all about rifles n machine guns

2008-06-22T03:39:00.000-07:00

Future Developments

2007-12-11T03:52:00.000-08:00

Another imminent developments is the SDA program. The Soldier Digital Assistant (SDA) consists of a palmtop computer with a touch-operated screen. The software will include the Global Positioning System(GPS), which employs satellites to determine the user's own position very accurately on digital map of the area in which he is operating. Many other positions, such as those of platoon member and vehicles, can also be shown on the screen.

Steyr ACR

2007-12-08T07:25:00.000-08:00

Although the Steyr AUG rifle already looks futuristic in comparison to other models, the company nevertheless wanted to develop a special weapon for the ACR program. On the Steyr ACR, a steel arrow cartridge was also opted for, but in a composite cartridge case. The rifle has a scope with two positions: 1.5:1 for close range and 3.5:1 for distance. The ACRs are still at the research stage and no decision is expected before the year 2000. it is evident, however, that other NATO countries will not stay behind if the US armed forces decide to purchase the ACR.

Heckler & Koch ACR

2007-12-08T07:08:00.000-08:00

The ACR, made by Heckler & Koch, of Germany, is derived from an earlier design, the G11.
The cartridge is caseless. This means that the bullet is packed in a solid compressed block of nitrocellulose. This cartidge is devired from the G11 : 4.7 mm. The Americans use the caliber designation 4.92 mm, but this is purely a question of measurement : 4.7 mm is the outside diameter of the bullet and 4.92 mm is the diameter between the grooves in the bore. An interesting feature is that the scope has two different positions : 1:1 for close range and 3:5:1 for range of up to 300 meters (984 ft).

Colt ACR

2007-12-05T18:41:00.000-08:00

The Colt ACR (Advanced Combat Rifle) is derived from the Colt M16 models. It is gas-operated and also has a rotating bolt head. In spite of the modern trend toward 3-round bursts, the Colt shoots semi-and fully automatically, though this could change.

The ammunition selected by Colt is the .223 Remington standard caliber, but with a duplex bullet. This means that not one, but two bullets are located in the cartridge case. Every target struck thus takes two hits. The rifle is fitted as standard with the well-kwon Elcan 3:5:1 Scope.

AAI ACR

2007-12-05T18:32:00.000-08:00

The ACR, made by the American AAI Corporation, bears the closest resemblance to the present M16 rifle. It is gas-operated and shoots a spesial steel arrow projectile in a.223 Remington caliber cartidge. The rifle is fitted with both the standard sighting devices and an optical 4:1 Arsmon scope.

Developments

2007-12-05T17:49:00.000-08:00

Austrian armaments maker Styer heralded a new era with modern weapon concept in 1975 when they introduced the Styer Armee Universal Gewehr (AUG). In 1977, this weapon was introduced as the Austrian army's standart weapon. The futuristic AUG, in 5,56 x 45 mm NATO(.223 Rem.) caliber, is largely made of synthetic material. Besides the rifle version, this modular firearm can also be fitted out as sub-macine-gun and light machine gun. In addition to the Austrian armed force those of Austrian, Ireland, Morocco, New Zealand and Saudi Arabia also use this Weapon.

Introduction

2007-12-05T17:32:00.000-08:00

Armed conflicts are as old as mankind. One of the earliest known disputes was that between Cain and Abel,in which an ass's jawbone was used as a weapon. After their nomadic existence as hunter, our forefathers began to concentrate more on animal husbandry, fishing and agriculture. This gave rise to territories which were at times the cause of clashes with neighboring tribes. At that time, such conflicts were still fought out with clubs and stone axes. Until roughly halfway through the middle ages, weaponry consisted of bow and arrow, spear, sling, battle-axe, sword, dagger and halberd.

The Machine Gun in 1914

2007-11-26T09:42:00.000-08:00

The 1914 machine gun, usually positioned on a flat tripod, would require a gun crew of four to six operators. In theory they could fire 400-600 small-calibre rounds per minute, a figure that was to more than double by the war's end, with rounds fed via a fabric belt or a metal strip.

The reality however was that these early machine guns would rapidly overheat and become inoperative without the aid of cooling mechanisms; they were consequently fired in short rather than sustained bursts. Cooling generally took one of two forms: water cooled and, increasingly as the war developed, air cooled. Water jackets would provided for the former (which held around one gallon of liquid) and air vents would be built into the machine gun for the latter.

Water cooled machine guns would still overheat relatively quickly (sometimes within two minutes), with the consequence that large supplies of water would need to be on hand in the heat of a battle - and, when these ran out, it was not unknown for a machine gun crew to solve the problem by urinating into the jacket.

Whether air or water cooled, machine guns still jammed frequently, especially in hot conditions or when used by inexperienced operators.

Consequently machine guns would often be grouped together to maintain a constant defensive position.

Estimates of their equivalent, accurate, rifle firepower varied, with some estimating a single machine gun to be worth as many as 60-100 rifles: a more consensual figure is around 80, still an impressively high figure.

Machine Guns

2007-11-26T09:34:00.000-08:00

The machine gun, which so came to dominate and even to personify the battlefields of World War One, was a fairly primitive device when general war began in August 1914. Machine guns of all armies were largely of the heavy variety and decidedly ill-suited to portability for use by rapidly advancing infantry troops. Each weighed somewhere in the 30kg-60kg range - often without their mountings, carriages and supplies.

About Rifles

2007-11-26T09:13:00.000-08:00

A type of firearm developed into a practical weapon in the mid-19th-c in which the barrel of the gun is internally grooved in a spiral form. The bullet is spun as it passes down the bore, the spin stabilizing it in flight and thus increasing its accuracy. Bolt-action magazine rifles firing smokeless powder cartridges transformed infantry firepower by the end of the 19th-c, but their technology remained more or less static until the middle of World War 2, when the gas-operated automatic rifle made its appearance. Today's military assault rifles are lightweight, fully automatic weapons with great range and accuracy. The rifling concept has also been developed in producing barrels for large artillery pieces, to assist accuracy.