MP40 Schmeisser!

Wish I could own one. Don't know why people call MP38's and MP40's "Schmeissers", Schmeisser had nothing to do with those particular submachine guns from what I have read.
 
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Hugo Schmeisser held the patent for the magazine that was used in the MP40, that's it.

His major contribution to firearms was the MP18, as well as his development of the MP44/Stg44. He was also on the design team for the AK47.
 
Mike Webb said:
Wish I could own one. Don't know why people call MP38's and MP40's "Schmeissers", Otto Schmeisser had nothing to do with those particular submachine guns from what I have read.
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A Canadian Vet I worked with that fought from France to North Africa called them Schmeissers. Good enough for me. It's almost Nostalgia like the Black Widow Luger! Some cool terms did evolve, whether right or wrong, that's for sure.

He actually carried one (Schmeisser) during the war and preferred it over his Tommy Gun.
 
Coyote Ugly said:
A Canadian Vet I worked with that fought from France to North Africa called them Schmeissers. Good enough for me. It's almost Nostalgia like the Black Widow Luger! Some cool terms did evolve, whether right or wrong, that's for sure.

He actually carried one (Schmeisser) during the war and preferred it over his Tommy Gun.
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They called them Schmeissers because that was usually stamped on the magazine, and so the entire gun was branded that way. It was designed and built by Erma (Erfurter Maschinenfabrik) Werke's Berthold Geipel.

"The MP 40 was often called the "Schmeisser" by the Allies, after weapons designer Hugo Schmeisser. Schmeisser had designed the MP 18, which was the first mass-produced submachine gun, and saw extensive service at the end of the First World War. He did not, however, design the MP 40,[4] although he held a patent on the magazine. He later designed the MP 41, which was an MP 40 with a wooden rifle stock and a selector, identical to those found on the earlier MP 28 submachine gun. The MP 41 was not introduced as a service weapon with the German Army, but saw limited use with some SS and police units. They were also exported to Germany's ally, Romania. The MP 41's production run was brief, as Erma filed a successful patent infringement lawsuit against Schmeisser's employer, Haenel."
 
Mike Webb said:
Wish I could own one. Don't know why people call MP38's and MP40's "Schmeissers", Otto Schmeisser had nothing to do with those particular submachine guns from what I have read.
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Just like a 1911 Colt is called Slab Sides. Just a nick name...not official documentation...but everyone knows what they are...
 
RMXC51 said:
You're a GI in the field, you pick up an enemy weapon, it says Schmeisser on it, what are you going to call it?
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A booby trap :).

Schmeisser designed this:
mp41-2.jpg
mp41-3.jpg
 
Mike Webb said:
Wish I could own one. Don't know why people call MP38's and MP40's "Schmeissers", Otto Schmeisser had nothing to do with those particular submachine guns from what I have read.
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If it was good enough for our guys in WW2, it's good enough for me.

It doesn't have to be "correct" as in specific to its direct lineage. It's a nickname. Burp gun, Schmeisser, whatever.

We don't have to say "Maschinenpisole MPi 38/40 mit Donnerschlager", Canada won the war.

I bet you say "Car - Byne" as well :p
 
An old friend of the family commanded a squad of tanks in France and Germany towards the end of the war. One of the soldiers in his command picked one up because...well, like it's said "awesome gun, much better than the Sten".
But the problem is the sound. Pull the trigger and every one around you, hears that distinctive higher rate of fire, grips their weapon tighter and swivels their head to look for the threat.
The armorer solved the problem by trimming the main bolt spring. dropped the rate of fire down closer to Sten levels and made it a little easier to do what needed doing without sending everyone within earshot into full alarm mode.
That's what Ev told us anyhow and he was a no nonsense kind of guy.
 
My grand father had an Mp 40 in Africa after the war on the diamond mines, He taught my grandma to shoot first and then call the constables later. I wish he had brought it here when he moved back to Canada.
 
As stated - the MP41 mag, which was often used/issued for the MP40 said "Patent Schmeisser" on it, in easy to read letters.

Unlikely many GI's ran into many actual MP41's, until war's end.
 
Oh yeah, I'm gonna run for the nearest public library and see if they have a book on the thing!

Actually, just about ALL SMGs are Schmeissers, when you get right down to it. MP-28 was a product-improved MP-18I, Lanchester was a copy of the MP-28, MP-38 was a mass-production variant, MP-40 was easier to make, Sten was a super el-cheapo job, that's all.

They all work the same: straight blowback, otherwise called Spent Case Projection.

And yes, the MP-40 is VERY controllable. Just watch out for that 200-metre rear sight when you are shooting closer ranges!
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