Design feature of MP40 machine pistol.

When in Las Vegas recently I visited a firing range in order to fire off a few magazines through a Schmeisser MP40 and a Thompson.
As was only to be hoped for, the range master was thoroughly skilled and knowledgeable about the weaponry, but at the same time ( possibly because of his youth - I guess he was about 22 ), he was a cocky young devil and bordered on the arrogant. I gave him his head for about 20 miuntes and then managed to recall some information about the MP40 that he seemed to be unaware of. This was that the small hook type device as fitted to the underneath of the muzzle of the gun was designed in order to have a very important and useful function. Does anyone know what it is ?
BG

 

It's for hanging your brockworst on

FNG

 

IIRC, it's meant to catch on the side of your Schützenpanzerwagen, so the recoil doesn't bring the muzzle inside that metal box whilst your finger is still depressing the trigger.

 

It was also a primitive safety means from firing from a rest, if the soldier should fall the hook would catch and stop the gun going down with him, or so I have heard.

 

MP 40 hook

Certainly the hook was intended to prevent recoil from taking the gun back inside the vehicle was it's principal design use, anything else, I guess, is up to the user............even its use as a brockwurst hook.

It is one sweet MP, though, provided one manages to remember to keep one's left thumb out of the way of the bolt ! I bet there are/were a lot of German infantrymen who lost the top joint of their left thumbs !
BG

 

Re: MP 40 hook

Would that invalid them out of the army? I suppose by 44 anyone with a trigger finger who could walk was expected to serve and the lack of half a thumb wasn't going to get you much repreve

FNG

 

i saw a video snip ..in accidents compilation i think ..utube or metacafe ...where some poor slow moveing artillery guy was clipped by the recoil mechanism of a howitzer ..looked like arab or iranian (sand colored uniforms ,soviet style helmets ) ...anyway he vanished backwards out of the picture at great speed ...dang that musta really smarted.....