CODE – 02-113-011

NAME – B&T APC9K

COMMON NAMES – Sub Compact Weapon (US Army)

COUNTRY OF ORIGIN – Switzerland

DATE OF MANUFACTURE – 2011

CALIBER – 9x19mm

OVERALL LENGTH – 37.8 cm (14.88 in) Stock folded, 59.7 cm (23.5 in) Stock extended

OVERALL LENGTHWITH SUPPRESSOR MOUNTED – 45.4 cm (17.87 in) Stock folded, 67.3 cm (26.5 in) Stock extended

BARREL LENGTH – 17.5 cm (6.89 in)

SUPPRESSOR LENGTH – 10.9 cm (4.29 in)

SUPPRESSOR DIAMETER – 4 cm (1.57 in)

RIFLING (TYPE & TWIST) – 1 turn in 25.4 cm (10 in)

BULLET DIAMETER – 9.03 mm (0.355 in)

BULLET WEIGHT – 7.26 g (112 gr) M882 Ball

MUZZLE VELOCITY – 385 m/s (1263 fps)

MUZZLE ENERGY – 538 j (397 ft/lb)

WEIGHT (EMPTY) – 2.45 kg (5 lb 6 oz)

FRONT GRIP WEIGHT – 0.90 kg (3.2 oz)

WEIGHT (LOADED) – 1.33 kg (2 lb 14.9 oz) with 30 rounds

WEIGHT (LOADED) – 2.314 kg (5 lb 1.6 oz) with Aimpoint Micro TL sight, Front grip, 30 rounds

WEIGHT (LOADED) WITH SUPPRESSOR – 2.70 kg (5 lb 15 oz) with Aimpoint sight, front grip, 30 rounds, Suppressor

SUPPRESSOR WEIGHT – .388 kg (13.7 oz)

SUPPRESSOR MOUNTING – 3-lug quick mount and thread

SUPPRESSOR OPERATION – Expansion chamber with multiple baffle stack

SUPPRESSOR DECIBLE REDUCTION – 14 db down from 159 db

SIGHTS – Integral top-mounted Picatinny rail, Aimpoint Micro TL, Emergency flip-up iron sights, Front-Blade, Rear peep

SIGHT WEIGHT – 0.084 kg

EFFECTIVE RANGE – 50 m (55 yds)

OPERATION – Blowback, fires from closed bolt

TYPE OF FIRE – Select fire, semi and full automatic

RATE OF FIRE – 40 rpm Semi, 90 rpm Full

CYCLIC ROF – 1080 rpm

FEED DEVICE – 15 & 30 round translucent polymer magazines, double column, double feed

FEED DEVICE WEIGHT (EMPTY) – 15-round – 0.062 kg (2.2 oz), 30-round – 0.081 kg (2.9 oz)

FEED DEVICE WEIGHT (LOADED) – 15-round – 0.24 kg (8.5 oz), 30-round – 0.43 kg (15.2 oz)

BASIC LOAD – 1-15 round magazine, 2 – 30 round magazines (75 rounds)

LOAD WT – 1.1 kg (2 lb 6.8 oz)

MANUFACTURER – B&T, Thun, Switzerland

STATUS – In Production

SERVICE – Austrian EKO Cobra Counterterrorism unit, US Military Personal Security Details

     The B&T Company was established in Switzerland in 1991 by Karl Brügger and Heinrich Thomet. Originally, they were a manufacturer of firearms parts and accessories but have expanded into manufacturing complete firearms in the last decade. The B&T Company is known for their precision and craftsmanship when it comes to any of their products. That reputation extends into their firearms and has resulted in one of their weapons having been adopted by the US Army as a new compact submachinegun for personal security details.

      Designed to meet a request from the Austrian EKO Counterterrorism unit, the APC9K (Automatic Police Carbine, 9mm, Kurtz [short]) is a straight blowback design hammer fired from a closed bolt for maximum first-round accuracy. All aspects of the weapon are of maximum precision combined with ultra-modern manufacturing techniques. The receiver is an aluminum extrusion for strength with minimum weight. A number of the other components are made of specialized plastic materials for both weight and strength as well as minimizing corrosion. The finish of the machining of internal and external components are of a very high quality, feeling and appearing much like a fine commercial firearm rather than a military weapon. The bolt is manufactured through traditional machining methods but has been laser-hardened. This system gives the surface of the bolt maximum precise hardness for wear and strength.

      To increase the controllability when firing the APC9K, particularly on full automatic, the weapon has a hydraulic buffer and the rear of the receiver to minimize the impact of the bolt and hold down the felt recoil. This hydraulic buffer also allows for a lighter recoil spring, holding down the force needed to operate the action.  To cock the weapon, there is a fully ambidextrous set of folding cocking handles, one on each side of the weapon. The cocking handles do not reciprocate with the bolt as the weapon is fired. The safety/selector switch is also made fully ambidextrous, with the control duplicated on both sides of the weapon.

       There are folding iron sights on the top of the weapon, inletted into the front and back of the full-length Picatinny rail. Alternate folding sights are available that extend up above the rail when mounted. The folding sights are intended for emergency use as the weapon is intended for use with a single-point sight, normally the Aimpoint Micro TL. There are additional lengths of Picatinny rail along both sides and the bottom of the front grip for attachments of aiming or illumination devices as well as a vertical front grip. The muzzle of the weapon has a 3-lug adapter for the attachment of a suppressor. For acceptance by the US, a compact suppressor was chosen for maximum concealability while holding down muzzle flash from the short barrel. Magazines are translucent plastic to allow for the remaining rounds to be easily seen by the operator. To minimize damage to the magazine when dropped, such as for a combat reload, there is a removable rubber boot that can be placed on the bottom of the mag.

     The trigger pull is crisp and clean, to meet with the precision of the rest of the weapon. Generally, the APC9K is considered one of the most accurate submachineguns on the world market today.

 

A left-side view of the ATC9K with the stock in the collapsed position. The weapon is fitted with an Aimpoint Micro TL 4 MOA (Minute of Angle) sight as the primary aiming aid. At the opposite ends of the top-mounted section of MIL-STD-1913 (Picatinny) rail are the folded backup iron sights. The muzzle has the 3-lug adapter used to quickly and solidly mount a suppressor. On the sides of the receiver, just behind the muzzle, are short sections of MIL-STD-1913 (Picatinny) rails for the mounting of a front grip (bottom) or aiming/illuminating devices (sides). On this specimen, there is a front sling swivel mount of the forward bottom rail section. At the top forward portion of the receiver is the cocking lever, folded in at the front of the cocking slot. The lever automatically returns to the forward position after the weapon is cocked and remains forward position as the weapon is fired. The long, rectangular bar along the center of the receiver is the telescopic stock strut. The three notches on the stock strut are the locking points for the different lengths of stock as preferred by the operator. The stock itself is not locked but can be extended by a simple pull on the butt. The locking notches are angled so that the stock can be extended further when locked in an intermediary position by another pull of the butt. The weapon is loaded with an empty B&T 30-round magazine that does not have the optional rubber bumper base. The rectangular button directly in front of the trigger guard is the left-side magazine release. Above the magazine catch is the bolt release control that is automatically engaged when the last round is fired, locking the bolt to the rear. Above and behind the trigger is the left-side safety/selector lever. The lever is pushed up to the white dot on this specimen, indicating that the weapon is on safe. Pressing the lever down to the single red dot sets the weapon on semiautomatic fire. Pushing the selector lever forward to the red bar sets the weapon on full automatic fire. The small loop of line at the rear of the receiver is the rear sling swivel point. PHOTO CREDIT: KEVIN DOCKERY
A left-side view of the ATC9K with the stock in the collapsed position. The weapon is fitted with an Aimpoint Micro TL 4 MOA (Minute of Angle) sight as the primary aiming aid. At the opposite ends of the top-mounted section of MIL-STD-1913 (Picatinny) rail are the folded backup iron sights. The muzzle has the 3-lug adapter used to quickly and solidly mount a suppressor. On the sides of the receiver, just behind the muzzle, are short sections of MIL-STD-1913 (Picatinny) rails for the mounting of a front grip (bottom) or aiming/illuminating devices (sides). On this specimen, there is a front sling swivel mount of the forward bottom rail section.
At the top forward portion of the receiver is the cocking lever, folded in at the front of the cocking slot. The lever automatically returns to the forward position after the weapon is cocked and remains forward position as the weapon is fired. The long, rectangular bar along the center of the receiver is the telescopic stock strut. The three notches on the stock strut are the locking points for the different lengths of stock as preferred by the operator. The stock itself is not locked but can be extended by a simple pull on the butt. The locking notches are angled so that the stock can be extended further when locked in an intermediary position by another pull of the butt. The weapon is loaded with an empty B&T 30-round magazine that does not have the optional rubber bumper base.
The rectangular button directly in front of the trigger guard is the left-side magazine release. Above the magazine catch is the bolt release control that is automatically engaged when the last round is fired, locking the bolt to the rear. Above and behind the trigger is the left-side safety/selector lever. The lever is pushed up to the white dot on this specimen, indicating that the weapon is on safe. Pressing the lever down to the single red dot sets the weapon on semiautomatic fire. Pushing the selector lever forward to the red bar sets the weapon on full automatic fire. The small loop of line at the rear of the receiver is the rear sling swivel point. PHOTO CREDIT: KEVIN DOCKERY

The right side of an ATC9K with the stock in the collapsed position. In this view it can be seen that all of the controls of the weapon are duplicated from the left side. The ejection port, partially concealed behind the right stock strut, is large enough for fired brass to be cleanly ejected even with the stock folded. In front of the trigger is the magazine release which is longer on the right side of the weapon to engage the magazine. PHOTO CREDIT: KEVIN DOCKERY
The right side of an ATC9K with the stock in the collapsed position. In this view it can be seen that all of the controls of the weapon are duplicated from the left side. The ejection port, partially concealed behind the right stock strut, is large enough for fired brass to be cleanly ejected even with the stock folded. In front of the trigger is the magazine release which is longer on the right side of the weapon to engage the magazine. PHOTO CREDIT: KEVIN DOCKERY

The right side of an ATC9K with the stock fully extended. The lug at the bottom rear of the receiver is the unlocking lever for the stock. Pressing the lever up unlocks the stock and it can be pushed forward. The stock is not locked when in the forward position and can be pulled open quickly by the operator with a simple pull on the butt at any extension. PHOTO CREDIT: KEVIN DOCKERY
The right side of an ATC9K with the stock fully extended. The lug at the bottom rear of the receiver is the unlocking lever for the stock. Pressing the lever up unlocks the stock and it can be pushed forward. The stock is not locked when in the forward position and can be pulled open quickly by the operator with a simple pull on the butt at any extension. PHOTO CREDIT: KEVIN DOCKERY

The left side of the APC9K with the stock fully extended. All controls are fully ambidextrous and duplicated on both sides of the weapon. The only exception to the duplication of controls is the stock release lug at the rear bottom of the receiver which can be reached with either hand. PHOTO CREDIT: KEVIN DOCKERY
The left side of the APC9K with the stock fully extended. All controls are fully ambidextrous and duplicated on both sides of the weapon. The only exception to the duplication of controls is the stock release lug at the rear bottom of the receiver which can be reached with either hand. PHOTO CREDIT: KEVIN DOCKERY