAK”)
This polish submachinegun/machine pistol has much of what’s expected from a PDW - except power. It uses normal, not exactly powerful, pistol cartridges. The folding fore grip and integral folding shoulder stock seem to be good things. A weakness is that the sights move during full-auto firing, complicating aiming. It was used as commando SMG and in a military self-defence role by the Polish military.
hem.passagen.se/dadkri/Pm-63.htm
TsKIB SOO OTs-39
This good-looking and partially ambidextrous submachinegun is worth an entry because it’s among those which use the 7.62x25mm Tokarev cartridge. This cartridge did interest me for the first time when I saw it in a ballistics book in a threat category together with 10mm Auto, 357 SIG, 9x21mm - above 9x19mm. The author listed it in the higher category not due to its energy but due to its 12.71 J/mm2 energy density / sectional kinetic energy (or however that’s translated - the exact value will only be achieved with some unspecified but likely realistic barrel) - more than twice as much as for the 9x18mm Makarov cartridge that was after all used as a basis for some decent AP cartridges. The OTs-39 seems to be the latest and most modern submachinegun for this cartridge.
www.personaldefenceweapons.com
contact me by e-mail for additions, corrections, questions!