Rating of the magazine "Popular Mechanics"
Most common rifle: M16
Country: USA
Designed: 1959
Weight: 2, 88-3, 4 kg (depending on modification)
Length: 986-1006mm
Caliber: 5, 56 mm
Rate of fire: 700-900 rds / min
Bullet muzzle velocity: 948 m / s
The rifle was developed by the American company Armalite, in 1959 the Colt company began its production, in 1961 the US military purchased an experimental batch of rifles, and in 1964 it entered service with the US Army. To this day, the M16 remains the main weapon of the American infantry. The first serious baptism of fire, she took place in Vietnam, and later was used in all armed conflicts with the participation of the United States. This is an automatic rifle of 5, 56 mm caliber; its automation is based on the use of the energy of powder gases. Today there are more than 20 modifications and varieties of the rifle, and it is produced not only in the United States, but also in Canada, South Korea, China, Iran, Germany.
The most famous machine gun: the Maxim machine gun
Country: Great Britain (modification - Russia)
Designed: 1883 (modification - 1910)
Weight: 64, 3 kg (44, 23 - machine with a shield)
Length: 1067 mm
Caliber: 7.62 mm
Rate of fire: 600 rounds / min
Bullet muzzle velocity: 740 m / s
It is difficult to say that "Maxim" is included in the list of the best small arms in the past 100 years, because the Anglo-American inventor Hiram Maxim received the first patents for certain elements of the new weapon in the summer of 1883, and in October 1884 demonstrated the first working model. But one of the most famous varieties of "Maxim" appeared in 1910, which allows him to "fit" into the century.
The principle of operation of "Maxim" is simple and based on the use of barrel recoil. Powder gases from the shot throw the barrel back and activate the reloading mechanism: the cartridge is removed from the tape and goes into the breech, while the bolt is cocked. The canvas tape held 450 rounds, and the machine gun rate of fire reached 600 rounds per minute. True, the powerful weapon was not flawless. Firstly, the barrel was overheated and required a constant change of water in the cooling jacket. Another drawback was the complexity of the mechanism: the machine gun jammed due to various problems with reloading.
In Russia, the production of a machine gun began in 1904 at the Tula plant. The most famous Russian modification of the "Maxim" was the 7.62 mm heavy machine gun of the 1910 model (the original caliber of the machine gun was.303 British or 7.69 mm in the metric system). In the same year, the designer, Colonel Alexander Sokolov, designed a wheeled machine gun - it was this machine that gave the weapon a classic look. The machine greatly facilitated the issues of the march and the movement of the heavy machine gun from position to position.
But the total weight of the machine gun with the machine was still great - more than 60 kg, and this is not counting the stock of cartridges, water for cooling, etc. Therefore, by the 1930s, the formidable weapon was rapidly becoming obsolete. The last modernization of the Soviet-style machine gun survived in 1941 and was produced in Tula and Izhevsk until the very end of World War II; it was replaced by a 7, 62-mm Goryunov machine gun.
"Maxim" had many modifications: Finnish M / 32-33, English "Vickers", German MG-08, 12, 7-mm (large-caliber) for the British Navy, etc.
The most legendary WWII weapon: 7, 62-mm Shpagin submachine gun
Country: USSR
Designed: 1941
Curb weight: 5, 3 kg with drum
shop, 4, 15 kg with sector shop
Length: 863 mm
Caliber: 7.62 mm
Rate of fire: 900 rounds / min
Sighting range: 200-300 m
The predecessor of the Kalashnikov assault rifle in service with the Soviet army was the Shpagin submachine gun (PPSh). Created to replace the Degtyarev submachine gun, the PPSh was primarily designed to simplify production as much as possible and entered service in 1941. And although the design of Sudaev of the 1942 model (PPS) is often considered as the best submachine gun of the Second World War, it was the PPSh that became an integral part of the image of the Soviet soldier as the only massive automatic weapon of the Soviet army in the first year of the war.
Fastest-fire weapon: Metal Storm MK5
Country: Australia
Designed: 2004
Number of barrels: 36
Caliber: 9 mm
Estimated rate of fire: 1,080,000 rds / min
Theoretical maximum rate of fire: 1,620,000 rds / min
The ultra-rapid-fire weapon of the Australian company Metal Storm Limited is unlikely to ever get into mass production, but it cannot be ignored. The founder of the company, James Michael O'Dwyer, invented and patented the rapid fire system, the theoretical rate of fire of which reaches 1,000,000 rounds per minute. There are no moving mechanical parts in the Metal Storm machine gun, in each of the barrels there are several cartridges at the same time, and the shots are fired by means of an electronic pulse. The critical problem faced by the developers was the impossibility of timely supply of such a number of cartridges. Therefore, the rate of fire shown in the tests is calculated, and the functionality of the "iron storm" is reduced to naught when used in real combat operations. However, the company is developing in various directions and applying Metal Storm technology in weapons that have a more realistic chance of getting into the series.
Most popular pistol: Colt M1911
Country: USA
Designed: 1911
Weight: 1.075 kg
Length: 216mm
Caliber: 45th
Bullet muzzle velocity: 253 m / s
Sighting range: 50 m
One of the most popular pistols in the world is the M1911 designed by John Browning, chambered for.45 ACP (11.43 x 23mm). This weapon was in service with the US Army from 1911 to 1990, and since 1926, the pistol has not undergone any upgrades. Despite the surname of the developer, the pistol was produced by the Colt factories and went down in history as the "Colt M1911". Its main advantage was its constructive simplicity and fault tolerance. The pistol was in service in more than 40 countries around the world and is very popular to this day.
Most Repeating Gas Pistol: Reck Miami 92 F
Country: Germany
Weight without cartridges: 1, 14 kg
Length: 215mm
Caliber: 8, 9, 15 mm
Food: magazine for 11 (for the 9-mm version), 18, 20, 24, 28 rounds
RECK Miami 92F is a gas pistol manufactured by the German company Umarex, which is an exact copy of the classic Beretta 92 pistol. RECK gas pistols are available in 8 and 9 mm calibers. The 9-mm version has a completely ordinary magazine with a capacity of 11 rounds, but the 8-mm RECK Miami magazines can hold from 18 to 28 (!) Rounds, depending on the modification. Apart from prototypes, curiosities and a 40-round magazine for the Mauser, the RECK Miami 92F has no competitors in the field of multiple charges.
Fastest-firing mass-produced weapon: M134 Minigun
Country: USA
Designed: 1962
Weight: 24-30 kg (body of a machine gun with an electric motor and a power supply mechanism)
Length: 801 mm
Caliber: 7.62 mm (0.308)
Rate of fire: from 300 to 6000 rds / min (effective -
3000–4000)
Bullet muzzle velocity: 869 m / s
Of course, prototypes can be much faster-firing, but among serial weapons, the M134 Minigun series aircraft machine guns are considered to be one of the record holders for this indicator. These 7.62mm six-barreled machine guns operate according to the Gatling scheme and are capable of firing up to 6,000 rounds per minute. The new cartridge is fed into the upper (cooled) barrel, the shot is fired from below. The rotation of the trunks is provided by an electric drive. Baptism of fire M134 received in the Vietnam War. By the way, contrary to misconceptions, the "Predator" and "Terminator" use not this machine gun, but its younger brother XM214 Microgun, which did not go into the series.
The most officer's pistol: Mauser C96
Country: Germany
Designed: 1896
Weight without cartridges: 1, 13 kg
Length: 288mm
Cartridge: 7, 63 x 25 mm, 9 mm x 25 mm, etc.
Bullet muzzle velocity: 425 m / s
Sighting range: 150-200 m without butt
Mauser C96 makes us firmly associate with the man in the leather jacket and the abbreviation CHK. This model began to be produced in Germany in 1896; the pistol stood out for its excellent accuracy, high effective firing range, "survivability"; its main disadvantages were bulkiness and serious weight. Surprisingly, the "Mauser" was not officially in service with any army in the world (maximum - partial local use), while more than a million copies were produced, and officers from different countries preferred it as a personal weapon to all competitors.
Most famous repeating rifle: M1 Garand
Country: USA
Designed: 1936
Weight: 4, 31-5, 3 kg (depending on modification)
Length: 1104 mm
Caliber: 7.62 mm
Bullet muzzle velocity: 853 m / s
Effective firing range: 400 m
The American M1 Garand rifle is the first self-loading rifle to be adopted as the primary weapon of the infantry. It took a long time to be introduced: in 1929, the designer John Garand built the first prototype, but it did not reach mass production and putting into service until 1936; numerous modifications did not give the desired effect, and the new weapon constantly refused. Only the M1 generation gained popularity, modified and put into production in 1941. It is used as a sporting weapon to this day.
Most common weapon: Kalashnikov assault rifle
Country: СССP
Developed: 1974 (modification of AK-74)
Curb weight: 3, 5-5, 9 kg
Length: 940 mm (without bayonet)
Caliber: 5.45 mm
Rate of fire: about 600 rds / min
Sighting range: 1000 m
The Kalashnikov assault rifle, the most widespread small arms in the world, has gained extraordinary popularity due to its reliability and ease of maintenance and has been produced in more than 100 million copies. There are several dozen of its modifications; in the original version (AK-47) it had a caliber of 7.62 mm, but the modification of the AK-74 uses a 5, 45-mm cartridge, and in the variants of the "hundredth" series - also 5, 56 mm. In addition to the USSR, the assault rifle was produced by Bulgaria, Hungary, the German Democratic Republic, China, Poland, North Korea, Yugoslavia, and it was used in almost all countries of the world and in almost all armed conflicts in the second half of the 20th century.
