Beretta MAB 38/44
Beretta · Submachine Gun · Discontinued · 1944
Also known as: Moschetto Automatico Beretta Modello 1938/44, Beretta Model 38/44, MAB 38/44, Beretta M38/44, MP 739(i)
Overview
The Beretta MAB 38/44 (Moschetto Automatico Beretta Modello 1938/44) is an Italian submachine gun chambered in 9x19mm Parabellum, developed by Beretta chief designer Tullio Marengoni as a further wartime simplification of the acclaimed MAB 38 family. Introduced in 1944, it was a minor revision of the MAB 38/42: the bolt was shortened and simplified, and a large-diameter recoil spring was fitted directly around the bolt in place of the earlier operating-spring guide rod, while the two lightening flutes machined into the 38/42's bolt were eliminated to speed production. Like the rest of the family it retained the distinctive closed-bolt, hammer-fired operating system and the twin-trigger arrangement in which the forward trigger fires semi-automatically and the rear trigger fires fully automatically. Fitted with a short 213 mm barrel, a fixed wooden stock, and detachable box magazines of 10 to 40 rounds, the 38/44 traded some of the original 38A's fine machining for faster, cheaper manufacture without sacrificing the accuracy and reliability for which the series was prized. It saw service in the final year of the Second World War with the forces of the Italian Social Republic and with German units, and its simplified layout formed the direct mechanical basis for the successful post-war Beretta MAB 38/49.
Specifications
| Weight (empty) | 3270 g (115.3 oz) |
| Weight (loaded) | 3800 g (134.0 oz) |
| Overall Length | 800 mm (31.50") |
| Barrel Length | 213 mm (8.39") |
| Action Type | Blowback |
| Firing Mechanism | Hammer Fired |
| Trigger Type | Single Stage |
| Magazine Capacity | 40 rounds |
| Magazine Type | Detachable Box |
| Muzzle Velocity | 380 m/s (1247 fps) |
| Muzzle Energy | 538 J (397 ft·lbf) |
| Effective Range | 200 m (219 yd) |
| Maximum Range | 300 m (328 yd) |
| Rate of Fire | 550 rpm |
| Barrel Rifling | Right Hand |
| Number of Grooves | 6 |
| Frame Material | Steel |
| Barrel Material | Steel |
| Stock Material | Wood |
| Finish | Blued |
Calibers
- 9x19mm Parabellum · primary · 9mm NATO — also known as 9mm Luger, 9mm NATO, 9x19mm, 9mm M38 (Italian high-pressure variant)
Features
- Firing modes: Semi Automatic, Full Automatic
- Feed systems: Detachable Box Magazine
- Safety mechanisms: Manual Safety, Dust Cover
- Features: Dual Trigger System, Closed Bolt Firing, Hammer Fired, Simplified Bolt, Large Diameter Recoil Spring, Plain Unfluted Barrel, Stamped Steel Receiver, Fixed Wood Stock, Tangent Rear Sight, Hooded Front Sight
Variants
- MAB 38 (Modello 1938A) - Original Production
- MAB 38/42 - Simplified Wartime
- MAB 38/44 - Simplified Wartime
- MAB 38/49 (Modello 4) - Postwar Production
Base model
Service history
Operators
- Italian Social Republic Armed Forces · adopted 1944 · as MAB 38/44
- Royal Italian Army · adopted 1944 · as Moschetto Automatico Beretta Modello 1938/44
- Wehrmacht · adopted 1944 · as MP 739(i)
- Italian Armed Forces (Post-War) · adopted 1945 · as MAB 38/44
Conflicts
- World War II (1939-1945)
Production
Production years: 1944-1975
Introduced in 1944 as a simplified wartime revision of the 38/42; production figures are usually reported only for the MAB 38 family as a whole (over 500,000 units across all variants) rather than for the 38/44 alone.
Origin
Country of origin: Italy
Designer: Tullio Marengoni
Discontinued: 1975
Notes
The 38/44 is distinguished from the 38/42 chiefly by internal changes: a shorter, simplified bolt and a single large-diameter recoil spring wrapped around the bolt instead of a spring guide rod, plus deletion of the bolt fluting. Externally it is nearly identical to the 38/42, sharing the plain (un-jacketed, unfluted) short barrel and stamped receiver. The design was carried directly into the post-war 38/49 (Modello 4). Reported empty weight (~3.27 kg) and overall length (800 mm) match the 38/42 closely; sources vary by a few tens of grams between the two.
Background
The 38/44 was the last wartime step in Tullio Marengoni's relentless simplification of the MAB 38 line - each revision from 38A to 38/42 to 38/44 shaved machining time and cost while preserving the closed-bolt, twin-trigger accuracy that made Italian troops prefer the gun to captured Stens and Thompsons. Its stripped-down bolt-and-spring layout proved so sound that Beretta carried it almost unchanged into the post-war 38/49, keeping the design in production and in service for another three decades.