In 1943 against the orders of Hitler the Germans pursued the manufacture and fielding of a new small arm chambered in 8mm Kurz. Hitler opposed the new weapons because huge stocks of 8mm Mauser and Mauser 98 rifles seemed good enough for him. Infuriated when he learned his orders were ignored he considered retribution but after receiving first hand reports of this wonderful wonder weapon that swept the Russians off the field, he became a convert to the philosophy behind this new weapon, legend is he dubbed the new gun the Sturmgewehr. These interesting guns ceased to be made with the end of the war but were passed out around the world for ages, some even turning up in the fracas in Iraq.
For the average American gun owner these are out of reach however ATI is now making a semi auto copy that copies the details pretty well. This .22 even has the heft of an original, just falling one pound short. Beautifully made it comes packed in a hand made crate, crafted by Amish workmen. Accurate and reliable I had a good time with this shooting at empty 2 liter pop bottles in my back yard yesterday afternoon. Thank goodness I laid in a good supply of .22 bricks before the most recent panic. Unfortunately they only come with one 24 round magazine, spares are supposedly coming, but with the current situation... who knows. Rather expensive for a .22 it is nevertheless much more affordable than an original and a lot of fun. I give it two thumbs up. :cheers:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/StG_44
http://www.shotgunnews.com/2012/11/08/s ... 44-review/
...I've got enough .22 stashed that I'd be able to play for a while with one of those... 
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