Socimi Type 821

• Name — SOCIMI Type 821-SMG • Origin — Italy • Type — Submachine gun • Is Ranged — yes • Service — 1980s-present • Used By — Nucleo Operativo Centrale di Sicurezza • Design Date — 1983 • Manufacturer — Societa Costruzioni Industriali Milano, Luigi Franchi S.p.A. • Production Date — 1984-1989 • Number — Uncharted • Variants — Type 821-5 Micro SMG (experimental only) • Weight — 2.45 kg (5 lb 6oz) • Length — 600 mm (23.6 in) butt extended, 400 mm (15.7 in) butt folded • Part Length — 200 mm (7.87 in.) • Height — 175 mm (6.88 in.) • Cartridge — 9×19mm Parabellum • Caliber — 9mm • Action — Blowback, Select-fire • Rate — 550 rounds/min • Velocity — 380 m/s (1245 ft/s) • Range — 150–200 metres • Feed — 32-round detachable box magazine • Sights — Adjustable post front sight; Flip-aperture rear sight, (100 and 200 metres); Sight radius: 288 mm

At a first glance the Socimi Type 821-SMG appears to be an outright Italian copy of the Uzi, although the design sports many differences and improvements over the original project. The firm of SOCIMI had been active in the railway building sector since the early 1970s; in 1983, it entered in a joint venture with the historic firearms manufacturer Luigi Franchi S.p.A. (which later, specifically in 1987, would have outright taken over) to concentrate on the military weapons business. The results of this collaboration were a series of assault rifles, and the Type 821-SMG. The early prototypes and evaluation samples of this sub-machinegun were shortly manufactured directly by Franchi, until SOCIMI had completed tooling-up to start in-house production.

The SOCIMI Type 821-SMG was acquired in small quantities by the Italian Ministry of Interior and distributed to the NOCS team of the Italian Police, and possibly to other unknown Italian units or organizations. The SOCIMI Type 821-SMG never went to become the standard sub-machinegun of any Italian force, as SOCIMI went bankrupt in 1992 and the production of their assault weapons system (including the Type 821-SMG) was halted to be never reprised again. Franchi, owned by SOCIMI until the bankruptcy and undoubtedly the entity behind the development of the SOCIMI weapons system, offered shortly the Type 821-SMG as the "Franchi LF-821" with no success; it was ultimately acquired by the Beretta Holding and as such stopped development and production of all strictly military-oriented firearms. The SOCIMI Type 821-SMG samples acquired by Italian forces are now kept in stock. Other samples of this and other SOCIMI firearms are kept in warehouses by Italian firms such as Luigi Franchi S.p.A. and Fiocchi Munizioni. Rumors of foreign sales can find no confirm whatsoever; before bankruptcy, SOCIMI had reached export agreements with a United States company called MTS Corporation, located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Experimental developments from the SOCIMI Type 821-SMG include a special tactical briefcase for the full-size model, and the SOCIMI Type 821-5 Micro SMG, a compact version with an overall length of 250 millimetres; none of these ever passed the prototype stage.

• Illustration — With stock folded • Illustration — With stock unfolded