High Capacity Magazines For MP 40

Slakrrrrrr

Slakrrrrrr

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I was recently doing some German Bundesarchiv research looking into German SMG development within World War II. During so, I found this interesting little nugget of information:

MP and MKb Development 1942.png

So there were 50-round stick and 72-round drum magazines developed around 1941-1942, presumably for the MP.38/40? The MP.SS.42 mentioned in this document is known to have a 64-round magazine developed for it, but the aforementioned 50 and 72 round magazines are unknown to me. I also leafed through the Collector's Grade "The Schmeisser Myth" and found no reference of these developments either.

MP.SS.42.png

If anyone has more info on these, I would greatly appreciate it!
 
Probably driven by jealousy over the 50 round drum magazines installed in early production Soviet PPSHs. Note how later versions of PPSH got 30-round stick magazines.
There were also a few prototype MP-40s built with a magazine well that could accommodate two standard 30 round magazines side-by-side. After emptying the first magazine, you just slide the second magazine sideways under the bolt and resume firing. Like I said, only a few prototypes were built.

In other news, that wooden stock is better suited to the miserably cold temperatures on the Russian Front. Wood does not suck the heat out of fingers at half the rate of the original aluminum and steel and Bekelite furniture of the original MP-40.
 
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Could the early 'drum' mags on the 'Thompson' have any influence?
 
These magazines were directly influenced by German Soldiers comparing the MP 40 with the PPSh-41 when they would capture them. Both sides felt the other side had a better gun, and the Germans wanted a larger magazine capacity, though I'm not sure if they requested a higher cyclic rate as well. We know this was why the 64 round drum magazine was developed for MP.SS.42 as well. The dual mag system on MP.40/1 as well as the Erma EMP 44 are already pretty well established, but I haven't heard anything about these 50 or 72 round magazines outside of the document I have provided.
 

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Slakrrrrrr said:
I was recently doing some German Bundesarchiv research looking into German SMG development within World War II. During so, I found this interesting little nugget of information:

View attachment 753508

So there were 50-round stick and 72-round drum magazines developed around 1941-1942, presumably for the MP.38/40? The MP.SS.42 mentioned in this document is known to have a 64-round magazine developed for it, but the aforementioned 50 and 72 round magazines are unknown to me. I also leafed through the Collector's Grade "The Schmeisser Myth" and found no reference of these developments either.

View attachment 753522

If anyone has more info on these, I would greatly appreciate it!
Click to expand...
Good to see that researching primary sources is paying. Well done!
 

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