High Standard HDM
| High Standard HDM | |
|---|---|
| general information | |
| Country of operation: | United States |
| Developer / Manufacturer: | High Standard Manufacturing Corporation |
| Manufacturer country: | United States |
| Production time: | since 1944 |
| Weapon Category: | gun |
| Furnishing | |
| Overall length: | approx. 360 mm |
| Total height: | 127 mm |
| Weight: (unloaded) | 1.36 kg |
| Barrel length : | 171 mm |
| Technical specifications | |
| Caliber : | .22 lfB |
| Possible magazine fillings : | 10 cartridges |
| Ammunition supply : | Bar magazine |
| Fire types: | Semi-automatic |
| Visor : | Open sights |
| Closure : | Mass closure |
| Charging principle: | Recoil loader |
| Lists on the subject | |
The High Standard HDM ( M ilitary ) is a silenced small-caliber pistol, mainly by the CIA was used. It gained a certain fame after the U-2 -Pilot Powers was shot down by the Soviet air defense in 1960. It is a recoil loader with a bulk bolt in .22 lfB caliber .
development
The history of this weapon began in World War II when the CIA's forerunner, the Office of Strategic Services (OSS), needed a silenced pistol to arm its agents. Bell engineers modified various small bore pistols, mostly Colt and High Standard sport pistols . The OSS finally decided on a correspondingly modified High Standard HD and commissioned the High Standard Manufacturing Corporation with the production of several thousand weapons. The official name was "model HDM", but the weapons were often simply called "OSS pistols".
construction
The High Standard HDM works on the principle of the recoil charger with a ground lock. The barrel is fixed and firmly connected to the frame, which also forms the handle. The safety device that acts on the slide and the trigger is attached to the left-hand side of the handle . The slide houses the firing pin, extractor and recoil spring.
The single-row magazine is made of sheet metal and has a capacity of 10 cartridges. It is interchangeable with the magazine of the Colt Woodsman . The magazine release button is attached to the bottom of the handle.
The pistol has an adjustable open sight.
The initial speed is v o = 335 m / s, according to other information 329 m / s.
silencer
The barrel of the weapon is pierced (with 44 holes in four rows of 11 holes each) and tightly wrapped with a 20-mesh bronze wire mesh . The muffler is screwed onto it, which protrudes several centimeters above the muzzle. Between the barrel and silencer muzzle, 110 gauze disks made of tinned bronze wire with a mesh count of 30 mesh (30 meshes per square inch) are attached as damper inserts, which are clamped against the barrel muzzle with a fine-thread nut. Due to the perforated barrel, the bullet speed is lowered into the subsonic range and the overall construction is said to have reduced the firing bang by 22 dB compared to an undamped HD . As a result, the weapon was not completely silent, but it was enough to not be able to locate the position of the shooter.
commitment
During World War II, OSS agents were used with this weapon. CIA agents and special forces also used this pistol in covert operations during the Korean and Vietnam War .
When Francis Powers was shot down on a spy flight over the Soviet Union, it came to light that the "model HDM" was given to pilots as a self-defense weapon. Powers survived the kill and was captured. His equipment, wreckage and the pistol with the serial number 120046 were presented to the international public.
literature
- Wolfgang Schreyer: The pirate chronicle . Congress, Berlin 1962.
Web links
- Maxim Popenker: High Standard (Hi-Standard) HDM OSS silenced pistol (USA). Retrieved March 25, 2018 .
- Peter G. Kokalis: OSS Silenced Pistol. (Pdf) In: The Small Arms Review Vol. 5 No. August 11 , 2002, pp. 19-23 , accessed on March 25, 2018 (English).
- Photo of Powers' equipment. (Pdf) Retrieved January 16, 2011 .
- Manufacturer website
- Parts list
Individual evidence
- ↑ High Standard HD Military Pistol . In: visor . No. 3 , 1977, pp. 24 .
- ↑ Chris Eger: The High Standard HD 22 Pistol. Dirty deeds, done dirt cheap. February 21, 2013, accessed March 25, 2018 .