Uzi


The Uzi is a family of Israeli open-bolt, blowback-operated submachine guns and machine pistols first designed by Major Uziel "Uzi" Gal in the late 1940s, shortly after the establishment of the State of Israel. It is one of the first weapons to incorporate a telescoping bolt design, which allows the magazine to be housed in the pistol grip for a shorter weapon.
The Uzi prototype was finished in 1950. It was first introduced to Israel Defense Forces special forces in 1954, and the weapon was placed into general issue two years later. The IDF supplied Uzis to rear-echelon troops, officers, artillery troops and tank crews, as well as a frontline weapon by elite light infantry assault forces.
The Uzi has been exported to over 90 countries. Over its service lifetime, it has been manufactured by Israel Military Industries, FN Herstal, and other manufacturers. From the 1960s through to the 1980s, more Uzi submachine guns were sold to more military, law enforcement and security markets than any other submachine gun ever made.

Design

The Uzi uses an open-bolt, blowback-operated design, quite similar to the Jaroslav Holeček-designed Czech ZK 476 and the production Sa 23, Sa 24, Sa 25, and Sa 26 series of submachine guns introduced in 1948. The open bolt design exposes the barrel's breech end, improving cooling after periods of continuous fire. However, it means that since the bolt is held to the rear when cocked, the receiver is more susceptible to contamination from sand and dirt. It uses a telescoping bolt design, in which the bolt wraps around the breech end of the barrel. This allows the barrel to be moved far back into the receiver and the magazine to be housed in the pistol grip, allowing for a heavier, slower-firing bolt in a shorter, better-balanced weapon.
The weapon is constructed primarily from stamped sheet metal, making it less expensive per unit to manufacture than an equivalent design machined from forgings. With relatively few moving parts, the Uzi is easy to strip for maintenance or repair. The magazine is housed within the pistol grip, allowing for intuitive and easy reloading in dark or difficult conditions, under the principle of "hand finds hand". The pistol grip is fitted with a grip safety, making it difficult to fire accidentally. However, the protruding vertical magazine makes the gun awkward to fire when prone. The Uzi features a bayonet lug.

Operation

The non-reciprocating charging handle on the top of the receiver cover is used to retract the bolt. Variants have a ratchet safety mechanism which will catch the bolt and lock its movement if it is retracted past the magazine, but not far enough to engage the sear. When the handle is fully retracted to the rear, the bolt will cock on the sear mechanism and the handle and cover are released to spring fully forward under power of a small spring. The cover will remain forward during firing since it does not reciprocate with the bolt. The military and police versions will fire immediately upon chambering a cartridge as the Uzi is an open bolt weapon.
There are two external safety mechanisms on the Uzi. The first is the three-position selector lever located at the top of the grip and behind the trigger group. The rear position is "S", or "safe", which locks the sear and prevents movement of the bolt.
The second external safety mechanism is the grip safety, which is located at the rear of the grip. It is meant to help prevent accidental discharge if the weapon is dropped or the user loses a firm grip on the weapon during firing.
The trigger mechanism is a conventional firearm trigger, but functions only to control the release mechanism for either the bolt or firing pin holding mechanism since the Uzi does not incorporate an internal cocking or hammer mechanism. While the open-bolt system is mechanically simpler than a closed-bolt design, it creates a noticeable delay between when the trigger is pulled and when the gun fires.
The magazine release button or lever is located on the lower portion of the pistol grip and is intended to be manipulated by the non-firing hand. The paddle-like button lies flush with the pistol grip in order to help prevent accidental release of the magazine during rigorous or careless handling.
When the gun is de-cocked the ejector port closes, preventing entry of dust and dirt. Though the Uzi's stamped-metal receiver is equipped with pressed reinforcement slots to accept accumulated dirt and sand, the weapon can still jam with heavy accumulations of sand in desert combat conditions when not cleaned regularly. The magazine must be removed prior to de-cocking the weapon.

Stocks

There are different stocks available for the Uzi proper. There is a wooden stock with a metal buttplate that comes in three similar variations that were used by the IDF. The first version had a flat butt and straight comb and had hollows for a cleaning rod and gun oil bottle. The second had an angled butt and a straight comb and no hollows. The third had an angled butt and curved comb and no hollows; a polymer version is currently available from IMI. The wooden stocks originally had a quick-release base but the ones sold in the United States often had a permanent base for legal reasons, as detachable stocks on pistols or other short-barreled weapons upgrade the weapon to NFA status.
Choate made an aftermarket polymer stock with a rubber butt-pad that had a flat butt, a straight comb, and a permanent base.
In 1956, IMI developed a downward-folding twin-strut metal stock with two swivelling sections that tuck under the rear of the receiver. The Mini Uzi has a forward-folding single-strut metal stock that is actually an inch longer than the Uzi's. Its buttplate can be used as a foregrip when stowed. The Micro Uzi has a similar model.

Magazines

The original box magazines for the 9mm Uzi had a 25-round capacity. Experimental 40- and 50-round extended magazines were tried but were found to be unreliable. A 32-round extended magazine was then tried and was later accepted as standard. The Mini Uzi and Micro Uzi use a shorter 20-round magazine. Available extended magazines include 40-, and 50-round magazines. Other high-capacity aftermarket magazines exist such as the Vector Arms 70-round and Beta Company 100-round drums.
The.45 ACP Uzi used a 16- or 22-round magazine, while the.45 ACP Micro Uzi and Mini Uzi used a 12-round magazine. A conversion kit by Vector Arms allowed the.45-caliber Uzi to use the same 30-round magazines as the M3 "Grease Gun".

Caliber conversions

The Uzi was available with caliber conversion kits in.22 LR or.41 AE. The operator just has to change the barrel, bolt and magazine. The.22 LR had 20-round magazines; the original IMI kit used a barrel insert while the aftermarket Action Arms kit used a full replacement barrel. The.41 AE also had a 20-round magazine; since it has the same bolt face as the 9×19mm Parabellum, only the barrel and magazine needed to be changed.
IMI also manufactured a.45ACP conversion kit both in full auto/open bolt with a 10.2" barrel for the 9mm SMG and a semi only/closed bolt with a 16" barrel for the carbine version. Magazine capacity is limited, with 2 sizes of 16 and 10 rds each.

History and operational use

The Uzi submachine gun was designed by Captain Uziel Gal of the Israel Defense Forces following the 1948 Arab–Israeli War. The weapon was submitted to the Israeli Army for evaluation and won out over more conventional designs due to its simplicity and economy of manufacture. Gal did not want the weapon to be named after him, but his request was ignored. The Uzi was officially adopted in 1951. First introduced to IDF special forces in 1954, the weapon was placed into general issue two years later. The first Uzis were equipped with a short, fixed wooden buttstock, and this is the version that initially saw combat during the 1956 Suez Campaign. Later models would be equipped with a folding metal stock.
The Uzi was used as a personal defense weapon by rear-echelon troops, officers, artillery troops and tankers, as well as a frontline weapon by elite light infantry assault forces. The Uzi's compact size and firepower proved instrumental in clearing Syrian bunkers and Jordanian defensive positions during the 1967 Six-Day War. Though the weapon was phased out of frontline IDF service in the 1980s, some Uzis and Uzi variants were still used by a few IDF units until December 2003, when the IDF announced that it was retiring the Uzi from all IDF forces. It was subsequently replaced by the fully automatic Micro Tavor.
In general, the Uzi was a reliable weapon in military service. However, even the Uzi fell victim to extreme conditions of sand and dust. During the Sinai Campaign of the Yom Kippur War, IDF Army units reaching the Suez Canal reported that of all their small arms, only the 7.62mm FN MAG machine gun was still in operation.
The Uzi proved especially useful for mechanized infantry needing a compact weapon and for infantry units clearing bunkers and other confined spaces. However, its limited range and accuracy in automatic fire could be disconcerting when encountering enemy forces armed with longer-range small arms, and heavier support weapons could not always substitute for a longer-ranged individual weapon. These failings eventually caused the phasing out of the Uzi from IDF front-line assault units.
The Uzi has been used in various conflicts outside Israel and the Middle East during the 1960s and 1970s. Quantities of 9 mm Uzi submachine guns were used by Portuguese cavalry, police, and security forces during the Portuguese Colonial Wars in Africa.

Worldwide sales

Total sales of the weapon to date has netted IMI over 2 billion US dollars, with over 90 countries using the weapons either for their armed forces or in law enforcement.