Mauser C96
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Mauser C96 | |
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 Mauser C96 reloading process |
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| Type | Semi-automatic pistol |
| Place of origin | Germany |
| Service history | |
| In service | 1899 to present |
| Used by | Germany, China |
| Wars | Second Boer War, World War I, World War II, Spanish Civil War, Second Sino-Japanese War, Chinese Civil War |
| Production history | |
| Designer | Feederle brothers (Fidel, Friedrich, and Josef) |
| Designed | 1895 |
| Manufacturer | Mauser |
| Produced | 1896 – 1936 |
| Variants | "full sized" C96 (standard model); "Bolo" (short barrel, small grip); "Red 9" (9 mm chambering); M712 "Schnellfeuer" (full-automatic) |
| Specifications | |
| Weight | 1130g unloaded |
| Length | 288 mm |
| Barrel length | 140 mm |
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| Cartridge | 7.63 x 25 mm Mauser; 9 mm Luger Parabellum; .45 ACP |
| Action | recoil operated semi-automatic |
| Muzzle velocity | 425 m/s |
| Effective range | ca 200 m |
| Maximum range | 2,000 m (according to manual) |
| Feed system | 6, 10 or 20-round integral or detachable magazine; 40-round detachable magazines were also made |
| Sights | V-notch rear tangent sight adjustable up to 1,000 metres, inverted V front sight |
The C96, or Broomhandle Mauser, was the first semi-automatic pistol to see widespread use. It was manufactured from 1896 to 1936 in Germany, as well as being manufactured in direct or modified - and often unlicensed - form in other countries, such as Spain, and especially China.
The main characteristics that distinguish this pistol are the magazine forward of the trigger, the long and protruding barrel, and the handle shaped like the end of a broom handle, hence the nickname of "Broomhandle."
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[edit] Variants
There were many variants, including the "Bolo" versions with shorter barrels and smaller grips (so named due to their immnese popularity with the Bolsheviks during the Russian Revolution and in immediately following years), versions with detachable magazines varying in size from 6 to 40 rounds instead of the integral magazine seen on most pre-1930s versions, and models such as the M712 Schnellfeuer ("rapid fire") machine pistol from 1932 that was capable of fully automatic fire. All versions were made to use detachable shoulder-stocks that doubled as holsters. The C96 was originally designed for the 7.63x25 mm Mauser cartridge, but many were also made in 9 mm Mauser Export, 9x19 mm Parabellum and versions in .45 ACP caliber were produced in China. The C96 was also manufactured on a limited or experimental basis in 7.65 mm Borchart, 9 mm Mauser, 7.65 mm Parabellum, 9 mm Largo (Bergmann), and 8.15 mm Mauser. A small number of carbine models with wooden stocks and much longer barrels were also manufactured.
During World War I the Imperial German Army contracted Mauser for 150,000 C96 pistols, chambered for the 9 mm Parabellum. This variant was named the "Red 9" after a large number "9" burned and painted in red into the grip panels, to prevent the pistols' users from loading them with 7.63 mm ammunition by mistake. Of the 150,000 commissioned, approximately 135,000 were delivered before the war ended. This was the only time in which the C96 was ever used officially by the German military.
[edit] Service
The Mauser C96 was sold commercially worldwide; Winston Churchill favored it, and used one at the Battle of Omdurman and during the Second Boer War. The pistols saw service in various colonial wars, World War I, the Spanish Civil War, the Chaco War, and World War II, among other places. Many were sold to Russia during the Revolution, mostly in the short-barrelled variant, giving that version the nickname "Bolo" (short for "Bolshevik") Mauser. The pistol, both imports and domestically-made, was used extensively by the Chinese in the Second Sino-Japanese War and the Chinese Civil War. It was nicknamed the "box cannon" (Chinese: 盒子炮; pinyin: hézipào) because it was holstered in a wooden box.
Despite the pistols' worldwide popularity and fame, the Broomhandle Mauser never became the official service pistol of any military or police of any nation, except China.
Today the Broomhandle Mauser is a popular collector's gun; many have come on to the US civilian market after being exported from China.
[edit] Cultural reference
Due to the fact that C96 was a German weapon and very popular on the international market, the gun featured in many movies that dealt with World War I or with world events from the 1900s to the 1930s (but rarely in World War II movies). It also became a favourite in spy movies and TV-shows as late as the 1970s. Since the shape of the gun is very distinctive, the gun wielder would be immediately identified as an "enemy" or a "villain", but the C96 is very seldom associated with specifically German characters, even in movies of either World War; Germans in American movies are typically shown wielding the Luger pistol.
The Broomhandle Mauser is certainly the most recognizable weapon in Chinese war films and dramas, and is ubiquitous throughout this genre; indeed, the weapon of choice for many of the main characters tend to be the Broomhandle Mauser, sometimes aesthetically modified with red tassels on the handles. Many Russian films dealing with the Revolution and Russian Civil War also show characters using Mausers.
In the Star Wars movies, the props for the Blas-Tech DL-44 blasters used by Han Solo, Luke Skywalker and various minor characters were kitbashed from antique and reproduction C96 Mausers, and a wide selection of random parts (like model airplane engines).
[edit] Bibliography
- System Mauser - A Pictorial History of the Model 1896 Self-Loading Pistol, John W. Breathed, Jr. and Joseph J. Schroeder, Jr., (Handgun Press, 1967)
- The Mauser C96 Explained, (Download) Gerard Henrotin, (H&L Publishing, 2002)
- The Mauser Self-Loading Pistol, James N. Belford and Jack Dunlap, (Borden Publishing Cie 1969)
[edit] External links
- Mauser C-96 Information Site
- Another Mauser C-96 Information Site
- Mauser C-96 at guns.ru
- Yet another Mauser C-96 Information Site
- A long detailed article about Chinese .45 caliber C96s
- Today Value of the Mauser C96 Models
| German-made firearms and light weapons of World War II |
|---|
| Side arms (Pistole) |
| Mauser C96 | Luger | Walther P38 | Walther PPK | Sauer 38H | Mauser HSc |
| Rifles & carbines (Gewehr & Karabiner) |
| Karabiner 98k | Gewehr 41 | Gewehr 43/Karabiner 43 | StG44/MP44 | FG42 | StG45(M) | Volkssturmgewehr 1-5 |
| Submachine guns ( Maschinenpistole ) |
| Bergmann MP18 | MP38/MP40 "Schmeisser" | MP3008 "Volks MP" |
| Machine guns & other larger weapons |
| MG08 | MG34 | MG42 | Faustpatrone | Panzerfaust | Panzerschreck
Flammenwerfer 35 | Panzerbüchse 39 | Granatwerfer 36 | Granatwerfer 42 |
| Notable foreign-made infantry weapons |
| P.640(b) | Vis.35 | Vz.24/G24(t) | MG26(t) | Panzerbüchse 35(p) |
| German-made cartridges used by the Wehrmacht |
| 7.92 x 57 mm | 7.63 x 25 mm Mauser | 7.92 mm Kurz | 7.65 mm Luger | 9 mm Luger |
