<XMP><BODY></xmp> Sub Machine Guns for the 21st century




Sub Machine Guns for the 21st century
The Solution to Intercommunity Warfare?

        Twenty years or more ago I read various articles announcing that the submachine gun was obsolete. As it turned out, the SMG was to go to even greater strengths, seeing even more widespread use.
        The weapons used these days are often quite sophisticated in construction. It is worth remembering that far simpler weapons can also prove very effective.
        It is not unlikely that a serviceman may serve alongside allies that still use SMGs. In a prolonged conflict with heavy material loses, the greater ease with which a SMG can be manufactured may result in them being used to replace lost assault rifles in certain situations.

        The last decade has seen an increase in warfare between different communities rather than nations, and often such conflicts are initially characterised by the aggressor party being better armed.
        Bombing one side into submission may not be possible in many cases, and doesn't seem to solve anything in the long run. It may be more practical to give victims the ability to defend themselves. The money spent on one day's bombing campaign can buy a lot of small arms. The formation of armed Civil Defence Groups allows a community to resist aggression long enough for the arrival of more conventional reinforcements. This strategy has worked well in the past, and cheaply made sub-machine guns are likely to be a major component of such aid.

        For these reasons it may be useful to review the properties and uses of the SMGs.
        SMGs are short range weapons, and for this reason they are most effective when the firer can get close to the enemy. This is achieved by a combination of terrain and tactics.

        It is in urban operations such as street fighting and house clearing that the SMG has really excelled as a weapon. In Jungle warfare the record of the SMG has been mixed. In Malaya the dense undergrowth robbed the bullets of so much energy that terrorists were captured with the ends of bullets protruding from their flesh. In the more open jungle of Vietnam SMGs performed better and both sides often used them in preference to assault rifles.

        Originally SMGs were created as trench clearing weapons for storm groups in WW1. By WW2 they were mainly used to provide additional close range fire power for rifle armed squads.
        The Russians took this a step further by arming whole units with SMGs instead of rifles. One platoon of each company had SMGs in place of rifles and in some units one company of each battalion replaced its rifles with SMGs. This worked because the Russians conducted very aggressive assaults, often supported by tanks, assault guns, snipers and machine guns. In defence, the SMG equipped units simply waited in their trenches until the enemy was in range.
        Russian SMGs used a high velocity round that gave them a performance not unlike the M1 carbine, but with the advantage of fully automatic capability. In many ways the SMG in Russian service was used in the same fashion as assault rifles would be later. The German Volks Grenadier companies had two SMG Platoons and one Rifle Platoon.
        Korea saw a refinement of earlier tactics. In night assaults on entrenchments the lead platoons would be armed with concussion grenades. The disruption by the explosion of these would then be exploited by platoons of Sub-machinegunners. Once their grenades were used up the grenadiers would arm themselves with the weapons of fallen foes and comrades.

        In certain situations, SMGs may be used in place of assault rifles, and, used correctly may be just as effective. Compared to the Assault rifle, an SMG is often more compact, more concealiable and easier to manufacture. These features, along with its suitability for urban combat and ability to be moderated make it popular with terrorists and guerrillas.
        The main reason for a modern force of conventional troops or an oppressed community being equipped with SMGs is that the SMG is cheaper and easier to produce. It is capable of being manufactured in less time and with less resources than an assault rifle. Since many of the SMGs held in reserve are more than 40 years old, there is scope to settle on a new design that may prove more effective for general combat. To reflect this enhanced potential we'll refer to this new SMG as an "Civil Defence Carbine" (CDC).

Construction.
        The weapon must obviously be cheap and simple to produce. When talking about simple to build SMGs, the Sten gun inevitably springs to mind. Simplest model to produce was the Mk3, though strangely it is the Mk 2 that has been most widely copied. This was probably because the Mk 2 could be dismantled into two or more parts and easily hidden in a shopping basket or similar, a useful feature for Resistance units. Stens were not famous for their reliability or safety however and features of other designs may be worth looking at.
British SMGs
The Sten
Novel Stens
Sten and Lancaster Gallery
Sten Manual extracts.
Sten guns

        PPSh 41.
Soviet SMGs
http://www.rt66.com/~korteng/SmallArms/ppsh41.html
http://www.rt66.com/~korteng/SmallArms/ppshbox.htm

        Standard Russian SMG during WW2, and popular with German forces too. Over 5 million were produced. The barrel and receiver top hinge forward for easy access to the bolt. The North Vietnamese K50M variant added a telescopic stock to the design.

        PPS 42/43
Soviet SMGs
http://www.rt66.com/~korteng/SmallArms/pps43.htm

        A design produced in Leningrad while the city was under siege. Copied after the war by Germany and Finland as well as by eastern block countries.

        Danish Madsen.
http://world.guns.ru/smg/smg36-e.htm
Danish SMGs

        A very simple design where the receiver is in two hinged halves secured by the barrel nut. A magazine filling aid was stored in the pistol grip. This design is now produced in Brazil and is available in 9mm or .45ACP.

        Carl Gustav m45 (aka Swedish K)
http://world.guns.ru/smg/smg48-e.htm

        Popular with American special forces in Vietnam and widely used worldwide. S&W Model 76 was a copy, as was the Egyptian Port Said.

        M3 Grease gun
http://www.rt66.com/~korteng/SmallArms/grease.htm
M3 SMG

        Had some interesting features, such as the ability to be converted easily from .45 to 9mm and a stock that is a multi-use tool.

        German experimental ERMA
http://securityarms.com/20010315/galleryfiles/2100/2159.htm

        Used a straight line layout and constructed so the barrel shroud, receiver and stock were made from a single pipe.

Length.
        Overall length of the weapon, stock extended, should not exceed 36". This will create a weapon as handy as an AKM or M4 and will probably give a longer barrel than most SMGs.

Calibre.
        The weapon will probably be modular, allowing various rounds to be chambered. The criteria is to select a round with a good all round performance that still allows a simple blowback operating system. For the standard calibre, I suggest the 7.62 x 25mm pistol round, which will be referred to by its alternate designation of 7.63mm (Mauser) to avoid confusion with other 7.62mm rounds.
        The above comments are true of the standard 7.63mm round at 1400fps. The 7.63mm round is not used in any current western handguns. This fact offers the potential to create a 7.63mm loading more powerful than could safely be used in a handgun. The Czechs used a 7.63mm loading that was only safe in SMGs and the Vz 52 pistol. This had a muzzle velocity of 1650-1700fps. This may be exceeded if the round is intended for SMG use only. The longer barrel of the Assault carbine and the selection of a more aerodynamic configuration of bullet may increase performance further.

Other issues.
        If the CD carbine is to substitute for the assault rifle, provision may need to be made in the design for the attachment of bayonets and underbarrel grenade launchers. A semi-automatic weapon would encourage efficient use of ammo.
        There is a subsonic "Mini-Whisper" round based on the 7.63mm round, so the Assault carbine may be suitable for covert missions too, although I believe this round will not feed through most existing automatic weapons.
http://www.users.globalnet.co.uk/~autogun/silcart.html
http://www.users.globalnet.co.uk/~autogun/webimgs/silcarts.jpg

        With a range of around 200yds the 7.63mm Carbine compares favourably with its chief adversary, the AKM. If an enemy stays at a greater distance to exploit the AKM's longer range this will make him more vulnerable to airstrikes and artillery support from conventional forces assisting the Civilian Defence Group.

        While the Civil Defence carbine may serve in place of the assault rifle in many situations, it is unlikely that the round's performance can be extended to create an effective SAW. CD carbine equipped units may have to adopt a WW2 type squad organisation, based around a single 7.62 x 51mm LMG/GPMG.
        I've heard there may have been experimental Bren guns made from metal stampings and riveted assemblies. An updated weapon of this sort would be a useful accompaniment for the CD carbine.

        There is also a need for a personal defence weapon that can easily be carried when a carbine would be too much of an encumbrance. The Israeli Uzi Pistol is already used in this way. This would probably be a form of semi-automatic assault pistol, like a lighter version of the TEC-9, a Mk IV Sten with a vertical magazine or a short barreled Welgun. If I recall correctly the Welgun was cocked by placing the fingers in the ejection slot and pulling it back. This offers a simple "no-snag" mechanism for an assault pistol.

By the Author of the Scrapboard :

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Attack, Avoid, Survive: Essential Principles of Self Defence

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Survival Weapons: Optimizing Your Arsenal

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