[alvin]

Tim Mullin had an section on Schnellfeuer Mauser experience in his book "The Fighting Submachine Gun, Machine Pistol, and Shotgun, A Hands-On Evaluation". Though reading his book, I feel he's very professional on practical usage of guns, so I will copy his excellent summary here:

At first glance, the Mauser Broomhandle design appears rather awkward, but actual testing on the cinema range established that it is a very fast, handy weapon. The safety was easy to disengate quickly, the long barrel was quickly picked up in the low field of vision, it had great indexing ability, and repeat shots were quick. On the cienma range, the detachable-magazine verion was even better than its fixed-magazine cousin because it could be reloaded more quickly, and, more important, it permitted tactical reload, something not possible with the stripper-clip-loaded Mauser pistol. The magazine release button was easily used, and although I suppose some type of fence around it to avoid inadvertent dumping would be nice, in actual testing, it was not any more prone to dumping than a Colt Government Model release.

The stock fits nicely, and it can be attached and detached quickly..... Although the pistol without stock can be shot accurately with a Weaver stance under normal conditions, the stock does help less well-trained shooters or even well-trained shooters who are weak, cold, or frightened.

The cyclic rate on the German weapon is higher than is desirable, but then the weapon should always be used in semiautomatic mode, except at very close range. As with the Glock 18, it should be carried in full-auto mode because a quick emergency at short range is best handled with burst fire. Additionally, if longer ranges exist, there will be time to flip the selector, and it can be converted into a handy semiautomatic carbine. Viewed in this fashion, it is more effective than many open-bolt SMGs and obviously lighter. Bursts should be reserved for 5 yards and under, in my judgment, but at that range the machine pistol, in properly trained hands, becomes the deadliest hand-held weapon available.

I rather like Mauser Broomhandle-style pistols. They are surpringly fast, handy combat weapons, although they lack some target shooting features. Of course, they are not designed for the target range, but rather the battlefield, and in that place the selective-fire detachable magazine version is the best of the family. The Chinese warlord who armed his troops with them in the 1930s was supplying his troops with weapons that, in good hands, were far better than the weapons supplied to the armies of Europe or the United States at the same time.

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Here is the book:

http://www.amazon.com/Fighting-Subma.../dp/1581600402