8mm kurz |
The "kurz" Patrone The "kurz" ammo was a vital part of the success of the MP44 concept. This ammo was in a very short supply during the war and is difficult to purchase today. The kurz and it's "parent" 8x57IS
German army studies had shown that few combat engagements occured at more than 300 m and the majority within 200 m. The German standard ammunition - 8x57JS - was capable to kill beyond 1500 m. A rifle fired that ammo in shot bursts was impossible to control. The MP40 - using 9 mm parabellum ammo - was easy to control, but only effective at shorter distances; perhaps 20 m and indeed not 200 m. So the Germans invented a new intermediate cartridge: 8 mm kurz. Same diameter as the 8x57JS but much shorter, 48.0 versus 80.6 mm. See below the huge gap in energy between the 9 mm para MP ammunition and the 8x57JS rifle ammunition:
The 15 rd. box was standard but at first "aux" used 20 rd. boxes. "ak", "hla" and "wa" used at the beginning 14 rd. boxes. At the top a rare box with Mkb42 ammo. Below 3 boxes with stripper clips i.L. (in Ladestreifen) - and one more common box with 15 rounds and no stripper clips. The last production was without stripper clips and in many cases without labels. On the right side a box with DDR ammo made in 1959.
German produced ammo was later reboxed by: Czech Republic - see below Greece Yugoslavia It was produceed by: DDR: Factory 04 (VEB Königswartha) from 1958 to 1961. Brass DDR cases are known but are rare. Czech Republic - see below Spain - see more below Argentina - see below The DDR produced kurz - left photo and relabeled Wehrmacht ammo - right photo. For export because of the English text? The DDR boxed ammo were in many cases just with an ink-stamp without label - see above. Czech produced kurz ammo. Peter Senich doesn't
mention this variant but Daniel Kent has a note on it. (A strange thing:
the box itself is made in Dresden in 1944)
Greek repacked kurz ammo made in 1946? German kurz headstamps and lot numbers A comprehensive and good description of kurz ammo (from Italy) The Spanish made kurz
The Argentinian made kurz
A wooden box for the
kurz ammo
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The Yugoslavian army used the
MP44
PRVI ammunition
One of the more
extensively and systematic uses of the MP44 after the war, was in the
Yugoslavian army, where it's said paratroops used the MP44 as the main
handgun up to 1983. They used German
made ammo - so they didn't produce normal kurz themself, but Yugoslavian made blank cartridges and rifle grenade cartridges are seen
- made in 1983. Dr. Dieter Kapell mentions this in his book "Sturmgewehr-Patrone 7,92x33".
PRVI manufactures kurz ammo today. The company is located in Serbia - former
Yugoslavia - but they didn't produce kurz for Yugoslavian army - as told above.
Another manufacturer is Graf & Sons, USA. They use Hornady bullets. Chemnitzer Sportwaffen
and FNM, Portugal have produced kurz but both are closed now. (Some say that PRVI acquired machinery and parts from FNM when FNM closed in 2001 - and that was many years after the Yugoslavian
army used MP44)