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mp 38/40


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An MP38 upper will, of course, fIt any MP40 lower so the combination could happen at any time for any reason. You give no details about the whereabouts or legal status of the receiver, information that can be very useful in assessing the gun. For instance, in the US, transferable MP38s are extremely scarce so a fully registered MP38 receiver missing it's correctly marked MP38 lower, in all probability would have long ago been outfitted with one. The numbers would not match but the correct parts would be assembled. That the early receiver and later lower could have been "factory" produced at some time in '41 is not likely and even if so, there is no possible way to confirm it.

No doubt the transition from the MP38 to the MP40 at the time would have created production imbalances in the supplies of parts and their use for final assembly of guns between the two models, but there's absolutely no way to verify any specific gun resulting without some kind of documentation.
Where is this gun? FWIW

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There was no official German MP38/40 designation. The German ordnance repair and parts system supported both, but separately. That said, my first SMG was an MP38/40, purchased in the early 1980s from Curt Earl. That's what it said on the form 4. It was a US made Inland Austin TX receiver with all original mismatched refinished MP40 parts. It worked fine. I sold it in the late 1990s. Now, as mentioned above, I wish I'd kept it and mated it with a MP38 parts kit. It would still be mismatched, but far more correct on casual inspection. The receiver was beautifully made.

Edited by TSMGguy
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Years ago, I purchased a number of Dealer Samples from ARMEX. One was an MP-38... one was an MP-40... and one was an MP-38/40 (which I suspect ARMEX had added /40 to the MP-38 stamping on Trigger Housing and corresponding BATF paperwork notated "MP-38/40" as model.

The MP-38/40 had the 2-piece cocking handle and cut-out on receiver for same... while the MP-40 had the earlier hook type cocking handle.

In no way do I presume the "MP-38/40" was WW2 German designation.

Ummm... I think I paid $450 each for these 3 dealer samples back then.

Edited by Rich.Urich
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An MP38 upper will, of course, fIt any MP40 lower so the combination could happen at any time for any reason. You give no details about the whereabouts or legal status of the receiver, information that can be very useful in assessing the gun. For instance, in the US, transferable MP38s are extremely scarce so a fully registered MP38 receiver missing it's correctly marked MP38 lower, in all probability would have long ago been outfitted with one. The numbers would not match but the correct parts would be assembled. That the early receiver and later lower could have been "factory" produced at some time in '41 is not likely and even if so, there is no possible way to confirm it.

No doubt the transition from the MP38 to the MP40 at the time would have created production imbalances in the supplies of parts and their use for final assembly of guns between the two models, but there's absolutely no way to verify any specific gun resulting without some kind of documentation.

Where is this gun? FWIW

There is no physical gun.Just a discussion between friends,one guy said he saw one at a gun show several years ago and the dealer said it was all original.I said that I thought that was wrong and that it was probably a tube receiver made in the US.Seems your statement proves that I was right.

Thank you for the info.

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