The Masterpiece Arms MPA-971 was designed in 2003, at the tail end of the US Federal Assault Weapons Ban. Among other things, the ban prohibited the manufacture or import of magazines holding more than 10 rounds, and so MPA based this design on finding a readily available and inexpensive source of large magazines grandfathered in from before the ban. That turned out to be the Suomi drum, and they combined it with a FAL lower receiver and a MAC-10 style bolt mechanism (MAC-type pistols were MPA’s main business at the time).
The result as the MPA-971, a have and awkward PCC that was nonetheless surprisingly reliable. I don’t know what total production was, but probably not all that many, as the AWB did actually sunset in 2004 (contrary to expectations).
Many thanks to Step for loaning me this example to film!
Does the butt look as if it comes from an M249?
It basically did.
“(…)Suomi drum(…)with a FAL lower(…)”
Although FN FAL might seems as unexpected choice for rework to use 9×19 mm, this was not first such case in history. IMBEL did make some prototypes of 9×19 mm derivatives of FN FAL in 1970s see https://sadefensejournal.com/fal-based-submachine-guns-from-imbels-fabrica-de-itajuba/
That thing has a face for radio.
Very true.
And a voice for newspapers.
(Having both of those plus a BA-Journalism, I can make that joke.)
You can make it anyway. Ugly is ugly wherever you find it. Though I tend to treat firearms like food: it don’t gotta look good to get the job done.
For all its (supposed) ugly looks, toward the end of the video, you see it running flawlessly in a succession of dozens of rounds without a single FTE/FTF or stove-piping. Just think of how many videos of ‘finer’ looking guns we’ve seen on Forgotten Weapons through the years, that can’t get through several rounds without a hiccup or stall. I picked one of these up on a lark a decade ago, put a scope and bipod on it, and it has always run as well as what you see here. It’s certainly fun at the range for the gawks it gathers from anyone that has never seen one, and everyone wants to try it out, especially the younger set that never fail to be fascinated by it.
Perhaps that says something about the quality of the Suomi magazines.
Or else the action has enough “power in the system” to run 9 x 19mm because it was originally set up to run .45 ACP in the MAC upper.
I used MAC-10s in .45 and 9mm both way back when, and while keeping them on target was a real PITA due to their hellacious RoF, they simply didn’t have stoppages, because that big, heavy bolt just kept shoving rounds into the chamber, no matter what.
clear ether
eon
The text calls it a “MAC-10”, but Ian calls it a “MAC-11” twice in the video. The bolt looks dimensionally similar to my M-11/9 (much smaller than the M-10). Quick Google search seems to confirm.