Small Arms Thread

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Aditya G
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Re: Small Arms Thread

Post by Aditya G »

Why cant we simply standardize onto 762x39 cartridge as standard for conventional wars as well? Whats with the love for 762x51?

A reason for USArmy to seek 762x51 were long engagement ranges observed in A'stan - which may not happen elsewhere in the world incl Kashmir imho
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Re: Small Arms Thread

Post by nachiket »

vaibhav.n wrote:
srin wrote:One data point if anyone has: how many SLR rounds did a soldier carry before Insas ? And how many INSAS rounds does he carry now ?
It has remained the same since the 70's, each rifleman in an infantry section carries 80 rounds in 4 mags, 2 fragmentation grenades and 1 LMG magazine.
Any idea why this wasn't changed? The Army knew very well that the change in caliber would mean advantages as well as disadvantages. With this decision they nullified one of the principal advantages of the lower caliber (being able to carry more ammo because of lower weight). The decision to stick with 20 round magazines would be a fallout of not increasing the ammo carried I guess.
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Re: Small Arms Thread

Post by ParGha »

Holy Guacamole -- the "indigenous rifle" is "cheap" @Rs 50,000 (~$770)? And you want to pay Rs 200,000 (~$3,000) a piece for an imported rifle? What world do these guys live in?

Even the FN charges the US government ~$500 per M4, with all of Pentagon's waste and much higher labor costs in the US. IIRC I read somewhere here that India bought M46 130mm artillery in 1990s for $2,500 a piece. The first AKMs were sold to India $75 a piece in mid 1980s (high-quality Soviet-builds, not the current Bulgarian plastics); CZ-75s (one of the best pistols ever made) were sold to individual Indian Armoured Corps officers and Indian Customs officers for <$20 a piece.

For pete's sake -- it is a bloody assault rifle, not rocket engines for intergalactic space flight. Any decent bicycle manufacturer probably has all the machinery and skilled workforce to make a reasonably functional rifle.
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Re: Small Arms Thread

Post by Thakur_B »

Aditya G wrote:Why cant we simply standardize onto 762x39 cartridge as standard for conventional wars as well? Whats with the love for 762x51?

A reason for USArmy to seek 762x51 were long engagement ranges observed in A'stan - which may not happen elsewhere in the world incl Kashmir imho
Poor range, poor ballistics at ranges. There's a reason Russians too abandoned it for general duty.
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Re: Small Arms Thread

Post by Aditya_V »

Thakur_B wrote:
Aditya G wrote:Why cant we simply standardize onto 762x39 cartridge as standard for conventional wars as well? Whats with the love for 762x51?

A reason for USArmy to seek 762x51 were long engagement ranges observed in A'stan - which may not happen elsewhere in the world incl Kashmir imho
Poor range, poor ballistics at ranges. There's a reason Russians too abandoned it for general duty.
In the Thar Desert, Rann of Kutch and LOC north of Zoji La and much of the Tibet border where vegetation is sparse our engagement ranges will be long, in a conventional war the 7.62*39 will be a handicap. It is only in Coin operations in residential neighbourhoods or Jungles areas of Kashmir/ NE the 7.62*39 is the best.

Given our varied border terrain, it seems feasible that we need 2 rifles per soldier based on posting, 7.62*39 in jungle, thickly populated areas, 7.62*51 in High altitude and Desert areas.
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Re: Small Arms Thread

Post by Gyan »

The whole attempt seems to be to find some rationale to justify imports.

The cost of INSAS 30,000 rupees. Overhead is 50% + profit, hence actual cost around 12,000. Marginal cost may be only 5,000
Last edited by Gyan on 07 Nov 2017 17:52, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Small Arms Thread

Post by shiv »

Thakur_B wrote:
Poor range, poor ballistics at ranges. There's a reason Russians too abandoned it for general duty.
What does the US use?
What do Russian use?
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Re: Small Arms Thread

Post by abhik »

US Army has dropped it's plan to upgun it's infantry to 7.62*51(at least for the moment). I don't think anyone else is trying to move to 7.62*51.
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Re: Small Arms Thread

Post by Gyan »

Russians never abandoned 7.62x39. They supplement by adequate number of DMR Dragnov. Which is the policy being adopted by USA through refurbished M14, SR25, SCAR-H, G28, even scoped M16s. We just need to put back around 50,000 SLRs into action or INSAS 7.62x51 equipped with scopes by giving them to TWO soldiers per Section of TEN. Even INSAS LMG equipped with scopes can be used as DMRs.
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Re: Small Arms Thread

Post by nachiket »

Gyan wrote:Russians never abandoned 7.62x39. They supplement by adequate number of DMR Dragnov. Which is the policy being adopted by USA through refurbished M14, SR25, SCAR-H, G28, even scoped M16s. We just need to put back around 50,000 SLRs into action or INSAS 7.62x51 equipped with scopes by giving them to TWO soldiers per Section of TEN. Even INSAS LMG equipped with scopes can be used as DMRs.
The Russians switched to the 5.45x39mm round used in the AK-74 in the mid to late 70's.
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Re: Small Arms Thread

Post by Pratyush »

https://youtu.be/uzahVVV01Z4

Link discribing the new prospective German assault rifle designed by Rhinemettal and styr. It is a modular multi caliber weapon. It will be perfect fit for the futuristic multi caliber rifles sought by the army sometime ago.
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Re: Small Arms Thread

Post by shiv »

Pratyush wrote:https://youtu.be/uzahVVV01Z4

Link discribing the new prospective German assault rifle designed by Rhinemettal and styr. It is a modular multi caliber weapon. It will be perfect fit for the futuristic multi caliber rifles sought by the army sometime ago.
Will it work at 55 deg C in Thar? Or at -50 in Siachen?
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Re: Small Arms Thread

Post by Pratyush »

Saar please don't ask any questions that cannot be answered by an imported products. But will have to be answered by a domestic design before it is accepted.
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Re: Small Arms Thread

Post by Thakur_B »

Image

Insas Excalibur Mk1 in service with Manipur Police with a 30 round magazine and OFB sight. You can tell it is Excalibur by looking at the Gas block (the gas regulator moved backwards on the upper handguard). Interestingly the furniture on this later version of excalibur is different from the standard excalibur furniture and more in line with INSAS 1B1 furniture.
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Re: Small Arms Thread

Post by Thakur_B »

Image

Mk1c from Ajai Shukla's blog.
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Re: Small Arms Thread

Post by Thakur_B »

Breakdown of Patka Helmet.

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Image

Image

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Patka helmet dissected for better understanding ..

Source : http://www.warrelics.eu/forum/world-ste ... ar-659856/
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Re: Small Arms Thread

Post by shiv »

Great info Thakur_B
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Re: Small Arms Thread

Post by ramana »

Thakur_B, The beige is the shield and the black is the impact cushion?
All encased in the camouflage wrapper.

Is the beige metal or Kevlar?
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Re: Small Arms Thread

Post by Shameek »

Reading through the post, the beige is the 'phantom steel' band encased in polyethylene foam. The poster says this is an older design and the newer ones have Kevlar. There is also an optional insert at the top for added protection.
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Re: Small Arms Thread

Post by Thakur_B »

Gyan wrote:Russians never abandoned 7.62x39. They supplement by adequate number of DMR Dragnov. Which is the policy being adopted by USA through refurbished M14, SR25, SCAR-H, G28, even scoped M16s. We just need to put back around 50,000 SLRs into action or INSAS 7.62x51 equipped with scopes by giving them to TWO soldiers per Section of TEN. Even INSAS LMG equipped with scopes can be used as DMRs.
Do you even read what you type? No wonder you unleash a barrage of low quality posts on this forum. Russian and most of Warsaw Pact countries shifted to 5.45x39 in seventies with Ak-74 being the standard issue.
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Re: Small Arms Thread

Post by deejay »

Thakur_B thank you for the pics and the link. There are interesting comments on the thread and they caught my attention.

http://www.warrelics.eu/forum/world-ste ... ar-659856/
cammobunker wrote: Oh, very nice catch indeed! Those are REALLY hard to come by, being current issue (although I understand they are actually coming out in Kevlar now). It's a good bet the Indian Army will use them till the 2030's or so...being the IA and all, they throw nothing away. Last I looked some units were still using FALS and Patt. 37 webbing. That looks mint condition, too. Nice one!
Mark K wrote:Thank you for the reply and yes you are correct they are indeed now being manufactured out of Kevlar and yes these are currently being used by the Indian Army and para organizations alike and are very probaby re-used over and over again and re-paired as needed and re-issued ...

Regards Mark
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Re: Small Arms Thread

Post by Thakur_B »

shiv wrote:
Pratyush wrote:https://youtu.be/uzahVVV01Z4

Link discribing the new prospective German assault rifle designed by Rhinemettal and styr. It is a modular multi caliber weapon. It will be perfect fit for the futuristic multi caliber rifles sought by the army sometime ago.
Will it work at 55 deg C in Thar? Or at -50 in Siachen?
Most likely, it will. Rs 555 is conventional layout version of Steyr f88, a rifle much ahead of its time. F88 has been used for decades by Australia, Austria and Malaysia and has essentially set the benchmarks for what a modern rifle is supposed to be. Even our Paras used F88 for a while. Companies like Steyr, HK, Kalashnikov, Sig and Fn, to put it mildly, do not make crap. Hell, even companies like IWi, Beretta and Bren lack finesse when compared to them. I am particularly a fan of Russia's no nonsense approach. They are the leaders in pushing the boundaries of small arms design, testing them by induction in limited numbers and then adopting whatever works the best in terms of price and performance, ensuring that experimental designs are perfected in field.

The German rifle competition is a fairly interesting one. On one hand in Steyr with Rs 556 and on another there is HK with Hk433. Now the Hk 433 is a further evolution of the G36, where they have discarded polymer for metal, thus addressing accuracy issues raised on intensive use of G36. If the Indian army goes for global procurement for both 7.62 nato and 5.56 nato weapon, HK433 family shall be the one to look out for.
Last edited by Thakur_B on 14 Nov 2017 17:44, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Small Arms Thread

Post by Karthik S »

Image

Gurus, why do Ak-47s have that broken part at the tip of the barrel? All other guns have complete cylindrical/circular end, but AK's looks broken.
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Re: Small Arms Thread

Post by Aditya_V »

Not broken but to let gases out from recoil, otherwise it has uncontrollable recoil in auto mode. Most7.62*51 rifles don't have full auto mode and recoil from 5.56 is controllable. If the end is not chipped the rifle tend to lift upwards and sideways in auto mode
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Re: Small Arms Thread

Post by Karthik S »

Thanks Aditya.
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Re: Small Arms Thread

Post by Thakur_B »

Karthik S wrote:Image

Gurus, why do Ak-47s have that broken part at the tip of the barrel? All other guns have complete cylindrical/circular end, but AK's looks broken.
Directing gases in a specific direction to balance the muzzle rise. This is a very basic mechanism and some very exotic ones are available in the market.
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Re: Small Arms Thread

Post by ramana »

Aditya_V wrote:Not broken but to let gases out from recoil, otherwise it has uncontrollable recoil in auto mode. Most7.62*51 rifles don't have full auto mode and recoil from 5.56 is controllable. If the end is not chipped the rifle tend to lift upwards and sideways in auto mode

The US WWII Browning Automatic Rifle (their squad LMG) used to be fired sideways due to the barrel propensity to lift!
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Re: Small Arms Thread

Post by Gyan »

Thakur_B wrote:
Gyan wrote:Russians never abandoned 7.62x39. They supplement by adequate number of DMR Dragnov. Which is the policy being adopted by USA through refurbished M14, SR25, SCAR-H, G28, even scoped M16s. We just need to put back around 50,000 SLRs into action or INSAS 7.62x51 equipped with scopes by giving them to TWO soldiers per Section of TEN. Even INSAS LMG equipped with scopes can be used as DMRs.
Do you even read what you type? No wonder you unleash a barrage of low quality posts on this forum. Russian and most of Warsaw Pact countries shifted to 5.45x39 in seventies with Ak-74 being the standard issue.
You are the expert of everything under the Sun & in love with yourself & your posts. I hardly make more than one post a day & you find it a barrage. Perhaps it effects your agenda?[Deleted] The transition to 5.45×39 failed or was discontinued as it did not bring about adequate benefits compared to mass produced & in use 7.62x39. In some Arms it was reversed. 5.45x39 Saw lot of action in Afghanistan but way less than 7.62x39. And 5.45x39 was introduced in bulk even in Afghanistan only in early 1980s when its production ramped up not in 70s.
Last edited by ramana on 16 Nov 2017 00:49, edited 1 time in total.
Reason: Edited. No name calling. ramana
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Re: Small Arms Thread

Post by ashishvikas »

Watch "OFB belt-fed 7.62X51 LMG" on YouTube

By - Sandeep Unnithan

https://youtu.be/zRMHDqe_k5Y
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Re: Small Arms Thread

Post by Thakur_B »

ashishvikas wrote:Watch "OFB belt-fed 7.62X51 LMG" on YouTube

By - Sandeep Unnithan

https://youtu.be/zRMHDqe_k5Y
Nothing spectacular for a modern day LMG. IWI NG-7 which was selected for the role by the army seemed to be a much more refined and superior product. NG-7 and is lighter even with a longer barrel, and is a dual feed weapon (belt and magazine fed). Having an option of magazine feed makes the NG-7 to be a more organic replacement of Bren LMG and INSAS LMG.
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Re: Small Arms Thread

Post by Thakur_B »

from shatrujeet twitter feed, MSMC/JVPC/Milaap feedback from the field.

Image

1/2-JVPC REVIEW FRM A SOLDIER HIMSELF
+ves
•compact,lightweight & sturdy weapon
•Good holographic sights
•gives a good feel 2 d user
•Has negligible recoil on both the modes of fire(Burst and Single shot)
•Encountered very low rate of stoppages per 1000 round wen fired during tests

2/2 NEGATIVES
•Pistol grip could be made much better,current grip could be painful for the user after prolonged use
•Extendable buttstock needs to be made much stronger.
CONCLUSION
•Overall performance was quite good
•A highly recommended wpn 4 INFANTRY (The Ultimate). Via: @shatrujeet009
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Re: Small Arms Thread

Post by Thakur_B »

OFB Ghatak (Made at RFI Ishapore, not to be confused with ordnance factory Trichy's TAR) in service with ITBP.

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Ghatak can be identified easily due to that pistol grip and INSAS trigger. OFT TAR has a 90 degree gas block that sets it apart from other AKMs.
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Re: Small Arms Thread

Post by Karan M »

At least some progress from OFB.

The 7.62 x 51 LMG is apparently the ARDE gun still in development and was developed over 2 years per that video.

The JVPC feedback seems positive. The major things seem to be ok, and the rest easily fixable.
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Re: Small Arms Thread

Post by Thakur_B »

Image

Some other sights :

1. Passive Night Binocular 2. Passive Night Vision Goggle
ImageImage

3. Passive Night Sight for INSAS Rifle 4. Passive Night Sight for small arms

ImageImage
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Re: Small Arms Thread

Post by Thakur_B »

Apparently, SiG hass pulled out of German rifle competition due to being unable to meet the programs non ITAR part requirement.
http://www.thefirearmblog.com/blog/2017 ... an-tender/

The currently known competitors are H&K with HK 416 and HK 433 and Steyr with RS 556. The swiss firm was reportedly offering SiG MCX platform, which derives from the AR-18 design, but with more or less AR-15 like construction.
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Re: Small Arms Thread

Post by ramana »

A dated article from Lt. Gen Hasnain(R)

Army needs to upgrade its small arms family

The Army Desperately Needs to Upgrade its Family of Small Arms



Lt Gen Syed Ata Hasnain
Updated: April 28, 2016, 9:55 PM IST

.
The Army Desperately Needs to Upgrade its Family of Small Arms
Indian Army recruits stand in formation as they hold their INSAS rifles. (File Photo/Getty)


As a military professional my focus towards the basic personal weapon of the Indian Army and the Infantryman's mainstay was missing for almost thirteen years after I was commissioned. I was happy with the 7.62 mm Self Loading Rifle (SLR) as it was a far cry from the .303 that I had seen and fired as a youngster when my father was commanding our unit.

The issue of personal weapons finally caught my fancy when I rejoined my unit in Op Pawan (Sri Lanka/IPKF). We had a few captured 7.62 mm AK 47s which were reserved for the Ghatak platoon and for a couple of scouts while we conducted jungle bashing.

The captured AK series, worn and grimy from LTTE over use, carried a romantic aura about it. The greatest thing was that it could fire in automatic mode. Why is that important? In the jungle or urban terrain, response at close quarters is a recurring phenomenon. Automatic high rate of fire from a weapon with an enhanced capacity magazine has far greater chances of success, especially in the crucial two minutes of the first contact.


In Op Pawan the Army's leadership was dynamic in response, even though resources were still of the socialist order. Since AK 47s were not easily available the Ordnance factories quickly gave us 7.62 mm SLR 1C, a modified rifle with a slightly shortened barrel and surgically intervened breach blocks to give a burst capability. My first success in an ambush was with this weapon which I found ingenuously outstanding given the resource position of those days. The only problem with Model 1C was that it overheated very early.

By the Nineties I found myself attending meetings in Army Headquarters about the upcoming wonder, the 5.56 mm INSAS Rifle and family of small arms associated with it. It had artificial furniture and plastic see through magazines which looked very fancy. The feel appeared good and it was a novelty. I felt a change from the aging 7.62 mm SLR would be advantageous. Although I had an experience with 5.56 mm caliber, in the thick jungles of the Wani in Sri Lanka I continued to live by some dictums which I had learnt at the academy but never applied in my mind thereafter. In one instance I saw one of my 'bhullas' (Garhwali soldiers) peppered with six rounds fired by an LTTE cadre from an M-16 (5.56 mm) assault rifle. M-16s were popular in Sri Lanka; in fact anything could be popular after the 7.62 mm SLR. But this 'bhulla' was running around attending to casualties and least concerned with his injuries. Six bullets in his abdomen did not trouble him until I forced him to start acting like an actual casualty. That is the day I lost confidence in the 5.56 mm variety of small arms. It is true that the terminal effect is dependent on the range at which a bullet is fired and the amount of explosive content it contains. Yet, somehow a mindset seemed to grip me on this.



Why am I discussing all this? The reason is simple; the INSAS family which never really matured is now on the way out. In J&K too it is the AK-47 which is depended upon. But the easing out can only happen once the leadership of the Indian Army can finally decide what family of small arms it wants as its next generation small arms weapon system. Reportedly, this issue will be discussed at the ongoing Army Commanders' Conference this week. It's been discussed before but a dilemma seems to be gripping the minds of the leadership. The higher leadership comes from my generation which was taught that in battle it is far advantageous to maim or injure your adversary rather than kill him. That forces the adversary to deploy men to tend to the casualty, carry him out to a safe place, evacuate him to the rear areas and thereafter perhaps care for him for life. All this is heavy in resources at all stages, and resource depletion of your adversary is what you always aim in conflict. However, conventional conflict it appears is passé; hybrid is in and it caters for both situations - conventional and sub conventional. I can hold my own in a debate to justify the return to 7.62 mm caliber with an appropriate architecture and composition of the ammunition. The 7.62 mm also has a psychological effect on the adversary when the nature of fatal inflicted injuries is observed. However, anyone who knows small arms also knows that the parameters in consideration have to be weight (of weapon and ammunition), the recoil effect (can't have a horse buck at the shoulder), the range, the comfort of carrying and firing (ergonomics) and the length of the barrel. Throw in a couple more such parameters and the designer has more issues than he can handle. For me, recoil is a very important factor. In burst mode one can't afford only the first bullet hitting the target and the rest going astray.


I am not sure if there is a case for a compromise caliber such as 6.8 mm which some foreign analysts speak of. An examination of this would also be interesting. The Indian Army's dream personal weapon of twin caliber capability with changeable barrels to cater for different calibers has resulted in the acute delay in the final decision. There appear to be no takers for this variety which the General Staff had desired.


Many in the media are attempting to analyze the benefits of different calibers and other characteristics of small arms. This is interesting and a welcome change because the romance of military technology is usually associated with armour and artillery systems and not infantry weaponry. An issue which no one appears to have considered is the equipping of Infantry and other Combat Arms personnel with specialist small arms of a higher technical order than those of the personnel of other Arms. No doubt in conventional operations it is primarily infantry personnel who will require to use these weapons extensively in offensive/assault mode. Those away from frontlines would primarily be involved in defensive operations in rear areas. However, if the Hybrid variety of operations is considered there may be equally robust operations against well entrenched terrorists in rear areas. The issue to be considered should be the cost effectiveness of going in for one type of product across the board. No doubt uniformity in personal weapons contributes to the overall management of maintenance and logistics but this aspect need not be given undue consideration. The equipping of infantry units with a state of the art weapon which near about meets the dual parameters of both conventional warfare and hybrid operations would be the most recommended option.


Some inexperienced analysts are speaking of 1000 meter range for infantry small arms; they also appear to be mixing all this with the need of sniping which is a completely different domain. Effective ranges for infantry small arms have almost always revolved around the 300 meter mark with increase to 500 meters with stabilization due to a bipod and some more due to tripod stabilization. A target acquisition device in the form of a latch on telescope and an accuracy enhancer in the form of laser assistance are almost mandatory in the modern world.


The AK 47 type of options of burst rapid and controlled burst fire along with single shot continues to be the favourite. Indian infantrymen operate very largely in the mountains and jungle terrain and therefore the weight of the weapon and its ammunition must remain important considerations. A weapon upwards of 4 kg would not be acceptable. In fact sub 4 kg with all latch on accessories is the figure one would be satisfied with. 25-30 round magazines would be desirable when burst modes are adopted. The 20 round 7.62 mm SLR magazine was robust and less prone to malfunctioning; an improvement on that is what is looked for rather than the rather disappointing plastic magazines with conventional spring mechanism that the INSAS went in for.

Whatever it be, the Indian Army has remained in various stages of self-doubt while equipped with the INSAS family. Let us hope that with renewed interest in a new family of weapons and slippages now causing virtual panic the senior hierarchy will finally come to a decision on a subject which should be considered as important as the acquisition of aircraft, tanks and guns.


How did the INSAS family perform in Kargil?
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Re: Small Arms Thread

Post by Thakur_B »

^^ Ramana, I remember reading a report in the early 2000s (india today, if I remember correctly) when it was reported that post Kargil, Barrel blanks for INSAS has to be imported from Finland to withstand extremely cold temperatures (which means the metallurgy of initial batch of barrels was not up to the mark). Also Kargil happened during the initial years of INSAS, the polymer magazines and furniture faired rather poorly. INSAS didn't need more than a pea sized drop of lube, however intially soldiers would lube it up like AKM or FAL, resulting in a hot lube spray hitting them on the face. And then there are problems with extreme cold gumming up lube or frosting in the action resulting in the weapon not firing, cycling or feed issues.
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Re: Small Arms Thread

Post by Thakur_B »

What happens when an Ishapore 2A1 (Indian Lee enfield derivative in 7.62 NATO that our soldiers carried in 1962 war) meets dirt ? The result is not pretty.


--------------------------
A lesser known firearm that saw service mostly in British Indian army during second world war, alongside Bren LMG. This is the vickers berthier LMG, made by rifle factory ishapore, that looked like a Bren but wasn't one.



The person in the videos is Ian McCollum, a firearm historian who runs an excellent youtube channel called Forgotten Firearms.
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Re: Small Arms Thread

Post by Thakur_B »

US Army has officially cancelled intermediate calibre service rifle program.
http://www.thefirearmblog.com/blog/2017 ... r-program/
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Re: Small Arms Thread

Post by shiv »

Thakur_B wrote:^^ Ramana, I remember reading a report in the early 2000s (india today, if I remember correctly) when it was reported that post Kargil, Barrel blanks for INSAS has to be imported from Finland to withstand extremely cold temperatures (which means the metallurgy of initial batch of barrels was not up to the mark). Also Kargil happened during the initial years of INSAS, the polymer magazines and furniture faired rather poorly. INSAS didn't need more than a pea sized drop of lube, however intially soldiers would lube it up like AKM or FAL, resulting in a hot lube spray hitting them on the face. And then there are problems with extreme cold gumming up lube or frosting in the action resulting in the weapon not firing, cycling or feed issues.
That is very interesting info. I have learned something.
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