The P-14 was built on the design of the P-13, which, in turn, was built around the outrageous .276 Enfield cartridge. That cartridge was a Cordite-fueled, rimless, almost equivalent of the 7mm Rem Mag. Pretty sure the trial troops were NOT positively impressed. And, the designers kept the blade length of the Patt '07 bayonet and fitted a new quillon to work with the exposed barrel of the P-13 / P 14. See also the stock,, which has a wrist very like a Lee Enfield. That form was to provide a positive grip whilst bayonet fighting; not for "comfort / ergonomics" whilst shooting. The "spirit of the pike" was VERY much alive and well.

The P-14 was built using the P-13 "package", with not a lot of changes. The Mk 1* was introduced to tidy up feed issues related to the change to a shorter, skinnier, RIMMED cartridge. A minor miracle it even worked at all.

The subsequent M 17 was built on the same tooling, with minor mods to allow for the .30-06 cartridge. Same barrel length, but a "proper" Mauser-style extractor.