Frommer 29M
Fémáru-, Fegyver és Gépgyár (FÉG) · Pistol · Discontinued · 1929
Also known as: Pisztoly 29M, 29.M, Frommer Stop 29M, FÉG 29M, Model 1929
Overview
The Frommer 29M (Pisztoly 29M) is a Hungarian service pistol designed by Rudolf Frommer and built by Fémáru-, Fegyver és Gépgyár (FÉG) in Budapest, adopted by the Hungarian Army and Air Force in 1929 in .380 ACP (9x17 Browning Short). Unlike Frommer's earlier locked-breech designs, it is a simple blowback pistol with a stationary barrel and an unusual separate breech block inserted into the slide. It uses a single-action exposed hammer and an automatic grip safety, with about 50,000 produced before 1937.
Specifications
| Weight (empty) | 750 g (26.5 oz) |
| Overall Length | 172 mm (6.77") |
| Barrel Length | 100 mm (3.94") |
| Action Type | Blowback |
| Firing Mechanism | Hammer Fired |
| Trigger Type | Single Action |
| Magazine Capacity | 7 rounds |
| Magazine Type | Detachable Box |
| Frame Material | Steel |
| Slide Material | Steel |
| Barrel Material | Steel |
| Stock Material | Wood |
| Finish | Blued |
Calibers
- 380 ACP · primary — also known as 9x17mm, 9mm Browning Short, 9mm Kurz, 9mm Corto
Features
- Firing modes: Semi Automatic
- Feed systems: Detachable Box Magazine
- Safety mechanisms: Grip Safety
- Features: Automatic Grip Safety, Exposed Hammer, Separate Breech Block, External Slide Stop, Heel Magazine Release, Four Lug Stationary Barrel
Service history
Operators
- Royal Hungarian Army (Honvédség) · adopted 1929 · as 29M
Conflicts
- World War II (1939-1945)
Production
Estimated total produced: 50,000 · Production years: 1929-1937
Roughly 50,000 manufactured at FÉG in Budapest before being superseded by the 37M
Origin
Country of origin: Hungary
Designer: Rudolf Frommer
Discontinued: 1937
Notes
The 29M was created to replace the over-complicated and expensive Frommer Stop, simplifying its long-recoil rotating-bolt action to plain blowback. It was in turn superseded by the improved Femaru/Frommer 37M (adopted 1937). Ballistics, rifling, sight radius and exact dimensions beyond length were not source-attested for this specific model and are left null.
Background
Rudolf Frommer spent decades engineering elaborate locked-breech mechanisms for cartridges that never needed them, so the 29M is almost an admission that his famous Frommer Stop was over-built. Collectors prize it for its oddball separate-breech-block trick that lets the whole bolt drop out of the slide.