PAWS ZX-7: An American Sterling in .45 ACP
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- Опубликовано: 25 авг 2024
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An American entrepreneur named Bob Imel found the Sterling SMG particularly interesting, and wanted to import them into the United States. He reached out to Sterling in 1967, but was unable to work out a deal before the 1968 Gun Control Act prohibited importation of machine guns. So instead, Imel decided to make them in the US. He tried to arrange a license with Sterling to do this, and finally gave up in the mid 1970s. Instead, he began making his own copy instead, under the company Police Automatic Weapons Systems (PAWS). Imel made a number of simplifications to the design, and also offered it in .45ACP (as the ZX-7, using M3 Grease Gun magazines) as well as 9mm Parabellum ( as the ZX-5, with variations using several different magazines, including Sten and Uzi).
Imel's work was again cut short in 1986, when the Hughes Amendment closed the machine gun registry in the US. He again shifted, this time to closed-bolt semiauto models (the ZX-6 in 9mm and the ZX-8 in .45). In total, he made about 1200 guns; 400 transferrable machine guns, 300 machine guns for export and police sales, and 500 semi autos.
Today, we are looking at the very first ZX-7 made...
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An E11 blaster in .45 My unobtanium list grows ever longer.
xD, exactly what I though!
We are the last men to think like this
If the E11 were made by Fudds.
Glad someone else saw it.
I’m disappointed that the Tiny Sten won’t be going out to the range tomorrow.😢😢
I feel ya there ... maybe we can petition and appeal to the owner haha
Yeah I really wanted to see that thing fire! 🤔
agreed. criminal.
I bet it's got a pretty high rate of fire!
@@chemistryofquestionablequa6252 8 rounds per minute lol
“Normally on a Sterling grip…”. I was sure Ian was going to just whip a Sterling out for comparison.
He does tend to do that kind of thing doesn't he?
i love how the name sounds so futuristic but the actual gun itself is just a copy of sterling smg
It sounds like the name of a gun in an 80s scifi film that took place in the early 2000s
Ye
@@maxpulido4268 ye xd
What do you mean it's not futuristic?! It was good enough for Stormtroopers, and they have some of the most advanced weapons in the galaxy! XD
@@MobiuSphere and yet they still can't hit shit...
Ah yes... the revered firearm of the Paw Patrol.
I did feel like having the police dog mag dump an unarmed pit bull was a little unnecessary and over the top
@@shoelessbandit1581 Chase gave the pitbull every opportunity to drop that toddler, but they both knew he wasn't going back to Rikers Pound alive
@@motog6436 but did he have to mag dump with a sterling?
Paw Patrol!
Paw Patrol!
Whenever you're in trouble...
(Yes, I'm a dad whose head is filled with this and other cartoon themes, apparently forever)
Lol
My buddy had a semi auto model in the late 80s early 90s in 9mm. That thing was fun. In the mid 90s these were advertised in a police magazine when I was a rookie cop. I should've picked one up.
It will always be a (Star Wars) stormtrooper gun to me. Heh. Cheers for the vid.
Me too. After having built a Stormtrooper blaster replica 16 years ago, the details of the Sterling are intimately familiar to me. I could point out multiple differences in bevels, patterns and and knurling on this one from the British SMG.
Has anyone actually hit anything with it?
1956 lazer gun.
Lol! Children of the classic Star Wars agree! 👍🏻
Maybe, just maybe, if the E11 was based off of this then Stormtroopers might have been able to hit their targets...probably not though...lol.
how in the world could Sterling so completely drop the ball on this opportunity
Because it would be a lot of bother for a tiny market. Sterling were selling to armies, not police forces or hobbyists.
@@JohnHughesChampigny the uk police had semi auto versions of the 9mm Sterling.
@@viking1236 There was a tiny little stubby pistol model - the Mk 7. It looks odd, like a bullpup pistol, because the receiver extends back from the handgrip.
@@JohnHughesChampigny
Licensing wouldn't hurt them.
@JohnHughes: and yet, Sterling was bankrupt a decade later.
Perfectly Anglo-American: quintessentially British SMG in a quintessentially American cartridge
Brumurica
The only way to match that would be if the British had decided to make Thompsons in .38-200.
@@Matt_The_Hugenot Surely you mean .454 Webley? :P
@@MrGrimsmith I would have said a Webley cartridge but they switched cartridges in in the early 30s. Also a prototype Owen was built in .38-200, the Webley's larger rim would have made the curvature of the mag somewhat aggressive.
@@MrGrimsmith Why not .455 auto?
"Isn't your hair too long for a Stormtrooper?"
/Sorry, I couldn't resist.
LOL. I wonder how many Sterlings were converted to props...
@@xoxo2008oxox a great many, people were not nearly as nostalgic back then. Reminds me of the Dukes of Hazzard; they would destroy a beautiful Dodge Charger almost every week during filming
@@shinobi-no-bueno To be fair, there were a lot more of those cars back then.
@@thunderK5 exactly, We hit a weird pocket of missing what we had that I don't think will ever be repeated. Although maybe it isn't that strange seeing as that was sort of the switch to the computer age and it makes sense to miss an age gone by, similar to people being nuts for cowboys once cars became commonplace
I am glad he was able to continue making semi autos in 45 acp with 16" barrels. I would love to have one today.
You and me both!! 🤠👍
"This camera angle is making the magazine look longer than it really is."
Noted for future use.
😁
Imagine how much quieter a Mk6 suppressed version would've been
It should be noted the .45 is probably closer in performance suppressed to how it is unsuppressed since you need different subsonic ammo for a suppressed 9mm
Well.. blowback open bolt .45 doesn't sound very quiet.. definitely not modern delisle. It does sound awkward and nose heavy though.
That's fair
The phrase 'simplified' and 'sterling' together can only conjure the image of a slingshot and a bag of slugs.
Thanks for doing this. I was trained on the Sterling in the 1980’s in the Canadian Navy. It was a fun trip down memory lane.
That's cool.
I remember watching the Canadian movie Defcon 4.
In one scene, Sterling SMG's were visible.
This and the C1 always bring back lots of memories for me.
I have happy memories of the 9mm Sterling being cleaned in my grandfather's house when I was a child, he was a B Special here in Northern Ireland and was permitted "weapons out" due to the threat against his life at certain times.
That doesn't sound like a happy memory.
@@cubeflinger lmao
@@ethansemeraro5502cope
I knew Bob Emil! We called him "crazy bob"! As a C2 manufacturer he had all kinds of projects going on in his shop. A friend owns a one digit ser. no. ZX7 in 9mm, FA.
As Canadian aircraft technicians in Cold War Germany we were issued the 9mm Sterlings. Lots of fun at the annual range qualification.
That is obviously the DC15s blaster carbine with extra vents on the barrel shroud and the stock attachment.
Edit: I am still surprised the kept the retro weapons design language in the cg models for the AotC and made it even more sterling like in TCW
No, that`s the E-11.
The DC-15 versions were based on Star Wars guns from the original trilogy, which in turn had been built from real weapons with T-tracks covering the holes in the barrel shrouds. The DC-15 barrels were based on the Sterling / "E-11 Stormtrooper rifle", but the receiver was based on the MG-34 / "DLT-19 Heavy Blaster Rifle".
On the long DC-15 rifle, the "E-11" part is actually upside-down, with the scope as a grip, fire-control group as a scope and folding-stock as front sight ...
E-11
It's an E11, not a DC15s
I, honestly, thought that Ian switched to forgotten computers, when I saw ZX abbreviation in the name.
The last time I was this early, Ian’s G3 was still right-handed.
One of the best features of the Sterling was the magazine.......a shame to ditch it in favour of the .45 but, in this context, completely understandable. The Sten mags themselves were not reliable in various theaters, hence the Pratchett magazine for the Sterling.
How did DiscWorld get hold of this technology. I thought the Assassins Guild frowned on the use of gonnes as lacking finesse. "Nil Mortifi Sine Lucre"! Duke Vimes will also be quite peeved.
Patchett, not Prachett.
@@gwtpictgwtpict4214 Dear lord, the ignominy of one single typo.
@@MercutioUK2006 Yes, but it opened up such rich vistas, how could one resist it?
@@TheArgieH A fair point. Good old Terry :)
I'll be honest, I was half-expecting a surprise Stemple somewhere involved in all this...
A Sterling in 0.45 ACP sounds awesome.
I wonder if this could make a comeback through the Stemple Gun. Might not be the most practical, but it does look like a fun thing to take out to the range and blast at some paper and metal targets.
How would that be possible? The Stemple has the magazine well on the bottom of the receiver.
@@oktayyildirim2911 You'd be surprised at how crafty gunsmiths can be when properly motivated.
@@enricopaolocoronado2511 That was a question. How would that be possible?
@@oktayyildirim2911 Tilting the feed system to the side would be a start.
@@enricopaolocoronado2511 How? If you turn the receiver 90 degrees, the sear hole is no longer on the bottom.
I just saw Chris from MarksmanTV give you a shoutout on his latest YT video. (100k subscribers)
You helped a brother out 7 or 8 years ago when he was just getting started. No surprise, Ian... you are a legend.
Also - For anyone that like Forgotten Weapons... I highly recommend Chris' channel
The stock lock seems like the perfect place to incur horrible finger injuries.
I just found this listed in the Morphy catalog... Oh! They have a Swedish K too, hope to see that out at the range.
If you are in full 'Sterling' mode, you need to see if you can lay hands on one of the gold plated presentation models. Sterling made some to give to 'good customers'.
I think there were some shiny chrome versions in League of the Extraordinary Gentlemen.
They were embellished STENs in LXG
So hard to see this weapon and not think “Star Wars” lol.....very cool artifact.
It was the first thing that came to my mind
I can't get over how much this looks like the E-11 Stormtrooper blaster lol
Same thought when I first saw the thumbnail lol
Is the locking catch a “Pain in the Buttstock”
I see what you did there ;)
So what I am getting is the guy who made these was a man of focus, commitment, and sheer will.
We just had the civilian one pass through where I work. Definitely an interesting piece.
I believe Bob Imel is still around and lives in the outskirts of Salem, Oregon. He did several gunsmithing work including building my FAL parts kit build and also rebarreled my M1 Garand. He still had several transferable back in the mid 2000s when I last talked to him.
Thanks great looking piece, on the Sterling.Was used in Malaysia in the Emergency and Confrontation .
This video is so good I didn't PAWS it once.
Gg
Oh you just had to…LONG MAN BAD.
Dad Joke Award winner 🏆.
GROAN!
It makes me happy that Rags watches the same content as me. Good stuff
It's beautiful! I hope we get to see it on the range! 😍😍😍
I have lived in Salem Oregon since 1986, and had never heard of this gun.
The British dithering?! Well I never old chap!
I used to have a Sterling SMG as my personal weapon in the mid 80's. Lovely piece of kit, easy to clean and didn't foul up in cam nets like to SLR (FAL)
Can’t say he improved any aspect of one of the finest sub-guns ever built, the Sterling MK-IV. . If you want to move massive amounts of .45 down range, just get a Powder Springs MAC-10-45, they are awesome.
Thanks Ian, looking forward to the shooting segment! Take the tiny Sten too!!!
IIRC one aspect that took a sterling from average to good - was the excellence of the magazine. I wonder how much of an impediment to this being a good gun was challenged by mag choice/design.
I still look on Sterling as a neat low cost weapon, under rated.
So cool! I'd love to have something like this! I've always loved the Sterling's as well as the sten.
I remember seeing an article about these in the old FIREPOWER magazine. I really miss those days.
Producing these unique British guns in the US was really cool idea.
I would love to see the rate of fire on this 45 version
It looks very nicely made. As an old time user of the Sterling in 9mm, I'd love to have a go on one of these.
Hey Ian, I would love a video talking about the challenges and considerations of re-boring and putting a sleeve into a barrel.
I think others would find this interesting too
You’re fantastic at being able to convey and cover a broad concept and make it fascinating as well as understandable.
I know you work extremely hard but you also seem to have a real knack for it.
It's a fairly simple process to install them. The more tedious detail work of making it look good and getting extractor cuts redone and chambers recut is still not a difficult concept to explain to people that have a knack for such things.
Very cool...I'll wait with anticipation for part 2...
Nice work.
Same thing with 6.5mm.
And and alloy bolt.
+ Upto 2 more 6" quick fit barrel extensions.
From the original 6".
- 6" , 12" ,18"
- barrels alloy heat sink extrusion with lip lock ceramic carbonfiber sleeve.
he seems to have made things more complicated instead of simpler
the last time i was so early, the dutch military still wanted to adopt luger pistols.
Thank you , Ian .
Gun designer: I want to give you money you need do nothing be let me look at your design
Sterling: No I'm sorry we are stupid so the answer is no
Gun Designer: Ok fine < makes gun anyway >
Yet another cool weapon that legistlation declared "too dangerous"
So simple yet awesome
You call it the American sterling. We call it the E11. We are not. The same
I mean you're right it's literally the gun without the weird scope
Liberals call it an anti-aircraft assault weapon
@@Fister_of_Muppets Fully semi automatic armor piercing concealable military assault gun
Move along, move along…
Disney is evil
Salem! Just up the road! I've never heard of this manufacturer.
I was expecting a surprise video of Ian shooting the .32 ACP mini Sten. I'm disappointed.
Staying tuned.
I had resently the (doubtfull) pleasure to watch a classic movie called "Buckaroo Banzai" (so bonkers, that it fits the category "so bad, it's good"). With Peter "Robocop" Weller, Christopher "Back to future" Lloyd and John Lithgow...a lot of good actors for a movie that strange.
And they maybe used a ZX-7 in it. In a fighting scene one of the actors wielded a SMG that looked like a Sterling, but with a straight magazine in a 90° well. And according to the low budget of the movie, they would not had used a Sterling. It might had been this baby here. The movie had space ships and aliens and an E11 Blaster in .45. (Or maybe a 9mm version, because .45 blank fireing guns in full auto are very very rare in movie history. Don't know, if they had solved the problem yet, but even some years ago it was not common to have a good cycling blank fireing .45. prop gun. They used the 9mm versions, even and especially movie Colt 1911's have the tendency not to cycle with blanks, even if they manipulated the barrels. So nearly every movie .45 is a 9mm in real live, or an airsoft or fired in after effects.
I saw ZX-7 and for a second though Ian had gotten into motorcycles 🤣
I personally prefer the videos about models that were part of the evolution of guns into their modern form, but even so, being able to say you have the first production weapon to come off the line would be pretty cool.
I had no idea and I've lived in Salem since '78.
Oh No Ian, thank YOU for showing us!
An amazingly fun gun to shoot, the Sterling.
The E11 WAS manufactured by other companies.
I thought a ZX-7 would be more green... and have a pair of wheels.
0:26 I like how the finish looks like an old dumpster
Oh boy!! Can not wait until tomorrow!!!
Great work Ian thank u
Now I know where the E-11 Blaster got it's inspiration from
Anybody watch Mr. Inbetween? Such a good underrated show and features a cool scene with a Sterling.
Semi Auto Sterlings were actually highly popular in Detroit although that batch of barrels could bend easily
Is that a RoboCop reference?
@@GRHrivnak ID BUY THAT FOR A DOLLAR! Too bad it’s probably like 10,000+ of those said dollars
In a Small Arms Review article from 2014, Imel is quoted as saying that he is still manufacturing the guns.
I think Ian got this one wrong. It was developed by the galactic empire and manufactured in a special plant on Corecaunt
You can't fool me, that's a Star War.
Yes, I’ll be back tomorrow!
Imagine one of these in .455 Webley. No particular reason, it'd just be unique.
I cant unsee the Stormtrooper E-11 Blaster XD
We need to bring these back after getting rid of the Hughes amendment and the NFA.
For those asking about why he wasn't sued, by 1977 the patent probably ran out and I don't even know if Steeling would have even been making them at that point. Sterling's were first issued in WW2, you'll find pictures of British paratroopers with them in Arnhem but they aren't properly adopted until 1953. UK patents are for 20 years and by the time he starts making them in 1977 it's pretty hard to claim your tube type submachine gun is protected by patent in an American court, Sterling at that point may not have even registered for a US patent.
This is something I never thought I would see the States to adapt into our pistol round.
this is the US made Sterling Sub machine gun
In 1985 I purchased one of his PAWS M16 registered lower receivers for $500
Oh my the frost smg
I have a mighty, mighty need.
I kinda want to see someone bring these back.
PAWS ZX-7 🐕who's the goodest little sub-machine gun out there!
Mannnn this looks like just like an E-11, I want one so bad! 😩
0:23 Oh did you say it was a CLONE of a gun, Ian??? 👀
so that's how Lucas get his idea for the Storm trooper's blaster
A sterling example of form following function.
You better do a range video with that!
Yet ANOTHER dream Unicorn firearm to add to my wish collection damnit!!!!!!!
Can't wait for the live fire Ian!
I served in an armoured regiment in the British army in the mid 80's and every single SMG I handled was flat back, not a crinkle in sight. Was crinkle finish just a civvi thing, it certainly wasn't a British Army thing as far as I'm aware.
@blahblahblah blah Maybe I was just issued with old kit, that wouldn't be a surprise, I would say though that the SMG was pretty reliable, never had a stoppage in one or a failure to feed.
@blahblahblah blah Sounds about right, if it was in 92 it may have been my lot
He have you guys seen what look like cut down Sterlings (like handgun size blaster pistols) in 7.62x25 on gun broker? They look cool and impractical.
This vaguely looks like a stormtrooper blaster from Star Wars.
I like this quirky contraption