You could always go the freedom ordnance route

https://freedomordnance.com/fm-9/

IMHO, probably the best internet site for reliable, unbiased, shill-free information about WWII machineguns is:  machinegunboards.com

Disclaimer:  I have no affiliation with or financial interest in any vendor or manufacturer.  I am not a competitive shooter or a blogger who receives any form of compensation or sponsorship for endorsements, or favorable public or private comments.  I do not have a website, podcasts, webinars, or online videos; or books/magazine articles.  Use of vendor and/or product brand names, if any, is for informational purposes only; and products or services were purchased by me from regular commercial sources.

Best of luck.
MHO, YMMV, etc.  Be well.

I have all of the belt guns you mentioned on your wish list (Shrike/MCR, M60 with both E4 and E6 configs plus a couple of HK E guns) and a 1919A4..... for the recreational shooter who already owns an M16, the MCR IMHO is absolutely the way to go for your first belt fed.

OP - A Tube Built Transferable MP40 would be at the higher end of your financial reach and a nice gun.  Generally a fun and easy gun to shoot.

I see your options as :

Sten

Reising

MP40 likely a kit build from a registered Tube

Commercial Thompson

M2 Carbine

A Sten is about half the cost of the MP40 - Lots of spares and parts to keep one running.  The Stens are cool but not MP40 nice.

A Commercial made (Post WW2 Numrich) Thompson would be in your price range.

An M2 Carbine (Technically not considered WW2 but maybe close enough) can be had in your price range and arguably not a SMG.

You probably won't find a transferable PPSH41, PPS43 in your price range  There might be some oddball SMGs from WW2 or before you can find, but think about parts and keeping it going should a part break.

It’s not WWII, but consider the S&W76. It’s somewhat a copy of a gun that had its origins in WWII (Swedish K). It’s WWII technology. It looks like it’s from WWII. It runs great on WWII mags (barely modified Suomi mags). It’s almost totally void of being able to modify like most WWII guns. It’s very smooth especially when suppressed. Parts are somewhat available - not great but not terrible, and every few years someone tends to come along and make a batch of a few specific parts in need. They are pretty plentiful (6,100 or so) and still relatively affordable for a C&R actually used by the U.S. in combat ($13,000-15,000).

Crude junk. Can't stand them.  Sterling is incredibly smooth, and would be my choice.

Not WW2 but my Smith 76 is one of my favorite subguns, especially the the ported/integral suppressed barrel.  I like the Smith 76 better than just about every other subgun I own with the exception of the MP5 series.  I have shot a transferable K and honestly the K and the Smith are so close in shooting experience I struggle to understand why folks pay almost 2X for a US tube based Swedish K/Port SAID vs. a factory Smith 76 unless you just gotta have to have the drum capability.



There is a lot to like about the M2 as well.  The only real downside is ammo cost if you don't reload but ammo has over the past couple months become much more available and was down in the 70cpr to your door range.

The recent M2 carbine thread motivated me to get a second M2 that was a registered conversion part to build into a clone short barrel paratrooper/advisor gun.  Should be a fun project for next year using a 70's era Plainfield M1 as the host and installing a new barrel and stock.

For those with S&W 76s, have you had any issues with the trigger bars? As a mentioned a couple pages back, Andrewski told me that they need to be re-worked every 10,000rds or so. Sort of turned me off from them, but maybe it’s not warranted.

Not yet, but I also haven’t hit 10k rounds. If/when that day comes I’ll reach out to Andrewski, he cut down and threaded the barrel mounted below:

Of the WW II guns I had a Thompson, STEN and M3.
Out of them I enjoyed the M3 the most.
Something about chugging along at 450 rpm just puts a smile on your face.

This here especially when you have a suppressor for it, all you really hear is the bolt slamming home and the bullet impacting downrange

I own a PPSh and a Sten and the best part is that parts for both are really available. The PPSh can be converted to 9mm pretty easily as well and mags are cheap for the Sten (buy some, see what works in your gun and sell the ones that don’t) The PPSh stick mags are still reasonable but drums are going up in price.

I paid $19K for my PPSh at Rock Island about a year ago. It’s a registered de-wat and a North Korean gun but I feel I got a good deal on it.

My buddy has an MP-40 and while fun to shoot parts and mags can be expensive. He also has a Thompson that’s fun to shoot and runs like a champ and yes, it’s heavy but worth it.

I'm late to the party but have owned and / or shot a few.

My choice in that price range would be an UZI. OK not WW2 but close enough. Cheap replacement parts are everywhere and I love the pucka / pucka of a big old bolt slamming back and forth.
For a TRUE WW2 , in that price range and considering ammo cost ; MP40 all day long.
I know of a true C+R MP38/40 mismash (40 tube :( ) for about 22K if interested.
I LOVE the Thompson but feeding it gets expensive. Ammo cost no object this is #1. My 1928A1 will be the last MG I sell if ever. These go for 30-35K though.
Stens while awkward have always had a sweet spot. Watched Bridge on the River Kwai way to often. Not as a primary though.
Missed my change at a nice Swedish K tube gun at 14K waiting for a C+R gun to come up. Never did. Now tube guns are 30K ish. A C+R gun ? Fuggetaboutit. $$$$$$

Never shot a Sterling. Midwest tactical has a nice one at 18K.

Actually the Swedish K is the only sub gun on my bucket list.
LMK about that MP40. I actually almost bought it before "mine" came up. I shot it. Works fine.

Think I’ve narrowed it down to either a West Hurley M1A1 Thompson or a later model Reising.

I can afford the reising now, but the Thompson would be another year or two of saving.

There is a local range that has a Thompson available for rent. Not sure where I would test fire a reising.

Also looked up the price of bulk 45 cal ammo, it’s more than 9mm but not all that much more.

https://www.ar15.com/forums/t_6_22/548918_Reising-to-Uzi-Magazine-Conversion-Magwell-a-fun-project-I-completed.html

I got to fire a Sterling at a rental range on my way back home from the border.  Sterling is smooth.

There is a guy selling conversions to Uzi magazines on Uzi talk right now. Looks like a well-made unit. Supposedly it can be made to work well with the Pro Mag 22rd mags, which is interesting since those mags don't enjoy a great reputation in the Uzis themselves.

EDIT: Just saw the link above is to the same person/conversion.

I don’t even own a Reising but am tempted to buy the conversion as a “just in case.”

If you can swing it get a WW2 C+R gun.
They come up for a bit more than a West Hurley which carry a bad reputation deserved or not. A WW2 gun will be a classic from now to eternity.
Post a newby WTB or advice post on machinegunboards.
Call midwest tactical and make a wish list.
IF you can swing it a 1928A1 is my go-to Thompson. Takes drums and I'm not afraid to actually fire it and decrease the value. I have a Mint M1A1 but its not for sale. Sold its brother and a Like new Colt 1921 at Morphys a few years ago when administrations changed.
So sorry I did. Oh well.

Also this came up on gunbroker; A Suomi M31 clone. Kind of neat !
https://www.gunbroker.com/item/1020327162
Id take it over a Resing all day every day.

Grail gun, no real reason. -suomi

Would be awesome to have a really nice historic Thompson made during the war or before from auto ordinance, but a west Hurley is already out of my price range at the moment. Only way it would happen is if I sold my M11 or M16 which I don’t really want to do. If

Definately keep the M16.
This may sound sacreligious but I'm not a fan of the MACs ( of which I have 4 )
IMO that Midwest tactical Sterling or the Stemple Suomi are much cooler guns.
Now you got MY wheels turning !

For $20k you could get an actual C&R Sten and C&R Reising, then you’d have some good historical pieces  as well as some added diversity to your collection.

I’m a fan of the 1928 Thompson. It saw PLENTY of action, and it’s also a beautiful and well-made weapon with lots of cool accessories and mags to collect. Was the first machine gun I ever shot and I fell in love.

MP-40 is second for me as it’s probably the best of them when using as an actual weapon, and also has a TON of (sinister) history and combat use. If a Thompson is out of reach, this is would undoubtedly be the first choice.

If I had 4 Macs I would trade 2 or 3 for a Thompson for sure.

Had I the money, for a representative WWII submachine gun, I would go for a 1928 Savage "Tommy Gun" marked Thompson.

MHO, YMMV, etc.

Other than being priced above the stated range, the GG is immensely boring.

I wouldn't write off a STEN immediately. I like mine a lot...but I couldn't explain why. If you find a nice example that runs, they are a lot of fun.

Thompson are great WW2 SMGs.  The 1928A1 is the best I think but I do like the M1 as well.

I was pleasantly surprised how controllable and accurate the MP34 was to fire.  It would be my pick if I had to use a WWII SMG for serious work.

I have a pre-sample MP34.  It is one of my favorite guns to shoot

For those that haven’t fired am MP34.  Watch the front sight, it barely moves.

Anyone know what the deal was with all the side loading subguns during WWII?

That is one smooth ride

It was thought (by some) that having a long mag sticking out the bottom would be disadvantageous for infantrymen wanting to fire and reload in the prone position.
They ended up eventually figuring out that the shift in balance (which changes as the mag empties) didn't really outweigh the advantage of not having it stick down.

That might depend on who you ask. I suspect your infantrymen were probably OK with missing the occasional target due to balance shift if it meant they could lay low and not get hit by enemy MG fire. Brass probably saw it differently…

This for sure

Many of the 9mm subguns in the 2nd WW were direct descendants of the original MP 18 from the 1st WW, including the STEN.

The Australians went with top-loading, and were the only ones to stick w/ that in post war development, until they replaced subguns and rifles w/ the AUG.

What is a registered de-wat?  Is that where a MG was turned into a non-firearm for maybe importation, then before 1986, the Form 1 filled out a make it a MG?  

Sounds like a very interesting gun.  Not too many North Korean guns out there.

Registered DeWats are generally guns that were capture guns brought back from overseas conflicts (up through the Korean war) and in order to be allowed to be brought back home to the US they had to be "deactivated".  Granted some may have been smuggled back as live guns and the deactivation process done once they got back to the US as well. DeWat stand for DEactivated WAr Trophy.

Prior to the GCA of 1968 to legally have a "machinegun" it had to be an actual intact and functional machinegun.  Stuff like registered conversion parts (DIAS) or even just a machinegun receiver (like a bare 1928 Thompson receiver) were not legally machineguns unto themselves like they are today.  So as an example, if you had a captured MP40 from Germany in WW2, you could have the barrel filled lead and then put a spot weld on the barrel to the receiver (so the barrel could be easily swapped out) and bring it back into the Country in your duffle bag as a non-functioning display piece.  The amount of "deactivation" on DeWats varies from gun to gun with some just having a basic chamber plug that could be easily removed and other with holes drilled in critical portions of the guns receiver or barrel.

When the GCA of 68 was passed one of the things that changed was that the definition of a machinegun and a machinegun receiver by itself was now legally considered a "machinegun" as were machinegun "conversion kits".   So all of these essentially dummy DeWat guns that veterans gave to their kids to play army with in the backyard with in the 1940s, 50, & 60s were all of a sudden legally now "machineguns" and had to be registered in the NFRTR to stay legal.

Part of the reason for the 1968 tax free registration period was to allow folks who owned these previously DeWat machineguns to register them with the NFA/NFRTR to stay legal.  However,  since they were not "live" machineguns they can continue to transferred to this day tax free using an ATF Form 5 (by checking the "firearm is unserviceable" box) if they are still in deactivated condition.  Since a registered DeWat is considered "transferable" (being a lawfully owned machinegun prior to 922o in 1986) you can actually still reactivate them by filing a Form 1 and paying the $200 making tax by checking box "1 K" on the Form 1 stating it is a reactivation of a previously transferable deactivated machinegun.

These guns are still out there in DeWat condition as I had a buddy just buy a DeWat Jap Type 97 last year that he plans to Form 1 and reactivate once it transfers to him from his dealer.

Hopefully this helps explain.

The S&W76 is a cool gun, but the Swedish K/Port Said is way nicer in terms of trigger. The S&W76 trigger just stinks.

Factory trigger pull is pretty rough no doubt.  I have had folks think the gun was still on safe due to the weight of the factory trigger pull.

However it is actually really easy to improve if you just change out the sear spring for a lighter weight version.  One of these days I need to go back and look at the spring I swapped in some time back and count the coils and measure the wire diameter (vs the OEM spring) so I can provide the spec on the lighter spring I am using and measure the trigger pull weight change.

The lighter spring really improves the trigger pull and also probably really lessens the wear on the trigger bar nose.   I got the idea from Bill Springfield who at one point was doing SW76 trigger jobs (no clue if he still is) and one of the changes was a lighter weight sear spring.

From that list, ignoring cost, Sterling. The MP40 is close, but parts are fully unobtainable all the stocks are wobble-junk.

If you care about name recognition for your friends to be impressed, Thompson, but the gun itself is not very versatile.

I don't think STENs get enough credit. I love mine. You need to shoot a NICE tube example, or a C&R. A lot of the tube guns were somewhat shoddy.

fwiw, the MP40 stock wobble is not a real hard fix, you will need a good machine shop though and about $300 for labor

What needs to be done ?

I was also thinking of putting an FMP bolt / recoil spring assembly into the one I'm waiting on just to protect the matching SN bolt in it. FMP bolts no longer cheap though.
Supposedly a drop in fit.

I assume you're thinking of the FBP bolt.  You can still find parts kits at reasonable prices (definitely cheaper than an original MP40 bolt).  It does seem like the prices doubled for these over the last few years.

One can say that about a lot of things, and not just firearms related.  Brandon-omics at work.
MHO, YMMV, etc.

Great information, thank you.

Past OP’s price range a little bit, but there is a no reserve Swedish K on GB with a fair starting price:

https://www.gunbroker.com/All/search?Keywords=swedish%20k&Sort=13

I ended up picking up a Reising M50 for $7k, the price was hard to beat and well under my price range meaning I can probably pick up another SMG in a few years or I’ll trade for up for a Thompson later.  Thanks for the heads up though!