MP 34
| Maschinenpistole 34 (MP34) | |
|---|---|
| Action | open bolt blowback |
| Rate of fire | ~600 rounds/min |
| Muzzle velocity | ~410 m/s (1,345 ft/s) |
| Effective firing range | 150–200 m (490–650 ft : 160–220 yds) |
| Feed system | 20 or 32-round detachable box magazine |
| Sights | Hooded or open topped front, adjustable rear |
The MP34 (Maschinenpistole 34, literally "Machine Pistol 34") is a
History
The MP 34 was based on a design for the MP 19 by the Rheinmetall company based in Düsseldorf. The weapon is similar in design to the MP 18 Bergmann, which itself saw service towards the end of World War I.[3]
To circumvent the conditions of Treaty of Versailles, precluding Germany from exporting weapons and munitions, Rheinmetall acquired the Swiss company Waffenfabrik Solothurn in 1929 and began secret production of a prototype. What was to become the MP 34 was originally designated ‘S1-100’ using the company's standard naming convention.[4]
Due to the Solothurn company being unsuited for mass production, Rheinmetall took a controlling interest in Waffenfabrik Steyr, an established arms manufacturer in Austria. Weapons manufactured by Steyr were sold via the
The MP 34 was manufactured from the very best materials available and finished to the highest possible standard., which was designed with mass-production in mind.
Operation
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (October 2018) |
The MP 34 is a
On the left-hand side of the stock is a sliding fire selector switch (marked by letters T and S). Initial production runs of the gun have a
Box magazines of 32- or 20-round capacity are fed in from the left side and the magazine housing is angled slightly forward to improve cartridge feeding to prevent jams. Additionally, the same magazine housing incorporates a magazine refilling feature. An empty magazine can be inserted from underneath and locked in place. From above, stripper clips (of eight rounds each) can be fed into the magazines.
All MP 34s were manufactured with a wooden stock with a semi-pistol grip. The barrel is enclosed into a perforated cooling jacket and has a bayonet-fixing lug on the right-hand side. Front (hooded) and rear rifle-type sights are fitted, the latter marked from 100 to 500 meters.
Some versions of the weapon can be fitted with a detachable tripod for use as a machine gun.[3]
-
MP34, bayonet and spare magazines -
MP34 rear sights, safety and magazine housing -
Dual purpose magazine housing -
Portuguese crest on 1942 contract
Service
In 1930, the Austrian police accepted the S1-100 as the Steyr MP30, chambered for then standard Austrian
The
With the 1938 Anschluss between Germany and Austria, the German Army acquired most of the available MP30s and MP34s. A number were then re-barrelled to chamber 9×19 ammunition and issued to German troops as the MP34(ö) – Maschinenpistole 34 österreichisch (literally "Machine-pistol 34, Austrian").[4] Production of the MP34 ceased in mid-1940, and manufacturing lines at Steyr moved over to the production of the MP40 – a much simpler designed weapon and far less expensive to produce than the MP34. As a substitute standard small arm, it had a relatively short combat service once quantities of the MP38 became available, though some MP34s were used by Waffen SS units in the early stages of the war in Poland and France. It was then allocated to security and reserve units, including military police and Feldgendarmerie detachments.[citation needed]
In Greece, various police forces under the Ministry of Security, notably the mechanized police, were equipped with the S1-100[5] in 9×25mm Mauser caliber. In Yugoslavia, both the Partisans and the Chetniks used captured Solothurn MP34s carried by German and Croatian troops.[6]
Portugal bought in small quantities the
During the late 1930s, Japan imported a small number of MP 34s for testing and limited issue.[10]
Users
Austria[11]
Bolivia[1][12]
Bulgaria—A small number was acquired for police units in the 1930s; used in larger numbers during WWII[13]
Chile[4]
Republic of China[3]
Kingdom of Greece—Used by police and gendarmerie forces[5]
El Salvador[4]
Ethiopian Empire[14]
Nazi Germany[14]
Hungary[11]
Italian Partisans—Used examples captured from German soldiers[15]
Empire of Japan[14]
Peru[16]
Portugal[14]
Spain
Sweden[14]
Uruguay[4]
Venezuela[citation needed]
Croatia
Yugoslav Partisans and Chetniks[6]
Vietnam
References
Notes
- ^ ISBN 978-1-4402-1544-5.
- ^ "Resistencias de los radios populares en Bolivia: Radio Nacional Huanuni y Pío XII, 1950 - 1980".
- ^ a b c d e "Steyr-Solothurn S1-100". Encyclopédie des armes : Les forces armées du monde (in French). Vol. I. Atlas. 1986. p. 27.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Oliva, Vince (April 2001). "MP34 Maschinen Pistole in 45ACP!". Small Arms Review. No. V4N7.
- ^ ISBN 9781472819178.
- ^ a b Scarlata, Paul (1 October 2017). "Yugoslav Part II: World War II small arms: an assortment of small arms from friends and foe alike". Firearms News.
- ^ Renato Fernando Marques Pinto (28 May 2010). "As Indústrias Militares e As Armas de Fogo Portáteis no Exército Português" (in Portuguese). Archived from the original on 27 March 2012. Retrieved 3 March 2013..
- ^ a b "As Armas da 1ª Guerra Mundial". quelegalbakana.blogspot.com (in Portuguese). 5 September 2007.
- ISBN 0-85045-843-9, p. 17
- ^ "Japanese Submachine Gun". Historical Firearms. Retrieved 20 June 2017.
- ^ ISBN 978-1851094806.
- ^ Alejandro de Quesada (20 November 2011). The Chaco War 1932-35: South America's greatest modern conflict. Osprey.
- ^ "BULGARIAN SMALL ARMS OF WORLD WAR II, PART 2: FROM MAXIM OBRAZETZ 1907G TO ZB39 OBRAZETZ 1939G. - Free Online Library". www.thefreelibrary.com. Retrieved 19 December 2022.
- ^ ISBN 978-1586637620.
- ISBN 978-0764352102.
- ISBN 9781472826282.
Bibliography
- Ezell, Edward Clinto. Small Arms of the World, Eleventh Edition, Arms & Armour Press, London, 1977
- Gotz, Hans Dieter, German Military Rifles and Machine Pistols, 1871–1945. West Chester, Penn.: Schiffer Publishing, 1990. OCLC 24416255.
- Günter Wollert; Reiner Lidschun; Wilfried Kopenhagen, Illustrierte Enzyklopädie der Schützenwaffen aus aller Welt: Schützenwaffen heute (1945–1985), Berlin: Militärverlag der Deutschen Demokratischen Republik, 1988. OCLC 19630248.
- Moss, John L., "The 9×25 Mauser Export Cartridge", IAA Journal, issue 424, March/April 2002, pp. 6–20
- Schweizer Waffen Magazin
- Internationales Waffen Magazine
- German Small Arms (1971)