Recoil Magazine, the HK MP7A1 - Soldier Systems Daily

You Can't Run From The Internet - Recoil Magazine, the HK MP7A1, and the Second Amendment - Soldier Systems Daily:

... something happened over the weekend. The much anticipated issue number 4 was released last week. It featured an article on the HK MP7A1. In the article Editor Jerry Tsai said (emphasis added by me)

   “Like we mentioned before, the MP7A1 is unavailable to civilians and for good reason. We all know that’s technology no civies should ever get to lay their hands on. This is a purpose-built weapon with no sporting applications to speak of. It is made to put down scumbags, and that’s it. Mike Cabrera of Heckler & Koch Law Enforcement Sales and veteran law enforcement officer with SWAT unit experience points out that this is a gun that you do not want in the wrong, slimy hands.”

Some might ask, what’s wrong with that? Well, that argument is exactly the argument that anti-gunners use to attempt to legislate away our Constitutionally granted gun rights. “No sporting purpose” Remember those words. You’ll see them again and again from the anti-gun crowd. 

For them to come from someone who makes a living in the firearms industry is like a slap in the face. Doesn’t he realize he legitimizes that notion by publishing it? The printed word has power. It will be used to support one agenda or another. The controversy surrounding the article kicked off Friday evening on Recoil’s Facebook page. There were hundreds upon hundreds  a few  posts discussing the issue and Jerry Tsai even weighed in with this lame “apology” on the thread that originated the controversy (go back to the earliest comments).

I'M NOT CURRENT ON THE DIALOGUE ...
.. but it seems to me that the original article took a sharp turn to the left with an inadvertent comment about " ... this is a gun that you do not want in the wrong, slimy hands.”

This is a slap in the face of responsible, private firearms owners.

Right?

Um ... well ... perhaps not.

MP7 | Compact, lightweight and 4.6 times more effective

The MP7 represents a new generation of enhanced-performance submachine guns that bridge the gap between assault rifles and conventional submachine guns. Developed as a genuine personal defense weapon, it far exceeds the NATO requirements profile.
The MP7 is extremely compact, lightweight, can be used in very confined spaces, and is practically recoil-free. It can be carried continuously, making it the ideal personal weapon for the soldier of today. Those who carry it will be suitably armed for the broadest range of operations.
Comparing the calibres, the penetration and terminal effects of the 4.6 mm x 30 cartridge are several times those of the standardised 9 mm x 19 cartridge. By way of illustration: The new high-performance calibre penetrates the NATO CRISAT TARGET (1.6 mm titanium and 20 layers of kevlar) even at 200 m. One fundamental requirement: At the same time, the risk of overpenetration is reduced to a minimum. 

In short, the MP7 is, indeed, a 'submachine gun".  Which is to say, it is a fully automatic (minor-power) truncated-chassis rifle firing a pistol-caliber cartridge (4.6 mm).  Or single-shot selective.


It's A Small Round With A Big Punch!


Most of us in the United States have become accustomed to the concept that submachine guns are not currently among our purchasing option; sans 'special licensing'.  As such, we are perhaps disappointed that they are not available for private ownership.

{this particular gun is not cited in the "list of submachine guns" found on wikipedea}
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_submachine_guns

I'm not convinced that the controversy described on SoldierSystems is really applicable to most of us. Submachine guns have been controlled since 1939, and I couldn't afford one, anyway!

I have fired a variety of hand-held fully automatic/pistol caliber rifles (aka: "Sub-Machine Guns").

Also, the bipod- or tripod-mounted varieties:  The M60 (7.62mm) and the M1 (.50 caliber) fully automatic machine guns ... which experiences are not here applicable.

(This includes the dumb-ass M16 they tried to give me in the army: I traded it in on an M79 Grenade launcher .. if you're going to be issued an 'area weapon', it's good to know that before you go into combat!)

 I'm aware that fully-automatic weapons are innately inaccurate difficult to control (except in the case of the M60 and M1 when  mounted on attached bipod or tripod) unless they are in the hands of someone who has taken the time, and made the effort, to become conversant with the idiosyncrasies of the sub-gun genre.   Yes, they tend to move the muzzle (point of impact) "High and To The Right" during extended firing.   The best results I've had with the genre is to impose trigger control to generate 3-to-5 round bursts; the shorter the better.

Unless you're trying to flock-shoot a mess of pigeons, the untrained and inexperienced sub-gun shooter would probably be better served with a revolver;  at least he would know his limitations, be unlikely to engage a mass of targets, and he would be rewarded with a significant 'lag time' between shots to reposition his point-of-aim.

(Can you tell that I'm not a great fan of submachine guns?)

Ultimately, the gun is designed for purposes that a pistol is not designed for.  Light and compact, 20 rounds capacity,

And if the video is a reliable testimony, it works very well in single-shot mode!