MP18
Type	Submachine gun
Nation(s) of origin	Germany
Era	World War I
History
Date of design
Production period	1918 to 1920s
Service duration
Operators	Germany
War service	World War 1,2;Spanish Civil War
Variants	{{{variant}}}
Number built	{{{num_built}}}
Specifications
Type
Caliber	Pistolemunition 08
Ammunition	9 x 19 mm
Feed system	32 detachable snail (WWI); 20 round detachable box (after)
Action	open bolt blowback
Length	83.2 cm (32.75Inches)
Barrel length	200 mm
Weight	4.18 kg
Rate of fire	~500 round/min
Muzzle velocity	380 m/s (~1247 ft/s)
Effective range	{{{range}}}

The MP18 was one of the first submachine guns. It was first used by the German Army during World War I. While MP18 production ended in the 1920s (supplanted by the MP28), its derivatives formed the basis for many submachine guns design in the 1920s and the 1930s. Image File history File links (marked by uploader as PD, no evidence for that at given link). ... An MP5A4 (fixed stock and 3-round burst trigger group A submachine gun is a firearm that combines the automatic fire of a machine gun with the ammunition of a pistol, and is usually between the two in weight and size. ... Combatants Allied Powers: British Empire France Italy Russia United States Central Powers: Austria-Hungary Bulgaria Germany Ottoman Empire Casualties Military dead: 5 million Military dead: 4 million The First World War, also known as The Great War, The War to End All Wars, and World War I (abbreviated WWI) was... The word calibre (British English) or caliber (American English) designates the interior diameter of a tube or the exterior diameter of a wire or rod. ... Boxes of ammunition clog a warehouse in Baghdad Ammunition is a generic military term meaning (the assembly of) a projectile and its propellant. ... ball and hollowpoint 9mm Luger rounds are popular handgun ammunition. ... In firearms terminology, an action is the system of operation that the firearm employs to seal the breech (in a breech-loading firearm), and to load consecutive rounds. ... The barrel of a gun or other firearm is the tube, usually metal, through which a controlled explosion is released in order to propel a projectile out of the end at great speed. ... The Rate of fire is the speed at which a specific firearm or artillery piece can operate. ... An MP5A4 (fixed stock and 3-round burst trigger group A submachine gun is a firearm that combines the automatic fire of a machine gun with the ammunition of a pistol, and is usually between the two in weight and size. ... Army (from French armée) can, in some countries, refer to any armed force. ... Combatants Allied Powers: British Empire France Italy Russia United States Central Powers: Austria-Hungary Bulgaria Germany Ottoman Empire Casualties Military dead: 5 million Military dead: 4 million The First World War, also known as The Great War, The War to End All Wars, and World War I (abbreviated WWI) was...

History

In 1915 the German Rifle Testing Commission at Spandau decided to develop a new weapon for trench fighting. Originally intending to modify an existing weapon, technical issues made this impractical so the Commission determined that a completely new kind of weapon was needed. Hugo Schmeisser eventually designed a weapon to fulfill the requirements. This weapon was designated Maschinenpistole 18/I (MP18). The MP18 was a solid weapon, for it was a soundly engineered piece of equipment with near commercial grade fittings. The MP18 had a well machined walnut butt stock and breech block, and the blow back mechanism was made of the fine material by modern standards. It fired a reduced power 9mm Parabellum round, usually called 9mm Bergmann. For the 1980s New Wave group, see Spandau Ballet. ... A trench is a long narrow ditch. ... Hugo Schmeisser (born 24 September 1884; died 12 September 1953) was one of the most important developers of infantry weapons in the 20th Century. ...

Produced by Bergmann, it served in final stages of the war in 1918. It was beaten by the Beretta 1918 to by a couple months into service however, which was similar, firing 9mm Glisenti from a box magazine (not be confused with more bizzare Villar Perosa of 1915). It was used by the German police force after the end of the war. Production was outlawed by the Paris treaty, which makes determining the exact end of production hard, though it is likely somtime during the 1920s. The Beretta Model 1918 was a submachine gun that entered service in 1918 with the Italian armed forces. ...

The MP28.II was an improved version of the MP18, used by the German police and by SS units. It was secretly tested during the 1920s. Unlike 18 it used a box, rather then snail magazine, and included some other smaller enhancements such as fire selector (whereas the MP18 was full auto only). After the war a 20 round box magazine would also be made for the MP18, though these were not compatible with the MP.28. A derivative of this weapon was made in Switzerland known as the SIG M1920, and one by Steyr Solothurn in Austria known as the MP34. SS or ss or Ss may be: The Schutzstaffel, a Nazi paramilitary force Steamship (SS) (ship prefix) The United States Secret Service A submarine not powered by nuclear energy (SS) (United States Navy designator), see SSN A Soviet/Russian surface-to-surface missile, as listed by NATO reporting name Shortstop...

Operation

The original was designed to use the Snail drum magazine that was designed for use in the long barreled Luger Artillery model pistol, and early models used this pistol's barrel. This rotary design type of magazine holds 32 rounds of 9mm ammunition and the user would have to load the magazine with a separate, and unique loading tool. As the snail drum magazine was originally designed for the Luger pistol, a special sleeve was required when the Snail drum was used on the MP18. This sleeve was slipped over the top part of the magazine and was used to stop the Snail drum from being inserted too far into the receiver and jam the firearm when it was fired. M1900 American Eagle Commercial For other uses of the word see Luger A Luger (Pistole Parabellum), is a toggle lock pistol based on principles by Hiram Maxim. ...

MP18 with staggered box type magazine

Later modifications to the MP18 allowed the use of a staggered box type magazine as used in the later developed MP40 sub-machine gun.

The MP18 could only fire in the fully automatic mode, while the later developed MP28/II was designed to allow the user to select single shot or fully automatic.

Service

The MP18 would prove to be an excellent weapon. Its basic design would influence later submachine gun designs, and copies of it were made in several countries, such as the British Lanchester SMG and the Japanese Type 100. The open bolt design left one problem: if the butt was given a hard knock while the bolt was fully forward while a loaded magazine is inserted, the gun could accidentally fire. Soldiers liked to leave the bolt of their firearm forward so dirt and debris would not enter into the barrel and chamber that could cause a malfunction to occur when the firearm needed to be fired. Later sub-machine gun designs like the Sten gun were designed to allow the cocking handle to be pushed inwards to lock the closed bolt to the tubular receiver casing. This design change prevented accidental discharges when the bolt was left forward and a loaded magazine was inserted. The Lanchester was a submachine gun used by the British during World War II. History In 1940, with the Dunkirk evacuation completed, the Royal Air Force decided to adopt some form of submachine gun for airfield defense. ... The Type 100(一〇〇式機関短銃 Hyaku-shiki kikantanju) was a Japanese submachine gun used extensively during World War II, and the only submachine gun produced by Japan in any quantity. ... The Sten gun was a British submachine gun from World War II, notable for its simple design and low cost of production, being made from only 47 different parts. ...

External links

• Historic Arms
• Small Arms Review: The MP28,II Successor of the MP18,I (.pdf)