An Interesting Possibility: The FG-42 in 8x33mm Kurz?
Germany
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Here's an interesting thought - what if they made the FG-42 in 8x33mm Kurz? Well, they actually did, in very small numbers. The rifle's designer, Louis Stange, actually thought it was a really good idea, and the Heereswaffenamt office converted a handful of first model FG42s for testing, although it never went farther than that. The Army was very much in favor fo the 8x33mm cartridge in the MP43/44 for a variety of reasons, but the Luftwaffe was determined to issue its own unique rifle in the full 8x57mm cartridge.
After the war, there was one further addendum to this idea - Waffenfabrik Bern in Switzerland made a couple experimental patterns of what was essentially the FG42 in 7.5mm Kurz (7.5x38mm). These were tested as part of Switzerland's move to a self-loading rifle, but ultimately lost out to SIG's design in the full 7.5x55mm.
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