DUX 53
- Category
- Submachine Gun
- Barrel
- 250 mm
- Weight, empty
- 3.50 kg
- Introduced
- 1953
About
What it is, and why it matters
The DUX 53 is a 9x19mm submachine gun produced at the Fabrica de Armas Oviedo arsenal in Spain. It traces its lineage to the Soviet Sudaev PPS-43, which was copied in Finland as the Tikkakoski KP m/44; the m/44's designer, Willi Daugs, fled to Spain after World War II and re-created the design there. Constructed from stamped sheet steel with a top-folding wireframe stock and a perforated barrel jacket with an integral muzzle brake, it fires full-automatic only and fed from Suomi-type 50-round box magazines. It was adopted by the West German Bundesgrenzschutz (Border Guard) in 1954.
The DUX is an international mongrel: a Soviet PPS-43 design copied in Finland as the m/44, smuggled to Spain by its fugitive Finnish-German engineer Willi Daugs after WWII, built in an old Spanish arsenal, and finally adopted by West Germany's border police.
Full-automatic only. The improved DUX 59, refined by the German firm Anschutz, moved the cocking handle to the left, switched to a sliding safety, and used proprietary curved 32/40-round magazines. Some references attribute later development and marketing to Mauser. Production numbers were limited.
Specification
Everything measured
IdentityWhat it is, who built it and when.
- Manufacturer
- Fabrica de Armas Oviedo
- Category
- Submachine Gun
- Country
- Spain
- Status
- Out of production
- Produced
- 1953 to 1959
DimensionsAs issued, without a magazine or an optic.
- Barrel
- 250 mm
- Overall length
- 825 mm
- Weight, empty
- 3.50 kg
ActionHow it cycles, what trips it, and what feeds it.
- Action
- Blowback
- Firing mechanism
- Hammer fired
- Trigger
- Single stage
- Capacity
- 50
- 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.
- Effective range
- 200 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.
Stamped sheet steel construction
Top folding stock
Perforated barrel jacket
Integral muzzle brake
Right side cocking handle
Suomi type box magazine
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 | 3.50 kg | 3.18 kg | Heavier than about 70% |
| Overall lengthAmong 200 9x19mm Parabellum submachine guns | 825 mm | 723 mm | Longer than about 80% |
| Barrel lengthAmong 202 9x19mm Parabellum submachine guns | 250 mm | 213 mm | Longer than about 70% |
| Magazine capacityAmong 204 9x19mm Parabellum submachine guns | 50 | 32 | Holds more rounds than about 90% |
Answers
Questions about the DUX 53
How much does the DUX 53 weigh?
The DUX 53 weighs 3.50 kg (7.72 lb) empty.
What caliber is the DUX 53?
The DUX 53 is chambered in 9x19mm Parabellum.
How many rounds does the DUX 53 hold?
The DUX 53 holds 50 rounds, fed from a detachable box magazine.
How long is the DUX 53?
The DUX 53 is 825 mm (32.5 in) long overall, with a 250 mm (9.84 in) barrel.
Who makes the DUX 53?
The DUX 53 is made by Fabrica de Armas Oviedo (Spain). It was designed by Willi Daugs.
When was the DUX 53 introduced?
The DUX 53 was introduced in 1953 and discontinued in 1959.
How does the DUX 53 operate?
The DUX 53 uses a blowback action, and its firing mechanism is hammer fired.
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
- Bundesgrenzschutz (West German Border Guard)
- 1954
Provenance
Confidence in this record
68%
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/dux-53' \ --header 'X-API-Key: your_key'{ "id": "dux-53", "name": "DUX 53", "manufacturer": { "id": "fabrica-de-armas-oviedo", "name": "Fabrica de Armas Oviedo", "countryCode": "ES", "foundedYear": 1856, "website": null, "logoUrl": null, "description": null, "status": null, "defunctYear": null, "stateOwned": null, "makesFirearms": null, "parentId": null, "predecessorId": null, "createdAt": "2026-06-21 23:00:46", "updatedAt": "2026-06-21 23:00:46", "version": "16e82222d379142ac8d20c99a03806e13d562b51f90efb37d0f9199363c9e73a" }, "category": { "id": "submachine-gun", "name": "Submachine Gun", "description": "Automatic firearms chambered in pistol calibers" }, "country_of_origin": "ES", "year_introduced": 1953, "barrel_length_mm": 250, "weight_empty_g": 3500, "action_type": "blowback"}