Today we have a pair of interesting transitional Bergman factory prototypes which fall between the early No.1 / 1894 design and the 1896 No2/3/4 commercial production guns. These are both in the white, and show features from the designs both before and after. An interesting look inside the developmental process!
Select-fire Rifles
Vintage Saturday: Nazi Zorro
German Skijäger troops with Sturmgewehr rifles in the Ukraine, February 1944. Note how two of the guys in the background are using ski poles as shooting sticks. If there had been more of these guys […]
Revolver
RIA: Mauser Model 1878 “Zig-Zag” Revolvers (Video)
After making their big break with the adoption of the Model 1871 Mauser rifle by the newly unified German government, the Mauser brothers, took a shot at getting the handgun contract for the military as […]
Reader Questions
Reader Questions #3: StG Bolt Markings, FG-42 Chamber, Importing Surplus Arms
I only have two questions this week – if you have something you’re curious about, don’t be shy! Email me at admin@forgottenweapons.com and ask away, so we have enough question to keep this going as […]
Thank you Ian. Any scale Bergmann plans out there? I would like to build a full scale model. The frame seems fairly easy as it looks like flat plate and could be cut out with a laser/water cutter. I did this with a Chauchat and it turned out great.
The early Bergmann pistols demonstrated that the concept of a self-loading handgun manufactured in bulk was possible but the crafting techniques of the day had yet to produce an instance of the concept which would function well given non-ideal conditions. By the way, what became of the Chauchat?
En-bloc clips aren’t that expensive to produce, but are they cheap to replace for non-military applications? Most guys on the street during the late 19th Century would balk at the idea of having to purchase ammunition AND “bullet carriers” to go with a handgun. Why bother with something like that when a good double-action revolver (like the Gasser Montenegrin) was available? Get a gun, get ammo, and that’s it. The issue of expenses related to “disposable ammunition holders” were also used to disparage detachable magazines.
Did I mess up?
“Did I mess up?”
In that time (mid 1890s) no-one was sure how automatic pistol should (or shouldn’t) look. In area of magazine/feed system repeating repeating rifle – at that time detachable magazine rarer were and often if were they were not designed as default method of loading rifle (see SMLE rifle – default loading with clips)
“idea of having to purchase ammunition AND “bullet carriers” to go with a handgun”
Speed or reload comes at cost.
is: “(…)Speed or reload(…)”
should be: “(…)Speed of reload(…)”
“Any scale Bergmann plans out there?”
Not sure whatever it will help, but maybe:
Атлас чертежей к автоматическому оружию from 1907 by V.G.Fyodorov
http://dfiles.eu/files/iow4p8k9z
(you might it download for free, but has just to wait)
Anyway, Bergmann name must be positively associated in 1930s, as Theodor Bergmann Erben automatic pistol was produced by Waffenfabrik Suhl, see photo and description:
http://www.rockislandauction.com/detail/67/3357
it was 7.65mm (.32 Auto) pocket automatic pistol, for more info see link above.
(Erbe in Deutsch mean: heritage, heir, legacy)