In the early fifties, Czechoslovakia began to create a new family of small arms for the intermediate cartridge 7, 62x45 mm of its own design. One of the representatives of the new family could be the ZB-530 automatic rifle, developed on the basis of one of the successful serial machine guns. However, this sample was never brought to mass production.
A course for independence
Czechoslovakia had a developed defense industry, which was planned to be preserved and developed in the future - by limiting foreign participation in the rearmament of its army. As part of this course, new ammunition was created, as well as various types of weapons and military equipment. In 1952, an intermediate cartridge 7, 62x45 mm vz. 52 was added to the list of independent Czechoslovak developments.
The new cartridge took into account foreign - primarily Soviet - experience in the creation of ammunition, but implemented new ideas a little differently. In the same 1952, work began on the creation of promising weapons chambered for replacing outdated systems. The possibility of creating a self-loading carbine, an automatic rifle (machine gun) and a light machine gun was considered.
All major Czechoslovak arms organizations soon joined the program. One of the participants was Zbrojovka Brno. Under the leadership of the renowned designer Vaclav Holek, it developed an assault rifle with the working designation ZB-530. In the future, this product could go into service.
Familiar design
The ZB-530 project was based on an interesting idea. Back in the mid-twenties, V. Holek's team created a very successful machine gun ZB vz. 26, which was later adopted by a number of countries. It was proposed to use such a machine gun as a source of solutions, combined with new ideas and components. All this led to a certain external and internal similarity of the two samples.
The assault rifle retained the characteristic layout of the basic machine gun and the corresponding appearance. The magazine receiver was left on top of the receiver, and therefore only the control handle was placed below. The automation was refined, as a result of which the gas pipe disappeared from under the barrel. The principles of operation of the weapon remained the same.
The ZB-530 was built on the basis of a complex cross-section stamped receiver, closed on top with a removable cover. Only the trunk protruded beyond the front cut of the box; the elements of the gas engine were placed inside it. The main volume of the box was given under the bolt group and the return spring, partially taken out into the butt.
The bolt group ZB-530 was based on the design of the ZB vz. 26. The automation was based on a gas engine with a long piston stroke. Locking was carried out by skewing the shutter, in which its rear part was engaged with the latch of the receiver. Cocking was carried out using a handle on the right side of the weapon.
The ammunition supply system was built on the basis of detachable box magazines for 30 rounds. As with the base machine gun, the magazine was attached to the weapon from above. The store receiver had a low height; behind it was the magazine latch. The ejection of the casings was carried out to the right through the receiver window. The location of the receiver and the location of the moving parts, with certain reservations, made it possible to classify the machine as a "bullpup".
The trigger for the ZB-530 retained the capabilities of the previous design. It provided single and automatic fire, and also blocked the descent. Fire control was carried out with a traditional trigger. The fuse translator was located above the control handle on the left side of the weapon.
An adjustable sight was placed on the front of the magazine receiver. Due to the specific location of the store, the rear sight had to be moved to the left. The front sight in the annular front sight was located at the muzzle and was also shifted to the left.
The metal parts of the machine were complemented by wooden fittings. Provided for the use of a forend under the front of the receiver, a one-piece pistol grip and butt. There are two known fittings for the ZB-530. In the first case, the forend was made in the form of a flat part, and the butt was Y-shaped. The second version was distinguished by the increased size of the forend and other contours of the butt.
Victims of unification
The development of the ZB-530 assault rifle started in 1952 and took about a year. In November 1953, the prototypes were sent for testing. As part of the field tests, it was possible to remove the characteristics and determine the list of necessary improvements. In addition, it was already possible to make predictions about the results of the competition for the development of the machine.
In parallel with the ZB-530, other Czechoslovak enterprises were developing two other automatic rifles for the same cartridge. In the near future, they should be tested and compared, choosing the most successful one. However, the program for creating an assault rifle for vz.52 ammunition did not give real results. All three samples, incl. development of the Zbrojovka Brno plant, did not receive a recommendation for adoption.
Apparently, the ZB-530 assault rifle could have certain technical problems associated with the processing of the finished structure for the use of less powerful ammunition. However, these shortcomings could be eliminated in the course of fine-tuning. Much more serious difficulties occurred in the field of ergonomics. An overhead magazine was acceptable for a light machine gun, but not for an assault rifle.
However, the fate of the new weapon was determined not by characteristics, but by completely different considerations. In the mid-fifties in Czechoslovakia, a fundamental decision was made to transfer infantry weapons to a unified intermediate cartridge 7, 62x39 mm of Soviet design and to abandon their own 7, 62x45 mm. This was soon enshrined in the rules and regulations of the newly created Warsaw Pact Organization.
The Zbrojovka Brno enterprise decided not to rebuild the existing machine gun for a new unified cartridge. This resulted in the closure of the project. As a result, the development of Czechoslovak small arms took a different path. A few years after the abandonment of the ZB-530, the vz. 58 assault rifle entered service. It was not based on the existing structure, and it did not differ in its unusual appearance. Nevertheless, such a weapon showed the required characteristics and suited the army.
Good luck and bad luck
The ZB-530 project was based on the idea of redesigning the ZB vz. 26 machine gun for a new intermediate cartridge while obtaining rifle ergonomics. Technical problems of this kind were solved, but this weapon did not reach the army due to inappropriate ammunition. Nevertheless, another sample of that time solved the assigned tasks, incl. on the transition to a new cartridge.
In 1952, the ZB vz. 52 light machine gun, also created by V. Holek and his colleagues, entered service with Czechoslovakia. Initially, he used a cartridge 7, 62x45 mm, but then a modernization was carried out with a restructuring of the structure for the Soviet 7, 62x39 mm. The ZB-530 assault rifle was not altered in this way, which was the decisive factor that determined its fate.
