H&K UCP, the cancelled MP7 Companion Pistol
Posted by Organic-Crab3449@reddit | ForgottenWeapons | View on Reddit | 33 comments
Too bad this was cancelled, appearantly they couldnt get the cartridge to work properly. Would have made for an interesting Five-Seven competitor. It was actually adopted and designated P43 by the Bundeswehr, but H&K pulled the plug on the project aand the Bundeswehr adopted the USP as their service pistol instead.
DweebInFlames@reddit
Honestly I don't know if it really had much reason to exist over an MP7. The Five-SeveN is at least a bit more compact than the P90, but that thing is only a little bit shorter and you trade off the capability of stocked + full auto fire.
m1ke_tyz0n@reddit
The ammo is like 50% cheaper to produce than 5.7x28mm
Shadow_Asii@reddit
It was never developed as an alternative to the mp7, nor was the five-seven to the p90. Both were developed to be sidearms used in conjunction with their respective pdws to improve logistics (i.e. not needing to carry equipment for another pistol cartridge such as 9mm)
DweebInFlames@reddit
Sure, but what does this actually offer over an MP7 in practicality?
SpyAmongTheFurries@reddit
On a wider scale, logistics and reliability. If you do find yourself switching to your sidearm, you may want it to have the same armor piercing power as your PDW. Having both HK and FN ammo in hand is possible, but inconvenient.
Ok_Cricket_9576@reddit
Because it’s faster to switch to your sidearm then it is to reload or fix a potential malfunction.
Shadow_Asii@reddit
Only advantages I would think would be weight and holstering easier, as well as potentially costs on a larger scale
Stoney3K@reddit
Or you're in a situation where you can't realistically carry a submachine gun but only a pistol, but you still want to take advantage of all of the logistics that come with using the same cartridge for both weapons.
CyanideTacoZ@reddit
outside of a naval crews context where does this happen?
would it simplify logistics? yes. But how many soldiers are carrying only a pistol? I mean for fucks sake this situation is so rare that the US military has several different adopted submachine guns across different branches for different users. It's not the case today, but historically some didn't even have interchangeable ammo.
One-Strategy5717@reddit
Many helicopter pilots in Vietnam preferred a pistol in a chest rig, as it is easier to draw from in a seated position than a hip or drop leg holster. Also less likely to snag while entering/exiting an aircraft.
Realistically, the only way to carry an MP7 on your body as a sidearm is on a drop leg holster. Sometimes even a compact smg is too cumbersome.
royalPanic@reddit
The NATO RFP for a PDW required a companion pistol in the same caliber.
EffingBarbas@reddit
I want to know more about the left gun in the third picture. That is a fully accessorized piece
Organic-Crab3449@reddit (OP)
That is just a bone stock, standard issue MP7A1 with the Zeiss Z-Point (or Hensoldt RSA-S) german army red dot sight, complete with rubber sight cover. 20 round mag, yeah nothing special just a basic german army issue MP7
Cant identify the flashlight, but its most likely also german army standard issue. Looks like one of these LLM01 successors they used for a short time, very bulky propably early 2000s..
m1ke_tyz0n@reddit
https://www.hkpro.com/threads/t4-6a1.544422/
Norwayaboo@reddit
Insight M3 flashlight on the MP7. Same light as on the first UCP picture.
EffingBarbas@reddit
Thank you for the details!
Freemanosteeel@reddit
Imagine if they made both of these in 5.7, they’d make a killing
Not_an_alt_69_420@reddit
Imagine if they allowed MP7s to be imported to the civilian market.
Organic-Crab3449@reddit (OP)
Its gonna happen someday.
The UK police already has a special semi auto version made just for them, so technically the civ market gun already exists.
The only thing keeping it off the civ market is the fact that H&K legally isnt allowed to profit from selling this gun to civilians, the actual MP7 patent itself is somehow protected by german export control laws.
Which makes no sense to me because the G36, MP5 and practically all other german weaponry is already being manufactured under license and sold to civilians. Except the MP7, its propably still too new of a design. Militaries only started adopting it in 2005 / 2006..
m1ke_tyz0n@reddit
MP7 has been confirmed to be in production. 5 were released in S/A already (24-25k each). Tom from HK stated the tooling was getting setup in 2022. https://www.hkpro.com/threads/t4-6a1.544422/
KingofSkies@reddit
I thought all the civilian g36 were the SL8/9 that use different mags and parts.
pEppapiGistfuhrer@reddit
Is it just coincidence how this looks like an early prototype for the five seven?
lordbuckethethird@reddit
Well generally the 4.6mm isn’t the best outside of defeating body armor anyways. Swat teams have had times where suspects were shot in the head and other vital areas and were relatively ok and besides I don’t think there’s a huge advantage in a pdw over an intermediate cartridge carbine because when pdws were made as a weapon and concept full size rifles were standard and carbines in their modern form hadn’t become common place yet.
Organic-Crab3449@reddit (OP)
More information and images here 👍🏼
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BMHater12@reddit
Good bot
Excited_Avocado_8492@reddit
Looks like the pistol from Crysis, a bastard child of the Mark 23 and Walther P99.
Quatermain@reddit
I'm not sure if you mean reliability issues by 'couldn't get the cartridge to work properly', but at least according HK USA, it was the ballistics that caused them to drop it. Probably sub 250ft/lbs in the pistol for most of the loads.
Hot_dog_on_a_stick@reddit
Looks like one of those fake guns from MGSV. Still pretty interesting, I didn't know they had a pistol for the 4.6x30.
Lizard_King_5@reddit
Almost like the water gun
ChillInChornobyl@reddit
A striker with a safety, I love it already
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Organic-Crab3449@reddit (OP)
More information and images here 👍🏼