Ingram MAC-10

Military Armament Corporation · Submachine Gun · Discontinued · 1970

Also known as: M10, Ingram M10, MAC M10, Military Armament Corporation Model 10, MAC-10

Overview

The Ingram MAC-10 (officially designated Model 10, or M10) is an American compact, blowback-operated, select-fire submachine gun designed by Gordon B. Ingram in 1964 and put into series production by the Military Armament Corporation (MAC) of Powder Springs, Georgia, beginning in 1970. Chambered primarily in .45 ACP with a near-identical 9x19mm Parabellum variant, the MAC-10 is defined by extraordinarily compact dimensions, simple stamped-steel construction, and a blistering cyclic rate of roughly 1,090 rounds per minute capable of emptying a 30-round magazine in under two seconds. The action fires from an open bolt using a distinctive telescoping (wraparound) bolt that envelops the rear portion of the barrel, dramatically shortening the receiver. The weapon features a retractable wire stock, a threaded muzzle designed to accept the two-stage Sionics sound suppressor developed by Mitchell WerBell III, and a front handguard strap intended to stabilize the weapon during automatic fire. The MAC-10 was marketed aggressively to military and intelligence customers worldwide as a covert-operations weapon system, but a combination of poor controllability, limited effective range, and the inability to sell suppressed automatic weapons on the US civilian market under the 1968 Gun Control Act left MAC financially insolvent. The company went bankrupt in 1976, and the design subsequently passed through RPB Industries and SWD Inc., with the latter producing tens of thousands of semi-automatic 'pistol' variants that flooded the US civilian market through the 1980s. While the MAC-10 saw only limited formal military adoption, it achieved iconic status through ubiquitous appearances in 1970s and 1980s action films and through its close association with the South American drug cartel wars of the same era.

Specifications

Weight (empty)2840 g (100.2 oz)
Weight (loaded)3400 g (119.9 oz)
Overall Length548 mm (21.57")
Folded Length269 mm (10.59")
Barrel Length146 mm (5.75")
Height216 mm (8.50")
Width54 mm (2.13")
Sight Radius200 mm (7.87")
Action TypeBlowback
Firing MechanismOpen Bolt
Trigger TypeSelect Fire
Magazine Capacity30 rounds
Magazine TypeDetachable Box
Muzzle Velocity280 m/s (919 fps)
Muzzle Energy584 J (431 ft·lbf)
Effective Range50 m (55 yd)
Maximum Range100 m (109 yd)
Rate of Fire1090 rpm
Barrel RiflingRight Hand
Rifling Twist406 mm (15.98")
Number of Grooves6
Frame MaterialStamped Steel
Barrel MaterialSteel
Stock MaterialSteel
FinishParkerized

Calibers

Features

Variants

Service history

Operators

Conflicts

Production

Estimated total produced: 75,000 · Production years: 1970-1994

Military Armament Corporation produced approximately 10,000 select-fire M10 and M11 units between 1970 and 1976 before declaring bankruptcy. RPB Industries (1976-1982) and SWD / Cobray (1982-1994) continued production, manufacturing an estimated 50,000-70,000 additional MAC-pattern weapons -- overwhelmingly semi-automatic civilian 'pistol' variants built to circumvent National Firearms Act registration requirements. Semi-automatic production continues today under Masterpiece Arms, placing total cumulative production of MAC-pattern firearms well above 100,000 units when civilian clones are included.

Origin

Country of origin: United States

Designer: Gordon B. Ingram

Discontinued: 1986

Notes

The MAC-10's extreme cyclic rate -- frequently cited between 1,090 and 1,145 rpm in .45 ACP and up to 1,250 rpm in the 9mm variant -- was simultaneously its defining marketing feature and its most serious tactical flaw: the weapon was notoriously difficult to control, climbed heavily in automatic fire, and could not be meaningfully aimed once the trigger was pressed. The telescoping (wraparound) bolt, the weapon's key engineering innovation, wraps forward around the rear of the barrel and allows the receiver to be shorter than the bolt's travel distance. Mitchell WerBell III, a former OSS operative and founder of Sionics, designed the two-stage suppressor that was integral to the MAC-10's marketing concept; the suppressed M10 was among the quietest submachine gun systems of its era and was reported to be inaudible at distances of only a few dozen meters. The Military Armament Corporation filed for bankruptcy in 1976, and design rights passed successively to RPB Industries of Atlanta (1976-1982) and then to SWD Inc. / Cobray (Sylvia and Wayne Daniel, 1982-1994), both of which continued production of select-fire military versions and, more importantly, of semi-automatic 'pistol' versions lacking a stock. These civilian pistol variants sold in the tens of thousands and are responsible for the overwhelming majority of MAC-pattern weapons in circulation today. Foreign derivatives and clones include the Chilean FAMAE PAF, the South African BXP (inspired by but mechanically distinct), and the Argentine MSP. Semi-automatic production continues in the United States by Masterpiece Arms (MPA series). Dimensional figures given here correspond to the M10/.45: 548 mm overall length with stock extended, 269 mm with wire stock retracted.

Background

Designed by Gordon Ingram in 1964 and marketed by ex-OSS operative Mitchell WerBell III alongside his legendary Sionics suppressor, the MAC-10 combined the quietest submachine gun of its era with a cyclic rate of 1,090+ rpm capable of emptying its 30-round magazine in under two seconds -- critics joked it functioned less as a precision weapon than as a handheld shotgun firing pistol rounds. Military Armament Corporation went bankrupt in 1976, but the design refused to die: RPB and Cobray flooded the 1980s American civilian market with tens of thousands of semi-automatic 'pistol' variants, and the weapon's blocky silhouette became a fixture of cartel iconography and 1980s action cinema from 'Scarface' to 'Commando.'