Bergmann Simplex

Bergmann Simplex
Bergmann Simplex Model 1900 German, 8mm Bergman Simplex cartridge
TypeSemi-automatic pistol
Place of origin Germany
 Belgium
Production history
DesignerTheodor Bergmann
Designed1897[1]
Producedc.1897-1914;[1] introduced to markets in 1901.[2]
No. builtEst. 4000 or more[3][1]
Specifications
Mass32.0 oz (1.0 kg)
Length8.5 in (217 mm)

Cartridge8x18mm Simplex
Actionblowback
Feed system5- or 8- round detachable box magazine

The Bergmann Simplex was a compact firearm produced in the early 1900s, utilizing innovations from the earlier Bergman Model 1896 and 1897 pistols,[4] being essentially a down-scaled version of Model 1897.[2] It was chambered for the proprietary Bergmann-Simplex 8mm cartridge.

Although production began in 1897, the design itself was actually patented in 1901, with the gun beginning sales in 1901 as well.[2] After a few copies were manufactured in Austria, its designs would be sold to a unidentified Belgian company in 1904. This Belgian company would manufacture 4,000 copies and would discontinue it, after the German aggression against Belgium in 1914.[3][1]

The Simplex proved popular in Spain, to a point it prompted local gunsmiths to start making counterfeit copies of the Simplex.[3][1]

The Simplex, while doing better commercially than its predecessor design, the Model 1896/1897 family, was still not a successful firearm. It was considered under-powered, cumbersome and developed a reputation for poor reliability.[3] Additionally, it did not fare well against the other compact pistols in the market; particularly the FN-Browning designs.[5]

  1. ^ a b c d e R.K. Wilson: Textbook of automatic Pistols. Palladium Press, Birmingham, Alabama USA 1999. Page 14.
  2. ^ a b c Edward Clinton Ezell (1993) p.369; First introduced as the Bergmann Selbstlade Pistole Modell 1901, the 8mm Bergmann Simplex looked like a scaled-down Modell 1897; but in the Simplex, the designers reverted to a simple blowback mechanism.
  3. ^ a b c d Kinard, Jeff (2003). Pistols: An Illustrated History of Their Impact. Bloomsbury Publishing. p. 188. ISBN 9781851094752.
  4. ^ Dougherty, Martin J. (2014). "Early Cartridge Pistols". Pistols and Revolvers. Amber Books Limited. ISBN 978-1-78274-266-1. The Bergmann 1896 pistol was typical of the experimental weapons of the time – it had some promising features but also a few flaws. Among these was an ejection system that bounced the spent round off the next round in the magazine. This feature was dropped on the 1897 Bergmann Simplex model and subsequent designs.
  5. ^ Edward Clinton Ezell (1993) p.369; Unfortunately for the Bergmanns Industriewerke and its licensees, pocket pistols, such as the FN-Browning were much more popular and successful.