Rifles

The AK-74 (Russian: Автомат Калашникова образца 1974 года or “Kalashnikov automatic rifle model 1974”) is an assault rifle developed in the early 1970s by Russian designer Mikhail Kalashnikov as the replacement for the earlier AKM (itself a refined version of the AK-47). It uses a smaller 5.45×39mm cartridge, replacing the 7.62×39mm chambering of earlier Kalashnikov-pattern weapons.

The rifle first saw service with Soviet forces engaged in the 1979 Afghanistan conflict. The head of the Afghan bureau of the Pakistani Inter-Services Intelligence claimed that the CIA paid $5,000 for the first AK-74 captured by the mujahadeen during the Soviet–Afghan War.

Presently, the rifle continues to be used by the majority of countries of the former USSR. Additionally, licensed copies were produced in Bulgaria (AK-74, AKS-74 and AKS-74U), the former East Germany (MPi-AK-74N, MPi-AKS-74N, MPi-AKS-74NK) and Romania (Pușcă Automată model 1986). Besides former Soviet republics and eastern European countries, Mongolia, North Korean Special Forces, and Vietnamese People’s Naval infantry use AK-74s.

The G3 is a 7.62×51mm NATO battle rifle developed in 1956 by the German armament manufacturer Heckler & Koch GmbH (H&K) in collaboration with the Spanish state-owned design and development agency CETME

The G3A3 (A4) is a selective-fire automatic weapon that employs a roller-delayed blowback operating system. The two-piece bolt assembly consists of a breech (bolt head) and bolt carrier. The bolt is held in battery by two sliding cylindrical rollers that engage locking recesses in the barrel extension. The breech is opened when both rollers are compressed inward against camming surfaces driven by the rearward pressure of the expanding gases upon the bolt head. As the rollers move inward, recoil energy is transferred to the locking piece and bolt carrier which begin to withdraw while the bolt head slowly moves rearward in relation to the bolt carrier. As the bolt carrier clears the rollers, pressure in the bore drops to a safe level, the bolt head is caught by the bolt carrier and moves to the rear as one unit, continuing the operating cycle. The bolt also features an anti-bounce mechanism that prevents the bolt from bouncing off the barrel’s breech surface. The spring-powered claw extractor is also contained inside the bolt while the lever ejector is located inside the trigger housing (actuated by the recoiling bolt)

The Barrett M82, standardized by the US Military as the M107, is a recoil-operated, semi-automatic sniper rifle developed by the American Barrett Firearms Manufacturing company. It is used by many units and armies around the world. Despite its designation as an anti-materiel rifle, it is used by some armed forces as an anti-personnel sniper rifle. It is also called the Light Fifty for its .50 BMG (12.7×99mm NATO) chambering and significantly lighter weight compared to previous applications. The weapon is found in two variants, the original M82A1 (and A3) and the bullpup M82A2. The M82A2 is no longer manufactured, though the XM500 can be seen as its successor.

The Colt AR-15 is a lightweight, 5.56×45mm, magazine-fed, air-cooled semi-automatic, gas-operated rifle with a rotating bolt. It was designed to be manufactured with the extensive use of aluminum alloys and synthetic materials. Introduced in 1964, Colt has made many different types of AR-15 rifle and carbine models: including the AR-15, AR-15A2, AR-15A3, Sporter, HBAR, Government, Target, Match and many other models.

It is based on the ArmaLite AR-15 rifle, a select-fire weapon intended for military sales. In 1959, ArmaLite sold the design to Colt due to financial difficulties. After some modifications, the rifle eventually became the United States military M16 rifle. Shortly thereafter, Colt began to make semi-automatic versions for civilian sales. The term “AR-15” is a Colt registered trademark, which they use to denote only the semi-automatic rifle versions available for civilian and law enforcement sales.

The term “AR-15” signifies “Armalite rifle, design 15”.Other manufacturers make AR-15 clones and variants marketed under separate designations, although these are frequently referred to as AR-15s. This article discusses the semiautomatic version manufactured by Colt.

The M1 Garand is a .30 caliber semi-automatic rifle that was the standard U.S. service rifle during World War II and the Korean War and also saw limited service during the Vietnam War. Most M1 rifles were issued to U.S. forces, though many hundreds of thousands were also provided as foreign aid to American allies. The Garand is still used by drill teams and military honor guards. It is also widely used by civilians for hunting, target shooting, and as a military collectible.

The M1 rifle was named after its Canadian-American designer, John Garand. It was the first standard-issue semi-automatic military rifle. By all accounts the M1 rifle served with distinction. General George S. Patton called it “the greatest battle implement ever devised”.The M1 replaced the bolt action M1903 Springfield as the standard U.S. service rifle in the mid 1930s, and was itself replaced by the selective fire M14 rifle in the early 1960s.

Although the name “Garand” is frequently pronounced /ɡəˈrænd/, the preferred pronunciation is /ˈɡærənd/ (to rhyme with errand), according to experts and people who knew John Garand, the weapon’s designer.

Variants

Sniper models

The procedure required to install the M1C-type mounts through drilling/tapping the hardened receiver reduced accuracy by warping the receiver. Improved methods to avoid reduction of accuracy were inefficient in terms of tooling and time. This resulted in the development of the M1D, which utilized a simpler, single-ring Springfield Armory mount attached to the barrel rather than the receiver. The M1C was first widely used during the Korean War. Korean War production was 4,796 M1Cs and 21,380 M1Ds; although few M1Ds were completed in time to see combat.

The U.S. Marine Corps adopted the M1C as their official sniper rifle in 1951. This USMC 1952 Sniper’s Rifle or MC52 was an M1C with the commercial Stith Bear Cub scope manufactured by the Kollmorgen Optical Company under the military designation: Telescopic Sight – Model 4XD-USMC. The Kollmorgen scope with a slightly modified Griffin & Howe mount was designated MC-1. The MC52 was also too late to see extensive combat in Korea, but it remained in Marine Corps inventories until replaced by bolt-action rifles during the Vietnam War.^[45] The U.S. Navy has also used the Garand, rechambered for the 7.62×51mm NATO round.

The detachable M2 conical flash hider adopted 25 January 1945 slipped over the muzzle and was secured in place by the bayonet lug. A T37 flash hider was developed later. Flash hiders were of limited utility during low-light conditions around dawn and dusk, but were often removed as potentially detrimental to accuracy.

Tanker models

Two interesting variants that never saw service were the M1E5 and T26 (popularly known as the Tanker Garand). The M1E5 is equipped with a shorter 18-inch (457 mm) barrel and a folding buttstock, while the T26 uses a shorter 18-inch (457 mm) barrel and a standard buttstock. The Tanker name was also used after the war as a marketing gimmick for commercially modified Garands.

The T26 arose from requests by various Army combat commands for a shortened version of the standard M1 rifle for use in jungle or mobile warfare. In July 1945 Col. William Alexander, former staff officer for Gen. Simon Buckner and a new member of the Pacific Warfare Board, requested urgent production of 15,000 carbine-length M1 rifles for use in the Pacific theater. To emphasize the need for rapid action, he requested the Ordnance arm of the U.S. 6th Army in the Philippines to make up 150 18″ barreled M1 rifles for service trials, sending another of the rifles by special courier to U.S. Army Ordnance officials at Aberdeen as a demonstration that the M1 could be easily modified to the new configuration. Although the T26 was never approved for production, at least one 18″ barreled M1 rifle was used in action in the Philippines by troopers in the 503rd Parachute Infantry Regiment (503rd PIR).

T20E2

Another variant that never saw duty was the T20E2. It was experimental gas-operated, selective fire rifle with a slightly longer receiver than M1 and modified to accept 20-round Browning Automatic Rifle (BAR) magazines. Bolt has hold open device on rear receiver bridge. Muzzle velocity 2760 fps. Cyclic rate of fire 700 rpm. Select device similar to M14 selector. Full automatic fire was achieved by a connector assembly which was actuated by the operating rod handle. This, in turn, actuated a sear release or trip which, with the trigger held to the rear, disengaged the sear from the hammer lugs immediately after the bolt was locked. When the connector assemble was disengaged, the rifle could only be fired semiautomatically and functioned in a manner similar to the M1 rifle. Machined and tapped on left side of receiver for scope mount. Complete with rifle grenade launcher. Weapon has an overall length of 48 1/4″, a barrel length of 24″, and weighs 9.61 lbs. without accessories and 12.5 lbs. with bipod and empty magazine. Designated as limited procurement in May, 1945. Due to cessation of hostilities with Japan, number for manufacture was reduced to 100. Project was terminated in March 1948.

The Special Operations Forces Combat Assault Rifle (SCAR) is a gas-operated (short-stroke gas piston) self-loading rifle with a rotating bolt and a firing rate of 625 rounds/min. It is constructed to be extremely modular, including barrel change to switch between calibers. The rifle was developed by FN Herstal (FNH) for the United States Special Operations Command (SOCOM) to satisfy the requirements of the SCAR competition.^[12] This family of rifles consist of two main types. The SCAR-L, for “light”, is chambered in the 5.56×45mm NATO cartridge and the SCAR-H, for “heavy”, fires 7.62×51mm NATO. Both are available in Long Barrel and Close Quarters Combat variants.

The FN SCAR systems completed low rate initial production testing in June 2007.After some delays, the first rifles began being issued to operational units in April 2009, and a battalion of the US 75th Ranger Regiment was the first large unit deployed into combat with 600 of the rifles in 2009. The US Special Operations Command later cancelled their purchase of the Mark 16 (or MK 16) SCAR-L and planned to remove the rifle from their inventory by 2013. However, they will continue to purchase the Mk 17 SCAR-H version, and also plan to purchase 5.56 mm conversion kits for the Mk 17, supplanting the loss of the Mk 16.

As of early 2015, the FN SCAR is in service in over 20 countries.

The AK-47, or AK as it is officially known (also known as the Kalashnikov) is a selective-fire (semi-automatic and automatic), gas-operated 7.62×39 mm assault rifle, developed in the Soviet Union by Mikhail Kalashnikov. It is officially known in the Soviet documentation as Avtomat Kalashnikova (Russian: Автомат Калашникова).

Design work on the AK-47 began in the last year of World War II (1945). In 1946, the AK-47 was presented for official military trials, and in 1948, the fixed-stock version was introduced into active service with selected units of the Soviet Army. An early development of the design was the AKS (S—Skladnoy or “folding”), which was equipped with an underfolding metal shoulder stock. In the spring of 1949, the AK-47 was officially accepted by the Soviet Armed Forces and used by the majority of the member states of the Warsaw Pact.

Even after almost seven decades, the model and its variants remain the most popular and widely used assault rifles in the world because of their substantial reliability under harsh conditions, low production costs compared to contemporary Western weapons, availability in virtually every geographic region and ease of use. The AK-47 has been manufactured in many countries and has seen service with armed forces as well as irregular forces worldwide, and was the basis for developing many other types of individual and crew-served firearms. As of 2004, “Of the estimated 500 million firearms worldwide, approximately 100 million belong to the Kalashnikov family, three-quarters of which are AK-47s”.