In our army, pistols are given 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 to the USSR, and only in recent years have really new models begun to appear, created already in our country. However, this type of weapon is still not widely used.
To be fair, it should be said that many "experts", discussing the characteristics of this weapon to the point of hoarseness, have only seen Stechkin's airsoft gun live. This explains the completely ridiculous discussions and verbal battles that now and then flare up on thematic sites.
When was it adopted?
In 1951, the SA appeared in servicea unique pistol, the main feature of which was the possibility of automatic firing. For more than three years, since the very spring of 1948, its tireless development was carried out by a young gunsmith Igor Yakovlevich Stechkin. At that time, he had just started working at TsKB-14. A prototype was presented to them for consideration by the commission already in 1949.
After a number of improvements, the new weapon was put into service under the APS index (Stechkin automatic pistol). Its characteristics were so good for its time that the young designer was immediately awarded the Stalin Prize. The pistol was intended for arming officers and sergeants of certain branches of the armed forces, soldiers of special forces, as well as those personnel who did not rely on AKM or AKS (crews of armored vehicles, for example). However, even then, many rightly believed that in the event of a real clash with the enemy, the APS pistol would be clearly not enough for full-fledged self-defense.
In addition, in recent years, the Stechkin traumatic pistol used by employees of security companies who do not have the right to carry military weapons has become famous.
Scheme of automation
As in many examples of such weapons, the pistol works according to the blowback scheme. Initially, it was equipped with a special wooden or plastic holster, which played the role of a stock. When using it, the dispersion of bullets during automatic firing was significantly reduced. The instruction ordered to hold the pistol with both hands and fire extremely short, intwo or three rounds, in bursts.
The fact is that after the third shot, the barrel of the weapon was strongly withdrawn to the upper right side. If we talk about "cine" shooting, when the gun is held with only one hand, then more or less effective automatic fire is possible only at a distance of five (!) Meters or less. Note that in some foreign sources this weapon is called the “Stechkin submachine gun”. Stupidity, of course. Yes, in terms of weight and dimensions, it is similar to some submachine guns, but still it is a pistol, and nothing else.
Stechkin, rightly believing the uselessness of a high rate of fire in such a weapon, placed in the pistol grip a mechanism for slowing down fire, which simultaneously plays the role of a self-timer. As a result, the rate of fire dropped to 700-740 rounds per minute, which could already be considered a satisfactory result.
Special layout of the store arrangement
But Stechkin's pistol is interesting not only for this. Its characteristics include the use of magazines, which are quite rare for this type of weapon, in which the cartridges are staggered (in two rows). The difficulty here is that it requires almost perfect manufacturing accuracy of both the chamber and the magazine itself.
As in many other cases, when the gunsmiths almost cried because of the characteristics of the domestic cartridge, the standard 9x18 ammunition caused many problems. Stechkin spent a lot of time bringing the cartridge feed mechanism to full working capacity. He coped with his task brilliantly: the pistol functions 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 easier). The magazine capacity is 20 units. That's how many rounds in the Stechkin pistol.
The high complexity of the task facing the developer is evidenced by at least the fact that neither American nor European pistol manufacturers have switched to a chess arrangement of cartridges in the magazine at the present time.
About the fuse
The fuse in the pistol in question is of the flag type, it is located on the bolt. In order to simplify the design, it is also used to switch firing modes. The peculiarity of its design is that when the USM fuse is activated, the pistol immediately (in automatic mode) descends from the combat platoon.
There is a slide stop lever on the left side of the frame. The mounting latch for the store is traditionally located at the bottom of the handle. The sight is simple, sector type. Theoretically designed for 200 meters, but the maximum range with respect to effective fire does not exceed 50 meters.
The bullet leaves the barrel with an initial speed of 340 m/s. Since the magazine fits 20 rounds at once, the pistol has a high density of fire. The early versions of the APS were distinguished by the absence of chrome plating on the barrel, the shape of the grooves for adjoining the holster-bolt, and also a slightly different design of the slide moderator. However, dothe barrels became chrome-plated soon after the first Stechkin pistol went into production. Its characteristics impressed the military, and therefore they rightly demanded that the manufacturer increase the weapon's uptime.
Trigger
Since the trigger is double-acting, and the trigger stroke is quite long and slightly tight, a pistol with a cartridge in the chamber can be carried with you without fear of various unpleasant consequences. However, for reliability, it is still better to put the trigger on the safety platoon. Thus, an accidental shot is completely excluded.
Self-cocking, although it has a long stroke, still allows you to make a shot almost instantly, if the need arises. As we have already said, the APS Stechkin pistol has the highest level of reliability, which is confirmed not only by multi-stage tests, but also by the repeated participation of weapons in hostilities throughout the globe. Despite the low angle of the handle (which many shooters do not like) and the rather mediocre characteristics of the ammunition used, the accuracy of the weapon is very high.
With a single shot, the recoil force and the toss of the weapon are extremely insignificant. Having adapted, the fighter can fire in a series of short bursts, literally tearing the target apart 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 pistol allows easy access to all its mechanisms for cleaning and maintenance.
Howas a rule, weapons made back in the days of the USSR can shoot at least 40 thousand rounds without a single serious breakdown. Of course, the springs may still need to be replaced during this period.
Some design flaws
However, the Stechkin pistol collected not only rave reviews, since the weapon had enough flaws. So, a massive holster-butt was extremely inconvenient to use, the weight and dimensions of the pistol caused a lot of problems, and such a widely "advertised" automatic fire mode turned out to be almost useless in practice. The handle of the weapon, which has almost no slope, is extremely inconvenient, not suitable for instinctive quick shooting. Almost all officers believed that the APS Stechkin pistol was not suitable for everyday wear in peacetime conditions.
As a result, the weapons were completely taken out of production, most of the APS in the army were sent to backup storage warehouses. However, this did not apply to various special forces and the KGB. The specifics of their work rarely included the carrying of pistols in peacetime, but such characteristics of weapons as high firepower, accuracy of the first shots, automatic fire and reliability were in great demand among these troops.
That is why the Stechkin pistol is so loved here and in the countries of the former USSR. The combat path of this model was glorious and long. However, far more famous abroad is not the classic model, but its silent modification. We will tell about it now.more.
Silent modification
During the Afghan campaign, special units widely used a Stechkin pistol with a silencer. This version was equipped with a removable 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 index APB 6P13.
This modification was created in 1972, and Stechkin himself did not participate in its development. The Stechkin pistol with a silencer was adopted by various special forces of all law enforcement agencies in the same year. In order to reduce the speed of the bullet, bringing it to subsonic (to reduce the noise from the shot), several holes were made in the barrel. There are twelve of them, with eight located 1.5 cm from the muzzle, and four - 1.5 cm from the chamber.
There is a special tube around the barrel, into which powder gases enter after the shot, passing through these holes. From there, they are fed into the expansion chamber of the muffler. All additional (in comparison with the original weapon) parts are removable. This makes them easier to access while cleaning.
The muffler itself is attached to the expansion tube on a rusk joint. So that the massive device does not overlap the sighting line, it is located eccentrically, being significantly shifted down relative to the center line of the barrel channel. In front of the muffler, the designers placed blocks of separators. They separate the flows of powder gases, thereby also reducing the volume of the shot.
Dignitysilent option
The development described above has an important advantage: since the silencer has a fairly large weight, the barrel of the weapon does not lead up so much in long bursts in automatic mode. Accordingly, the dispersion of bullets in this case is also significantly reduced. Do not forget about the beam stop, which comes with this modification of the weapon. Once again, we recall that the use of a silencer does not make the gun completely silent in the philistine sense of the term. The device only hides the sound of the shot, which makes it much more difficult to determine the location of the shooter.
On the territory of the former USSR, all modifications of the APS and APB were used in most local conflicts. Currently, the APB is in service with military intelligence units, special forces of the FSB, the GRU and the Internal Troops of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. In addition, the Stechkin pneumatic pistol, whose characteristics are far from any combat model, is used in many shooting ranges for initial shooting training.
Supplies to friendly regimes
At first APS were delivered abroad only in limited quantities. As a rule, these were personal gifts that the USSR made to the leadership of countries loyal to it. So, Fidel Castro and Ernesto Che Guevara had these pistols, and both of these leaders considered them their favorite personal weapons. However, by the end of the 70s of the last century, Stechkin could be found in any corner of Africa. A pistol whose technical characteristics provided for its use inthe most extreme situations, proved to be dearly loved by all categories of rebels and liberation fighters.
Especially a lot of these weapons were supplied to Libya, Angola, Mozambique. Among domestic lovers of this pistol, one story is passed from mouth to mouth. Its veracity raises some doubts, but the legend is widely known.
False or fiction?
It is alleged that the German company Transarms, having voluntarily purchased a batch of APS (where and from whom is unknown), remade pistols, removing the possibility of automatic fire. After that, allegedly, this weapon entered service with one of the police (!) Formations of Germany. Fans of domestic weapons in a loud whisper report that all this was done, despite the variety of models of Heckler und Koch, W alther, Sig Sauer and Glock.
Here the question immediately arises: why such difficulties? Who needs a non-automatic "Stechkin" at all - a pistol whose technical characteristics are especially pronounced precisely due to the possibility of automatic fire? Some questions. If the Germans really needed "homemade" reliability, they could have taken a batch of PMM with much greater success.
Large magazine capacity? So for some modifications of the Berett, it is no less. Finally, the main misunderstanding. Who in Germany would need a pistol firing a 9x18 cartridge, the characteristics of which are much inferior to those of the 9x19 Parabellum? In a word, this whole story is extremely doubtful and unreliable.
User reviews
The impressions of the owners of the Stechkin, which they used as a service weapon, also vary greatly. Many highlight the amazing accuracy of the first shot and finding the barrel of the weapon on the aiming line. As noted by the "servicemen", the large dimensions of the weapon are partly offset by the selection of an individually made holster. Despite the fact that the modern "Yarygin" has much more powerful ammunition, many fighters prefer to take the "Stechkin" for serious operations, since thanks to its "licked" form, it is easily removed from the holster almost instantly.
What else is a Stechkin pistol good for in the field? Reviews often contain the definition of "Pistol with a capital letter." Users love its reliability and power.
Most fighters prefer to use this pistol paired with a PM or PMM. "Makarov" is used when the main weapon is AKM. "Stechkin" is 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 knocking out thirty points from three hits is much more real than in the case of the PM or Yarygin.
The main complaints are caused by a wide and uncomfortable handle, the cheeks of which, being made of not very high-quality plastic, slip strongly in a sweaty hand. But this problem is easily solved by using a special rubber pad. Such a "body kit" in a wide range is produced today by many Westerncompany.
Modern usage
As we have already noted, after the collapse of the Union, this pistol managed to become familiar in all local conflicts on the territory of the former USSR. For Russian pilots, the Stechkin was usually paired with the AKS-74U for sorties in Chechnya. Snipers also praised the combat capabilities of the APS. The pistol is much lighter than submachine guns and AKSU, and at short distances its effectiveness is slightly worse. In addition, with equal weight, you can take a lot more cartridges. 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 fire up to 45,000 shots, and throughout this period there was not a single serious breakdown. Of course, I had to change the springs, but this is of little importance.
Currently, the pistol is in service with SOBR and OMON. In addition, FSB and FSO fighters carry it. Such popularity is easily explained by the combination of relatively small dimensions and high combat power, comparable to the capabilities of submachine guns. A very important quality when cleaning rooms is its property that APS bullets do not ricochet, do not pierce a person's body right through. Of course, today this pistol is preferred to be carried in special ergonomic holsters, and not in bulky wooden cases.
During contact fights in densely populated villages and cities, as well as in concrete rooms, the APS pistol is in many cases absolutely indispensableweapons. Today, the Stechkin traumatic pistol is also known, which is widely produced from decommissioned army samples.
