My MAS 38 submachine gun is *finally* running properly and with the 7.65mm French Long ammunition now being made by Steinel Ammo, I can finally take this out to the range! What to shoot at? A spinner, naturally.
Vintage photo
Vintage Saturday: A 1914 Hotchkiss
Not sure where these poilu are fighting, but the fellow in the back appears to have swapped his regulation Kepi for a bowler and shaved off his moustache.
Vintage photo
Vintage Saturday: French Troops with an M1916 Cannon
We think the M1916 37mm cannon is just terribly cute. Here one is being used by French troops – note in particular the spare ammo in a belt. The same belt and ammunition was used […]
Semiauto Rifles
Hagen Rifle
One of the very first things I posted here on Forgotten Weapons was an article on a French rifle called the Hagen (it was designed by a Norwegian). I posted an article on it written […]
Still looks like the barrel is bent
Glad you finally beat the gremlins out and it’s running.
“(…)the barrel is bent(…)”
If this does disturb you just get Jati-matic https://modernfirearms.net/en/submachine-guns/finland-submachine-guns/jati-matic-eng/ as companion and treat angling of each barrel as balancing each other.
What a wonderful idea! Best to fire them side by side to get the full benefit.
Wow. How did you build this? I am interested
“Woe are those that are fond of French mechanical things” – said a Citreon DS owner to me when I told him that I was interested in buying one.
Glad that you got it running. Neat little gun.
But when the Citroën DS drives, it is incomparably comfortable.
Never shot one but got to play with a friends neutrilized one here in France about thirty years ago. It was old style neutrilization so everything bolt trigger etc worked.
What I noticed was that even for my small hands the grip was too short the trigger was hard and the folding trigger/safty pinched you
But oh would I have loved a live one
Hurrah! Look forward to your shooting competition w/ the pistol as well now that you have ammo.
Champagne for everyone to celebrate the succesful repair!
And another bottle for finally defeating the spinner target! 🙂
I’ve read that the MAS 38 stayed in service with French police forces for a good many years, perhaps into the 1970s. It’s easily concealed, and easily handled in tight places.
In all honesty – if you slapped a Picatinny rail on top
In all honesty – if you slapped a Picatinny rail on top, this gun would not perform much worse than a present day SMG
It was light, compact, inconspicuous, and its 7.65 Long cartridge was less prone to overpenetration than 9 x 19mm. Remember, the police over there used FMJ until the 1990s.
The standard rifle for their tactical teams was the M1 Carbine, for a lot of the same reasons.
cheers
eon
A happy fella; machine gun, and… A “different” shirt; hat a great sight a full grown man with a face like child recieving an Atari St for Christmas in 1985 etc.
“Yes it was kinda upmarket; I got that.”
Hunter; pirate hard disc, actual seagulls…
Any photographic evidence, or manuals, to indicate the French Army’s preferred grip style?
Maybe holding the mag cover while gripping the mag, was the idea I.e. Without said cover you’d Just grip the mag, which… Can cause problems. Apparently; watching stuff on here. Sooo… Like the mag, cover was the handguard and the French felt well chuffed and forgot about 1870 for 2 secs. Quite good if it worked; no need for a handguard and keep your mits of the mag
For many SMGs, holding on to the mag is not a good idea.
They stutter from it. Especially foldable SMGs.
From MAS38, you should shoot like from M712 or APS, holding the butt with the other hand.
At the age of 9 (1969) I got given an Action Man (UK Palitoy G.I. Joe copy). I could not afford many guns, but I did buy a special offer of 2 submachine guns; which forced me to go into the adult part of my Public Library in my home town; to discover that they were a M3 Grease Gun and a MAS 38. I have always had a soft spot for both, but I did worry about logistics, decades before I knew what logistics meant. I just knew one bullet would not go in the other gun, if they were real.
Thank you for the childhood memory.
I got a bag of “ye olde” action men; wee moving eyes, aye. But check this, from a jumbke sale in a church hall, wee alu water bottles which filled up, pith helmets “oh aye” shorts, lugers, steyr m95, everything for said wee fellow, greatcoats.
Gone are the days. I killed them all like recreating hill 70 in ww1. Rip.
“Had a big garden; bonfire night, so smokey; gat gun and bangers… Probably quite realistic.”
“Not the pellet, the barrel pop out for a shell hit” Boom, aye; rip.
Waiting for the 2 (or 3) guns match with PA35, MAS38 and some MAS36 (or MAS49).
Proper grip?
I’m guessing a right hand hold with the left holding onto the front end of the sling
It’s bad to hold the belt.
A similar ersatz-handle was on the M10-M11, nothing good.
Somewhere I met that the foot to use the belt ring, thrusting his thumb into it.
But I’m not sure if this will work…
Here’s one more thing.
https://www.tircollection.com/t23534-pistolet-mitrailleur-mas-1933
In the 1966 gangster movie “Douxieme Soufle,” the motorcycle cops escorting the armored car are both carrying MAS-38s.