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| | Historic Firearm of the Month, July 2000 |
 | | Despite the strictures of the Treaty of Versailles, the adoption of Schmeisser's "maschinenpistole," or machine pistol, put Germany squarely at the head of weapons technology among the belligerent nations, and it retained this position until the Second World War. |
 | | As originally fielded, the MP18, I was equipped with the "snail drum" 32 round magazine from the Artillery Luger pistol, which was inserted into an special magazine well which was angled some sixty degrees to the rear so as to ensure that the rounds were presented to the bolt at the optimum feed angle. |
 | | Interestingly, Hugo Schmeisser had originally designed the MP18, I to accept a staggered row stick magazine, and had only changed the design to accept the snail drum magazine at the request of the Rifle Testing Commission. |
| www.cruffler.com /historic-july00.html (1572 words) |
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