Original British WWII Lanchester Display Sub Machine Gun Original Items

Original Item: British WWII Lanchester Display Sun Machine Gun. One of the best quality British SMGs of WWII, the Lanchester has a full wood buttstock with brass butt plate. A heavy bronze magazine housing and ventilated barrel jacket complete with bayonet stands. (Takes Enfield 1907, 1943/44 series bayonets, advertised separately.) Built of solid aluminum dummy receiver each comes complete with original 32 round magazine (where permitted). A terrific display item.

These display guns were made from parts sets that saw many years of service, so they will all have some degree of wear. The wooden stocks also have suffered a lot of dents and cracks, many of which were repaired at arsenal. We unfortunately cannot honor any requests at this time for a stock that has no wood repairs.

The Lanchester is a submachine gun (SMG) manufactured by the Sterling Armaments Company between 1941 and 1945. It is a copy of the German MP28/II and was manufactured in two versions, Mk.1 and Mk.1*; the latter was a simplified version of the original Mk.1, with no fire selector and simplified sights. It was primarily used by the British Royal Navy during the Second World War, and to a lesser extent by Royal Air Force regiments (for airfield protection).

Following the Dunkirk evacuation in 1940, the Royal Air Force decided it required a submachine gun for airfield defence. With no time available for the usual research and development of a new weapon, it was decided to create a direct copy of the German MP 28. The British Admiralty decided to join with the RAF in adopting the new weapon, and played a key role in its design. Ultimately, it was within the Royal Navy that most of Lanchesters produced went into service.

The British copy of the MP28 was given the general designation of Lanchester after George Herbert Lanchester who was charged with producing the weapon at the Sterling Armaments Company, the same company that produced the Sterling submachine gun.

The Lanchester was envisioned as a weapon used for guarding prisoners and accompanying naval landing and assault parties. It was a very solid, well-made submachine gun of high quality materials, in many ways the complete opposite of its direct contemporary, the Sten.

The Lanchester had a heavy wooden butt and stock, a machined steel action and breech block, a magazine housing made from solid brass and a mounting on the muzzle for use of a long bladed 1907 bayonet. The rifling differed from the German original in details to accommodate various lots of 9mm ammunition then being acquired for service use. The Lanchester also reused furniture from the Lee-Enfield.

Produced in two versions, Mk.1 and Mk.1*. The Mk.1* was a simplified version of the original Mk.1, which omitted the fire mode selector (full automatic only) and used simplified sights.

Magazine included where permitted, otherwise spring and follower removed.