Submachine Guns - Forgotten Weapons

Subguns for South America: the Steyr-Solothurn MP-34 in .45ACP

October 30, 2020 Ian McCollum 8

The MP-34 was made by Steyr-Solothurn in four different calibers – 9×19 for the Germany army, 9×25 for the Austrian army, 9×23 for the Austrian police, and .45 ACP for the export market. This is […]

The Erma EMP at the Range

October 24, 2020 Ian McCollum 7

Having taken a close look at this original Erma EMP submachine gun yesterday, we are out at the range with it today. Like several of the interwar SMGs, the Erma was designed with a magazine […]

Erma EMP: Heinrich Vollmer’s Interwar Submachine Gun

October 23, 2020 Ian McCollum 26

Developed by Heinrich Vollmer in the 1920s, this quite distinctive submachine guns was marketed by the Erma company starting in 1932 and sold quite well internationally. This particular example was used by the German police […]

Doughboy Bringback MP-18,I on the Range

October 21, 2020 Ian McCollum 25

The MP-18,I was most likely the first true submachine gun to see combat use, issued in the final months of World War One to German Sturmtruppen. These guns were originally fitted with 32-round drum magazines […]

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 26

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 16

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 […]