The TZ-45 was an Italian blowback-operated submachine gun produced between 1944 and 1945, with an estimated 6,000 made.
8-663: The TZ-45 submachine gun was designed by two Italians; Tonon, a lieutenant colonel in the National Republican Army whose first name remains unknown and Aldo Zorzoli, a gunsmith, and was produced by the Giandoso company. The vast majority of the estimated 6000 TZ 45s produced were issued to R.S.I. (Repubblica Sociale Italiana ) units fighting against Italian partisan forces during the civil war in Northern Italy (1944–45). A few TZ-45 were possibly used by
16-486: A Lieutenant Colonel or a Colonel by their first names when mentioning them, e.g "Colonel Tim will be at the parade". In the United States Air Force, the term 'light bird' or 'light bird colonel' (as opposed to a 'full bird colonel') is an acceptable casual reference to the rank but is never used directly towards the rank holder. A lieutenant colonel is typically in charge of a battalion or regiment in
24-691: The Wehrmacht forces engaged in similar operations. After the war, the remaining guns were given to the military of the British and the American forces where they were evaluated. The general opinion was unfavorable due to the style of manufacturing and finish. The projects and manufacturing rights for the gun were later sold to the Burmese army where it was manufactured as the BA-52 and colloquially known as
32-532: The " Ne Win STEN ". The Burmese copies were roughly manufactured and unreliable. The weapon remained in service into the mid-1980s with the Burmese infantry and into the early 1990s with support troops. The TZ-45 was manufactured by a stamped process and was then welded together with a simple finish applied. The blowback-operation was similar to other submachine guns at the time, though the return spring differed as it
40-474: The Danish Madsen M50 . Lieutenant colonel Lieutenant colonel ( UK : / l ɛ f ˈ t ɛ n ən t ˈ k ɜːr n əl / lef- TEN -ənt KUR -nəl , US : / l uː ˈ t ɛ n -/ loo- TEN - ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies , most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel . Several police forces in
48-535: The United States use the rank of lieutenant colonel . The rank of lieutenant colonel is often shortened to simply "colonel" in conversation and in unofficial correspondence. Sometimes, the term 'half-colonel' is used in casual conversation in the British Army. Additionally, in the U.S. Army 'light colonel' has been used informally in the past. In the British military, it is customary to refer to either
56-523: The direction of cocking or firing unless properly held, And a pin wedged in a specially designed notch in the bolt, preventing it from rolling back in case of accidental shock. Accidental discharges were a common occurrence in similar submachine guns such as the Sten gun and M3 . However, the double safety system the TZ-45 utilized proved to be a breakthrough which would inspire later submachine guns, such as
64-420: Was assembled around a telescoping guide rod. A muzzle brake was fitted to the firearm, and the shoulder stock of the weapon was formed out of steel rods that slid alongside the receiver when retracted. Safety mechanisms for the gun included a fire selector that has a safe position that locks the bolt in the forward or rearward position, a grip safety behind the magazine housing preventing the bolt from moving in
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