This Old Gun: SOLA Super SMG

by
posted on June 10, 2020
** When you buy products through the links on our site, we may earn a commission that supports NRA's mission to protect, preserve and defend the Second Amendment. **
If you’ve never heard of the SOLA Super submachine gun (SMG), you’re not alone. Not many of these SMGs were produced during the mid-1950s. Following the liberation of Luxembourg from its Nazi stranglehold in 1944, the country faced a time of economic rebuilding. Luxembourg wanted to create an export economy, so it turned to firearms. It was then, in 1953, that designers went to work to come up with a new submachine gun. After a failed attempt at improving the British Sten submachine gun, Société Luxembourgeoise d'Armes S.A. came up with the SOLA Super, a copy of the Belgian Vigneron SMG.

Blueprint drawing of SOLA SMG.

The SOLA Super SMG, chambered in 9 mm, is built from sheet metal stampings and plastic that produces a compact and lightweight platform. The SOLA Super features a blowback-operated design that fires from the open-bolt position and is capable of select fire, meaning the gun’s safety selector provides three options: Safe, semi- and full-automatic modes. Staggered-column, 32-round MP40 magazines feed the SOLA Super SMG, and the barrel features a built-in compensator for recoil mitigation.

SOLA Super SMG disassembled on table.

A second iteration was introduced, the SOLA Leger, and marketed to airborne troops for its increased compactness and ease of use as compared to the previous design. It featured a telescoping wire stock and was built of steel stampings and plastic. Like the SOLA Super, a shortened barrel was included, but without a compensator. The flip-up, aperture-rear sight found on the SOLA Super was replaced for a fixed unit on the SOLA Leger. The simplified SOLA Leger came in at nearly a half pound lighter than the Super model.

Left-side view of SOLA Leger SMG on white background.

To this day, the SOLA Super and SOLA Leger are the only firearms to have been produced in the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. The Luxembourgeois military employed the SMGs, which were in use until the 1960s, but couldn’t compete with post-war surplus of British Sten submachine guns available on the market. As for Luxembourg’s small-arms export business, the venture lead to contract with several African countries, but was short-lived.

Right-side view of SOLA Super on diamond plate background.

Watch the American Rifleman Television "I Have This Old Gun" video segment linked above to learn more about the SOLA Super SMG.

Latest

Gotw Wilson Combat Divison 77 Project 1 Web
Gotw Wilson Combat Divison 77 Project 1 Web

Gun Of The Week: Wilson Combat Division 77 Project 1

Join American Rifleman staff on the range in this video to get a closer look at Wilson Combat’s somewhat cryptically named “Division 77 Project 1.” 

The Armed Citizen® July 18, 2025

Read today's "The Armed Citizen" entry for real stories of law-abiding citizens, past and present, who used their firearms to save lives.

Review: POF-USA LMR BASE Rifle

The Patriot Ordnance Factory LMR Base offers a .308 Win. chambering in a lightweight, AR-15-size package, which makes it a capable platform for today's new gun owner. And it comes at a fair price.

2025 Accessory Of The Year: Wyoming Sight Drifter

For each of the past 23 years, the editors of American Rifleman have convened to select our top picks for the past year’s best and most innovative products. Here are the most recent winners.

Henry Donates Rifles To Support Young Leukemia Victim

Henry Repeating Arms has donated a limited run of 50 “Team Keane” Golden Boy .22 lever-action rifles to support 13-year-old Keane Rhodes of Universal City, Texas, who is currently undergoing aggressive treatment for ALL T-cell leukemia.

Rifleman Review: Springfield Armory Echelon

Springfield Armory introduced its Echelon in 2023, bringing a modernized, chassis-style, striker-fired handgun to the market that has since seen several notable line extensions.

Interests



Get the best of American Rifleman delivered to your inbox.