Austen Mk II
- Category
- Submachine Gun
- Barrel
- 198 mm
- Weight, empty
- 3.98 kg
- Introduced
- 1943
About
What it is, and why it matters
The Austen Mk II is an Australian open-bolt, blowback submachine gun chambered in 9x19mm Parabellum, produced during the Second World War. A refined and more extensively die-cast development of the Mk I, the Austen blended the receiver and barrel layout of the British Sten with the folding stock and telescoping-spring bolt of the German MP38/MP40. Only around 200 Mk II examples were built before the war's end, and the design was never adopted in quantity, with Australian troops generally preferring the locally made Owen gun.
The Austen's name is a portmanteau of 'Australian Sten', reflecting its Sten ancestry. Despite combining Sten and MP40 features into a more refined package, it lost out to the cheaper, simpler, and more soldier-trusted Owen gun and was largely sidelined by the end of the war.
The Mk II replaced much of the Mk I's tubular construction with die-cast aluminium-alloy housings around the pistol grips and magazine, intended to simplify mass production. It was not adopted for general service.
Specification
Everything measured
IdentityWhat it is, who built it and when.
- Manufacturer
- Diecasters Ltd / W. T. Carmichael Ltd
- Category
- Submachine Gun
- Country
- Australia
- Status
- Discontinued
- Produced
- 1943 to 1945
DimensionsAs issued, without a magazine or an optic.
- Barrel
- 198 mm
- Overall length
- 845 mm
- Weight, empty
- 3.98 kg
ActionHow it cycles, what trips it, and what feeds it.
- Action
- Blowback
- Firing mechanism
- Open bolt
- Trigger
- Select fire
- Capacity
- 28
- Magazine
- Detachable box
MaterialsEach swatch is the material itself, not a colour chosen to stand for it.
- Frame
- Steel
- Barrel
- Steel
- Stock
- Steel
- Finish
- Phosphate
BallisticsFrom the service cartridge, not a handload.
- Muzzle velocity
- 366 m/s
- Effective range
- 100 m
- Rate of fire
- 500 rpm
Trajectory
What the round does downrange
Solved from the muzzle figures and the bullet. The dashed rule is the effective range on the record, and the crosses are the steps the solver returned.
Features
What it has
What the record lists as fitted, drawn from the catalogue.
Folding stock
Side mounted magazine
Forward pistol grip- Die cast construction
Standing
How it compares
Each figure against the firearms of the same type and cartridge that record it, or of the same type where that cartridge has too few. Positions are read to the nearest tenth.
| Measurement | This firearm | Median | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| Empty weightAmong 201 9x19mm Parabellum submachine guns | 3.98 kg | 3.18 kg | Heavier than about 80% |
| Overall lengthAmong 200 9x19mm Parabellum submachine guns | 845 mm | 723 mm | Longer than about 80% |
| Barrel lengthAmong 202 9x19mm Parabellum submachine guns | 198 mm | 213 mm | Shorter than about 70% |
| Magazine capacityAmong 204 9x19mm Parabellum submachine guns | 28 | 32 | Holds fewer rounds than about 80% |
Answers
Questions about the Austen Mk II
How much does the Austen Mk II weigh?
The Austen Mk II weighs 3.98 kg (8.77 lb) empty.
What caliber is the Austen Mk II?
The Austen Mk II is chambered in 9x19mm Parabellum.
How many rounds does the Austen Mk II hold?
The Austen Mk II holds 28 rounds, fed from a detachable box magazine.
How long is the Austen Mk II?
The Austen Mk II is 845 mm (33.3 in) long overall, with a 198 mm (7.80 in) barrel.
Who makes the Austen Mk II?
The Austen Mk II is made by Diecasters Ltd / W. T. Carmichael Ltd (Australia).
When was the Austen Mk II introduced?
The Austen Mk II was introduced in 1943 and discontinued in 1945.
How does the Austen Mk II operate?
The Austen Mk II uses a blowback action, and its firing mechanism is open bolt.
Compatibility
Which parts fit this firearm
Studio
Every part that mounts on this, resolved
Not a list the maker typed out: the answer comes from the mounts this firearm exposes and the interface each part needs, so it stays right when either one changes.
- Every part that mounts on any firearm in the catalogue
- Interface standards, platforms and fit overrides
- The same answers through the API and the MCP server
Requires a signed-in GunSpec account on the Studio plan. The answer is computed per part, so it is not part of the public record.
Provenance
What the record holds
Every figure above was taken from one of these pages. The confidence reflects how much of the record came from a page a claim can be checked against.
In service
- Australian Army
- 1942
- Royal Netherlands East Indies Army
- 1945
Provenance
Confidence in this record
78%
Stockists
Where to buy
Offers link straight to the shop. GunSpec never takes the order.
No shop has listed this firearm yet
Stock and prices come from the shops themselves. If you sell this firearm, you can list it and it appears here.
List a firearmMCP
Ask an assistant about it
The same record, reached the way a person asks for it rather than the way a program does.
Ask GunSpec
Works with
Point an MCP client at GunSpec and it answers from the catalogue rather than from memory. A free key covers the read tools.
API
The call that returns this record
The same fields, in the same units, from the same endpoint the page reads.
curl --request GET \ --url 'https://api.gunspec.io/v1/firearms/austen-mk-ii' \ --header 'X-API-Key: your_key'{ "id": "austen-mk-ii", "name": "Austen Mk II", "manufacturer": { "id": "diecasters-ltd", "name": "Diecasters Ltd / W. T. Carmichael Ltd", "countryCode": "AU", "foundedYear": null, "website": null, "logoUrl": null, "description": null, "status": null, "defunctYear": null, "stateOwned": null, "makesFirearms": null, "parentId": null, "predecessorId": null, "createdAt": "2026-05-04 12:38:54", "updatedAt": "2026-05-04 12:38:54", "version": "96a8517ecad2face8078e5a105e206de56379f7494e380c9be23079a4194431c" }, "category": { "id": "submachine-gun", "name": "Submachine Gun", "description": "Automatic firearms chambered in pistol calibers" }, "country_of_origin": "AU", "year_introduced": 1943, "barrel_length_mm": 198, "weight_empty_g": 3980, "action_type": "blowback"}