Menz Liliput Model 1927
Waffenfabrik August Menz · Pistol · Discontinued · 1927
Also known as: Menz Liliput 7.65mm, Liliput Modell 1927
Overview
The Menz Liliput Model 1927 is a German compact blowback-operated semi-automatic pocket pistol built by Waffenfabrik August Menz of Suhl. It is the larger 7.65mm (.32 ACP) member of the Liliput family, chambered up from the earlier 4.25mm and 6.35mm pocket pistols, feeding from a seven-round detachable box magazine and firing from a striker-fired action. Marketed for concealed personal defence, it retained the slim, easily pocketed profile that made the Liliput line popular in interwar Germany.
Specifications
| Weight (empty) | 500 g (17.6 oz) |
| Overall Length | 127 mm (5.00") |
| Barrel Length | 67 mm (2.64") |
| Height | 90 mm (3.54") |
| Width | 23.5 mm (0.93") |
| Action Type | Blowback |
| Firing Mechanism | Striker Fired |
| Trigger Type | Single Action |
| Magazine Capacity | 7 rounds |
| Magazine Type | Detachable Box |
| Effective Range | 25 m (27 yd) |
| Barrel Rifling | Right Hand |
| Number of Grooves | 6 |
| Frame Material | Steel |
| Slide Material | Steel |
| Barrel Material | Steel |
| Stock Material | Hard Rubber |
| Finish | Blued |
Calibers
- .32 ACP · primary — also known as .32 Automatic, 7.65x17mm Browning SR, 7.65mm Browning
Features
- Firing modes: Semi Automatic
- Feed systems: Detachable Box Magazine
- Safety mechanisms: Manual Safety
- Features: Compact, Concealed Striker, Fixed Sights
Service history
Operators
- Civilian market
Production
Production years: 1927-1937
Commercial pocket-pistol production; exact totals not recorded
Origin
Country of origin: Germany
Discontinued: 1937
Notes
Menz nomenclature is inconsistent across sources; the 7.65mm Liliput-pattern pistol is variously catalogued as the Model 1927. Production ceased in the late 1930s as the August Menz firm was absorbed into other Suhl gunmaking concerns.
Background
The Liliput name nodded to the tiny inhabitants of Jonathan Swift's fictional island of Lilliput — fitting for a family that began with the 4.25mm, one of the smallest self-loading pistols ever sold, before Menz scaled the design up to the pocketable .32 ACP Model 1927.