Roth-Steyr 1907 self-loading pistol 8mm
| 01. Original name | Repetierpistole M7 | |
| 02. Other official names | Roth Steyr M1907 | |
| 03. Popular names | M7 | |
| 04. Chamberings | 8mm Roth-Steyr (8×18) | |
| 05. Designed by | Karel Krnka on behalf of the Roth Ammunition Company with some minor input from Georg Roth | |
| 06. Design date | Several prototypes from 1895 included the Roth–Theodorovic pistol and were developed into a recognisable Roth-Steyr pistol in1906 | |
| 07. In service date(s) | 1909 until 1941 or 1942 | |
| 08. Adopted by | Austro-Hungary but also used under the flags of Yugoslavia, Austria, and Hungary, Saw service with Poland, Czechoslovakia and Italy | |
| 09. Production quantities | Roth had no manufacturing capabilities for arms so around 60,000 were manufactured at Österreichische Waffenfabrik (Steyr) and 39,000 at Fegyvergyr. Production commenced properly in 1908 and finished in 1914 | |
| 10. Mechanism | Locked breech self-loading pistol with fixed internal magazine loaded by stripper clips | |
| 11. Weight | I.02 kg (2.2 lbs) | |
| 12. Mountings | Leather holsters are intricate and cleverly manufactured. They are hard to find and highly prized by collectors | |
| 13. Practicality in action | Theoretically low powered 8mm (.32) cartridge but 10 shots available per stripper clip. Unusually the breech operation doesn’t cock the pistol’s striker; it has a heavy double action trigger instead, which also helps avoid negligent discharges | |
| 14. Comments / Other information | This was the first self-loading pistol adopted by forces in any major country. It was originally intended for cavalry use – although it would have been interesting trying to rack the pistol while charging on horseback! The pistol is internally very well finished but complicated to strip and reassemble. It’s surprisingly reliable and the striker mechanism is very similar to that used by Glock pistols a hundred years later |