American-180
The American-180 is a submachine gun developed in the 1960s which fires the.22 Long Rifle or.22 ILARCO cartridges from a pan magazine. The concept began with the Casull Model 290 that used a flat pan magazine similar to designs widely used prior to World War II. Only 87 Casull M290s were built, as the weapon was expensive to manufacture. The American-180 is an improved version.
Also recorded as American 180
American-180
- Field
- submachine gun.
- Region
- United States.
VALÉORINE Encyclopedia
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Documentary summary
The American-180 is a submachine gun developed in the 1960s which fires the.22 Long Rifle or.22 ILARCO cartridges from a pan magazine. The concept began with the Casull Model 290 that used a flat pan magazine similar to designs widely used prior to World War II. Only 87 Casull M290s were built, as the weapon was expensive to manufacture. The American-180 is an improved version.
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original value insufficient · checked 25 September 2026
- Identity
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Authority files
wikidata · Q770780 · wikipedia · American-180
In this article
Operation
Operation
A semi-automatic only variant called the American SAR 180/275 is still produced on a custom basis by E&L Manufacturing of Riddle, Oregon.
The weapon operates through a conventional blowback mechanism. It uses an open bolt with a flat pan magazine. It fires at a very high rate of fire of approximately 1,200 rounds per minute. The American-180 was purchased mostly by private parties prior to the Hughes Amendment in 1986, which banned the production of automatic weapons for the American civilian market. The A180 was adopted by the Utah Department of Corrections to arm prison guards.
Variants
Variants
Twin-barrelled variant: The ILARCO company manufactured the American 180 in a twin-gun configuration. The two receivers were mounted on a single stock that weighed more than 14 lb (6.4 kg), with a rate of fire over 3,000 rounds per minute. Quad-barrelled variant: The ILARCO company manufactured the American 180 in a quad-gun configuration. Each of the individual guns could be fired in a variety of combinations. The guns could be fired one at a time, or one on the left and one of the right, or all at once. It was mounted on a large tripod, with a rate of fire from 3,000 to 12,000 rounds per minute.
Users
Users
Croatia: MGV-176 Slovenian-made copy, used by Croatian Guerilla forces during the Yugoslav wars France: two were used respectively by the GIPN of Marseille and the Research and Intervention Brigade of Paris in the 1980s. New Zealand: New Zealand Police Anti-Terrorist Squad, issued in September 1978 and no longer in operational service. Rhodesia: Rhodesian SAS. South Africa: 4th Reconnaissance Regiment. United States: Various law enforcement agencies and correctional facilities.
Places
Named by the record
Places
Only places the record itself states, plotted where the house gazetteer settles their coordinates. Nothing is inferred from a name or a nationality.
United States.
Country
American-180 is associated with United States.
Country
Primary material
Documents and archives
authority record
- Wikidata, structured authority record Q770780: American-180
Unverified · Wikidata
reference work
- “American-180”, English Wikipedia, consulted as further reading
Reputable secondary · Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.The cartridge collector. (n.d.). https://www.oldammo.com/january16.htm
- 2.https://www.forgottenweapons.com/voere-sam-180-semiautomatic-american-180-smg-made-in-austria/
- 3.E&L Manufacturing, Inc. - american 180 parts and accessories - history. (n.d.). https://elmfg.com/am180/history/history.html
- 4.Phil West. Survival Weapons: Optimizing Your Arsenal. 141. March 2014. 978-1291460988.
- 5.W. Todd Woodard. Cartridges of the World. Gun Digest Books. 617.
- 6.Bigshooterist. .22LR Casull Model 290 Carbine from the 1960's. June 23, 2016.
- 7.American SAR 180/275. 2015.
- 8.Machine Gun News. The American 180.
- 9.Mendenhall, Monty. Cheap Thrills—22 Rimfire Machine Guns. Small Arms Review. March 1998.
- 10.American 180 dual Mount. (n.d.). https://elmfg.com/am180/history/dualmt.html
- 11.American 180 quad mount. (n.d.). https://elmfg.com/am180/history/quadmt.html
- 12.Jordan, Bob. Combat Zone Croatia. Soldier of Fortune. February 1992.
- 13.Report no. 85 of the French Senate, 1982. (Archive)
- 14.Osborne, John. Carbines and police in New Zealand, 1840–1990. South Pacific Armoury New Zealand. 20. 1990. 0908873018.
- 15.Helion and Company. Iron Fist From The Sea: South Africa's Seaborne Raiders 1978-1988. 96, 102. 2015. 978-1909982284.
- 16.Special Weapons on Rhodesia by Dana Drenkowski, A Wide Variety of Unique Weapons are used in Rhodesia's fight against terrorism, Soldier of Fortune
- 17.TheFirearmBlog. Stille Vuurkrag:-Documented Combat Usage of the American-180 by SADF/Rhodesian SAS. 11 July 2017.
- 18.History of the American 180.
References
Citations
References
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Broader subject
1- submachine gunTerminology
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