AR-7
Armalite AR-7 survival rifle with 8-, 10-, and 15-round magazines.
Type	Survival rifle
Place of origin	United States
Service history
In service	1959–Present
Production history
Designer	Eugene Stoner
Designed	1958
Variants	Armalite AR-7 Explorer; Charter Arms AR-7 Explorer; Charter Arms Explorer II Pistol; Israeli Pilot’s Survival Rifle; Henry U.S. Survival .22
Specifications
Weight	1.13 kg
Length	889 mm
Barrel length	406 mm
Cartridge	.22 Long Rifle
Action	Straight blowback-operated
Rate of fire	Semi-automatic
Muzzle velocity	1,080 ft/s (329 m/s) to 1,280 ft/s (390 m/s) (varies by type of .22 LR cartridge)
Effective firing range	100 m
Feed system	Standard 8-round magazine. 10-, 15-, 25-round magazines available.
Sights	Aperture rear and drift-adjustable front.

The ArmaLite AR-7 Explorer is a semi-automatic firearm in .22 Long Rifle caliber developed from the AR-5 that was adopted by the U.S. Air Force as a pilot and aircrew survival weapon.^[1]
The AR-7 was adopted and modified by the Israeli Air Force as an aircrew survival weapon.
The AR-7 was designed by American firearms designer Eugene Stoner, who is most associated with the development of the AR-15rifle that was adopted by the US military as the M16.
The civilian AR-7’s intended markets today are backpackers and other recreational users as a takedown utility rifle.
The AR-7 is often recommended for use by outdoor users of recreational vehicles (automobile, airplane or boat) who might have need for a weapon for foraging or defense in a wilderness emergency.

History & design[edit]

The prototype of what would become the AR-7 was designed by Eugene Stoner at ArmaLite Inc., a division of Fairchild Aircraft.
The rifle shares some of the features of the bolt-action AR-5, another rifle designed by Stoner for ArmaLite and adopted by the United States Air Force in 1956 as the MA-1.^[2]
The MA-1 was intended to replace the M4 Survival Rifle and the M6 Aircrew Survival Weapon which was a superimposed (“over-under”) twin-barrel rifle/shotgun chambered in .22 Hornet and .410 bore, using a break-open action.
The AR-5 had the advantage of repeat fire over the then-standard M6, using the same .22 Hornet cartridge.
When the AR-5 was adopted as the MA-1 but was not placed in issue due to the numbers of usable M4 and M6 survival weapons in USAF inventory, ArmaLite used the research and tooling for the AR-5 in developing the AR-7 for the civilian market.^[3]

Armalite AR-7 Explorer internal parts assembled (left sideplate removed)

 
The AR-7 uses a blowback semi-automatic action in .22 Long Rifle but retains the AR-5/MA-1 feature of storing the disassembled parts within the hollow stock, which is filled with plastic foam and capable of floating.^[4][5]
Like the bolt-action AR-5, the AR-7 was designed as a survival rifle for foraging small game for food. The AR-7 is constructed primarily of aluminum, with plastic for the stock, buttcap, and recoil spring guide.
The bolt is steel. The original barrel was aluminum using a rifled steel liner; barrels of some production models have used all steel barrels, others have used barrels made of composite materials.^[6]
The AR-7 measures 35 inches overall when assembled. It disassembles to four sections (barrel, action, stock, and magazine), with three parts storing inside the plastic stock, measuring 16 inches long.
The rifle weighs 2.5 pounds, light enough for convenient backpacking. The rear sight is a peep sight, which comes on a flat metal blade with an aperture (in later production two different size apertures available by removing and flipping the rear sight), and is adjustable for elevation (up-down).
The front sight is adjustable for windage (side-to-side). Accuracy is sufficient for hunting small game at ranges to 50 yards.

Performance[edit]

Reliability of the AR-7 is highly dependent on the condition of the magazine and on the ammunition used, perhaps more so than with other models of semi-automatic .22 caliber rifles.
The feed ramp is part of the magazine and subject to damage from mishandling. Flat-nosed bullets tend to jam on the edge of the chamber of the barrel.
The transition of cartridge from magazine to barrel can be smoothed by minor beveling of the chamber of the barrel, by using round-nosed as opposed to flat-nosed bullets and by paying attention to condition of the feed lips and feed ramp of the magazine.
Later production magazines include an external wire spring to align the cartridge; earlier magazines used two pinch marks at the top of the magazine body, which in use could become sprung open or worn.^{[citation needed]}
All iterations of the AR-7 from the Armalite to the Henry U.S. Survival rifle use a bolt and dual recoil springs that are heavy compared to most other .22 semiautomatics.
The AR-7 requires high velocity ammunition for reliable functioning. The manufacturers recommend use of 40 grain round nose bullets in high velocity loadings.
It is possible to manually load a single round into the firing chamber, allowing use of flat nosed bullets or low velocity or subsonic ammunition.
The barrel takedown nut tends to loosen during firing and may need hand-tightening to maintain both accuracy and reliability.
Armalite sold the design to Charter Arms in 1973. According to some accounts posted by enthusiasts, this is when quality began to deteriorate.^[7]
Barrels were said to have a tendency to warp. Other sources state that the first production at Charter had problems which were corrected in later production runs.^[3]

Production history[edit]

(Summary of information available in The Blue Book of Gun Values)

• 1959-1973: ArmaLite
• 1973-1990: Charter Arms
• 1990-1997: Survival Arms – Cocoa, Florida
• 1998-2004: AR-7 Industries – LLC, Meriden, Connecticut (bought by ArmaLite in 2004)
• 1997–2007: Henry Repeating Arms Co. – Brooklyn, New York
• 2007–present: Henry Repeating Arms Co. – Bayonne, New Jersey

AR-7 variants[edit]

Armalite AR-7 Explorer[edit]

Armalite barrels had a steel liner in an aluminum shell. The Armalite stock did not accept the receiver with a magazine in place and the gun was normally sold with one magazine.
The receiver did not provide for a scope mount. The rear sight was a peep aperture, adjustable for elevation. The front sight was drift-adjustable for windage.

Argentine variant[edit]

The AR-7 was also manufactured in Argentina as the Sistema de Armas .22 LR Fire de Brenta.^[8] It came with various barrel lengths, shrouds and fixed rifle stocks as well as pistol grips with retractable stocks.

Herter’s Outdoor Supply[edit]

Herter’s, Hy Hunter and American International Distributors marketed .22 replicas of the Broomhandle Mauser (as “Bolomauser”), Thompson submachine gun (as “T-62 Civilian Defense Model”) and M1 Carbine made on AR-7 receivers and barrels.^[9]

Charter Arms AR-7 Explorer[edit]

The Charter Arms AR-7 Explorer rifle basically replicated the Armalite AR-7 Explorer with variations in finish.

Charter Arms Explorer II pistol[edit]

Explorer II pistol with 8 inch barrel

Explorer II was a pistol version of the AR-7.^[10] It resembled a Broomhandle Mauser. The receiver had a built-in pistol grip with no provision for the rifle stock (the internal parts are interchangeable between rifle and pistol).
The rear sight of the pistol was an open notch adjustable for windage and elevation. The Explorer II front sight was integral with the barrel shell and was not adjustable.
The magazine well in front of the trigger guard would accept any magazine designed for the rifle. A spare 8-round magazine could be carried inside the grip.
The most common barrel was six inches. Optional barrel lengths included eight and ten inches.

Legal note[edit]

Alignment lug is on barrel underside

Because the U.S. 1934 NFA regulations set the minimum rifle barrel length at 16 inches, Charter Arms made the barrels of the Explorer I rifle and Explorer II pistol non-interchangeable to prevent installing the pistol barrel on the rifle.
The AR-7 barrel has an alignment lug that mates a notch in the receiver. The rifle receiver notch and barrel lug are on top; the pistol notch and lug are broader and on the bottom.
If a Charter Arms factory-made pistol barrel were installed on a rifle, the extractor on the bolt would be opposite the extractor slot in the barrel, preventing the bolt from closing (plus the front sight would be upside down).
Modifying the pistol barrel to fit the rifle, or modifying the rifle receiver to accept the pistol barrel, would be “making a short barrel rifle” legally requiring federal registration on an ATF Form 1 with payment of a $200.00 tax.
Conversely, after the Supreme Court ruling in United States v. Thompson/Center Arms Co.,^[11] modifying the pistol to accept the rifle barrel and/or stock, or modifying the rifle barrel or stock to fit the pistol is legal so long as you do not have the rifle stock attached at the same time as the pistol barrel.
It is legal (as a pistol) to have the rifle barrel attached with the pistol grip; there is no federal maximum pistol barrel length.

AR-7 Industries[edit]

AR-7 Industries made solid steel barrels much heavier than the AR-7 barrels by Armalite, Charter or Henry.

Henry Survival Rifle[edit]

In 1980, the design and production rights passed on to Henry Repeating Arms and the compact rifle was slightly revised. The AR-7 is now (2015) known as the Henry U.S. Survival AR-7 rifle. An ABS material replaced the original stock plastic, which was prone to cracking and failure.
The receiver recess in the Henry stock allows storage of receiver with a magazine in place and the rifle is normally sold with two magazines.
The latest versions of the Henry allow for storage of three magazines total, with two in the stock recess, and one in the receiver. The modern Henry U.S. Survival rifle is also water resistant.
They now include a full Teflon coating on the outer surface. A 3/8 in. Weaver Tip-off mount rail milled into the top of the receiver for attaching a wide variety of optics is now a standard feature.

Israeli pilot’s survival rifle[edit]

Another variant was made by Armalite and sold to the Israeli Military for use as pilot/aircrew survival weapons.^[12]
The Israelis further modified these rifles, adding a telescoping stock, a pistol grip from a FAL-type rifle, shortening the barrel (to 13.5 inches), and adding a front sight based on the K98k Mauser.
After Israeli service, some of these rifles were re-imported into the U.S. by Bricklee Trading Company (the barrels are marked with the BTC identification as required by U.S. laws on imported guns) for sale on the civilian market, and command a premium among collectors.
In order to comply with U.S. Federal law, a 3-inch muzzle brake had to be permanently attached in order to meet the minimum 16-inch-barrel requirement.

Operation[edit]

The AR-7 functions as a simple or plain blowback semi-automatic. The AR-7 is a light firearm with heavy bolt and twin recoil springs and must be firmly held for reliable blowback operation.

Range safety issue[edit]

As is common with many blowback .22 rifles, the AR-7 bolt cannot be locked open to demonstrate the weapon is in a safe unloaded state. Firearms without a built-in “bolt hold-open” device may be banned from use at some firing ranges.
Other firing range operators allow use of an open bolt indicator to prop the bolt open so that the chamber is visible. The yellow plastic flag for CMP range use is recommended or a spent cartridge case may be accepted to indicate open bolt.

Aftermarket modifications[edit]

The fact that both the barrel and stock are detachable has led to a plethora of after-market accessories, similar to those available for the Ruger 10/22. Barrels, stocks, and grips, of varying finishes and utility, can be added to the rifle.
These include collapsible stocks, wire-framed stocks, pistol grips, flash suppressors, shrouded barrels, high-capacity magazines, telescopic sights, reflex ‘red dot’ sights and other occasionally fanciful-looking hardware, some at a cost greater than the rifle itself. Such accessories often make it impossible to use the original floating stock for storage of modified parts.^[3]
The current Henry U.S. Survival AR-7 has a 3/8″ scope sight rail integral with the receiver to accept standard Weaver-style “Tip-Off” rings. For earlier makes, B Square supplied the Charter Arms AR-7 Explorer Scope Mount Base, an accessory bracket with a 3/8″ rail.
The base attached by the receiver side plate screw (the Charter Arms side plate screw is longer than that of the Armalite). This base can be used on the Armalite and the Charter Arms Explorer rifles and the Charter Arms Explorer II pistol.
However, with the base in place, the rifle receiver will no longer fit the recess in the stock for storage. (The base is not needed on the Henry version and will not fit the Henry receiver.)
Apart from the highly modified AR-7 Israeli survival rifles, most AR-7 models lack provision for a carry sling. AR-7 owners have adapted slings designed for use on guns without modification, such as universal shotgun slings designed to cup the shotgun buttstock at the rear and clamp to the barrel or magazine tube at the front.
Given the light weight of the AR-7, 2.5 pounds, a proper length of parachute cord with a slip knot at either end can be used as a sling or lanyard.

MP 18
Bergmann MP 18
Type	Submachine gun
Place of origin	German Empire
Service history
In service	1918–1945 (Germany)
Wars	World War I Second Sino-Japanese War Chaco War Chinese Civil War World War II Spanish Civil War
Production history
Designer	Hugo Schmeisser
Designed	1916
Manufacturer	Bergmann Waffenfabrik Qingdao Iron Works
Produced	1918–1920s
Specifications
Weight	4.18 kg (9.2 lb)
Length	832 mm (32.8 in)
Barrel length	200 mm (7.9 in)
Cartridge	9×19mm Parabellum 7.63×25mm Mauser 7.65×21mm Parabellum
Action	open-bolt blowback
Rate of fire	~500 round/min
Muzzle velocity	380 m/s (1,247 ft/s)
Feed system	32-round detachable drum magazine TM 08 (World War I); 20-, 30- and 50-round detachable box magazine (post-World War I)

The MP 18 manufactured by Theodor Bergmann Abteilung Waffenbau was the first submachine gun used in combat.
It was introduced into service in 1918 by the German Army during World War I as the primary weapon of the Sturmtruppen, assault groups specialized in trench combat.
Although MP 18 production ended in the 1920s, its design formed the basis of most submachine guns manufactured between 1920 and 1960.

A common myth is that the Treaty of Versailles banned the production and use of the MP 18 by Germany.
In fact, the treaty only limited the number of machine guns that Germany was permitted to stockpile, and no mention is made of machine pistols or the MP 18 in particular.^[1]

History

Theodor Bergmann trade mark

Theodor Bergmann 1850–1931

 
What became known as the “submachine gun” had its genesis in the early 20th Century and developed around the concepts of fire and movement and infiltration tactics, specifically for the task of clearing trenches of enemy soldiers, an environment within which engagements were unlikely to occur beyond a range of a few feet.
In 1915, the German Rifle Testing Commission at Spandau decided to develop a new weapon for trench warfare.
An attempt to modify existing semi-automatic pistols, specifically the Luger and C96 Mauser failed, as accurate aimed fire in full automatic mode was impossible due to their light weight and high rate of fire of 1,200 rounds per minute.
The Commission determined that a completely new kind of weapon was needed. Hugo Schmeisser, working for the Bergmann Waffenfabrik was part of a team composed of Theodor Bergmann and a few other technicians.
They designed a new type of weapon to fulfill the requirements, which was designated the Maschinenpistole 18/I.
It is not clear what the “I” designation is intended to indicate, although its successor, the MP28, was designated the Maschinenpistole 28/II.
Full-scale production did not begin until early 1918. Though technically not the world’s first submachine gun, being beaten by the double-barreled Italian Villar-Perosa of 1915, in modern usage of the term the MP 18 is considered the world’s first submachine gun since the Villar Perosa had been designed to be used as a light machine gun on aircraft before it was adapted to infantry use as a single-barreled shoulder-fired weapon in late 1918.

Service history

The MP 18 primarily served in the final stages of World War I in 1918, especially in the Kaiserschlacht offensive. At least 5,000 MP 18.1s were built and used during World War I, based upon observed serial number ranges of captured weapons; however, it is possible that up to 10,000 were built for the war.
The MP 18 proved to be an excellent weapon. Its concept was well-proven in trench fighting. The basic design directly influenced later submachine gun designs and showed its superiority over the regular infantry rifle in urban, mobile, and guerrilla warfare.
The MP 18 served with German police and paramilitary forces after the end of the war. It was widely used in combat by the Freikorps Von Epp against the Spartacus League in Bavaria and by other Freikorps in Berlin, where its efficiency in urban combat was demonstrated.
All the limited conflicts between 1920 and 1940 saw an increasing use of this new class of weapons, first in South America during the Chaco War, then in Europe during the Spanish Civil War.
Also in China during the Japanese invasion, where its use by well-trained Chinese troops was costly for the invaders as in the Battle of Shanghai. where fierce street fights prefigured World War II urban combat of Stalingrad, Warsaw, Vienna and Berlin.

A German soldier with an MP 18 in Northern France, 1918.

 
Since the treaty allowed the Weimar Republic to keep a small quantity of submachine guns for police use, a few hundred MP 18.1s were modified to accept Schmeisser’s original 20-round magazine design.
This modification, conducted by Haenel Waffenfabrik, required removal of the existing magazine well collar, and replacement with a different one.
These weapons were overstamped with the date “1920” on the receiver and magazine well to show they were legitimate weapons owned by the Weimar Republic and not war bring backs or clandestine weapons.
Bergmann sold the license of the MP 18. 1 to SIG Switzerland; the Swiss made model was known as SIG Bergmann 1920.
It existed in .30 Luger, 9mm Parabellum and 7.63 mm Mauser. The Bergmann MP 18.1 represents a milestone both in terms of armament technology and warfare tactics.
It opened the way for a whole new class of weapons and triggered the research for lighter automatic firearms to be used by mobile troops.
Its first direct competitors did not see service in World War I, but most of them saw use in all the limited conflicts taking place in the inter-war period.

Evolution

MP 18 made in Tsing Tao, China, 1927

The Chinese produced a modified MP 18 in Tsing Tao with the assistance of Heinrich Vollmer.
The French, despite being moderately interested by this class of armament because they had designed and introduced in service many semi-automatic and automatic weapons, immediately launched studies based on captured MP 18s.
The design of the STA 1922 was adopted and the MAS 1924^[3]entered service and was used in colonial war. The French MAS 35 and MAS 38 derived from one of the many prototypes of the immediate post war.
The MP 28 was produced by Haenel under the supervision of Hugo Schmeisser, it was copied by the Second Spanish Republic under the codename Naranjero. The Naranjero was chambered in 9mm Largo.^[4]
The Austrian Steyr MP 34 was created by a team of technicians led by Louis Stange who designed a submachine gun for Rheinmetall in 1919 and used Bergmann’s MG 15 to design the MG 30.
The SIG Bergmann 1920 was used by Finland and Estonia, it was the inspiration for the Estonian Tallinn 1923 and the Finnish Suomi model 31, which in turn inspired Degtyarev for his PPD 34.
Emil Bergmann, Theodor Bergmann’s son designed the MP 32 that evolved into the MP34 as adopted by Denmark before to receive the MP35 name when adopted by nascent Wehrmacht in 1935.
This submachine gun is often mistaken with the Mitraillette 34, a MP28 made in Belgium by Pieper Bayard, former Bergmann licensed manufacturer or with the MP34 made by Steyr.
It is easy to identify the Bergmann MP 32/34/35 or its final version 35/1 since the cocking lever works exactly like a rifle bolt.
In 1940, with a pressing need for individual automatic weapons, the British copied the MP 28 and developed the Lanchester submachine gun for the Royal Navy.
Solidly built with the use of brass for the magazine well, and a bayonet mount, it entered service in 1940. The magazine and the bolt of the MP 28 could be used in the Lanchester.
The OVP 1918, an offspring of Revelli’s Villar Perosa 1915, inspired^{[citation needed]} Heinrich Vollmer for his telescopic bolt used in the VPM 1930, EMP, MP 38, MP 40 and MP 41.
The MP 18 remained in limited service with the German armed forces during the Second World War, specifically with the Sicherheitsdienst, later eastern foreign divisions of the Waffen SS and also with Kriegsmarine coastal artillery units.

Design details

The MP 18 was a heavy weapon, weighing over 5 kg (11.0 lb) when fully loaded. The receiver tube was very thick (~3 mm), compared with later World War II submachine guns with half that thickness or less, such as the Sten gun or MP 40.

 Berlin 1919

 
Though Schmeisser designed a conventional 20-round-capacity “box” magazine for the weapon.
the Testing Commission, for practical reasons, insisted that the MP 18 be adapted to use the 32-round TM 08 Luger “snail” drum magazine that was widely used with the long-barreled version of the P 08 pistol known as the Artillery model.
Like many other open-bolt designs, the MP 18 was prone to accidental discharge. If the buttstock of a loaded gun was given a hard knock while the bolt was fully forward, the gun could accidentally fire because of the bolt overcoming the action spring resistance and moving rearward enough to pick up a round, chamber it and fire.
Soldiers liked to leave the bolt of their firearm in this closed or forward position, so dirt and debris would not enter the barrel and chamber.
This ‘Bolt-closure’ practice acted as a dust cover for the weapon’s chamber, preventing a malfunction from occurring because of the presence of foreign debris, but making accidental discharge more likely.
The German police asked for an external safety on their MP 18s, and a universal bolt-locking safety was added on all the submachine guns used by the police.
Later submachine gun designs like the Sten and the MP 40 were modified to allow the cocking handle to be pushed inwards to lock the closed bolt to the tubular receiver casing. This design change prevented accidental discharges when the bolt was left forward and a loaded magazine was inserted.

Operation

TM 08 magazine for Bergmann MP 18.1

Ladegerät (loading appliance) for the TM 08 magazine

loading a TM 08

post World War I MP 18 with universal safety

Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, 1943—an MP28 featured in a photo from the Stroop Report

Another photo from the Stroop Report, showing an MP 28 in Warsaw, 1943

 
The original MP 18.1 was designed to use the snail drum magazine of the Luger Artillery model pistol. This rotary design type of magazine holds 32 rounds of 9 mm Parabellum, the user having to load the magazine with a proprietary loading tool.
A special sleeve was required when the snail drum was used on the MP 18 to stop the snail drum from being inserted too far in the magazine well.
After 1920, the MP 18 was modified to use a straight magazine similar to those used in the later developed MP 40 submachine gun. The MP 18 could only fire in the fully automatic mode.
Its successor, the MP 28/2, received a modified mechanism with a selector for single shot or fully automatic fire.
Britain directly copied the MP28 at the beginning of World War II. The result was the Lanchester submachine gun, which saw service with the Royal Navy.
The British Sten used the side-mounted magazine configuration and a simplified version of the open-bolt firing operating system of the MP28.
The Soviet Union made a similar use of MP 18 design in their PPD-40 sub machine gun in 1934. Further development of the PPD-40 led to the simplified and mass-produced PPSh-41.
In China, both the Kuomintang Army and the Communist Army used MP 18 and MP 28 in the Second Sino-Japanese War.

Users

Bibliography[edit]

• Cornish, Paul (2009). Machine Guns and the Great War. Pen & Sword Books Limited. ISBN 978-1848840478.

Notes[edit]

References[edit]

• Gotz, Hans Dieter, German Military Rifles and Machine Pistols, 1871–1945, Schiffer Publishing, Ltd. West Chester, Pennsylvania, 1990. OCLC 24416255
• G. de Vries, B.J. Martens: The MP 38, 40, 40/1 and 41 Submachine gun, Propaganda Photos Series, Volume 2, Special Interest Publicaties BV, Arnhem, The Netherlands. First Edition 2001
• Smith, W.H.B, Small arms of the world: the basic manual of military small arms, Harrisburg, Pa.: Stackpole Books, 1955. OCLC 3773343
• Günter Wollert; Reiner Lidschun; Wilfried Kopenhagen, Illustrierte Enzyklopädie der Schützenwaffen aus aller Welt: Schützenwaffen heute (1945-1985), Berlin : Militärverlag der Deutschen Demokratischen Republik, 1988. OCLC 19630248
• CLINTON EZELL, EDWARD. Small arms of the world, Eleventh Edition, Arms & Armour Press, London, 1977