Beretta M1918

Beretta Model 1918
Type	Submachine gun
Place of origin	Kingdom of Italy
Service history
Used by	See Users
Production history
Variants	Model 1918 Model 1918/30 Hafdasa C-1
Specifications
Weight	7 lb 3 oz (3.3 kg)
Length	43 in (1092 mm)
Barrel length	12 in (305 mm)
Cartridge	9mm Glisenti .22LR
Caliber	9mm .22 calibre
Action	Blowback, automatic only
Rate of fire	900 round/min
Feed system	25 round detachable box

The Beretta Model 1918 was a submachine gun that entered service in 1918 with the Italian armed forces. Designed initially as a semi-automatic rifle, the weapon came with an overhead inserted magazine, an unconventional design based on the simplicity of allowing a spent round to be replaced using only gravity. The gun was a spiritual successor to the Villar Perosa Submachine gun, and as such it can be considered the first submachine gun issued to and used by the Italian armed forces, and is possibly the first SMG used as a general-issue combat weapon.

Another variant was the Model 1918/30 with the magazine inserted underneath and came with a bayonet. The Model 1918/30 was also manufactured in Argentina by Hafdasa as the C-1, which formed the basis of the Ballester-Riguard submachine gun.

Design

• Barrel rifling: 6 grooves with a right hand twist (6-right)
• Automatic carbine, cal. 9mm, having a barrel length of 12.5" and a magazine capacity of 25 rounds.

Users

• Albania
• Argentina
• Italy

See also

• Hafdasa C-4, an Argentine derivative of the Beretta Model 1918.
• Italian submachine guns

References

• Beretta Model 1918 Sub-Machine Gun
• Ballester-Riguard submachine gun