POTD: Denmark’s Clam Shell Submachine Gun – Madsen M50
Sam.S 09.09.24
Welcome to today’s Photo of the Day! The Madsen M50 was a 9mm submachine gun introduced in 1950 by the Danish company Dansk Industri Syndikat. It was an updated version of the earlier M1946 model, featuring a simplified clamshell-style stamped steel receiver. The M-50 had an open-bolt design, full-auto fire only, and an unusual grip safety in front of the magazine housing. Despite its unconventional appearance, the M-50 proved to be a reliable and accurate SMG in military trials. It saw widespread export sales to various countries in Central and South America, as well as Southeast Asia. Substantial numbers were also imported into the US, where they were popular in the film industry. The Madsen M50 remained in production until the 1980s, seeing use with the military over the decades. Its innovative stamped metal construction and unique design made it a distinctive entry in the post-WWII submachine gun landscape.
“This is an exceptional example of a late production Danish Model 50 submachine gun chambered in 9 mm Luger. The Model 50 is actually an update version of the earlier M1946 produced right after WWII. Both used many of the wartime expedient stamped steel manufacturing processed parts developed during WWII. The really interesting aspect of this model is that it is manufactured from two separate stamped steel receiver halves that are hinged at the rear of the receiver and are held together on the front end by the barrel nut. Although it seems very unconventional, it proved to be an extremely reliable and accurate submachine gun based on demonstrated military testing performed in Canada in November 1950 that was witnessed by the Canadian, British, U.S. Army and Danish representatives. In that test, a single M50 SMG successfully test fired over 20K rounds of ammunition in a little over 2 1/2 hours with no failures. As noted, it uses many stamped steel parts except for the barrel and bolt, both of which are machined. It has a right side, folding wire type stock, a grip safety behind the magazine well, and side mounted sling swivels. It has a simple non-adjustable peep rear sight on the rear of the receiver and a blade front sight. “
Lot 1569: Class III.NFA Danish Madsen M50 SMG – Danish Model 50 Fully Automatic Class III/NFA C&R Submachine Gun with Original Magazine. (n.d.-av). Rock Island Auction Company. photograph. Retrieved September 9, 2024, from https://www.rockislandauction.com/detail/71/1569/class-iiinfa-danish-madsen-m50-smg.
