Mauser C96

"Broomhandle Mauser" redirects here. For the book by Jonathan Ferguson, see The 'Broomhandle' Mauser.

Mauser C96
A 7.63mm Mauser C96
Type
Place of originGermany (German Empire)
Service history
In service1896–1961
Used bySee Users
Wars
List of wars
Production history
Designer
Designed1895
Manufacturer
Produced1896–1937
No. built1,100,000+
VariantsSee Major variants
Specifications
Mass1.13 kg (2 lb 8 oz)
Length
  • 312 mm (12.3 in) (pre-Bolo)
  • 271 mm (10.7 in) (post-Bolo)
Barrel length
  • 140 mm (5.5 in) (pre-Bolo)
  • 99 mm (3.9 in) (post-Bolo)
Cartridge
ActionShort recoil
Rate of fire120 rounds per minute (semi-automatic)
900-1000 rounds per minute (M712 Schnellfeuer)[9]
Muzzle velocity
  • 425 m/s (1,394 ft/s) 7.63×25mm
  • 350 m/s (1,148 ft/s)
    9×19mm
Effective firing range150–200 m (160–220 yd)[10]
Feed system
  • 10-round internal magazine fed by stripper clip
  • 6-round internal magazine[11]
  • 10- or 20-round detachable box magazine (M712 Schnellfeuer and detachable magazine variants)
  • 20- or 40-round magazine (prototype M1917 trench carbine)
SightsV-notch rear tangent sight adjustable up to 1,000 m (1,100 yd), inverted V front sight

The Mauser C96 (Construktion 96)[12] is a semi-automatic pistol that was originally produced by German arms manufacturer Mauser from 1896 to 1937.[13] Unlicensed copies of the gun were also manufactured in Spain and China in the first half of the 20th century.[13][14]

The distinctive characteristics of the C96 are the integral box magazine in front of the trigger, the long barrel, the wooden shoulder stock, which gives it the stability of a short-barreled rifle and doubles as a holster or carrying case, and a grip shaped like the handle of a broom. The grip earned the gun the nickname "broomhandle" in the English-speaking world, and in China the C96 was nicknamed the "box cannon" (Chinese: 盒子炮; pinyin: hézipào) because of its rectangular internal magazine and because it could be holstered in its wooden box-like detachable stock.[15]

With its long barrel and high-velocity cartridge, the Mauser C96 had superior range and better penetration than most other pistols of its era; the 7.63×25mm Mauser cartridge was the highest-velocity commercially manufactured pistol cartridge until the advent of the .357 Magnum cartridge in 1935.[16]

Mauser manufactured approximately one million C96 pistols,[17] while the number produced in Spain and China is large but unknown due to poor production records.[13]

  1. ^ Ferguson, Johnathan (2017). The 'Broomhandle' Mauser. Osprey Publishing. p. 28.
  2. ^ Jowett, Philip (2012). Armies of the Balkan Wars 1912-13 : the priming charge for the Great War. Osprey Publishing. ISBN 978-1-299-58155-5. OCLC 842879929.
  3. ^ Tales of the Gun: Automatic Pistols (Television Documentary). The History Channel. 1998.
  4. ^ Douglas de Souza Aguiar Junior (25 June 2017). "O Museu de Polícia Militar de São Paulo". Armas On-Line (in Brazilian Portuguese).
  5. ^ "Weapons of the Malay CTs 1948–1960". 17thdivision.tripod.com. Archived from the original on 5 October 2022.
  6. ^ "A Look Back At The Mauser C96".
  7. ^ "Chinese Broomhandles".
  8. ^ Belford, James (1969). The Mauser Self Loading Pistol. Borden Publishing Company.
  9. ^ "Mauser "Schnellfeuer", or Model 712 Machine Pistol". 19 May 2016.
  10. ^ "Mauser C-96". Modern Firearms.net. 22 October 2010.
  11. ^ "История появления пистолета Маузер К-96 (Mauser C96)".
  12. ^ Skennerton, Ian (2005). Mauser Model 1896 Pistol. Labrador, Australia: Arms & Militaria Press. p. 5. ISBN 0-949749-77-X.
  13. ^ a b c Wilson, R. (January 2009). "Mauser C96 Broomhandle". Australian & New Zealand Handgun.
  14. ^ "Spanish Guns". 1896mauser.com. Archived from the original on 9 February 2009. Retrieved 28 February 2009.
  15. ^ Wilson (2009), p. 100.
  16. ^ Bishop, Chris, ed. (1998). Guns in Combat. Kent, UK: Grange Books. p. 93. ISBN 1-84013-083-0.
  17. ^ Skennerton (2005), p. 8.