STA M 1922 / MAS M1924


STA / MAS M1924 submachine gun, left side view, bipod folded

 


STA / MAS M1924 submachine gun, right side view, bipod extended

 

 

Caliber, mm

9×19

Length, overall, mm

830

Weight, kg

2.7

Barrel length, mm

215

Magazine capacity, rounds

32

Rate of fire, rounds per minute

650

 

The concept of the sub-machine gun was adopted by the French army during the early 1920s, after close examination of the German MP.18, and the first French-made SMG, chambered for the ubiquitous 9×19 Luger ammunition, was designed in 1922. Developed by STA (Section Technique de l'Armée – Technical Department of the Army), this was a more or less conventional weapon, broadly based on the German design, with only individual features being a lightweight detachable bipod under the barrel and a dustcover on the magazine housing.

 

After successful trials, an order for several thousand STA submachine guns was placed at MAS factory in 1924, but production ceased after delivery of the first thousand. This can be explained, at least in part, by the fact that the French Army had adopted a successful rifle-calibre light machine gun, and the STA / MAS M1924 submachine gun was at the time viewed more as a light squad automatic gun rather than an individual weapon for infantrymen.

 

The STA M1924 submachine gun is a simple blowback weapon, firing from an open bolt in full automatic mode only. Manual safety is provided by an L-shaped cut, made at the rear end of the charging handle slot. The design of the bolt is based on the Bergmann MP.18, with a massive removable firing pin which is inserted into the bolt body from the rear. The return spring of relatively small diameter is located inside the receiver, around the guide rod, which is attached to the removable rear cover of the receiver. The tubular receiver is hinged to the front of the wooden stock, just behind the magazine housing. The magazine housing is located below the receiver and fitted with a flip-down dustcover. Sights consist of a blade front and aperture rear. The rear sight is of the tangent type, adjustable for range between 100 and 600 meters. Feed is from slightly curved double-stack, double-feed box magazines. A lightweight folding bipod can be attached to the front of the barrel, below the front sight base.