MAC Mle 1950


The MAC 50 is a standard semi-automatic pistol of the French army and adopted in 1950. It replaced the previous series of French pistols, the Modèle 1935A and Modèle 1935S, and was produced between 1950 and 1970, with around 341,900 being created during that timeframe.
It was first made by MAC then by MAS
It is now superseded by the PAMAS G1, the French version of the Beretta 92, and since 2020 by the 5th-generation Glock 17.

History

In Châtellerault, 221,900 were made until it was closed in 1963, with production continuing in St. Étienne, where 120,000 pistols were made by 1978.
From 1953, the MAC 50 replaced the Modèle 1892 revolver, the MAS 35S, PA 35A, and other Colt 1911 models in the French armed forces, and the P38 in the CRS. It was the standard-issue sidearm for the French Gendarmerie until its gradual replacement by the MAS G1 starting in 1989. It was also issued to the Penitentiary Service and certain branches of the National Police. In 2000, fifty years after its initial introduction, the Army's MAC 50 began its phase-out and was replaced by a version of the Beretta 92, the PAMAS G1, which was previously issued to the National Gendarmerie, which now uses the SIG PRO SP2022. In 2020, the Glock 17 became the standard-issue weapon in the French armed forces and was to completely replace the remaining MAC 50s.

Design

It uses the Browning system like the FN GP 35 with an integral barrel feed ramp, it is a single-action trigger with slide mounted safety that locks the firing pin so the hammer can be lowered by pressing the trigger with safety engaged.
The MAC-50 is primarily based on the Modèle 1935S, for which MAC was the primary manufacturer, although it shares some characteristics with the Modèle 1935A, the design basis for the SIG P210.

Users

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