Jump to content

Sten Mk II vs Mk III


Recommended Posts

MKII - Short sight radius, horrible pyramid front sight. Easily changed barrel, magazine well can be swiveled as safety or dirt prevention method when not firing. Barrel shroud is too short to ensure you don't touch a hot barrel.

 

MKIII - Basically a 'disposable' submachine gun. Barrel replacement involves grinding out rivets. Better sights with longer radius and long rib makes sight acquisition and accuracy very good. Barrel shroud is part of the receiver and goes to the muzzle. Not enough cooling holes to allow heat to dissipate quickly, though.

 

Either stock is correct for either model. STEn production was cottage industry. Whichever stocks were on hand while they were assembling guns would be used. Both types were in production at the same time.

 

As a shooter/owner, I would prefer to get a MKII as they are more versatile and easier to modify. MKIII STEns typically are not as desirable since they are even more cheaply made than a MKII and have that riveted-in barrel.

 

Still, I enjoy shooting a MKIII simply because of that looong sight radius, rib, and blade front sight.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

MKII - Short sight radius, horrible pyramid front sight. Easily changed barrel, magazine well can be swiveled as safety or dirt prevention method when not firing. Barrel shroud is too short to ensure you don't touch a hot barrel.

 

MKIII - Basically a 'disposable' submachine gun. Barrel replacement involves grinding out rivets. Better sights with longer radius and long rib makes sight acquisition and accuracy very good. Barrel shroud is part of the receiver and goes to the muzzle. Not enough cooling holes to allow heat to dissipate quickly, though.

 

Either stock is correct for either model. STEn production was cottage industry. Whichever stocks were on hand while they were assembling guns would be used. Both types were in production at the same time.

 

As a shooter/owner, I would prefer to get a MKII as they are more versatile and easier to modify. MKIII STEns typically are not as desirable since they are even more cheaply made than a MKII and have that riveted-in barrel.

 

Still, I enjoy shooting a MKIII simply because of that looong sight radius, rib, and blade front sight.

I have a line on a nice Mk III right now. I wanted a Mk II because of the easy change barrel (get a suppressed set up for a spare). I’ll probably end up with both, but the Mk III is what is currently available.

 

I was also curious as to the correct finish.

 

Thanks for the info.

 

Dan

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
 Share

×
×
  • Create New...