Submachine Guns - Forgotten Weapons

Evolution of the Submachine Gun: Three Distinct Generations

October 20, 2020 Ian McCollum 98

Submachine guns have gone through a distinct evolution over the past one hundred years. Today we will look at these changes, specifically identifying: – 1st Generation guns from World War One and through the 1930s […]

MAS 38 at the Range – Finally!

October 3, 2020 Ian McCollum 25

My MAS 38 submachine gun is *finally* running properly and with the 7.65mm French Long ammunition now being made by Steinel Ammo, I can finally take this out to the range! What to shoot at? […]

Hotchkiss Universal: The Most Folding Gun Made

July 31, 2020 Ian McCollum 15

The Hotchkiss Universal was a closed-bolt submachine gun submitted to French military trials in the late 1940s to replace the MAS-38. The French were looking for a compact SMG in 9mm Parabellum, and tested guns […]

Chinese 7.62mm Sten Gun

May 13, 2020 Ian McCollum 18

During World War Two, Canada supplied some 73,000 Sten guns (made by the Long Branch arsenal) to Chinese Nationalist forces in an effort to help them fight the Japanese. These Stens were standard MkII pattern […]

North Vietnamese K-50M Submachine Gun

March 27, 2020 Ian McCollum 44

This is lot #545 in the upcoming RIA Premier Auction. It was scheduled for April, but has been postponed – check their web site for upcoming Online Only auctions every month, though! The K-50M was […]

H&K UMP: An H&K SMG Made for .40 and .45

March 6, 2020 Ian McCollum 26

H&K introduced the UMP (universal machine pistol) in an effort to attract sales from American law enforcement by offering a modern submachine gun in .45 ACP and .40 S&W calibers. The MP5 was and remains […]

Swedish K: The Carl Gustav m/45B and the Port Said

January 24, 2020 Ian McCollum 42

During the 1930s, Sweden acquired an assortment of different submachine guns, including Bergmanns, Thompsons, and Suomis. As World War Two progressed, they decided that they really needed to standardize on a single caliber and model […]

MAT 49-54 Police Submachine Gun

January 22, 2020 Ian McCollum 19

After the adoption of the MAT 49 as the standard French military submachine gun, elements of the French security services also adopted it to replace the 7.65mm MAS 38 submachine guns. These included the Paris […]

Ians Top 5 SMGs

January 18, 2020 Ian McCollum 74

One of the questions I got for this month’s Q&A was, “what are your favorite submachine guns?” Well, I figured that would be a good idea for a standalone video instead of just a Q&A […]

Star Z45: Spain’s Improved MP40 Submachine Gun

January 17, 2020 Ian McCollum 33

The Z45 was a submachine gun designed during World War Two by the Start firm in Eibar, Spain for export sale to Germany as well as domestic Spanish use. It was heavily based on the […]