Steyr Arms

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Steyr Arms GmbH
RSBC (Czech Republic)
SubsidiariesSteyr Arms Inc.
Websitewww.steyr-arms.com

Steyr Arms (German pronunciation: [ˈʃtaɪ̯ɐ] ⓘ) is a firearms manufacturer based in Sankt Peter in der Au, Austria. Originally part of Steyr-Daimler-Puch, it became independent when the conglomerate was broken up in 1989.[1] Prior to 1 January 2019, the company was named Steyr Mannlicher AG (German pronunciation: [ˈʃtaɪ̯ɐ ˈmanlɪçɐ ˈʔaːˈɡeː]). In April 2024, the company was acquired by Czech holding RSBC, which owns also Slovenian gun maker Arex Arms.[2][3]

History

Origins

The company logo, 1869–1926
Share of the Oesterreichischen Waffenfabriks-Gesellschaft, issued February 1920

Steyr has been on the "

Babenberg successors in the 12th and 13th century, and has been known as an industrial site for forging weapons.[4] The privilege of iron and steel production, particularly for knives, was renewed by the Habsburg duke Albert of Austria in 1287. After the Thirty Years' War, thousands of muskets, pistols, and carbines were produced annually for the Habsburg Imperial Army.[citation needed
]

In 1821, Leopold Werndl (1797–1855), a blacksmith in Steyr, began manufacturing iron parts for weapons. After his father's death, 24-year-old

Bodencreditanstalt bank became a majority shareholder.[5]

World War I

Werndl's cooperation with engineer Ferdinand Mannlicher (1848–1904), who had patented an advanced repeating rifle in use by the Austro-Hungarian Army, made ŒWG one of the largest weapon manufacturers in Europe. At the beginning of World War I, with more than 15,000 employees, production output was 4,000 weapons per day.

Steyr "Repetierpistole M1912/P16", one of the world's first machine pistols

The company introduced the world's first machine pistol, the

Repetierpistole M1912/P16. It used a 16-round fixed magazine loaded via 8 round stripper clips, a detachable shoulder stock and a rather large exposed semi-auto/full-auto selector switch on the right side of the frame above the trigger (down = semi & up = full).[6] It fired the 9×23mm Steyr
cartridge, with a full-auto rate-of-fire of about 800 to 1,000 rounds per minute (RPM). It weighed about 2.6 pounds. Introduced in 1916, it is considered one of the world's first full-auto capable pistols. Only 960 M1912/P16 were made.

Aftermath of World War I

After the war, weapons production in Steyr was all but entirely prohibited according to the 1919

Steyr Daimler Puch. The production of Steyr Daimler Puch weapons continued in cooperation with Patronenfabrik Solothurn AG at Zuchwil in neutral Switzerland
.

World War II

After the Austrian

KZ Mauthausen
.

1950s

During the 1950s the Mannlicher–Schönauer full stock rifle, designed in 1900, experienced a renaissance.[citation needed] Simultaneously, the re-emergence of the Austrian Armed Forces in the Second Republic was the base for new military weapons production.

The AUG

Main article: Steyr AUG

In the 1970s, Steyr developed an innovative assault rifle, the StG 77. A bullpup design, the StG 77 extensively utilized synthetic materials, and integrated fixed optics. The export version became the Steyr AUG—Armee Universal Gewehr ("Universal Army Rifle"), eventually used by the armed forces of over 24 countries.[citation needed] It has been prominently featured in films such as Octopussy, Commando, and Die Hard.[7]

In 1989, after the partial dissolution of the

Steyr Mannlicher in honour of the great Austro-Hungarian engineer Ferdinand Mannlicher
, in 2019 Steyr Arms.

Products

Assault rifles
Battle rifles
Rifles
Submachine guns
  • Steyr MPi 81
    )
  • TMP
Pistols
  • M1894
    (1894–?)
  • M1901
    (1901–1903)
  • M.7 (1908–1913)
  • M1912
    (1912–1945)
  • SP (1957-1964)
  • GB (1981–1988)
  • M Series (1999–present)
Grenade launchers
  • GL 40 — side loading 40 mm grenade launcher

Date codes

Steyr Date Code Chart

Steyr pistols are marked with a three-digit date code on the slide just forward of the ejection port. The first letter represents the month of manufacture. The second and third letters represent the last two digits of the year of manufacture.

In this example, the date code "BOY" indicates a pistol manufactured in April 2007.

See also

References

  1. ^ Steyr Mannlicher. "Company history – Steyr Mannlicher : since 1864". Retrieved July 6, 2017.
  2. ^ https://www.seznamzpravy.cz/clanek/ekonomika-firmy-ceska-skupina-rsbc-koupila-rakouskeho-vyrobce-zbrani-250524
  3. ^ https://www.all4shooters.com/en/shooting/culture/czech-rsbc-group-buys-arms-manufacturer-steyr-arms/
  4. ^ Bundesministerium fur Bildung, Wissenschaft und Kultur (January 3, 2019). "Iron Trail with Erzberg and the old town of Steyr". unesco.org. Retrieved March 5, 2023.
  5. ISBN 978-0-19-820208-0
    .
  6. ^ Zhuk, A.B (1995), Walter, John (ed.), The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Handguns. Pistols and Revolvers of the World 1870 To 1995, translated by N.N. Bobrov, Greenhill Books, London, p. 176
  7. ^ Landeen, Alex (January 3, 2019). "Firing the Steyr AUG A3 M1 and an AUG History Lesson". Ballistic Magazine. Retrieved March 14, 2019.
  8. ^ "[IDEX 2019] Steyr AUG .300 BLK and STM556 from Austria -". March 4, 2019.

External links

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