Madsen M-50

The Madsen M-50 or M/50 is a submachine gun introduced in 1950. It was produced by the Danish company Dansk Industri Syndikat of Copenhagen, Denmark. The company was colloquially known as Madsen after its founder Vilhelm Herman Oluf Madsen.

Madsen Model 1950
Madsen M-50 on display at the Hội An Museum
TypeSubmachine gun
Place of originDenmark
Service history
In service1950–1980s
Used bySee Users
WarsFirst Indochina War
Korean War
Malayan Emergency
Vietnam War
Salvadoran Civil War
The Troubles
Colombian Civil War
Production history
DesignerDansk Industri Syndikat
Designed1950
ManufacturerDansk Industri Syndikat
VariantsM/46, M/53
Specifications
Mass3.15 kilograms (6.9 lb)
Length795 millimetres (31.3 in) with stock open
Caliber9×19mm Parabellum
ActionBlowback
Rate of fire550 rounds/min
Muzzle velocity380 m/s (1,200 ft/s)
Feed systemMagazine 32 rounds
SightsSingle aperature set for 100 m (110 yd)
References

Overview

This firearm was a modified variation of the M/46. The only major improvement was the simplified retracting handle. Introduction of the M/50 occurred on November 7, 1950, at Mosede, Denmark, until 1953.[1]

The M/50 is made of stamped sheet metal. It is an open bolt design which means it fires when the bolt is in the locked back open position with a fixed firing pin. The M/46 and M/50 share a unique design: the firearm is stamped from two pieces of sheet metal which are shaped with an integral rear pistol grip and magazine housing. The two pieces fit together like a clam shell with the hinge at the rear of the pistol grip. The firearm is held together with a barrel locking nut which is threaded onto the fore section of the two receiver halves. The pistol grip is hollow, providing storage space for a magazine loading tool.[1]

The folding stock is made of tubular steel covered with leather and folds onto the right side of the firearm. The M/50 fires in full-auto only. It also features a safety lever (also known as grip safety), unusually placed in front of the forward magazine housing. To fire the M/50 the operator must grip the magazine housing and hold down the safety lever.[2]

Users
A U.S. Army soldier (right) holds a captured Vietcong M-50 in 1965
Non State Users

In the 1968 movie Ice Station Zebra, the Soviet paratroopers attacking the American naval and Marine force at the research station were armed with the M-50.

In the Season 2, Episode 25 episode of Star Trek, "Bread and Circuses," Captain Kirk uses a Madsen to shoot out the lock of the cell holding Mr. Spock and Dr. McCoy. The Roman soldiers were armed with Madsen M-50s and attempted to shoot the landing party with them as they were transported back to the Enterprise.

References
  1. Peterson, Phillip (18 October 2013). Standard Catalog of Military Firearms: The Collector's Price and Reference Guide. Krause Publications. pp. 76–. ISBN 978-1-4402-3692-1.
  2. Jones, Richard D.; Ness, Leland S. (2010). Jane's Infantry Weapons. pp. 81–82, 87.
  3. Schwing, Ned (5 November 2005). Standard Catalog of Military Firearms: The Collector's Price and Reference Guide. Iola, Wisconsin: Krause Publications. pp. 74–75. ISBN 0-87349-902-6.
  4. "Dánský samopal Madsen M 1950" [Danish submachine gun Madsen M 1950]. vhu.cz (in Czech). Vojenský historický ústav Praha.
  5. Hogg, Ian V. (2001). Submachine Guns. Greenhill Books. pp. 49–50. ISBN 978-1-85367-448-8.
  6. Gander, Terry J.; Hogg, Ian V. Jane's Infantry Weapons 1995/1996. Jane's Information Group; 21 edition (May 1995). ISBN 978-0-7106-1241-0.
  7. Fitzsimons, Bernard (1978). The Illustrated encyclopedia of 20th century weapons and warfare. New York: Columbia House. p. 1817.
  8. "WWII German weapons during the Vietnam War". 10 July 2015.
  9. McNab, Chris (19 March 2013). America's Elite: US Special Forces from the American Revolution to the Present Day. Osprey Publishing. pp. 276–277. ISBN 978-1-78200-316-8.
  10. "This Is Quemoy". YouTube. Retrieved 2022-02-11.
  11. Moss, Matthew (29 Nov 2018). The Sterling Submachine Gun. Weapon 65. Osprey Publishing. pp. 15–18. ISBN 9781472828088.
  12. Rottman, Gordon L. (25 Jul 2002). Green Beret in Vietnam 1957–73. Warrior 28. Osprey Publishing. p. 41. ISBN 9781855325685.
  13. "Red Hand Commando - Ulster's elite".
  • Nelson, Thomas B. The World's Submachine Guns. International small arms publishers: Cologne, Germany, 1963.
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