PPSh-41

Lore & Background

The impetus for the development of the PPSh came from the Winter War (November 1939 to March 1940) between the Soviet Union and Finland, when the Finnish Army employed the Suomi KP/-31 submachine gun as a highly effective tool for close-quarter fighting. The Red Army's older PPD submachine gun had been in production since 1934, but it was expensive to manufacture. In September 1940 Shpagin developed a prototype PPSh. A few hundred weapons were produced in November 1941 and another 100,000 were made during the next five months. By spring 1942, the PPSh factories were producing roughly 1,000-2,000 units a day. The PPSh-41 saw extensive combat during World War II and the Korean War. After the German Army captured large numbers, Berlin instituted a program to convert the trophy weapons to use the 9×19mm Parabellum cartridge, officially adopted as the MP 41(r). The USSR had produced approximately 6 million PPSh-41 submachine guns by the end of World War II. During the Korean War, North Korea's Korean People's Army and the Chinese People's Volunteer Army received large numbers of the PPSh-41, in addition to licensed copies.

In Their Own Story

Snow crunched under heavy boots as Sergeant Miller moved through the ruins. The M1 Garand was empty, and German infantry were closing in from the cellar entrance. He spotted the fallen Soviet soldier nearby, clutching a familiar silhouette with a large drum magazine. Miller grabbed the PPSh-41. It felt lighter than expected. As the first enemy emerged, he pulled the trigger. The weapon roared, spitting rounds in a controlled burst that pinned the threat against the wall.

Reader's Guide

The PPSh-41 fires the 7.62×25mm Tokarev round. It weighs approximately 12 pounds with a loaded 71-round drum and 9.5 pounds with a loaded 35-round box magazine. The PPSh is capable of a rate of about 1250 rounds per minute. It has a chrome-lined bore, a sliding bolt safety, and an L type rear sight adjustable for 100 and 200 meters. A crude compensator is built into the barrel jacket. The weapon has a hinged receiver to facilitate field-stripping. Although the drum magazine holds 71 rounds, misfeeding is likely with more than about 65. The box magazine holds 35 rounds and provides a superior hold for the supporting hand.

Did You Know?

• The PPSh-41 uses 87 components compared to 95 for the PPD-40.
• Barrels were sometimes made by cutting a 7.62mm Mosin–Nagant rifle barrel in half.
• The Soviet Union mounted 88 ShKAS machine guns in forward fuselage racks on the Tu-2Sh variant of the Tupolev Tu-2 bomber for close air support.
• German-language manuals for captured PPShs were printed and distributed in the Wehrmacht.