Shooting the AuSTEN MkI - Not Actually So Bad!
At The Range
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3m 55s
I have read much about the Australian dislike for the Austen submachine gun, but until now I never had the chance to actually try shooting one. I did not have very high expectations, but the gun is actually pretty darn reasonable! It doesn't climb like I expected the stock would cause it to, and the pistol grips are a huge improvement over the Sten. The sights are not ideal, and the stock does wobble - but I didn't find anything that seems like it would justify the intense dislike for the gun in Australian military service. Now I'm curious to dig into this gun more and find out just what was at the root of the Aussie complaints. Perhaps it was simply a matter of reliability in less-then-ideal circumstances?
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