Stechkin's pistol: characteristics, types and reviews of weapons

In our army pistols are paid much less attention than other examples of small arms that are in service with the Russian Federation. Many of the pistols trace their ancestry back from the USSR, and only in recent years really new models that have already been created in our country began to appear. However, this type of weapon still does not have wide distribution.

But there are some models, which for all their rarity and inaccessibility to the average soldier have a certain aura of mystery in the troops, and therefore are especially welcome. This is Stechkin's pistol. His characteristics are so inflated by "word of mouth" that to someone he seems almost a full replacement of all automatic weapons. Is it so? Let's figure it out.

In fairness, it should be said that many "experts" who before discussing the characteristics of this weapon hoarsely saw only Stechkin's airsoft pistol . This explains completely absurd discussions and verbal battles, now and then flaring up on thematic sites.

When was it adopted?

In 1951, in the arsenal of the SA appeared a unique pistol, the main feature of which was the possibility of conducting automatic fire. More than three years, since the spring of 1948, his relentless development was conducted by the young gunsmith Igor Yakovlevich Stechkin. At that time, he had just joined the Central Design Bureau-14. The prototype was submitted to the commission for consideration in 1949 already.

After a number of improvements, new weapons were adopted for armament under the APS (automatic Stechkin pistol). His characteristics were so good for his time that the young designer was immediately awarded the Stalin Prize. A pistol was intended for arming officers and sergeants of separate combat arms, special forces soldiers, as well as personnel that did not rely on AKM or AKC (armored vehicle crews, for example). However, even then, many rightly believed that in the event of a real clash with the opponent of the pistol, the APS would not be enough for full-fledged self-defense.

In addition, in recent years, Stechkin's traumatic gun, known to employees of security companies that do not have the right to carry combat weapons, has become famous.

Automatic operation scheme

As in many samples of such weapons, the pistol works according to the scheme with a free shutter. Initially, it was equipped with a special wooden or plastic holster that played the role of a butt. With its use, the scattering of bullets during automatic shooting significantly decreased. The instruction instructed to keep the pistol with both hands and fire exclusively short, in two or three cartridges, with bursts.

The fact is that after the third shot the barrel of the weapon was strongly led to the right upper side. If we talk about "kinoshnoy" shooting, when the pistol is held with only one hand, then more or less effective automatic fire is possible only at a distance of five (!) Meters and less. Note that in some foreign sources this weapon is called "Stechkin's submachine gun". Stupidity, of course. Yes, by mass and size, it is similar to some submachine guns, but nevertheless it is the pistol, and nothing else.

Stechkin, rightly believing that the high rate of fire in such weapons was unnecessary, placed in the handle of the pistol a mechanism for slowing down the shooting, which simultaneously plays the role of a self-timer. As a result, the fire rate fell to 700-740 rounds per minute, which could already be considered a satisfactory result.

Special scheme of the device store

But not only is this interesting Stechkin's pistol. His characteristics include the use of a fairly rare store for this type of weapon, in which the cartridges are staggered (in two rows). The difficulty here is that it requires almost the ideal accuracy of manufacturing both the chamber and the store itself.

As in many other cases, when the gunsmiths almost sobbed because of the characteristics of the domestic patron, a standard ammunition 9 × 18 delivered many problems. Stechkin spent a lot of time bringing the mechanism for the supply of cartridges to absolute efficiency. For his task, he coped brilliantly: the pistol works perfectly in the most extreme conditions, in no way inferior to the PM (in which there is no automatic fire at all, and therefore it is ten times simpler). The store capacity is 20 units. That's how many cartridges in the gun Stechkin.

The high complexity of the task facing the developer is evidenced by the fact that at the present time neither American nor European manufacturers of pistols on the chess layout of the cartridges in the store have passed.

About the fuse

The fuse in the considered flag-type gun, it is located on the shutter. In order to simplify the design, it is also used to switch modes of fire. The peculiarity of its design is that when the USM fuse is activated, the gun immediately (in automatic mode) descends from the combat platoon.

On the left of the frame there is a lever for the gate delay. The latch for the store is traditionally located at the bottom of the handle. The sight is simple, sector type. Theoretically it is designed for 200 meters, but the maximum range with respect to effective fire does not exceed 50 meters.

The bullet leaves the trunk at an initial velocity of 340 m / s. Since there are 20 rounds of ammunition in the store, the gun has a high density of fire. Early variants of APS were distinguished by the absence of chromium deposition on the barrel, the shape of the grooves for abutting the holster-bolt, and also by a slightly different design of the gate retarder. However, to make the trunks chrome-plated steel already soon after the first Stechkin pistol went into the series. His characteristics impressed the military, and therefore they rightly demanded that the manufacturer increase the period of trouble-free service of weapons.

Shock-trigger mechanism

Since the double-action USM, and the trigger stroke is long enough and slightly taut, a pistol with a cartridge in the chamber can be carried without fear of various unpleasant consequences. However, for reliability it is still better to put the trigger on a safety platoon. Thus, an accidental shot is completely excluded.

Although it has a long stroke, it allows you to make a shot almost instantly, if necessary. As we have already said, the Stechkin APS pistol has the highest level of reliability, which is confirmed not only by multistage tests, but also by the repeated participation of weapons in combat operations throughout the globe. Despite the small angle of the handle (which many do not like) and the rather mediocre characteristics of the used ammunition, the accuracy of the weapon is very high.

With a single shot, the force of recoil and the throwing of weapons are very small. Adapted, the fighter can fire a series of short bursts, literally tearing the target with a high density of hits. This quality of weapons provides significant advantages in close combat. Despite the presence of automatic fire, the design of the gun gives easy access to all of its mechanisms for cleaning and maintenance.

As a rule, weapons made in the times of the USSR can shoot at least 40 thousand rounds without a single serious breakdown. Of course, in this period, it may still be necessary to replace the springs.

Some drawbacks in developing

However, the Stechkin system gun collected not only enthusiastic reviews, because the weapon lacked shortcomings. So, the massive holster-butt was extremely inconvenient to use, the weight and dimensions of the pistol delivered a lot of problems, and so widely "advertised" automatic fire mode in practice was almost useless. The handle of the weapon, which has almost no inclination, is extremely uncomfortable, not suitable for instinctive rapid shooting. Almost all officers believed that for everyday wearing in peacetime conditions APS Stechkin does not fit perfectly.

As a result, the weapons were completely withdrawn from production, most of the APS troops stationed in the troops were sent to storage depots. However, this did not apply to various special forces and the KGB. The specifics of their work rarely provided for the wearing of pistols in peacetime, but such weapons characteristics as high firepower, accuracy of the first shots, automatic fire and reliability were very much in demand in these troops.

That's why the Stechkin pistol is so popular with us in the countries of the former USSR. The battle path of this model was glorious and long. However, it is much more famous abroad not the classical model, but its noiseless modification. About it, we now tell in more detail.

Noiseless modification

During the Afghan campaign, special units widely used Stechkin's pistol with a silencer. This option was equipped with a detachable sound suppression device (that is, a silencer), as well as an emphasis for the shoulder. The last device in the stowed position was fixed on the muffler. The weapon received the APB index 6P13.

This modification was created in 1972, and Stechkin himself did not take part in its development. To the armament of various special units of all law enforcement agencies, the Stechkin pistol with a silencer was adopted the same year. In order to reduce the speed of the bullet, leading it to the subsonic (to reduce the noise from the shot), several holes were made in the trunk. In total, there are twelve of them, eight of which are 1.5 cm from the muzzle, and four - 1.5 cm from the chamber.

Around the barrel there is a special tube into which the powder gases after the shot fall through these holes. From it they are fed into the expansion chamber of the muffler. All additional (in comparison with the original weapon) parts are removable. This makes it easier to access them during cleaning.

The muffler itself is attached to the expansion tube on the dry joint. In order for the massive device not to overlap the sighting line, it is located eccentrically, being significantly shifted downward relative to the central line of the barrel channel. In the front of the silencer, the designers placed the separator blocks. They share streams of powder gases, thereby also reducing the volume of the shot.

Advantages of a noiseless option

The development described above has an important advantage: since the muffler has quite a lot of weight, the barrel of the weapon does not so much lead upwards with long queues in automatic mode. Accordingly, the dispersion of bullets in this case is also significantly reduced. Do not forget about the beam emphasis that comes with this weapon modification. Let us recall once again that using a muffler does not make the gun completely silent in the philistine understanding of this term. The device only conceals the sound of the shot, which makes it very difficult to determine the location of the shooter.

On the territory of the former USSR, all modifications of APS and APB were used in most local conflicts. Currently, the APB is armed with units of military intelligence, special forces of the FSB, the GRU and the Interior Ministry. In addition, the Stechkin pneumatic pistol, whose characteristics are far from any combat sample, is used in many shooting ranges for initial shooting training.

Deliveries to friendly regimes

At first APS were supplied abroad only by limited parties. As a rule, these were personal gifts, which the USSR did to the leaders of countries loyal to it. So, in Fidel Castro and Ernesto Che Guevara, these pistols were, and both of these leaders considered them their favorite personal weapon. However, by the end of the seventies of the last century in any corner of Africa it was possible to meet "Stechkin". The pistol, the technical characteristics of which provided for its use in the most extreme situations, was fervently loved by all categories of insurgents and liberation fighters.

Especially a lot of this weapon was delivered to Libya, Angola, Mozambique. Among the domestic fans of this pistol word of mouth is passed one story. Her truthfulness raises some doubts, but the tradition is widely known.

Byl or fiction?

It is alleged that the German company Transarms, by proactively buying the party of APS (where and with whom, it is not known), reworked the pistols, removing the possibility of conducting automatic fire. After that, allegedly, this weapon went to the armament of one of the police (!) Formations of Germany. Fans of domestic weapons loudly whispered that all this was done, despite the variety of models Heckler und Koch, Walther, Sig Sauer and Glock.

Here the question immediately arises: what is the difficulty for? Who generally needs a non-automatic "Stechkin" - a pistol, whose technical characteristics are especially clearly manifested through the possibility of automatic fire? Some questions. If the Germans so much needed "rough" reliability, they could have taken a lot of PMM with far greater success.

Large store capacity? So at some updatings "Berett" it at all is not less. Finally, the main misunderstanding. Who in Germany could need a pistol shooting a 9x18 cartridge, whose characteristics are much inferior to those for 9x19 Parabellum? In short, the whole story is extremely dubious and unreliable.

User Reviews

The impressions of the owners of "Stechkin", which they used as a service weapon, also vary greatly. Many singled out the amazing accuracy of the first shot and the location of the gun barrel on the sighting line. As the "servicemen" note, the large dimensions of the weapons are partially compensated by the selection of an individually manufactured holster. Despite the fact that the modern "Yarygin" has a much more powerful ammunition, many fighters prefer to take "Stechkin" for serious operations, because thanks to its "licked" form it is easily removed from the holster almost instantly.

What else is good in the field with a Stechkin pistol? Reviews often contain the definition of "Pistol with a capital letter." Users liked its reliability and power.

Most fighters prefer to use this pistol paired with PM or PMM. "Makarov" is used when the main weapon is AKM. "Stechkin" is also indispensable in cases where one hand is occupied by a shield, but there is a need for dense automatic fire. Despite the tight descent and low accuracy after three shots (in automatic mode), the military notes that it is much more feasible to knock out thirty points from three hits than in the case of PM or Yarygin.

The main criticism is caused by a wide and uncomfortable handle, whose cheeks, being made of not very high-quality plastic, slip strongly in the sweaty hand. But this problem is easily solved by using a special rubber lining. Such a "weather cloth" in a wide range is produced today by many Western companies.

Modern use

As we have already noted, after the collapse of the Soviet Union this pistol managed to become familiar in all local conflicts on the territory of the former USSR. Russian pilots "Stechkin" usually went paired with AKS-74U for combat sorties in Chechnya. Snipers also highly appreciated the combat capabilities of the APS. The pistol is much lighter than submachine guns and AKSU, and at small distances its efficiency is slightly worse. In addition, with an equal weight, you can take a lot more ammo. In the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation this pistol is also popular.

In the process of long-term practical operation, it turned out that many APS can make up to 45,000 shots, and throughout the entire period there was not a single serious breakdown. Of course, we had to change the springs, but this is of little significance.

Currently, the gun is in service with the SBR and OMON. In addition, he has with him the fighters of the FSB and FSO. Such popularity is easily explained by a combination of relatively small dimensions and high combat power, comparable with the capabilities of submachine guns. A very important quality when cleaning the premises is its property that bullets from APS do not give ricochets, they do not break through the body of a person. Of course, today this gun is preferred to be worn in special ergonomic holsters, rather than in bulky wooden cases.

During contact fights in conditions of densely populated villages and cities, as well as in premises of concrete, the APS gun is in many cases absolutely indispensable weapon. Today, also known traumatic pistol Stechkin, which is widely produced from decommissioned army samples.