Above: An early Patchett machine carbine, with its stock in a folded position. The first Patchetts were designed during World War II.

Classic Submachine Guns, Carbines and Pistols Refined

The Patchett Submachine Gun

The Sten machine carbine (the term “submachine gun” was not used by the British until 1954) was hurriedly conceived during the early stages of World War II, as Great Britain, seriously short of weapons for defense, was facing an invasion by the German Army. The Sten was a rather crude, but reliable and deadly weapon. After the threat of invasion subsided, work began on developing a more refined submachine gun.

George Patchett was an experienced gun designer who went to work for the Sterling Armament Company during World War II. Mr. Patchett designed a fair number of prototype weapons based on his ideas. By 1943, George Patchett’s submachine gun was developed enough to be tested by the military. Designated as the Patchett Mark I machine carbine, the weapon used a number of parts from the Lanchester machine carbine. The Mark I’s magazine housing was attached at a 90-degree angle to the receiver and fed from Sten or Lanchester magazines. After testing, the Patchett Mark I was considered suitable for service, but with plenty of Sten Mk II and Mk IV submachine guns still in service, there were no large orders for the Patchett forthcoming. Undeterred, development of the Patchett continued with the introduction of the Mk II model in 1946. One of the primary features of the Mark II was its magazine housing oriented at an 82-degree forward angle, to accept Patchett’s new double-feed, curved magazine—a vast improvement over the Sten magazine. Finally, during 1953, the Patchett Mark II was adopted as the Gun, Sub-machine, 9mm L2A1. During 1955, the Mark III model was introduced. The Patchett name was dropped and replaced with the name Sterling. The official designation was the Sterling Submachine Gun Mk III, L2A2. The Sterling company continued further development of the weapon resulting in a final version designated as the Sterling Mk IV L2A3.

The Sterling Mark IV L2A3 submachine gun was produced in Great Britain by Sterling and the Royal Ordnance Factory at Fazakerly. Submachine guns produced at Sterling had serial number prefixes using the letters “KR,” “S” and “US.” Fazakerley weapons used the prefix “UF.” Production began during 1955-1956 and ceased at Fazakerly in 1959, Sterling in 1988. The Sterling Mark IV L2A3 remained in British service until 1994.

Sterlings destined for British military service had a Sunkorite 259 satin black painted finish. Commercial Sterlings had the black crinkle finish. The British use of the term “commercial” is a bit misleading. Sales to Commonwealth and governments, other than the British military, were considered “commercial” sales. The Sterling was also licensed for manufacture in Canada as the C1 submachine gun and India as the SAF Machine Carbine A1.

For the police market, Sterling introduced a semi-automatic-only version of the Mk IV L2A3 submachine gun called the “Police Carbine.” The Police Carbine was also available to civilians in countries such as South Africa. Sterling ads boasted, “The Sterling submachine gun has been modified for use by police and civilians in troubled parts of the world,” and the “Perfect weapon of self-defense for those obliged to take such precautions.” The Police Carbine operated the same as the submachine gun, firing from an open bolt. The semi-automatic-only function was made possible by adding a block to the selector lever, preventing it from being rotated to the A (automatic) position. It was soon discovered that the Police Carbine could easily be converted to select-fire by removal of the block or installing a submachine gun selector lever. Police Carbines can easily be identified by their serial numbers that began with a letter “P.”

The U.S. Market

During the 1980s, a new breed of firearm was introduced to the U.S. civilian market; copies of military submachine guns and rifles. The big difference was the clones were semi-automatic-only and had to adhere to strict provisions set by the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms to make them difficult to convert to full-automatic.

Rifle Caliber

Popular U.S. offerings for the market were Colt’s AR-15 rifle, a civilian version of the U.S. military M16, and the Springfield Armory, Inc. M1A copy of the M14. However, both the aforementioned rifles were available before the 1980s. The M1A rifles went into production in 1971; the Colt AR-15 in 1964. Both became popular when many enthusiasts discovered them in the monthly periodicals of the day, followed by special editions of 1980s magazines focusing entirely on the new breed of semi-automatic firearms and the quickly growing accessory market that soon followed.

Many of the semi-automatic firearms were imported. Companies like Heckler and Koch (HK) offered copies of their .223 caliber HK33 as the HK93 and the .308 G3 as the .308 HK91. Other popular firearms were FN’s Belgian-made SAR (FN FAL), China’s AKS rifles and Austria’s Steyr AUGs. Some of the imports were quite expensive, a few costing twice as much as a Colt AR-15.

Pistol Caliber

U.S.-manufactured pistol caliber semi-automatics included the West Hurley Auto-Ordnance M1927A1 Thompsons, MAC-10s, SWD’s M11/Nine, Nighthawk carbine and Wilkinson Arms Linda pistol and Terry carbines.

Foreign submachine gun copies included the Heckler and Koch MP5 designated in semi-automatic-only guise as the HK94; Action Arms imported semi-automatic models of the famous UZI submachine gun. Some of the lesser known imports of the 1980s were the British Sterling Mark 6 carbine and Mark 7 pistol, semi-automatic copies of the British Mk IV L2A3 submachine gun.

As per the ATF requirements after 1982, the semi-automatics had to operate from a closed-bolt position.

The introduction of the semi-automatic clones occurred prior to May 19, 1986. This allowed the legal registration and conversion of the firearms into machine guns. After May 19, 1986, the laws were changed making full-auto conversions illegal except for what would be known as restricted post-May dealer samples. Many AR-15s, UZIs, AKs and HK94 carbines were converted prior to the cut-off date. One select-fire conversion that was seldom seen was the desirable British Sterling Mk IV L2A3.

Sterling Mark 6 Carbines

The British-made Sterling Mark 6 carbines were imported by Parker Arms and Armscorp of America. However, the majority of the carbines were imported by Lanchester USA of Dallas, Texas. The suggested retail price of a Sterling Mark 6 was nearly double that of the popular UZI carbine in 1983. Due to their high price, limited advertising and availability, only a small number of the Mark 6 carbines were sold in the U.S.

The primary differences between the Sterling Mark 6 carbine and the Mark IV L2A3 submachine gun were the carbine’s 16-inch barrel and its closed-bolt operation. The receiver itself was similar to its submachine gun counterpart. The overall length of the Mark 6 Sterling is 35-inches with the stock extended and 27-inches with the stock folded. The carbine uses the same 34-round magazines as the submachine gun.

Sterling Mark 7 Pistol

The Sterling Mark 7 was a pistol variation of the Mark 6 carbine without a buttstock. The Mark 7 featured a 4-inch barrel extending through an 8-inch long barrel shroud. The pistol came with a 10-round magazine.

An import ban enacted in 1989 ended most of the importation of foreign semi-automatic rifles and carbines.

Police Automatic Weapons Services (PAWS)

Oregon Class II manufacturer, Bob Imel, had an interest in the British Sterling Mk IV L2A3 submachine gun design. To produce a U.S.-made copy of the Sterling, he formed the Police Automatic Weapons Service better known by the initials “PAWS.” During the 1970s Imel began to manufacture parts and receivers many years before the original surplus British Sterling part sets became available. The results of his efforts were the PAWS ZX-5 submachine gun in 9mm and the ZX-7 in .45ACP. The PAWS guns were only slightly different cosmetically than the Sterling Mk IV L2A3 submachine guns. The 9mm ZX-5 was designed to accept unmodified Sten magazines, in place of original Sterling magazines, due to cost and limited availability at the time. Because of the magazine-well configuration that was oriented 90-degrees to the receiver, the PAWS ZX-5 cannot accept original Sterling curved magazines. The .45 caliber ZX-7 model uses modified M-3 Grease Gun magazines. There were only a few hundred transferable ZX submachine guns made and registered, in .45 and 9mm, before production ceased with the enactment of the May 1986 McClure-Volkmer Amendments to the Gun Control Act, banning the manufacture and registration of transferable machine guns.

After the 1986 ban, Mr. Imel decided to create a semi-automatic carbine version of the PAWS submachine gun, in both 9mm, the ZX 6 and .45 ACP the ZX 8, with the parts left over from his machine gun production line. At that time the market for semi-auto submachine gun clones was flourishing. He started with an ATF-approved receiver design that was similar to and built to the same standards as his submachine guns but that used a closed-bolt design. The carbines came fitted with a 16.5-inch barrel and an UZI-type barrel nut. The blow back carbines weighed 7.5-pounds unloaded and were approximately 35-inches long with the stock in an extended position.

Prior to the 1986 machine gun ban, a number of submachine guns were constructed from part sets. Although the receivers could not be imported, it was legal (AFTER ATF approval) to assemble and register a machine gun with a new U.S.-made receiver. Many World War II submachine gun receivers were made of tubing for ease of wartime manufacturing. One of the most popular was the British Sten Mk II, primarily due to a large number of inexpensive parts. Another popular “tube gun” was the German MP40. Made in smaller numbers were the subguns like the Swedish K due to a limited number of spare part sets.

Submachine gun part sets from the Mk IV L2A3 Sterling were conspicuously absent only because the weapon was still in service with the British and many other countries. Although there were a very small number of original Sterlings in the U.S., most were dealer samples. The desirable Sterling submachine gun was seldom encountered in collections or on the firing line. It wasn’t until around 1994 that Sterling part sets began to be imported. However, eight years after the machine gun ban, there were relatively few registered receiver tubes available that had not been assembled into guns.

Stan Andrewski, a Class II manufacturer from New Hampshire, discovered that Sten Mk II receiver tubes shared many of the same dimensions as the Sterling Mk IV L2A3 submachine gun, except for the position and width of the cocking handle slot. The Sten’s slot is located at 50 degrees on its receiver, while the Sterling’s slot is located at a 60-degree position and is narrower than the Sten’s. Mr. Andrewski believed that the Sten-to-Sterling conversion had merit and sought permission from the Firearms Technology Branch of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms for the conversion. Although ATF eventually granted permission for the Sten-to-Sterling conversion, narrowing of the cocking handle slot was not permitted. This hurdle was overcome by modifying the cocking handle, so the interior portion engages the bolt while the exterior handle travels in the 10-degree offset slot. This is achieved by cutting off the handle section itself and then MIG welding it back at a slightly lower position. The cocking handle has flange added to it, so it fits properly in the wider slot and retains the bolt at the correct angle. The cocking handle and cocking handle block are modified by drilling a hole in each, so the plunger protrudes through them to secure the cocking handle. This makes it a little harder to remove the cocking handle because the plunger must be depressed with a small diameter pin punch, while at the same time pulling outward on the cocking handle sometimes requiring a third hand to accomplish. Due to Mr. Andrewski’s efforts, a number of transferable Sten guns were reconfigured into Sterling submachine guns. Florida Class II manufacturer Don Quinnell also began performing the conversions. Finally, after many years, a transferable “Sterling” submachine gun was available!

Since the initial conversions were approved in 1997, a small number of virgin pre-1986 registered DLO, and a few Wilson-made receiver tubes have surfaced with a Sterling-spec narrow cocking handle slot, allowing an unaltered cocking handle to be used. This quickly resulted in the Sten-tube conversions with the wider cocking handle slot to be snubbed by some and bestowed with the rather condescending nickname “Stenlings.” However, in reality, both are still just “tube guns,” in turn probably slighted by the handful of fortunate owners of “real” British-made Sterling Mk IV L2A3 submachine guns.

With a large number of Sterling parts kits (less receivers) being imported, it was only a matter of time before someone would begin assembling the parts into a semi-automatic carbine. To comply with U.S. laws, the carbines had to have a barrel with a minimum length of 16 inches. Wise Lite Arms of Boyd, Texas, produced a semi-auto carbine and pistol version of the classic Sterling. The carbines were assembled using a mix of newly made U.S. parts (bolt and barrel) and parts from demilitarized Sterling Mark IV parts kits. The Wise Lite carbines operate from a closed bolt to comply with U.S. laws. The pistol version lacking a butt stock has a 4.5-inch barrel.

There aren’t a lot of original accessories available for Sterlings, other than slings, magazine pouches and bayonets. Spare parts kits can still be found; however, many of the kits were bought by fans of the “Star Wars” films. The weapons carried by the Storm Troopers in the films were Sterlings modified for a futuristic look.

(Dan’s note: most of the original “Star Wars” used Sterlings were deactivated to UK standard and sold on the market in the UK.)

By Warren Ferguson

Overlooking the bay that glistened with vivid blue Mediterranean water, the Canadian soldier knew that the beauty of the Cypriot island was tempered by the rage of Turkish and Greek soldiers, both of whom were known as fierce and determined warriors. Looking down to examine the small collection of confiscated firearms, the soldier noticed a 9mm submachine gun very similar to his issued Sterling. Oddly, it also had many features of the WWII British Sten. What exactly was this hybrid?

Cyprus, a visually idyllic island, has had a long history of trouble between the Greeks and Turks who both stake bold claims on the territory. The fighting hit a flashpoint in 1974 when Greek army officers of the Greek Cypriot National Guard staged a coup d’état against the president of Cyprus. They wished to unite Cyprus with Greece and Turkey’s response was to launch an amphibious invasion of Cyprus with 40,000 troops.

Canadian soldiers had been stationed in Cyprus from the early 1960s. Thus, they were well positioned to respond to the eruption of violence. Members of the Canadian Airborne Regiment, Canada’s UNFICYP (United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus) and others were at hand when the Turks pressed forth their stated objectives of protection of the Turkish minority to greater territorial acquisition by the taking of the Nicosia airport. Canadians physically kept the two sides apart, sometimes taking casualties.

The Greek and Turkish soldiers were one matter, but aggressive civilians were another. Added to the volatile mix was a divided population that owed its allegiance to one side or the other. Both were determined to maintain their stake on their particular corner of the island and their cultural pride. When the Canadians were not separating professional armies, they dealt with these armed civilian irregulars.

The Canadians were armed with FN-FALs and Sterling type 9mm submachine guns. The profile of the Sterling was well-known in these parts. United Nations peacekeepers had been carrying them since they arrived to buffer the two opposing sides. Also not unknown to the locals was the old WWII era Sten submachine gun as there were those who recalled their use by British troops and more than a few found their way into cellars.

What you had in the Sten was a simple blowback system in its rawest form. A tube contained a heavy fixed firing pin bolt that was locked by a sear to the rear until firing. Then, a strong spring propelled the bolt forward to strip a cartridge from the magazine, chamber it, and fire it in one motion.

The Sten was rather simple to field strip as well. It was designed that way, particularly the MKII, as a means of breaking it down as small as possible for concealment. The removable barrel came out from the front and the butt stock slid down and off the receiver tube when the user depressed a spring button. The Sterling was developed later and was a dramatic improvement. It was lighter, more compact, and imminently more reliable.

At a time of war, when tensions are high, how can irregulars obtain automatic weapons when the United Nations is doing its best to keep the warring sides apart and prevent a build up of arms? As evidenced by this odd 9mm creation, you simply take the best aspects of two well-known submachine guns, look for ways to make it as easy to manufacture as possible, and get the firearm in the hands of combatants. For a lack of a better name, this writer is going to call the submachine gun in this article a ‘Stenling.’

What is known is that sometime during his tour of duty, a Canadian soldier, likely from the Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry, came across the strangest looking Sterling he had ever seen. It has long been practice for the Canadian Forces to take samples of foreign weapons for regimental museums and training purposes, and then cut up and melt down the rest.

The prevailing wind out of National Defense HQ dictates that if there is no firearm present, hostility will cease. Naturally, history has proven this incorrect, but institutionally, the Canadian Forces is on board with United Nation mandated weapons decommissioning activities.

Subsequently, out of Cyprus came the Stenling via army sources and found its way into the Okanagan Military Museum in Kelowna, British Columbia. Not to be outdone by the Army, the Canadian Firearms Centre (think BATF bureaucracy) issued directives for the further DEWATing procedures for museum firearms. Thus, a full stripping and analysis of what could be a very rare Cypriot submachine gun was made impossible.

Looking closely at the Stenling it was easy to see that the Sterling played an important role in the submachine gun’s size, weight, overall layout and feel. The general outline of the trigger group was copied but the parts simplified. However, the two-piece pistol grip is made out of cast metal. The safety/selector was missing and so it is difficult to determine if it was a Sten or Sterling pattern, but an educated guess would be the latter.

The trigger guard is fixed and the distance from the trigger to pistol grip is noticeably increased, and does not add to the ergonomics of the firearm. Quite the opposite in fact and this detracts from an otherwise sensible package.

The cocking handle was near identical to a Sterling as is the perforated barrel shroud. Despite this, the muzzle area is welded and departs from the Sterling design because the barrel of the British firearm is fitted to the muzzle via two retaining screws. It does feature a hand protector forward of the ejection port.

From the Sten come the rudimentary sights and aspects of the magazine well assembly. The magazine is similar to the Sterling in construction, but straight and not curved. The magazine release button is like that of a Sten.

Gone is the familiar Sterling rear tube cap, as the design called for a Sten-like sliding spring retainer/butt stock. However, the simply constructed buttstock was made to look somewhat like that of the Sterling, but does not fold. It is made of bar steel and not stampings.

The Cypriot firearm is painted black and at twenty paces, the SMG appears to be a Sterling using a Sten magazine. So, how many were made? The bolt is numbered 281 but in times of trouble, serial numbers seldom start at zero often in order to exaggerate figures. So who exactly made it? This is a mystery.

In all, you have the most curious Sten/Sterling hybrid ever made. It is not uncommon for blowback submachine guns to be made in troubled spots. Nevertheless the Stenling shows both simplification and care and thought in its manufacture. This SMG could have been made cruder but was not. Yet all frills were cast aside. Perhaps the readership can shine some light on this curiosity. The chances are that this submachine gun – made quickly during a time of war – is one of very few constructed, if not one of a kind.

The author would like to thank OMM curator Keith Boehmer for providing the sample firearm.

While the British Sten gun of World War II is more familiar to collectors, the Lanchester was the first British submachine gun preceding the Sten Mk II in service. In fact, the heavy and quite expensiveLanchester was the catalyst that launched Great Britain’s desire for an inexpensive and lightweight replacement weapon for the primary purpose of defending England’s aerodromes from a possible German airborne invasion.

Even before their entry into the war, the British Government was procuring Thompson submachine guns from the United States. The Thompson, originally designed in the 1920s, was dated, heavy and very expensive. What the British needed was their own submachine gun. During the 1920s, Birmingham Small Arms, Ltd. (BSA), under the direction of the British Government, did manufacture a few “European” carbine-style 9mm versions of the Thompson. But after testing, decided that there was no significant advantage over the standard U.S. model. During the summer of 1940, the British decided that they would copy and manufacture the German MP28 II submachine gun; a 9mm weapon that was simple to use and accurate at ranges out to 200 meters. Most importantly was that the manufacturing drawings and several examples of the German weapon were already in British hands. Ironically, the German MP28 II, like the American Thompson, was a twenty-year old design.

The Lanchester’s single-feed doublestack box magazine was also copied from the German design. There were two variations of the magazine. One had a 32-round capacity and the other a 50-round capacity. The 32-round configuration was the same magazine later used for the Sten guns. The double-stack single-feed magazine would prove to be the weak link of both weapons.

The British based Sterling Engineering Company, Ltd. was the company chosen to manufacture the Lanchester. On 13 June 1941, the first contract was signed. The Lanchester was made in two separate plants: the Sterling Engineering plant in Dagenham, and Sterling Armaments, North Hampton. The first deliveries were expected by September of that year. There were few changes from the original German design; the most obvious was the brass magazine housing and the shroud-mounted lug designed for the British P-1907 bayonet. The Lanchester was 1.5 inches longer and weighed 1.4 pounds more than the German weapon it was copied from. The name of the British submachine gun came from George H. Lanchester, an engineer employed at the Sterling factory who had been placed in charge of submachine gun production.

Lanchester Machine Carbine Mk1

As production plans were being laid, it was quickly realized that the Lanchester Machine Carbine was not going to be as cheap or easy to manufacture as was originally planned. During production there were several changes employed to both reduce cost and increase production. The original Mk1 Lanchester had a select-fire capability: firing either semiautomatic or full automatic. The selector switch was located at the front of the trigger guard. This characteristic was eventually deemed unnecessary as it complicated the design and had caused some reliability problems.

Lanchester Machine Carbine Mk1*

The original design was reconfigured and designated as the Lanchester Mk1*. This variation fired full-automatic only. Discarding the semiautomatic feature also allowed the breech bolt and firing pin to be redesigned requiring fewer machine operations. In place of machine screws, the rear sight and trigger housing were now welded directly onto the receiver. The rear sight was changed from the original adjustable tangent type to a much simpler two-leaf flip design calibrated for 100 and 200 yard ranges. During early production, a brass buttplate was fitted, but brass being a critical wartime material, was replaced by steel version. A directive was issued requiring all existing select-fire Lanchester Mk1 weapons to be converted to the Mk1* full-automatic versions, making an original select-fire Lanchester nearly extinct.

Additional Contractors

To keep pace with the wartime demand several new companies were brought on line to produce the Lanchester: W.W. Greener and The Boss Company. The two companies only produced the later fullautomatic Mk1* model.

The manufacturer of any particular Lanchester can be easily identified by the markings on its magazine housing. Sterling made Mk1 select-fire models were marked with the letter S, and a serial number prefix A. Sterling made Mk1* models were marked SA M619. W.W. Greener made guns were marked M94 with a serial number prefix G. Boss guns were marked with the name Boss or their code S 156, and a serial number prefix of H. In addition to the prime contractors, a number of other companies were subcontracted to make small parts.

The Lanchester Today

When Lanchester production was terminated during October 1943, nearly 75,000 Lanchester machine carbines had been manufactured. After the war ended a number of the weapons were sold off or given to affiliated commonwealth governments. However, many of the Lanchesters remained in the service of the British military as late as 1979. After being in service for nearly 38 years, most of the remaining Lanchesters were declared obsolete and subsequently scrapped. Only a few examples were spared for reference and museums.

A number of original Lanchesters did make their way into the U.S. NFA registry and these guns are included in the Curio and Relics list. Most examples in collector’s possession today are the Mk1* full-automatic only variation. Firing a Lanchester is quite an experience; the 9.6 pound unloaded weight of the piece together with its 9mm cartridge makes it an extremely accurate weapon in its full-autoonly mode. There is little felt recoil and virtually no muzzle climb making it a joy to fire, and easy to hold on target. The Lanchester would make for a worthy competitor in the popular subgun competitions.

The negative aspect is that the Lanchester does have a few problem areas. The firing pins and extractors are quite prone to failure, and there are few replacement parts available due to the scarcity of the guns. Currently there are no aftermarket parts available. The other downside of a Lanchester is original examples are not especially common, and like most original receiver Curio & Relic eligible subguns, they can be quite expensive.

Sten Conversions

Back in the good old days, prior to May 19, 1986, the British Sten MkII was one of the easiest submachine guns to construct. Parts kits were widely available and the receiver tubes could be easily manufactured. As a result there were a lot of Sten guns and receiver tubes produced and registered. Those familiar with the Sten know (arguably) that they are certainly not the most eye-catching of submachine guns; in fact to those unfamiliar with weapons, it doesn’t even look much like a real gun.

Fortunately, the dimensions of the Sten gun’s receiver tube allow it to be utilized in a few other more desirable configurations. Enterprising and talented Class 2 manufacturers have sought, and received, approval from the Technology Branch of ATF to turn Sten tubes into guns other than the utilitarian Sten. One that comes to mind is the popular Sten to Sterling Mk IV conversion. The Sterling is a very desirable submachine gun, but transferable examples are quite rare and those that are available are exceptionally expensive. The Sten tube to Sterling submachine gun changed the situation allowing for an affordable replica for the cost of a registered Sten tube, a Sterling parts set and labor.

Now, there is another ATF approved Sten tube conversion pioneered by Don Quinnell of Don’s Gun Shop in Ft. Myers, Florida. Sten owners now have anotheroption: Sten to Lanchester.

The Sten to Lanchester Conversion

Before any Sten tubes could be reconfigured, the conversion details needed to be worked out, documented, andsent to the ATF Technology Branch for approval. Only after receiving official authorization could the conversion work proceed.

There were a few problems encountered. First of all, the cocking handle slot on a Sten tube is at a slightly different orientation than that of a Lanchester. This problem was easily overcome by using the original Sten bolt. The Sten bolt and recoil spring, inexpensive and relatively common, also addresses two design flaws of the Lanchester mentioned earlier; the firing pin and the extractor. The Sten uses a fixed integral firing pin and the robust extractor claw is nearly indestructible. To give the conversion a more authentic appearance, Don’s shop manufactures a bolt cocking handle patterned after that of the original Lanchester.

One other problem was that the Sten receiver tube has an outside diameter that is slightly smaller than that of the original Lanchester. This resulted in a loose fit between the receiver tube and Lanchester magazine housing. This was solved by using a thin .015-inch spacer installed between the housing and the receiver. The perforated barrel jacket of the Lanchester is attached to the Sten tube by welding. For attachment of the original endcap, a receiver extension with swept-style threading was fabricated and welded to the rear of the Sten receiver. As the finishing touch, the original wood stocks are painstakingly refinished, and the brass pieces polished and coated with a baked on clear coat.

Don’s Lanchester conversion field-strips like an original except for one small detail. Original Lanchester bolt handles are not removable. The cocking handle slot on a Lanchester extends to the end of the receiver, allowing the removal of the bolt assembly after unlatching the receiver and titling it to access the endcap. To remove a Sten bolt, the cocking handle must be removed before the bolt can be removed through the back of the receiver.

The Sten and Lanchester have very similar cyclic rates of approximately 600 rounds per minute. However, once converted, the Sten-Lanchester will no longer have a select-fire capability.

Don reports that his shop is currently working on a bolt conversion that would allow the use of the very reliable Sterling magazines in his Lanchester conversions. Completion of the magazine conversion would address the last weak link in the Lanchester: the magazine.

Don’s Gun Shop also performs the Sten to Sterling conversions as well as all types of fabrication, conversions and builds on semiautomatic and Class III H&Ks AKs FN-FAL, FNCs, as well as the more common gunsmith and refinishing jobs.

Sources

Don’s Gun Shop
3112-3 Palm Ave.
Ft. Myers, FL 33901
Phone: (239) 334-6779
Email: DGSMFG@AOL.COM

Other Lanchester Sources

Lanchester Reproduction Stocks
Keystone Arms
PO Box 599
Mill Rift, PA 18340
Phone: (570) 491-4867

Lanchester Display Guns and Parts
International Military Antiques, Inc.
PO Box 256
Millington, NJ 07946
(908) 903-1200

The WWII Sten “machine carbine” was Great Britain’s answer for an inexpensive weapon that could be manufactured in large numbers in a short period of time. The Sten was initially inspired by the debut of the German MP40 early in the war. The German weapon, although admittedly much more refined than the Sten, was also constructed from sheet metal. The Sten in turn inspired the United States’ sheet-metal submachine gun, the M3 “grease gun”.

The British Sten was originally designed and manufactured to use the 9x19mm Parabellum cartridge, also known as the 9mm Luger. The 9mm was a very common pistol and submachine gun round in Europe during WWII and was used by allied and axis forces alike. The Russians however, favored the high velocity 7.62 Tokarev cartridge for their pistols and submachine guns.

The Chinese, a U.S. ally during WWII, were in dire need of weapons to fend off the Imperial Japanese Army who had invaded Mainland China. The Chinese ordered a substantial number of 9mm Sten MKII models from the Long Branch Arsenal in Canada. The Chinese contract Stens were exactly the same as other Long Branch MKII’s except that they were marked with Chinese characters on the top of the magazine housing. The markings translated to; “Sten hand carry machine gun, Canada manufactured”. The bottom of the magazine housing retained the standard English Long Branch markings, normally seen on the top of the housing. The Chinese also procured a large number of 9mm Browning “Hi-Power” pistols from Canada.

A series of events that took place after World War Two ended saw Mainland China fall under Communist influence. Subsequently the Chinese began adopting, and eventually with technical assistance from Russia, began manufacturing Soviet designed weapons. The ammunition used in Soviet weapons was also imported and indigenously manufactured. Due to the combined lack of sufficient Soviet weapons, and a growing shortage of U.S. and British ammunition in the 1950’s. The Chinese made the decision to convert their Sten submachine guns and other existing pistol caliber weapons to the common Soviet pistol/submachine gun round of the era, the 7.62x25mm Tokarev. Many of these conversions were crudely performed, and somewhat unreliable. Weapons that were converted included many U.S. small arms that were provided to the Chinese by the United States’ Lend Lease Act during WWII. This included Thompson submachine guns and 1911A1 service pistols. Ironically, China used many of these former U.S. Lend Lease weapons in Korea against U.S. and allied forces during the Korean War.

Since the Tokarev cartridge was appreciably longer than the 9mm Parabellum a different magazine was required to convert the Sten. The logical choice for a magazine was the one being used in the standard Chinese submachine gun of the time, the Type 54. The Type 54 weapon was the Chinese clone of the more commonly known Russian PPS43 submachine gun. The magazine was a reliable double-stack double-feed design that had a maximum capacity of 35 rounds. The Stens that were converted to 7.62 by Chinese arsenals also utilized the magazine housing from the Type 54. The Type 54 SMG housing was attached by being welded onto a modified original Sten housing. Since the Type 54 magazine is a double feed type, the bolt also had to be modified. A special .30 caliber barrel was produced for the conversion. It was longer than the normal Sten 9mm barrel at 10.5”, and had a chromed bore and chamber, for use with corrosive ammunition. The Sten’s original fixed sights calibrated for the 9mm remained unchanged in the 7.62 Chinese conversion. It was considered unimportant to the Chinese Army of the period, as marksmanship was not as important as massed firepower. With the Sten firing the Tokarev cartridge both the rate of fire and the muzzle report were noticeably increased.

Just a few years ago, Chinese manufactured kits for converting the 9mm Sten to the 7.62x25mm Tokarev caliber were available from surplus dealers. The kits have long since sold out, but occasionally are offered for sale by individuals. The kits consisted of: a modified Sten magazine housing a Type 54 SMG magazine, a Sten bolt that was modified to feed from the double stack Type 54 magazine, a 10.5-inch 7.62x25mm barrel and a special high rate recoil spring.

Although complete 7.62x25mm caliber conversion kits are for the most part unavailable, Chinese manufactured barrels for the Sten chambered for the 7.62x25mm round are still occasionally advertised by surplus parts dealers.

There have been a few former Chinese contract Stens documented that have the aforementioned 9mm housings with Chinese markings, but have had additional markings added that translate into: “7.62 conversion 54”. This would indicate the Chinese converted some Stens to 7.62×25 using the original Sten 9mm housing. It is believed that the Chinese were able to retain the original Sten housings by altering the Type 54 magazine, rather then the housing. The Type 54 or PPS43 magazine can be altered to fit into a standard 9mm Sten housing by cutting off a portion of the rib in the rear of the magazine. The magazine would also need to be altered to use the Sten magazine catch. The base of the 9mm and 7.62x25mm cartridge are dimensionally similar and no modification to the bolt face or extractor is usually required, but the bolt would need to be machined to feed from the double-stack magazine. Although the conversion is possible it does require substantial fabricating and machining skills.

A few of the original Chinese 7.62×25 converted Sten MKII’s were imported into the United States prior to 1968. Original 7.62 Chinese Sten conversions can be easily converted back to the 9mm configuration. This re-conversion would require the replacement of the magazine housing. This would necessitate removal of the front sight. If the front sight was welded in place, you would have to cut the weld to remove it. The rest of the conversion is simply a matter of exchanging parts. The parts required would be: a 9mm magazine housing, a 9mm barrel, 9mm Sten magazines, recoil spring and a new original 9mm-bolt assembly.

The 7.26x25mm Tokarev Cartridge

The 7.62×25 Tokarev was the standard Russian pistol and submachine gun cartridge during WWII. Its popularity became more widespread after the war, when many European countries came under Communist influence, and adopted both Soviet designed weapons and ammunition. The Russians first adopted the Tokarev round in 1930 for use in their TT-30 and TT33 Tokarev semi-auto pistols. The Russian cartridge was copied directly from the 7.63 Mauser round and will generally interchange with it. The standard Soviet 7.62×25 round features an 86 grain full metal jacket projectile. The bottleneck cartridge cases on Russian and Chinese 7.62×25 ammunition are generally made of copper washed or lacquered steel. The projectile’s velocity can exceed 1600 feet per second when fired from a 10-inch submachine gun barrel, and has a very flat trajectory. The round was used in virtually all Russian submachine guns of the WWII era including the well known PPSh 41.

Surplus 7.62x25mm cartridges are occasionally available in the United States, but caution must be used, as much of it is corrosive. Corrosive ammunition is fine as long as you are aware of the fact and clean the weapon accordingly. Some Czechoslovakian manufactured ammunition is loaded for higher than standard velocity. This ammunition should be not be used in a converted Sten. Inexpensive non-corrosive modern Chinese 7.62×25 ammunition was once available, but is no longer importable into United States. Just recently some reloadable, very high quality commercial brass cased 7.62×25 has become available.

Jon McReynolds generously loaned the 7.62×25 conversion kit used for the photographs in this article to the author.

This Article was excerpted from the 2nd edition of the book; The British Sten Manual for Collectors and Shooters. The book is now available from Moose Lake Publishing LLC at 207-683-2959