The ROK Special Forces, especially the Army’s Special Operations Command (SOC), has been using the K1A SMG as its main personal weapon. While some units are using foreign-made SMGs like the HK416 or FN SCAR, such units are the minority, and a vast majority of them are still using the K1A. While it is called an “SMG,” it doesn’t mean it’s a traditional pistol-caliber weapon; it is a 5.56mm assault carbine with a DI gas system. 

K1As have been in service for more than 35 years, and now show many signs of obsolescence. The K1A doesn’t have an ergonomically sound design. Since there was no consideration over mounting optics or other things while designed, even with modern rail systems the K1A is not good for attaching optics or laser sights. Of course, you can attach them, but in many cases using them is not as convenient or effective as using them on other foreign weapons. Also, the K1A’s DI system didn’t have a good reputation during its long service life. It’s not bad, but it had some limitations. 

So, during the last few years, the ROK military tried to find a replacement for K1As, and initially, it seemed like SnT Motiv’s K2C, a shortened version of the gas-piston-driven K2 rifle, would be the logical choice. 

But things changed dramatically during the last 2 to 3 years. Dasan Co., a weapons and machine parts manufacturing company in Korea, obtained a license to supply small arms to the ROK military. Until then, SnT Motiv had a virtual monopoly over that market as the only company in Korea with that license. Dasan offered AR-type weapons, namely Caracal’s CAR816 (Dasan has manufacturing rights in Korea) or the DAR-15P, a piston-driven AR carbine developed by Dasan. 

This offer, together with the Special Operation units’ experiences with the HK416 or M4A1 carbines used by elite counter-terror units, changed customers’ opinions quite a bit. Compared to the K1A or K2 series of weapons, those AR-type weapons were way better in terms of ergonomics and accessories. So, to counter this, SnT Motiv finally designed a new AR-type carbine of its own—the STC-16. 

About the STC-16 

The STC-16 is a very new weapon, first announced in October 2019. As you can see, it is a typical piston-driven AR carbine, only it is slightly different. It is very obvious to see it is developed to compete with Dasan’s AR-type carbines or foreign designs like the HK416 or CAR816. While SnT Motiv doesn’t produce AR-based weapons any more, SnT Motiv’s predecessor Daewoo Precision was the second largest manufacturer of M16A1s (more than 1 million), so S&T Motiv probably had no trouble in designing the STC-16 with AR specifications. In fact, many original manufacturing facilities that produced the M16A1—mainly procured during the early to mid-1970s—are still used today to produce the K1 and K2 series rifles, along with new computer-controlled machining centers. 

Let’s take a look at the STC-16 in detail. It is largely a typical AR carbine but has some differences. The trigger guard is fixed and enlarged to accommodate a gloved finger. And here’s one very different part from the typical AR—a bolt stop. Unlike the AR, the STC-16 has a bolt stop inside the trigger guard, quite similar to the G36. It is to make the bolt stop ambidextrous and also reduce the parts sticking out of the receiver. With an ambidextrous magazine catch and this bolt stop, the STC-16 is almost a perfectly ambidextrous weapon. The magazine is, of course, a typical STANAG; the magazine well is a little bit shorter than the original AR in order to reduce weight. 

The STC-16 barrel is attached to the receiver via a heavy barrel nut, which is similar to many current ARs like the HK416 or Geissele’s AR, and the handguard is also directly attached to the barrel nut with two large bolts. This is also quite similar to Geissele’s or other companies’ recent designs. The handguard has M-LOK standard slots to the sides and MIL-STD-1913 rails over/underneath. The receiver is a flat top to accommodate an optical sight. The gas system is a typical short-stroke piston, which SnT Motiv developed. I’m sorry I can’t open the system and show it to our readers; however, I can say in its current form it has a removable gas plug but has no adjustable gas regulator. Maybe it will be changed, since the ROK Special Forces also want to use suppressors with this. With a suppressor on, the gas regulator is much more desirable. 

Right now, the STC-16 has a 12-inch barrel, which is very similar to the K1A. While the total length itself is a bit longer than the original K1A, the overall mass is actually a bit smaller than the K1A’s. But many K1As in The ROK Special Forces now have AR-type stocks (attached via special adaptor); with an AR-type telescopic stock, the K1A is actually longer than the STC-16’s. So even in size, the STC-16 has the upper hand. Also, unlike the K1A and K2, users can change the barrel to different lengths relatively easily. S&T Motiv offers various barrel lengths. 

Ergonomically, the STC-16 is way better than the current K1A/K2 variants. The STC- 16 is slimmer, and its selector is way easier to access. With the K1A and K2, it’s not easy to move the selector from “fire” to “safe” or vice versa without loosening your grip from the pistol grip. With the STC-16, users easily can do it just like on an AR. Also, unlike the K2/K1A, the STC-16’s selector is ambidextrous. The selector shape is way better than K2/K1A’s as well. 

A Disadvantage 

One thing the STC-16 lacks from the original AR design is a bolt-forward assist. Well, more precisely speaking, it more or less resembles very early AR-15s before the XM-16E1 was introduced. Whether BFA is necessary is not something I can debate here; Gene Stoner himself didn’t like it, and I’ve met many people who think BFA is necessary, as well as many people who are completely against it. I think it is up to how Korean customers think. 

I also had chance to fire the weapon, and basically, it’s not bad; it’s a typical AR-type, piston-driven weapon with a short barrel. The muzzle flash and recoil are considerable but controllable. While the magazine change procedure is somewhat strange because of that not-so-familiar bolt-stop design, that’s because I’m too familiar with the AR’s paddle-type bolt stop. If it’s used by Korean soldiers, who usually have no firearms experience before entering the military, they’ll probably have no problem since they will be trained with it from the beginning. 

Final Thought 

The STC-16 is still in prototype stage and can be changed a lot with potential customers’ opinions. It will be interesting to see whether it would win the competition against Dasan’s DAR-15P carbines. Let’s see what happens! 

SPECIFICATIONS 

• Make: SnT Motiv
• Model: STC-16
• Caliber: 5.56x45mm 
• Operation system: Short-stroke gas piston (otherwise known as “Tappet” by SnT Motiv) 
• Cyclic rate: 700~900rds/m 
• Total length: 870mm with stock extended 
• Barrel length: 307mm (12in) ~ 419mm (14.5in) 
• Weight (empty): 3.3kg or less 

Recently, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea revealed the existence of a few new small arms through its release of propaganda photos taken during a military parade and official photo ops with North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un.

Below is the NK-Objective Individual Combat Weapon, the North Korean equivalent of the Daewoo K11 Dual-barrel Air-burst Weapon (DAW). We still don’t know much about it, aside what we can glean from publicly released images. Also, we found a picture of the North Korean stand-alone grenade launcher version of this weapon recently, similar to the U.S.’s ill-fated like XM25 “Punisher” Counter Defilade Target Engagement System.

Members of the DPRK military also show off a new bullpup rifle, below, that’s come to light during the last few years. Its design was likely inspired by the Russian Groza rifle, but no details have been revealed about the carbine, though we assume it’s chambered in 5.45mm.

We looked closely at some of the recently released images and found something odd; one image, below, clearly shows a bent muzzle on the bullpup. We’ve added red line for the point of aim and a yellow line to that approximates the point of impact based on the angle of the clearly non-concentric muzzle device (or silencer) shown.

Supreme Leader of North Korea Kim Jong Un examines a prototype rifle in the images below. The rifle is clearly inspired by the design of the FN SCAR. We surmise this rifle is chambered in 5.45mm. Also, it has a red dot sight with a design similar to the South Korean DI Optics PVS-11K.

Kim Jong Un also shot a scoped Type 88 rifle (the North Korean version of the AK-74). Looking closely at the second image below, we notice the scope on the Type 88 is a Nikon Prostaff commercial scope.

In the last of the images, we see Kim Jong Un handling what appears to be a new western-inspired, bolt-action, box magazine-fed sniper rifle. We surmise this rifle is chambered in 7.62x54R.

From 21 to 25 September, DX Korea 2022 was held at KINTEX in South Korea. South Korea has two major defense exhibitions; one is ADEX (Aerospace-Defense Exhibition), and the other is DX (Defense Exhibition). Both are biannual, with ADEX held on odd years and DX on even years. 

Both ADEX and DX handle similar items and companies, but there are some differences. ADEX is more aerospace-oriented, since it was originally started as the Seoul Airshow in 1996, and the airshow element is still very important. DX is more of ground-oriented event, without an airshow, and far from any air bases (to the contrary, ADEX is held at Seoul Airport, a Korean Air Force base near Seoul.)

Even at the height of the COVID19 pandemic in 2020, DX opened to both local and foreign visitors, and in 2022 it saw even greater attendance.

But this year, we saw considerably more foreign visitors than expected: that was some kind of ‘butterfly effect’ of the war in Ukraine. Unlike European countries, Korea still maintains large “old school” defense industries to make tanks, artillery, and ammunition. Poland bought large quantities of Korean tanks and self-propelled howitzers, and other European countries are also in negotiations to buy munitions ranging from 155mm shells to anti-tank missiles. The U.S. and Canada already bought 100,000 155mm shells from Korea to replenish their stock.

While not as glamorous as heavy weapons, the Korean small arms industry also received some attention from potential foreign customers. Korea only has two small arms manufacturers, but one of them, SNT Motiv (yes, they changed their name again, from S&T to SNT), has one of the largest rifle factories in the world. Even with its current facility and manpower, they can beef up their capacity to 300,000 rifles per year (though only 1/10th of that is currently manufactured). The small arms industry was affected by the recent war, and many U.S. and NATO small arms companies are also very busy supplying weapons and ammo to Ukraine. In that vacuum, Korean small arms manufacturers can potentially fill in for those companies.

SNT Motiv displayed their newest development; the STP9. This is striker-fire pistol is a potential replacement for the K5 pistol. K5 has been in service more than 30 years, so the Korean army is considering a replacement program. While no official program has begun, SNT Motiv released the STP9 in an effort to gain momentum over its competitor, Dasan. Dasan is in a better position since it has manufactured Glock compatible parts and clones for the export market. SNT has very limited experience in this area. 

While there’s no official requirement for the future pistol, the army is very likely to call for a striker fired, polymer framed pistol. SNT’s new STP9 covers this and adds an interesting feature; it uses a S&W M59-compatible magazine. The reason for using the same magazine as the currently issued K5 is simple. It saves the ROK army money if it can use existing pistol magazine stocks in its new service pistol.

Another development from SNT Motiv is the STC-16 carbine. It’s not new, but in 2021 it became the most probable candidate to become the Korean special forces’ new main weapon to replace the K1A. Originally DSAR-15PC, a 5.56mm carbine from Dasan, was selected to become new special force weapon, but because of some legal troubles, that rifke was dropped from consideration. Now the STC-16 is the only candidate, but the Army demanded many changes and the result is the STC-16’s fourth iteration prototypes displayed this year.

Now it has more conventional control layout, very similar to the AR-15 series of rifles, and a lightened receiver with M-Lok hand guards. The gas system is improved a bit. It is now in final testing, and we should be hearing about the ROK Army’s decision to adopt the system soon.

Dasan is also making progress; they showed new versions of their AR-15 clone rifles, namely DSAR-762 (7.62 NATO) and DSAR-15PQ (5.56mm). Both are developed from their previous DSAR-15 series design, with advanced short stroke piston and gas regulator. The handguard is now fully M-Lok configured, and can be removed and installed with an Allen wrench.

One somewhat unusual Korean company on display was CNO Tech. This company makes practice grenade and artillery shells, but they also make a variety of crowd control ammunition; they make tear gas grenades, 37-40mm tear gas cartridges, flash bangs, 12-gauge rubber slugs, 37-40mm rubber ball, etc… They even produce launchers; single shot, double barrel, and 6-round revolver launchers, as well as vehicle-mounted or tripod-mounted multiple launcher. 

While not widely known to the public, Korea has been one of the major exporters of crowd control devices. Because of many civil unrest incidents during the 1980s and 90s, Korea developed considerable crowd control know-how and the companies involved export their products to many unnamed countries.

A final interesting prototype is Su-Optic’s SORA-1 RWS. It’s a remotely controlled weapon platform that’s light enough to be carried by two persons when disassembled (the total system weight is 15kg). Aim and observation is done by LPVO (camera attached) mounted on the rifle, which the view can be seen on the operator’s console. The left-right legs of the mount also work as a shock absorber, so even though it is lightweight, it can fire a relatively quick secondary shot. Connection can be made thru wire or wireless technology (LTE).

Overall, this year’s DX was also focused on heavy weaponry like drones, artillery and tanks. But in the small arms field, Korean companies made progress, albeit slowly. We hope to see new designs on the next exhibition, ADEX 2023.

DX Korea Visitor Guide

• Location Almost exclusively held at KINTEX, a convention center near Seoul.
• Transportation Close to subway station (Daewha), a 3rd line (Orange line). From the Inchon airport the ride is usually less than an hour.
• Accommodation Many of the official hotels joined with KINTEX are in Seoul. Most official hotels provide free shuttle to the attendees/exhibitors. But there are two hotels within walking distance, one is Kintex by Ktree (a quarter-mile away), and the other is Sono Calm hotel (a half-mile away). They have decent rooms with relatively low rates.
• Electricity 220v 50 cycle with EU type two-prong plug
• Safety South Korea is one of the safest countries, with a very low violent crime rate. 
• Tourism You can visit many interesting places in Seoul; there’s very large war memorial museum in Seoul, which is worth visiting. Also, if you’re car enthusiast, there’s a Hyundai motor gallery nearby.
• Other Tips Avoid visiting on the weekends and Friday: most of the visitors are concentrating during those 3 days, especially on Saturday and Sunday (public days).