Original Item: Only One Available. This is an exceptional STG 44 display machine gun, built using all original German WWII manufactured parts, attached to a BATF approved cast aluminum display receiver. The barrel, gas tube assembly, rear sight, trigger group, ejection port cover, and butt stock are completely original, and were secured to the display receiver to make a BATF compliant non-firing inert display gun! Called the Sturmgewehr (Storm / Assault Rifle) 44, it was considered by many to be the original pattern for the modern assault rifle. The MP44 was developed to give German troops fighting in Russia a means of delivering large volumes of fire at the seemingly endless supply of Soviet troops.

This sample is in excellent condition, bearing German maker codes and proof marks throughout. As an added treat, it came with an original D 1854/3 stock code Maschinenpistole 44 (MP44) Gebrauchsanleitung (Instruction Manual), with a version date of 3. 6. 44.. This was rolled up in the butt stock compartment, where it was originally put when issued, and looks to have been there SINCE WWII. These manuals alone can go for over $400, but this one is really something special. Long storage has oil saturated all of the pages, giving it a beautiful amber color. All pages are intact and legible, though it is rolled up quite tightly. Really a time capsule item here!

The trigger group of this example is not maker marked, but does have serial number 7184 marked on the rear under the butt stock cup. It also has Waffenamt WaA21, which is a known inspection stamp seen on MP44 / STG44 trigger groups, but has not been identified. The safety and fire selectors are still intact and movable, as is the trigger. The butt stock cup is stamped with serial 847, while the laminated butt stock is stamped with 1014, so this was definitely made from parts of several guns. We have no way of knowing whether this was done during the war, or during post war use.

The barrel and gas piston adjustment fitting do not have any maker codes, but both are marked with Waffenamt EAGLE / 280 inspection stamps, which are usually associated with manufacture by ERMA, the designer of the MP40. There is also clc marked on the front sight base, the maker code for Richard Ab. Herder of Solingen, a maker of cutlery and tools in the legendary "City of Blades". The underside of the hand guard is marked with aqr, for Lux, R. u. O., Metallwaren- und Maschinenfabrik A.-G., located in Marienthal-Bad Liebenstein/Thuringen. This was another known maker of MP44 parts.

Also included is an original post war East German MP44 marked magazine, maker marked 1001, for Ernst-Thälmann-Werke in Suhl, Thüringen. Suhl had long been a center of weapons manufacturing, and once East Germany had a referendum approving re-armament in 1951, the city quickly began production again, if it had not already under Soviet occupation. These magazines are functionally identical to the WWII production, most likely made on the same tooling. Magazine will have the spring and follower removed if shipped to a state that prohibits high capacity magazines.

Condition is just great, and is definitely one of the best we have ever had. This is a true collector's piece that will only appreciate in value over the years to come!

History of the MP44-
The StG 44 (Sturmgewehr 44, literally "storm rifle" model of 1944 was an assault rifle developed in NSDAP Germany during World War II that was the first of its kind to see major deployment and is considered by many historians to be the first modern assault rifle. It is also known under the designations MP 43 and MP 44 (Maschinenpistole 43, Maschinenpistole 44 respectively), which denote earlier development versions of the same weapon with some differences like a different butt end, muzzle nut, shape of the front sight base or with an unstepped barrel, all only visible with close inspection.

MP 43, MP 44, and StG 44 were different designations for what was essentially the same rifle, with minor updates in production. The variety in nomenclatures resulted from the complicated bureaucracy in NSDAP Germany. Developed from the Mkb 42(H) "machine carbine", the StG44 combined the characteristics of a carbine, submachine gun and automatic rifle. StG is an abbreviation of Sturmgewehr. The name was chosen for propaganda reasons and literally means "storm rifle" as in "to storm (i.e. "assault") an enemy position". After the adoption of the StG 44, the English translation "assault rifle" became the accepted designation for this type of infantry small arm.

The rifle was chambered for the 7.92×33mm Kurz cartridge. This shorter version of the German standard (7.92x57mm) rifle round, in combination with the weapon's selective-fire design, provided a compromise between the controllable firepower of a submachine gun at close quarters with the accuracy and power of a Karabiner 98k bolt action rifle at intermediate ranges. While the StG44 had less range and power than the more powerful infantry rifles of the day, Wehrmacht studies had shown that most combat engagements occurred at less than 300 m, with the majority within 200 m. Full-power rifle cartridges were excessive for the vast majority of uses for the average soldier. Only a trained specialist, such as a sniper, could make full use of the standard rifle round's range and power.

The StG 44's receiver was made of heavy stamped and welded steel as were other contemporary arms such as the MP 40 and MG 42. This made for a fairly heavy rifle, especially one firing an intermediate-power cartridge. Difficulties with fabrication, the need to use available non-priority steels, and the exigencies of war resulted in a heavy receiver. U.S. military intelligence criticized the weight of the weapon along with the inclusion of the fully automatic feature which it considered "ineffectual for all practical purposes", convinced that full automatic fire with StG 44 was permitted in emergencies only. This was a misinterpretation of the manual however, as the German manual states that automatic fire was "advised only in emergencies", this was mainly to make sure that the regular soldier didn't unnecessarily waste his ammunition spraying at targets, but instead fired in short accurate bursts to achieve maximum accuracy and effect; the StG could easily and safely be used in full automatic mode. The British were also critical saying that the receiver could be bent and the bolt locked up by the mere act of knocking a leaning rifle onto a hard floor. Many of these criticisms are more a testimonial of the Allied aversion rather than an accurate view of the weapon's characteristics that were proven highly effective during combat in the war.

To its credit, it was the first successful weapon of its class, and the concept had a major impact on modern infantry small arms development. By all accounts, the StG 44 fulfilled its role admirably, particularly on the Eastern Front, offering a greatly increased volume of fire compared to standard infantry rifles. In the end, it came too late to have a significant effect on the outcome of the war.