IMI Uzi

     Notes: Introduced in 1953, the Uzi was one of the first designs of premier Israeli small arms designer Uziel Gal.  He drew inspiration from two pre-World War 2 Czech submachineguns, the ZK-476 (which only made it only to the prototype stage), and the VZ-23 series (which were not actually produced until after World War 2).  The ZK-476 was possibly the first submachinegun design to use a magazine inside the pistol grip to reduce size, as well as a telescoping bolt (also known as an overhung bolt) to further reduce the size of the weapon.  The cocking knob of the ZK-476 was atop the receiver, with a large cut-away portion in the top of the knob as to not block the shooter’s sight picture.  The ZK-476 also used a grip safety which to a certain extent also functions as a bolt lock; this feature fixes a problem that was all too common to weapons of the period – the bolt tended to slam forward if the weapon was dropped (or sometimes, even bumped hard), and if a round was chambered, it would fire.  All of these features would appear on the Uzi.  The VZ-23 series refined these ideas, as well as using a removable wooden stock; the VZ-25 version used a sliding metal wire stock.

     Uziel Gal (then a Lieutenant in the IDF) used these ideas – and then improved them much more.  The resulting design, the Uzi, was a much more compact design then the VZ-23 series, though the barrel is only about an inch shorter than the barrel of the VZ-23 series.  Except for the earliest versions of the Uzi, the removable wooden stock could easily replaced by folding metal stock that was more stable than the wire stock of the VZ-25. (The folding stock was actually the result of the Germans and the Dutch, who discovered that the wooden stock was too cumbersome for vehicle crews. It quickly became popular with everyone who used the Uzi.) The sliding selector switch was moved to the upper left of the pistol grip, putting them within easy reach of the shooter’s thumb (if he is right-handed), fixing the clumsy control positions of the VZ-23 series.  The magazine release is moved to bottom of the pistol grip, allowing the shooter to simultaneously hit the release and hold on to the spent the magazine if desired, or simply allow it to fall free and insert a fresh magazine.  The grip safety on the Uzi is supplemented by a ratchet attached to the top cover, which prevents the bolt of the Uzi from slamming forward if the shooter’s hand slips off the cocking knob before he has completely pulled it back.  Several other improvements were made to the basic operation, and these are given more attention below.

     The Uzi is so well-balanced and compact that one-handed fire is easily possible.  Three magazines sizes are generally available (based on magazines designed for Beretta submachinegun designs of the time, though not interchangeable); a 40-round magazine was also produced for a short time, but IMI soon found that the 40-round magazine produced a great deal of feed problems and it was withdrawn from service and production a short time later. There is also a device that allows two magazines to be clipped together in an L-shape is also available.  Operation of the Uzi is essentially blowback; however, Uziel Gal did not want to increase the weight of the Uzi by having to use a heavy bolt, which was the simplest way to reduce the cyclic rate of fire in a lightweight automatic weapon.  Instead, he used advanced primer ignition, the primer is “pre-ignited” by the firing pin milliseconds before the bolt actually comes completely forward, which slows the movement of the bolt enough to dramatically lower the cyclic rate of fire.  The Uzi fires from an open bolt.  The receiver of the Uzi has long ribs on the outside; these not only strengthen the receiver, but also correspond to grooves on the inside of the receiver.  These grooves aid in keeping the firing mechanism clean in dusty environments.  Construction of the Uzi is primarily of stamped steel, with a barrel length of 10.24 inches. Primary chambering for the Uzi is 9mm Parabellum, but a rare variant introduced in 1985 fires .45 ACP.  This chambering is quite rare, and only one capacity of magazine was built for it.  There is also a kit available that converts the Uzi to fire .22 Long Rifle ammunition.

     Today, it is not certain whether the Uzi or the MP-5 is the more common submachinegun, but the Uzi had over two decades lead on the MP-5, and almost any civilian on the streets knows what an Uzi is (even if they couldn’t identify it on sight); if nothing else, the (real-world) price of the Uzi is far less than that of the MP-5.  Uzis have been license-produced a great deal of countries for some time, and civilian semiautomatic carbine versions are built in even more countries.

     You may have noticed at some point (I noticed in the news footage of the attempted Reagan assassination in 1981) that one of the Secret Service agents had an Uzi, but the barrel looked too short.  It was too short, so to speak; the Secret Service wanted to use the folding-stock version of the Uzi to be carried by some members of VIP protection details, but it was too long to fit inside the average, ordinary-looking briefcase.  (As if you couldn’t spot a Secret Service agent straight off, and no one knew what was really inside those briefcases…)  Anyway, the Secret Service next went to the Mini-Uzi, but found it wasn’t controllable enough for their purposes.  Therefore, they chopped the barrel of a standard Uzi from its normal 10.24 inches to 8.75 inches, allowing it to fit inside a standard-size briefcase along with a couple of extra magazines.  The resulting weapon is also heavier than the Mini-Uzi and has the lower cyclic rate of the Uzi (making it more controllable), while having approximately the same length as a Mini-Uzi.

     The Mini-Uzi is a smaller version of the Uzi.  It was designed with bodyguards, police, and special operations personnel in mind.  Due to this small size, compensating ports are cut into the upper surface of the barrel to form a sort of muzzle brake.  The collapsible folding stock of the standard Uzi was replaced by a simple stock that folds under the weapon and allows the butt to double at a foregrip when it is folded.  The sights were redesigned to allow the shooter faster target acquisition.  The Mini-Uzi is available in versions that fire from a closed or open bolt.  It is small enough to be concealed under clothing, used with a shoulder holster, or fired from a specially-constructed briefcase.

     The Micro-Uzi is basically an Uzi submachinegun reduced to as small a size as possible.  The operation is the same as the larger weapons, but many of the parts are of tungsten alloy to make them heavier and stronger than they otherwise would be.  (This also keeps what would otherwise be a very light bolt from producing a runaway rate of fire.)  The stock folds sideways so that the butt can act as a foregrip when it is folded.  Like the standard Uzi, the Micro-Uzi can be found in .45 ACP; though a .45 ACP Micro Uzi is a bit easier to find than a .45 ACP Uzi, the .45 ACP Micro-Uzi is still a rather rare commodity.  A heavy bolt assembly is also available for the Mini-Uzi; using tungsten inserts, it adds enough weight to lower the cyclic rate of fire from 950 rpm to 750 rpm, making it more controllable.

     While the standard Micro-Uzi is often carried by Israeli military doctors, helicopter crews, and field-grade and general officers, the "Para" version of the Micro-Uzi is used only by certain Israeli counterterrorist and special operations units, usually by personnel who are rappelling or climbing or need a concealable weapon.  The Para Micro-Uzi has two Picatinny rails, one on top of the weapon, and one below the barrel.  These may mount any sort of sight that will fit on that type of rail, but most common is a reflex sight and a laser aiming module.  Most of these weapons are also equipped with a noise/flash suppressor, as much to combat the Micro-Uzi's high muzzle flash as to quiet the weapon.  The magazine well has been modified to take any sort of Micro-Uzi or Glock 9mmP magazine (as Glock pistols are often used in elite Israeli units). The cocking handle has been moved from its usual place on top of the receiver to the left side to allow for mounting of the Picatinny rail.  Finally, the front and rear iron sights are luminous. 

     The most common civilian semiautomatic carbine version uses a 16.25-inch barrel; it is license-produced by several countries worldwide.  These carbines are made in such a way that conversion to automatic fire capability is close to impossible – most notably, the parts necessary to allow automatic fire as well as their mountings are not present in the civilian carbines.  Civilian Uzi carbines typically fire from the closed bolt instead of an open bolt, something which produces better accuracy in a semiautomatic weapon.  Some use barrel jackets made to look like silencers; they don’t silence anything, but they reinforce the long length of exposed barrel and also look better. There are a few rare full-auto Uzi Carbines in existence; most of these were produced by IMI for export just before the 1968 Gun Control Act was enacted, with some other countries following suit; this severely limited the export market for full-auto Uzi Carbines, and IMI stopped making them.  Starting in the 1980s, kits became available to convert semiautomatic Uzis to full-auto, though sales these kits are also severely restricted in most countries.  In 1987, Action Arms in the US started making Uzi Carbines chambered for .45 ACP and .41 Action Express, along with a semiautomatic version of the Mini-Uzi (which has a 19.34” barrel in order to comply with BATF regulations concerning the allowable total length of civilian rifles).  Action Arms stopped making these Mini-Uzi versions due to ever-increasing US government regulation – Action Arms was using parts that were actually made by IMI, then assembling them in the US.

     Some other firms over the years have also manufactured fully automatic .22 Long Rifle conversions of the Uzi. Subgun Ordnance’s .22 Long Rifle Conversion kit, introduced in mid-2009, is an example of this.  In most countries, the ownership of automatic weapons by civilians is strictly regulated or completely illegal, but Subgun Ordnance’s conversion can also be used for inexpensive submachinegun training and by police agencies that can’t afford to worry about over-penetrating rounds (such as during a hostage situation).  Most such weapons are actually the result of conversions of semiautomatic versions, particularly carbines, with or without the barrels being cut back to standard Uzi length.  Most of these conversions require different kits if the Uzi being modified is a semiautomatic civilian version or a standard fully-automatic Uzi.  Virtually all have been designed for standard Uzi, as opposed to Mini-Uzis or Micro-Uzis.  The downside to .22 Long Rifle conversions is that most propellants used in .22 Long Rifle ammunition is dirtier than most ammunition and produced more fouling.

     Today, IMI makes several modernized Uzis.  When IMI workers refer to the Micro Uzi these days, they are referring to a weapon with a short MIL-STD-1913 rail under the barrel on a bolt, a different, more stable stock design, and a MIL-STD-1913 rail atop its receiver (with the cocking knob moved to the left side).  The barrel is threaded for use with a suppressor, and that barrel is 7.75 inches long.  The OB uses iron sights; the CB is identical, but has a ported barrel.  An SF version has the ITL MARS sight, but reduces the barrel to 5.9 inches,

     Twilight 2000 Notes: The Para Micro-Uzi does not exist in the Twilight 2000 timeline.