Madsen M/45
- Category
- Submachine Gun
- Barrel
- 200 mm
- Weight, empty
- 3.15 kg
- Introduced
- 1945
About
What it is, and why it matters
The Madsen M/45 is a Danish 9x19mm submachine gun developed in 1945 by Dansk Industri Syndikat as the first model in the Madsen submachine gun series. It used a simple blowback action firing from an open bolt, fed from a 32-round detachable box magazine, and was fitted with a folding steel stock. The design was refined the following year into the widely exported clamshell-receiver M/46.
The M/45 kicked off a Danish submachine gun family famous for its clamshell construction, where the whole receiver hinged open into two sheet-metal halves for cleaning; that money-saving trick, introduced with the follow-on M/46, made the Madsen one of the cheapest SMGs of its day to build.
The M/45 was a short-lived initial model produced in limited numbers; its layout and lessons led directly to the M/46, M/50 and M/53 that followed. Detailed M/45-specific figures are sparse, so several specifications reflect the closely related Madsen SMG family.
Specification
Everything measured
IdentityWhat it is, who built it and when.
- Manufacturer
- Dansk Rekyl Riffel Syndikat / Dansk Industri Syndikat
- Category
- Submachine Gun
- Country
- Denmark
- Status
- Out of production
- Produced
- 1945 to 1946
DimensionsAs issued, without a magazine or an optic.
- Barrel
- 200 mm
- Overall length
- 795 mm
- Weight, empty
- 3.15 kg
ActionHow it cycles, what trips it, and what feeds it.
- Action
- Blowback
- Firing mechanism
- Open bolt
- Trigger
- Single stage
- Capacity
- 32
- 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
- 380 m/s
- Effective range
- 100 m
- Rate of fire
- 480 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
Open bolt operation
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 | 3.15 kg | 3.18 kg | Near the median |
| Overall lengthAmong 200 9x19mm Parabellum submachine guns | 795 mm | 723 mm | Longer than about 60% |
| Barrel lengthAmong 202 9x19mm Parabellum submachine guns | 200 mm | 213 mm | Shorter than about 60% |
| Magazine capacityAmong 204 9x19mm Parabellum submachine guns | 32 | 32 | Holds more rounds than about 60% |
Answers
Questions about the Madsen M/45
How much does the Madsen M/45 weigh?
The Madsen M/45 weighs 3.15 kg (6.94 lb) empty.
What caliber is the Madsen M/45?
The Madsen M/45 is chambered in 9x19mm Parabellum.
How many rounds does the Madsen M/45 hold?
The Madsen M/45 holds 32 rounds, fed from a detachable box magazine.
How long is the Madsen M/45?
The Madsen M/45 is 795 mm (31.3 in) long overall, with a 200 mm (7.87 in) barrel.
Who makes the Madsen M/45?
The Madsen M/45 is made by Dansk Rekyl Riffel Syndikat / Dansk Industri Syndikat (Denmark).
When was the Madsen M/45 introduced?
The Madsen M/45 was introduced in 1945 and discontinued in 1946.
How does the Madsen M/45 operate?
The Madsen M/45 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
- Royal Danish Army
- Denmark
Provenance
Confidence in this record
60%
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/madsen-m1945' \ --header 'X-API-Key: your_key'{ "id": "madsen-m1945", "name": "Madsen M/45", "manufacturer": { "id": "dansk-industri-syndikat", "name": "Dansk Rekyl Riffel Syndikat / Dansk Industri Syndikat", "countryCode": "DK", "foundedYear": 1896, "website": null, "logoUrl": null, "description": null, "status": null, "defunctYear": null, "stateOwned": null, "makesFirearms": null, "parentId": null, "predecessorId": null, "createdAt": "2026-04-26 23:12:00", "updatedAt": "2026-04-26 23:12:00", "version": "a6b761e89dd9a8725e4b9a74b1fd4002295146f177a2b8659707c4894bbb52bc" }, "category": { "id": "submachine-gun", "name": "Submachine Gun", "description": "Automatic firearms chambered in pistol calibers" }, "country_of_origin": "DK", "year_introduced": 1945, "barrel_length_mm": 200, "weight_empty_g": 3150, "action_type": "blowback"}