The Steyr M1912, also known as the Steyr-Hahn, is a semi-automatic pistol developed in 1911 by the Austrian firm Steyr Mannlicher, based on the mechanism of the Roth–Steyr M1907. It was developed for the Austro-Hungarian Army and adopted in 1912. It was the standard Austro-Hungarian military handgun of World War I.[2][3] It was able to endure the adverse conditions of trench warfare during World War I.
The M1912 was originally chambered for the 9mm Steyr round.
History
A 1915-made Steyr-Hahn M1912 chambered in 9mm Steyr with holster and ammunition
The M1912 was developed as the Model 1911, a military pistol, but it was not accepted into service until 1914 as the M12. It was originally issued to the Austrian Landwehr while common army units were issued Roth–Steyr M1907handguns and Rast & Gasser M1898revolvers. Orders were also placed by Chile and Romania. During World War I, Austria-Hungary experienced shortages of handguns and production of the M1912 was increased. Germany also placed an order for 10,000 Model 12s. After World War I, a commercial model the Steyr M1911 was produced and was quite popular with army officers, but Steyr had to rely on foreign exports to sustain production. After Germany annexed Austria in 1938, the Wehrmacht ordered 60,000 M1912 pistols rechambered to 9mm Parabellum which remained in service until the end of World War II.
Design details
The Steyr M1912 handgun is operated by a system of short recoil, the barrel unlocking from the slide by rotation. As the pistol is being fired and the recoil of the pistol is in motion, a lug and groove system around the barrel rotate the barrel 20° until a lug hits a stop wedge and holds the barrel while the slide is free to continue its rearward travel, the extractor claw withdrawing the spent casing against the breech face of the slide until the casing strikes the ejector and departs the weapon via the ejection and loading port.[4] Shortly after ejection the slide's rearward travel is arrested by the compressed recoil spring and the abutment of mated surfaces of the slide and frame. The recoil spring is now free to return its stored energy to the cycle of the weapon by beginning to return the slide forward.
As the return spring returns the slide forward, the breech face strips a round from the magazine into the chamber and the locking system engages the barrel and locks it with the slide in the battery position. A safety lever on the left side of the frame can be engaged by turning it into a notch on the slide to immobilize the slide. A disconnector system will also prevent the weapon from firing until the whole action is fully closed.
Although the magazine is situated in the grip, it is integral with the weapon and is loaded from above using eight-round stripper clips.[4] To load, the slide is pulled back to expose the action, the clip is inserted along the guides and the rounds pushed into the magazine. The metal strip is then discarded. As with the majority of pistols with integral magazines, a lever can be used to disengage the magazine catch in order to eject the magazine load.
Variants
Maschinenpistole M.12 Patrone 16
Steyr Repetierpistole M1912/P16 was a machine pistol with an extended magazine and fitted stock to control recoil.
A machine pistol version of the Steyr M1912 was commissioned at the end of 1915 and developed at the Österreichische Waffenfabriksgesellschaft under Major Franz Xaver Fuchs, commander of Standschützen-Bataillon Innsbruck II. Another Standschützen officer - one Herr Hellriegel - also developed a submachine gun that was tested in Tyrol in late 1915, implying that there was some interest in machine-pistols and SMGs within Tyrolean Standschützen regiments.[5]
The M.12/P16 machine-pistol was an automatic conversion of the standard M.12 service pistol. The only technical difference between the standard M.12 and the M.12/P16 was the addition of a fire selector , situated on the right side of the trigger group. This gave an automatic fire rate of about 800 rounds per minute. By February 1916, a batch of 50 prototypes was delivered for field trials and issued to Major Fuchs' battalion. These early models fed from the M.12's standard 8-round internal magazine and, against a firing rate of 800rpm, they could only fire a burst or two before depleting. The full production model extended the internal magazine to 16 rounds - an improvement, but still less than ideal. Topping off the magazine, either by feeding two 8- round clips or manually loading each cartridge by hand, was also slow and cumbersome.. It is because of this extended magazine that the weapon earned its "P16" suffix, standing for Patrone 16 ("16 cartridges") - contrary to some reports, "P16" is not a reference to the year 1916.[6][5]
After successful trials, the M.12/P16 was accepted into service, reportedly with an order of 5,000 units being placed. They were issued exclusively on the Italian Front, to Tyrolean regiments fighting in the Alps. It is not known whether they were fielded as trench-clearing weapons; Austria in 1916 was fighting a mostly defensive war against the Italians, and there is no indication that the weapon was commissioned for use by shock troops, although it is possible that they were issued to some Sturmbataillons in 1917.[5]
The M.12/P16 remained in service throughout the war, and was apparently produced in large numbers. An inventory taken in Tyrol at the end of the war reported some 9,873 units in issue. The physical evidence for such a large number having been produced is scant. Only a handful of examples exist today, most of which are low serial numbers, leading some experts to estimate that less than a thousand were made (Thomas Nelson claimed around 900). It is possible that most were destroyed by the Inter-Allied Commission after World War I. The associated patent for the fire-selector was finally approved in December 1919, having been applied for three years earlier, although there is nothing to suggest that the weapon was ever produced gain. [5]
The weapons saw limit use post war with use by Austrian SS troops during the Second World War.
Doppelpistole M.12
A dual pistol mount and stock was also developed that converted two M1912/P16s into a (double pistol) submachine gun such weapon known as the Doppelpistole M1912. A wooden carrying case, similar to that issued with the Villar Perosa, was also made for the Doppelpistole, the idea seems to have been experimental and never came into wide issue.[7][8][5]
9mm P12(Ö)
After Germany annexed Austria in 1938, the Wehrmacht ordered 60,000 M1912 pistols rechambered in 9mm Parabellum which remained in service until the end of World War II. In German service, its official designation was 9mm P12(Ö) (Ö for Österreichisch, "Austrian"). Pistols in Wehrmacht service were distinguished by the Wehrmachtadler ("Wehrmacht Eagle") emblem above the trigger and most noticeably a "P-08" or "08" stamp on the left side of the slide, "to show that they chambered German 1908-type ammunition."[6][4]
^9mm Steyr cartridge uses a 115 gr (7 g) full metal jacket bullet, with a 1,230 ft/s (370 m/s) muzzle velocity, with 388 ft·lbf (526 J) of energy using Hirtenberger ammunition.
References
^Hogg, Ian; Gander, Terry (2005). Jane's Guns Recognition Guide. London: HarperCollins Publishers. p. 17. ISBN0-00-718328-3.
^ abcHogg, Ian V.; John Weeks (2000). Military small arms of the 20th century (7th ed.). Iola, Wisconsin: Krause Publications,. p. 99. ISBN9780873418249.
^ abZhuk, A.B. (1995), Walter, John (ed.), The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Handguns, Pistols and Revolvers of the World, 1870 TO 1995, translated by N.N. Bobrov, London: Greenhill Books, p. 176
