The Small Arms Thread, Part 8: 2018; ICSR to be replaced by US Army with interim 15mm Revolver Cannon.

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   The AKMSL was the first Soviet assault rifle with a folding stock, designed and adapted for use with night sights. All previous modifications of assault rifles for use with night sights were with a permanent stock.

   On December 4, 1965, the GRAU letter confirmed the approval of the future AKMSL assault rifle by the command of the Airborne Forces and they were included in the supply contract. Thus, I remind you that no machine guns under the name AKMSN existed, and the line of Soviet 7.62-mm machine guns with a folding butt with night sights looked like this: AKMSL with NSP-3, AKMSN-1 with NSPU (NSPU-3), AKMSN2 with NSPUM, AKMSN3 with NSPU-3.

https://vk.com/ak_info_ru?w=wall-21639492_46815

 

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AK-12 mod 2022 stock vs UBGL, if you put stock on the ground (one of ways to use GP-25 on older AKs). Sights also got fucked (both are issued to AK-12). Photos from Razvedos.

 

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Ru soldiers, Ukraine, thermal imagers. Soldier with SVD use thermal with build in laser rangefinder (Venox Patriot), soldier is known under name "Sofa expert", 2-3 streams with him as a guest of Razvedos got like 700k views in total. Very experienced DMR and sniper rifle user.

 

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Pecheneg-M in Ukraine

 

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Bushmaster ACR that was moded to take 9x39 and AS mags

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Unexpected.

MTs-556 is in the Army now. Razvedos claims it is ~1MOA sniper rifle.

 

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AK-12 obr. 2023. Lead project designer of this mixed bag is Dmitry Dolganov.

https://www.kalashnikov.ru/avtomat-ak-12-obraztsa-2023-goda/

 

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   Handguard is not final. Non removable muzzle device is gay. Pistol grip made as single part with trigger guard is also poo. Both of those changes kills ability to put existing after market parts of AKs on this one. 

   Other changes - stock lost metalic tube as basis, now it is full polymer. Fire selector got changed as well:

 

 

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Usual lever is gone, not small fire selector on both sides allows you to change firing mode or select "safe", which moves shutter/lever piece back to place where it close a gap.

 

 

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[LoooSeR]

On 1/25/2023 at 12:42 AM, LoooSeR said:

Unexpected.

MTs-556 is in the Army now. Razvedos claims it is ~1MOA sniper rifle.

 

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https://vk.com/wall-210068228_267002

More about MTs-556 in one of units:

 

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   Contents of delivery.
   The rifle comes with a Pelican-type case, a soft carrying case, five magazines, and two Dedal scopes:
Daytime - 4-20 * 50 in the second focal plane - in Russia it has no analogues in principle.
Thermal imaging - T4 Hunter Pro with a laser block - a very good sight.

   In addition, the kit includes the original Harris bipod and this is a big plus, since there are no domestic alternatives to them.
   Some believe that the bipod is a deeply secondary element of the complex, but this is not so - the shooter shoots, the "bed" hits. But none of the above will work adequately if the bipod is bad.

 

 

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   Impressions.
   We didn’t have specific plans for the MTs-566 - everything depended on what the shooting would show directly in terms of accuracy, the work of parts and mechanisms.
If the rifle shows decent accuracy parameters, it will find a job. If not, this is a wonderful donor of sighting systems and bipods for the SV-98.
   A detailed external inspection followed by incomplete disassembly to prepare for firing showed a fairly high production culture. Despite the many Picatinny rails, everything is processed with high quality - the rifle is simply pleasant to take in hand.
   Stock tube is mil-spec - Tula decided not to go the way of KK, which loves uniqueness too much.
   Handle and mags from AR.

   In general, there is where to turn around. The thread on the barrel is standard - 18/1.
   By the way, the rifle comes with a cylindrical nozzle, which many mistakenly take for a "can".
   As for the working "can", which, according to the plan, was to be completed with the rifle being adopted, we did not see it, just as we did not see, in fact, the combat model.
Therefore, we closed the issue with the bank with the help of you - Thank you very much!

 

 

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   Shooting.
   We are far from the first to receive the MTs-566 at our disposal and we know for sure that not everyone had it “flew”.
   We "flew".
   There are no secrets here, but I will not delve into the twists and the mass of bullets within the framework of this text. The twist, by the way, is 240 mm.

 

   In general, rifle is 1 minute weapon and there is work for her.
   I will add that the rifle is interesting - a kind of right hybrid of widely used elements and an original approach.
   The bolt group is reminiscent of the SCAR / Vintorez, the trigger is like a module, but simple and adjustable, the tuning elements are interchangeable with AR - everything is in color.
   To Tulyaks - my Respect "(c)" Bekas ".

 

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From recent NK parade

 

[Żółć]

Apparently, Ukraine has placed an order for Polish MSBS Grot rifles. Poland delivered around 10,000 of them at the beginning of the conflict in 2022. Now it seams that they gained a liking by the Ukrainian soldiers https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1636254965508210688

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NK Hwasongpho rocket artillery unit soldiers armed with AK+helical mags

 

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More of MTs-556 in combat zone

Wagner sniper

 

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OSV-96s

 

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Other rifles:

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MoD SF unit

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6P69

 

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RPL-20 with long and short barrels.

 

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SVCh DMR

 

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Disintegrating belt for PKM/PKP.

 

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Not sure where to put those, Azerbaijan-captured Armenian 12.7 HMG RCWS stations.

 

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AX50 ELR in Russia

 

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AK-22 in new caliber - 6,02x41

 

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https://www.kalashnikov.ru/shestyorke-byt-novyj-rossijskij-patron-6-02-41/

 

Tula ammo plant and Kalashnikov concern worked on their new cartridge design from 2020. they tested several different rounds and casings. 6.7x45, 6.5x39, 6,02x41:

 

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Energy / range

 

Speed / range. New round is still supersonic at 1000 meters

 

At 300 meters they also tested penetration of new bullet vs steel plates. On the right - % of penetrated rounds.

 

SVCh in 7.62x54 and in new 6.02x41

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6P67 used by one of Russian soldiers in Ukraine.

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Warspot article link.

 

Soviet program to design caseless ammunition from 50s, 60s and up to 70s. Later projects are still secret.

 

AO-31-7, 1965, 7.62 caliber avtomat with caseless ammunition.

 

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   The first work on caseless ammunition in the USSR began immediately after the Great Fatherland War. In January 1946, the first technical requirements for the cartridge were formulated, which did not require the usual and, as it seemed, necessary for a unitary cartridge element in the form of a case. This cartridge was intended for firing single and automatic fire at a range of up to 1 km. The accuracy of the fire and the amount of dispersion were planned to be no more than 1.5 times greater than that of the gross rifle cartridges mod. 1908 with a light bullet. The lethal effect of a bullet at 300 m was determined by penetrating ten 25-mm dry pine boards with a distance of 10 cm between each. The direct shot range was 300 m.

 

   To achieve these parameters, the first work began with large-caliber caseless cartridges. With the adoption of the automatic cartridge mod. In 1943, all research switched to an intermediate caliber of 7.62 mm using bullets from the standard Kalashnikov assault rifle (AK) cartridge. Work on new caliber cartridges at the Klimov Research Institute-61 (future TsNIITOChMASh) continued in 1958. The main goal for the institute’s specialists was to reduce the weight of cartridges as much as possible.

   In 1963, based on the results of research work (R&D) “Razvitie”, one of the ways to improve rifle and machine gun cartridges was to reduce the weight of ammunition through the development of caseless cartridges. Such ammunition was a compressed powder charge, which had a primer in the tail and a protruding bullet in the nose. The cartridge had a length of 38.5 mm (equal to the length of the cartridge case of the model 1943), weight 10 g (the mass of the cartridge model 1943 with the PS bullet was 16.3 g) and a maximum diameter of 11.5 mm (corresponding to the size of the cartridge case of the model . 1943).

 

   In 1965, NII-61 designed the AO-31-7 assault rifle for a caseless cartridge. Unlike its regular AO-31 counterparts, the modification with prefix seven did not have an ejector or reflector. However, it was not possible to achieve normal functioning of a caseless cartridge in automatic weapons. “Crude” cartridges and their imperfect design were blamed for this. The main problem during testing was the self-ignition of the cartridge in the heated chamber of the weapon after only 20-30 shots. As a result, this branch of research reached a dead end, and a change in approach to solving this problem was required.

 

   Subsequently, work with caseless ammunition switched to 5.6 and 5.45 mm calibers. The overall design of the cartridge has remained virtually unchanged. Combinations of a 5.45 mm PS bullet with various shapes and masses of a powder charge, as well as its composition, were used. Caseless ammunition was manufactured at the Kazan Powder Plant. Such a cartridge weighed about 5 g (5.45x39 mm cartridge weighed 10.5 g), had a length of 36 mm and a diameter of slightly less than 10 mm. Possessing almost the same characteristics as the 13MZhV cartridge (the future 7N6), the caseless ammunition provided an almost twofold advantage in length and more than twofold in weight. A 39 mm long version, weighted to 7 g, was also tested, which had a significantly larger mass of powder charge.

 

 

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Three problems
   Work on caseless weapons chambered for the new 5.45 mm cartridge at the Izhevsk Machine-Building Plant (Izhmash) began in 1969. The main problems faced by Izhevsk gunsmiths were:

• Ensuring tight locking of the chamber when firing;
• Reliable extraction of a misfired cartridge;
• Exclusion of a spontaneous shot from spontaneous ignition of powder charge after shooting the ammunition. 

   In an attempt to solve these problems, Izhmash is first constructing the first version of the avtomat for the 1MS caseless cartridge, designated AB-1. As a method of sealing the AB-1 chamber, a combined scheme was chosen, in which two spherical surfaces of the bolt and chamber are pressed against each other under the pressure of powder gases. The movable chamber sleeve is sealed with compression rings, similar to the operation of internal combustion engines and pumps. This obturation system is protected by two copyright certificates based on applications from 1970 and 1972.

 

 

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   The low strength of the powder block does not allow it to be used to extract a cartridge that does not have a casing, so the AB-1 assault rifle uses a method of pushing the cartridge out from the side of the bullet. To do this, the chamber is tilted to the side, and the charging handle pushes the cartridge out of the weapon, acting on the front end of the bullet. Thus, the remains of the powder block, damaged when the striker hits the primer, are also removed.

 

   When using 1MS type cartridges with an open powder block, the walls of the chamber can heat up to a temperature of plus 500 degrees Celsius. To minimize the temperature effect on the firing process, the primer is broken immediately after the cartridge is chambered. Several other options for solving the problems of obturation, feeding cartridges and extracting misfired ammunition were tested in the design of another Izhevsk gun - the ABP (on picture).

 

 

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Second among AB.
   The design of a prototype of a modified avtomat created by B.M. Zorin and P.N. Korolev, considered in October 1973. The main characteristics of the AB-2 were compared with the 6P20 assault rifle, which in just a few months would become the AK74. With equal caliber and ammunition of 150 rounds, the mass of such a combat weapon set for the AB-2 turned out to be 4.83 kg instead of 6.12 kg for the Kalashnikov assault rifle. At the same time, the rate of fire of the AB-2 increased significantly to 900-1000 rounds per minute, and the initial bullet speed turned out to be slightly lower and amounted to 840 m/s.

 

   It is worth noting that according to the technical specifications for the caseless machine gun, a magazine with 50 rounds of ammunition and standard ammunition with four magazines were assumed. The remaining characteristics were almost identical and very close to those of the 6P20 assault rifle. However, given the early stage of research work and the incomplete readiness of the prototype, many of the practical characteristics of the AB-2 were never determined and studied.

 

 

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   In terms of seats and the rifled part of the channel, the barrel of the AB-2 assault rifle is unified with the 6P20 assault rifle. This was facilitated by the intra-ballistic characteristics of the 1MS cartridge, identical to the experimental 13MZhV cartridge (soon to become the usual 5.45x39-mm 7N6). The supply of cartridges from a box magazine is carried out according to the usual pattern, and the location of the bolt lugs behind the magazine made it possible to raise the cartridge feed line and practically straighten its trajectory, reducing the load on the cartridge itself.

 

   Weapon automation works through the use of powder gases acting on a firing striker, which also serves as a piston. Due to the movement of the firing striker, the frame with the bolt is retracted to the rearmost position. At the same time, the movable chamber sleeve moves backward (under the action of a spring and powder gases). Then, under the action of the recoil spring, all parts of the automation move forward, sending the cartridge into the chamber and hitting the primer. Shooting is carried out with both single and automatic fire. The remaining parts and mechanisms are designed and operate similarly to the AKM assault rifle.

 

   The results of practical shooting from the AB-2 assault rifle showed quite encouraging results. After 800 shots, the chamber seal remained unchanged, and the degree of contamination of the automation parts did not exceed the degree of contamination of standard weapons. During shooting from various positions, the shooter did not feel the breakthrough of gases or the emission of solid particles. The accuracy of fire at a distance of 100 m with single fire was Sb x St (core dispersion stripes in the lateral direction and in height), equal to 11.3 x 14.3 cm, and with automatic fire - 31 x 26.2 cm.

 

   The conclusion based on the results of testing a prototype of the AB-2 assault rifle chambered for the 1MS caseless cartridge stated that the fundamental issues set by the tactical and technical requirements had been successfully resolved. Subsequently, a third version of the assault rifle designed by Zorin-Korolev appeared. The further fate of the AB-3 and other Izhevsk developments is still unknown, however, it is obvious that domestic models of weapons chambered for a caseless cartridge were unable to pass a number of very stringent tests of the functioning of weapons in difficult conditions.

 

AB-3 prototype rifle

 

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Under "Secret" mark.
   Information about domestic caseless cartridges is still classified as “Secret”. The developer of caseless cartridges (Klimovsky TsNIITOCHMASH) stated in 2013 that this topic is still classified and information about it is not subject to disclosure. Moreover, the design of similar foreign cartridges has long been known and described in detail.

 

   Some of the files in the Izhevsk archives on work in this direction were declassified in 2011. The fate of such research in other weapons design bureaus still remains under a veil of secrecy. Thus, several samples of Tula KBP and TsKIB SOO chambered for a special cartridge are known, the design of which was carried out by S.A. Yartsev. The simple formulation “special cartridge” still sometimes hides domestic caseless ammunition.

 

   According to official data, S.A. Yartsev developed the TKB-590 and TKB-0106 assault rifles and the TKB-061 small machine gun. Based on the indicated indices, it can be assumed that the “KBPshny” TKB-590 and the “Tskibovsky” TKB-061 were developed at the turn of the 50s and 60s, when the designer of these products transferred from KBP to TsKIB SOO. It is difficult to determine the caliber of the cartridge for which they were designed, but the later TKB-0106 product was definitely powered by 1MS type cartridges.

 

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Comparison between conventional & hybrid cartridge case ammunition, showing the hybrid fired from a 13” barrel having a higher muzzle velocity than a conventional round fired from a 16” barrel. 
 

 

Only the 13” hybrid perforated the armour plate. The hybrid cartridge case is the same technology in the Next Generation Squad Weapon’s 6.8x51mm ammunition. 

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Interesting weapon. Shitty trigger looks like was one of only real negatives GT had with it.