Carl-Gustav m/45 (Kulsprutepistol m/45 / Kpist m/45 / Swedish K)

History of Carl-Gustav m/45 (Kulsprute pistol m/45 / Kpist m/45 / Swedish K)

WWII showed the general lack of native guns among Swedes. As an interim measure, the government signed a contract with the local company Husqvarna Vapenfabrik AB to produce Finnish-made "Suomi" series submachine guns under a local license.

Looking to the near future, the authorities also invited the state-run SAL of "Carl Gustav" (Carol Gustavus Stades Guevaratori of Eskilstina) department to design a Suomi-based homegrown line of submachine guns that are both easy to manufacture and easy to use. The required quantities can be obtained relatively cheaply.

Both Husqvarna Vapenfabrik AB and Carl Gustav submitted prototypes, but Carl Gustav's submission ultimately won.

Development of a new submachine gun began in 1944, and the group responded with the "m/45" - a very simple but very useful design that was cheap and practical. The submachine gun borrowed much of the success of previous submachine gun attempts elsewhere. The design is officially credited to engineer Gunnar Johnsson.

The m/45 was officially accepted as a standard submachine gun by the Swedish Army in 1945. m/45 is also known as "Kulsprutepistol m/45" and "Swedish K".

The operation of the m/45 is based on the principle of blowback and is only designed for fully automatic fire in order to keep the technical functions of the gun as simple as possible. The receiver is not dissimilar in appearance to the famous British Sten series submachine guns, featuring a tubular receiver with "extensions" that include the pistol grip, trigger assembly and magazine feeder. The spent cartridge is ejected from a large rectangular hole in the upper right front of the receiver.

The trigger is large and curved, and is housed in a thin, curved shield. The pistol grip is designed to be straight and angled back. A simple wire hinged at two points - up at the rear of the receiver and down at the bottom of the pistol grip.

When compactness is required, the butt is hinged and folded on the right side of the receiver. The pull handle is mounted on the right side of the fuselage and the internal spring is visible through the slotted receiver compartment. The barrel protruded from the front end of the receiver and was installed in a perforated sheath (circular perforation). The sight is mounted on the top of the receiver and the front end above the muzzle. The magazine is fed by a magazine feeder located under the receiver, in front of the pistol grip and trigger assembly.

Its fairly straight front end is designed to be used as a front handle for a firm two-handed grip - something critical to the weapon's fully automatic fire characteristics.

The m/45 was originally designed to fire from the Suomi's 50-round magazine. An interesting two-post 36-round spring-loaded straight detachable box magazine was later introduced. To balance the two types of feed, the removable magazine case ensures that both magazines can be used with the gun. The 36-round magazine eventually became standard, and the fixed magazine gave rise to the m/45B variant designation, reflecting the generic (final) production model. Of course, the m/45 series gradually expanded into other useful forms.

The m/45C designation was used to denote the inclusion of bayonet lugs for attaching field bayonets (for ceremonial purposes), while the m/45D was designed and produced with a single-shot firing pattern useful to police and security personnel.

m/45 measures 37.75 inches and 21.75 inches when fully unfolded, with the wire folded over the side of the receiver. The barrel is 8 inches long with 6 grooves and a right-hand twist. Empty weight is nearly 7 lb 9 oz. The m/45 is designed to fire the proven and off-the-shelf 9x19mm Parabellum cartridge from the 50 or 36 round magazines mentioned above.

The rate of fire is 600 rounds per minute. Muzzle velocity is rated at 1,250 feet per second.

The m/45 proved successful in service as its design reflected Sweden's traditional attention to detail. The m/45 is produced under local licenses in Indonesia and Egypt. For the latter, the type is called "Port Said" and "Aqaba" (Port Said is an exact copy of m/45, while Aqaba is a simplified form).

In service with the Swedish Army, the m/45 series was gradually replaced by the Ak4 and Ak5 series of assault rifles. Surprisingly, the Swedish Home Guard used the m/45 until 2003.

While in service, the m/45 saw combat operations with the Irish Army and was also used in the Lebanese Civil War. Perhaps most notably, the m/45 fought against the US Navy SEALs and the CIA during the Vietnam War. SEALs especially like its ruggedness and portability, and respect the fact that the weapon is ready to fire after prolonged immersion. Such was the success of the m/45 in service in the United States, that the American firearms company Smith & Wesson was commissioned to make a slightly modified copy (a gun embargo between Sweden and the United States in 1966 forced this "circumvention").

This local version was designated as the M76, but came at a time when the SEALs began phasing out their activities in Southeast Asia.

Algeria and Paraguay are two other well-known operators of the m/45 series of submachine guns.

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