Menz Menta 6.35mm
August Menz · Pistol · Discontinued · 1913
Also known as: Menz Taschenpistole, Menta 6,35
Overview
The Menz Menta 6.35mm is a compact German blowback-operated, striker-fired semi-automatic pocket pistol chambered in .25 ACP (6.35mm Browning). Introduced by August Menz of Suhl around 1913, its name derives from Menz Taschenpistole (Menz pocket pistol). It features a fixed barrel pinned to the frame, an open-top slide, and a six-round detachable box magazine, and was a popular civilian self-defense arm in the interwar period. A larger 7.65mm (.32 ACP) variant, related to the Beholla design, saw German military use during World War I.
Specifications
| Weight (empty) | 380 g (13.4 oz) |
| Overall Length | 119 mm (4.69") |
| Barrel Length | 63.5 mm (2.50") |
| Height | 82 mm (3.23") |
| Width | 25.3 mm (1.00") |
| Action Type | Blowback |
| Firing Mechanism | Striker Fired |
| Trigger Type | Single Stage |
| Magazine Capacity | 6 rounds |
| Magazine Type | Detachable Box |
| Effective Range | 25 m (27 yd) |
| Barrel Rifling | Right Hand |
| Frame Material | Steel |
| Slide Material | Steel |
| Barrel Material | Steel |
| Finish | Blued |
Calibers
- .25 ACP · primary — also known as 6.35x16mm Browning, 6.35mm Browning, .25 Auto
Features
- Firing modes: Semi Automatic
- Feed systems: Detachable Box Magazine
- Safety mechanisms: Manual Safety
- Features: Fixed Barrel, Open Top Slide, Striker Fired, Concealed Hammerless
Production
Production years: 1913-1937
Interwar commercial pocket-pistol production; exact figures not recorded
Origin
Country of origin: Germany
Designer: August Menz
Notes
Early slides were marked "DEUTSCHE SELBSTLADE-PISTOLE 'MENTA' CAL.6.35"; later production was simplified to "'MENTA' 6,35" or "'MENZ' 6,35". Grips were checkered horn on early guns and wood with an "AM" monogram on later ones.
Background
The name Menta is a contraction of Menz Taschenpistole - literally 'Menz pocket pistol' - and was August Menz's first self-loading design; the same basic mechanism, scaled up to 7.65mm, became the Beholla-family service pistol carried by German officers in World War I.