MP-40
| Type | Submachine Gun |
| Weight | 4.023kg |
| Lenght (stock extended) | 83.3cm |
| Length (stock retracted) | 63cm |
| Barrel Length | 25.146cm |
| Magazine Capacity | 32 rounds |
| Caliber | 9mm Parabellum |
| Rifling | 6 grooves, RH twist |
| Cyclic Rate | 500 rounds/minute |
| Country of Origin | Germany |
The MP-40 (Machinenpistole 40)
submachine gun (below) was the first submachine gun to be 
designed specifically designed for fast,
economical manufacture, using stamped sheet metal and
subcontracted assemblies wherever possible. This was one of the
first firearms in which plastic was used as a substitute for wood
and metal.
Early in World War II, the German Army High Command that its MP-38 submachine gun—although a superb, sate-of-the-art weapon—was too expensive and time consuming to produce under wartime pressures. Time and materials were short, and the Wehrmacht needed a submachine gun that was a 'bullet hose', not a work of art.
The answer was the MP-40, basically the MP-38 design with a heavy reliance on stamped sheet metal parts. Wherever possible, machined metal assemblies were replaced by brazed and spot-wielded components. The plastic foregrip was high-pressure molded from a phenolin resin, reinforced with paper pulp. Strong, lightweight and weather proof, the plastic also insulated the shooter from the hot metal parts.
A sturdy, reliable weapon, the MP-40 was limited by a troublesome, single-column magazine. The designers at the Erma factory attempted to increase the gun's firepower by means of a dual magazine holder, holding two standard MP-40 magazines in a sling housing. Offering a 64-round capacity, it also increased loaded weight to over 12 lbs.
The MP-40 had a number of producers. Initially, it was manufactured by Erma factory in Erfurt, the original developers of the MP-38. Later models of the MP-40 were made by Steyr Daimler Puch in Austria and by Haenel in Suhl.
By today's standards, the MP-40 would be considered to big and too complex to produce economically. Its materials and construction, however, were the influence for virtually all of today's submachine guns.
Did You Know?
The MP-40 proved that, for some weapons, crude
and cheap construction was perfectly acceptable. While the early
Thompson submachine guns were exquisitely machined, they were
heavy and expensive. At the other end of the scale, the British
Sten gun, a marvelously effective weapon, was built like a bumper
jack.
