MAC-10

The **MAC-10** is a submachine gun manufactured by Military Armament Corporation.

## Overview

The MAC-10 is built predominantly from steel stampings. A notched cocking handle protrudes from the top of the receiver, and turning the handle 90°, locks the bolt, and acts as an indicator the weapon is unable to fire. The MAC-10 has a telescoping bolt, which wraps around the rear face of the barrel. This allows a more compact weapon and balances the weight of the weapon over the pistol grip, where the magazine is located. The MAC-10 fires from an open bolt, and the light weight of the bolt results in a rapid rate of fire. In addition, this design incorporates a built-in feed ramp as part of the trigger guard (a new concept at the time) and, to save on cost, the magazine design was recycled from the M3 Grease Gun. The barrel is threaded to accept a suppressor, which works by reducing the discharge's sound without attempting to reduce the speed of the bullet. This works well with the .45 ACP versions, as most loads are subsonic already, as opposed to special, low-powered subsonic loads usually required for suppressed 9mm weapons. At the suggestion of the United States Army, the suppressor also acts as a foregrip to inhibit muzzle rise when fired. Ingram added a small bracket with a small strap beneath the muzzle to aid in controlling recoil during fully automatic fire. The original rate of fire for the MAC-10 in .45 ACP is approximately 1090 rounds per minute. That of the 9mm is approximately 1250, and that of the smaller MAC-11 in .380 ACP is 1500 rounds per minute.

Noting the weapon's poor accuracy, in the 1970s, International Association of Police Chiefs weapons researcher David Steele described the MAC series as "fit only for combat in a phone booth".

### Suppressor

The primary reason for the original M10 finding recognition was its revolutionary sound suppressor designed by Mitchell WerBell III of Sionics. This suppressor has a two-stage design, with the first stage being larger than the second. This uniquely shaped suppressor gives the MAC-10 a very distinctive look. It is also very quiet, to the point that the bolt can be heard cycling, along with the suppressed report of the weapon's discharge, though only if subsonic rounds are used (standard .45 ACP rounds are subsonic). The suppressor, when used with a Nomex cover, creates a place to hold the firearm with the secondary hand, making it easier to control. During the 1970s, the United States placed restrictions on the export of suppressors, and a number of countries canceled their orders as the effectiveness of the MAC-10's suppressor was one of its main selling points. This was one factor that led to the bankruptcy of Military Armament Corporation, another being the company's failure to recognize the private market. The original Sionics suppressor is 11.44 inches in length, 2.13 inches in overall diameter, and weighs 1.20 pounds.

### Calibers and variants

While the original M10 was available chambered for either .45 ACP or 9mm, the M10 is part of a series of machine pistols, the others being the MAC-11/M-11A1, which is a scaled-down version of the M10 chambered in .380 ACP (9×17mm); and the M-11/9, which is a modified version of the M-11 with a longer receiver chambered in 9×19mm, later made by SWD (Sylvia and Wayne Daniel), Leinad and Vulcan Armament. Law enforcement bureaucracies such as the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) consider MAC-11 variants such as the Leinad PM-11 to be part of the "MAC-10 class pistol".

In the United States, machine guns are National Firearms Act items. As the Military Armament Corporation was in bankruptcy, a large number of incomplete sheet metal frame flats were given serial numbers and then bought by a new company, RPB Industries. Some of the previously completed guns, which were already stamped with MAC, were then stamped with RPB on the reverse side, making it a "double stamp" gun.[*citation needed*]

RPB Industries made many open-bolt semi-automatic and sub-machine guns before the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (BATFE) seized roughly 200 open-bolt semi-autos during the drug wars of 1981. The BATFE insisted that all future semi-automatic firearms were to be manufactured with a closed-bolt design as the open-bolt semi-automatics were considered too easy to illegally convert to full automatic operation.

Wayne Daniel, a former RPB machine operator, purchased much of their remaining inventory and formed SWD, designing a new weapon which was more balanced, available either fully or semi-automatic with his new BATFE-approved closed bolt design.

There are several carbine versions of the M-11/9 and Cobray and SWD manufactured a smaller version chambered in .380 ACP as a semiautomatic pistol called the M-12.

Today, while the civilian manufacture, sale and possession of post-1986 select-fire MAC-10 and variants is prohibited, it is still legal to sell templates, tooling and manuals to complete such conversions. These items are typically marketed as being "post-sample" materials for use by Federal Firearm Licensees for manufacturing/distributing select-fire variants of the MAC-10 to law enforcement, military and overseas customers.

### Users

* Drachens
* Darkhaven Vampires