In the course of time different methods of mine clearance were developed and tested. A quick clearing of larger areas was to be achieved by machines. For example, armored vehicles specially converted for this purpose pushed massive cylindrical clearing devices in front of them, which detonated the mines without causing any damage to the vehicle itself. In impassable terrain or areas with heavy vegetation, however, this method was usually ruled out. In these cases, portable mine detectors had to be used. The mines were marked with a warning flag after detection until the time was found to dig them out by hand. During an attack, possibly still under enemy fire, this kind of search was hardly feasible.

In early 1940, the idea therefore arose to detonate laid mines by means of a so-called “Knallteppich” (literally translated as “bang carpet”). Sometimes it is also referred to as a “blasting carpet” or “blasting net”). This net was made of explosive igniter cord and could be laid over a detected minefield. When ignited by a fuse, it detonated, and the blast wave was sufficient to detonate the mines below it.

The Waffen-SS also showed great interest in this development and on 4 September 1941 a meeting took place between representatives of the Heeres-Waffenamt and the SS-Waffenamt. SS-Gruppenführer Hans Jüttner, as head of the SS-Führungshaupt- und Kommandoamt, received a protocol of this meeting that shows the technical details and the still unsolved problems.

Due to the positive assessment by the Pi.Lehr-Btl.2 in Dessau-Roßlau, 3,200 “Knallzündschnurteppiche” (blasting cord nets) were ordered and delivered to the troops. However, at this point in time there was no feedback. The carpets delivered had a length of 10 meters, a width of 7.5 meters and a mesh size of 10 to 15 centimeters. The weight was about 0.5 kilograms per square meter. The nets could be laid next to each other to cover areas of any size. It was not necessary to connect them, but they should overlap by about 10 cm to ensure a proper activation. If necessary, such carpets could also be made provisionally by stretching igniter cords over a slatted frame. When laid out, the carpets were insensitive to rifle ammunition (including tracer ammunition), but extremely sensitive to shrapnel, which caused an immediate detonation.

According to a leaflet of June 1942, the easiest way to unroll the rolled net was by two men using a rod inserted into the roll and, to the surprise of the opponent, preferably at dusk or in the dark. The loud bang of the exploding nets was to be camouflaged by simultaneous fire of the artillery. So far so good, but from this we can already see the disadvantages: to roll out the net, the two soldiers had to walk through the minefield themselves. And this, as far as possible, in the dark! Furthermore, it turned out that the nets worked very well with anti-tank mines, but almost not at all with anti-personnel mines. Trials with treated, meshless fabric (nitrated cotton cloths) brought no success.

As an alternative to the dangerous rolling out by hand, the use of line-throwing devices was tested and found to be useful. A rope was attached to an anchor, with which the net could then be pulled over the minefield. However, the method only worked in unobstructed terrain, otherwise the carpet tore when pulled over rocks or vegetation. Another idea was laying the nets from the air and so together with the Luftwaffe, they tested dropping the nets from airplanes. The success was moderate. A helicopter was a better option, but this would not have made much sense due to the danger of getting shot down while hoovering so close to the front line.

Another development called automatic net-layer did not get beyond the planning phase. A light vehicle, steered from a safe distance by cables, would have rolled out carpets 3-meters-wide over the minefield. It was controlled from a PzKpfw II, which protected the operating crew from spall. The Talbot wagon factory in Aachen had produced a prototype, but shortly afterwards the order was cancelled as “not decisive for the war”.

Although the idea with the blasting nets was well-intentioned, it failed due to the rigors of reality. No type of net or laying device was actually introduced by the Heer or Waffen-SS.

During the war, the Red Army used the ROKS-2 for the first time in the fight against the Finns. Later it was also used on the other fronts. This flamethrower was disguised as a rifle, the lance embedded in the converted wooden stock of a Mosin-Nagant rifle, with original sling and with ignition by pulling the trigger. For the firing method, the Soviets used special primers made from standard 7.62x25mm cartridge cases. The two incendiary tanks on the back carrier were boxed with sheet metal to simulate a rucksack. The bottle with the propellant hung crosswise under the box.

When filled, the ROKS-2 weighed about 23kg (50lb) and required two men to operate. Towards the end of the war, smaller quantities of the simplified ROKS-3, on which the tanks were no longer covered, were sent to the front. Although both models had proven to be quite reliable in action, after the war the military leadership demanded an easier-to-operate model with a longer range.

After testing and introduction as the LPO-50, the new model went into series production in the spring of 1955. LPO is the abbreviation of Lyogkiy Pyekhotnyy Ognyemyot (Легкий Пехотный Огнемет), i.e. a light infantry flamethrower. The weight itself, however, was not lightened, because the LPO-50 weighed 23kg (50lb) just like its predecessor.

Instead, the construction had changed completely. The backpack now consists of three cylindrical tanks arranged next to each other, each with a capacity of 3.5 liters (0.76 gallons). Each tank has a filler neck. A powder chamber is then inserted and screwed into each filler neck. An additional pressure relief valve per tank, non-return valves on each hose connection and a grip safety device on the front of the grip provide the necessary safety.

To make the LPO-50 ready for use, first insert one powder charge per tank into the powder chamber and one PP9-RO primer cartridge into the socket above each. At the bottom of each chamber there are six holes through which the gases flow into the tank after ignition and push the incendiary mixture through the hose to the lance. Underneath all three tanks is a common manifold to the hose.

The lance resembles a rifle with a stock, pistol grip and folding bipod. At 85cm (34in), it is rather long and unwieldy. On both sides and below the muzzle are three chambers for one incendiary cartridge each with PP9-RO primer. Each chamber is connected to a specific tank. The battery for the electrical control and ignition system is located in the butt. It lasts for about 600 ignitions.

The shot is activated by pressing the trigger, which sends an electric impulse to the glow igniters of the two primers. A switch allows the operator to select the desired tank. It was thus possible to fill the tanks with different mixtures and fire them as required. The incendiary mixture ignites on the incendiary cartridge when it leaves the muzzle.

Without reloading, the flamethrower could fire three shots – one from each tank. The duration of a shot was 2-3 seconds and the range 50 to 70m (55 to 77yd), depending on the viscosity of the mixture. If there was a tailwind, even a little more. This was a very short firing time and in reports of the East German Army (NVA) this was also criticized by soldiers. They also felt that the effect on the target was insufficient.

In a combined arms engagement, the platoons and squads of flamethrower units were to be linked up with motorized rifle units. The flamethrowers then accompanied the rifle platoon or squad but had to move hidden behind it. Experience had shown that if they were discovered, they quickly drew the enemy’s fire. Only when a target could not be eliminated with the other infantry weapons were flamethrowers used. In this case, using camouflage and covering fire, they had to advance up to a distance of about 40 to 50m (44 to 55yd) from the target.

For all its advantages, the LPO-50 also had the characteristic disadvantages of a flamethrower. In a real battle, such weapons were not only dangerous for the enemy, but also for the own operating crew and the surrounding comrades. For this reason, the military was also looking for alternative ways to increase the infantry’s firepower.

And so, at the beginning of 1975, they introduced the new type of infantry rocket launcher, the RPO “Rys”. It could be carried and operated by one man, weighed only 3.5kg (7,7lb) empty, fired rockets filled with 4 liters (0.9 gallons) of napalm up to 200 meters (220 yards) away and could be reloaded. The LPO-50 thus became obsolete and was gradually taken out of service, stored and in some cases passed on to friendly countries.

In the 1950s, the Soviet Union and the People’s Republic of China intensified their cooperation in military and weapons technology. China showed great interest in the new flamethrower and even acquired the rights to manufacture it under license in their own country. They only changed a few minor details in the production process, otherwise their Type 58 corresponded to the Russian model. A longer series of tests was carried out with different incendiary mixtures.

Based on the experience gained, China developed a modernized version in the 1970s. This Type 74 had an improved lance with only two incendiary cartridge chambers, as well as only two tanks. Overall, the flamethrower became somewhat lighter, although the capacity of the two tanks was increased to 4 liters (0.9 gallons) each. The Type 74 is still in active service today and is regularly and impressively staged for the press photographers during various exercises and demonstrations.

Apart from China, only one independent production in Romania is known to date. All other Warsaw Pact countries received their LPO-50s from Russian production. Some of the decommissioned ROK old stocks were also passed on to friendly states. The German Democratic Republic acquired larger quantities and used them in the NVA forces as the ‘Light Flamethrower LPO-50’. The earliest known service record dates back to 1966. Flamethrowers from Soviet and Chinese production were also used in Vietnam. However, their active use was limited because the required quantities of flammable liquids were often not available at the front.

Of course, the worldwide distribution also led to devices disappearing into dark channels time and again. When the Irish Republican Army (IRA) attacked the Derryard vehicle checkpoint on 13 December 1989, an LPO-50 flamethrower was also present. British units subsequently recovered at least six Russian-made units. How and where they came from is still unknown.

As long as you keep water in the water jacket and keep the loaded belts coming, it will keep on working as steadily as a sewing machine, only requiring a new barrel every 15,000 rounds; a change that can easily be done in 15 seconds. If a part does break, the Maxim is a modular design that allows the swapping out of the bolt or feed block with a spare to keep on firing. When faced with swarming infantry, this is a life-or-death matter. When the Russians attacked the Ukrainian Bakhmut meat grinder in waves, reminiscent of a WWI-style assault, the Maxim really came into its own, cutting down lines of attackers like wheat before a McCormac reaper.

There have been other ingenious applications of the Maxim, such as mounting telescopic sights and grouping four or six guns together in one mount. This enables 2000 to 3000 rounds per minute to be fired at attacking aircraft. When a modern jet comes in low with all the electronic warfare devices to hide it from sophisticated ground-to-air missiles, it’s still quite vulnerable to a low-tech anti-aircraft position that can raise a curtain of lead with a row of linked Maxims.

As the war drags on, the costs keep mounting and the Ukrainians are hard pressed to get enough ammunition, as they have drained the NATO stockpiles. Only Russia has kept all its WWII production lines intact and modernized and, while they are well-supplied, the cost of artillery shells necessary to deny continuous passage through an area is astronomical. A steady rain of indirect machine gun fire does the same job for a fraction of the cost. This requires a water-cooled gun that does not wear out quickly.

This is a job for a Maxim. Its toggle action spreads out the shock of operation so there is less wear and breakage of parts. When it does wear out, the bearing surfaces on the receiver are riveted on and can simply be changed for new ones while the modular parts are sent back to the ordnance depot for rebuilding. Being recoil operated, it does not have a gas system to foul and jam as the number of rounds fired adds up. The Germans were well aware of this issue with gas operated guns and stated that the gas operated systems had inherent problems. They kept designing recoil operated guns as a result.

TACTICAL USE OF THE MAXIM IN 2024

To get the best use of the Maxim today, you would want the WWI German 08-15 version with the optional Lafitte 34 mount. No one today seems to remember that the 08-15 with its shoulder stock and bipod was just intended as a more mobile heavy machine gun that storm troopers could emplace as they infiltrated the enemy lines and then dominate that sector with sustained machine gun fire. The mobility of the 08-15 eliminated the weakness of the emplaced heavy machine gun under artillery fire as the 08-15 machine gunner could move about like a rifleman, changing firing positions. Even though the weight was 50 pounds with a full water jacket and a 100-round belt in a drum magazine, the weight was so well distributed that many men could fire it from the shoulder like a rifle. This was something almost no one could do with the barrel-heavy Lewis gun, which was a true light machine gun and weighed considerably less. The ability to use a heavy, sustained-fire, water-cooled machine gun in the light machine gun role was a testament to the Maxim’s versatility.

For accurate fire in the heavy machine gun role, many of the remaining 08-15 Maxims were mounted in the Lafette 34 mount in the 1930’s. This ultimate machine gun mount features recoil absorption, telescopic sight, automatic traverse (if desired), and enabled accurate fire out to 3500 meters converting any machine gun mounted in it to a miniature artillery piece. We see these today with MG34’s and MG42’s primarily mounted on them, but they cannot deliver the sustained fire of a water-cooled gun in the Lafette 34.

HISTORICAL PRECEDENCE

The abandonment of the sustained fire machine gun and its replacement with air cooled guns had disastrous consequences. The air-cooled machine gun is a wonderful weapon in its place, but it can never do the job of a sustained fire machine gun. In WWII, the Germans found that the Russian human wave assaults kept coming until the air-cooled guns overheated allowing the Russians to overrun them. The Normandy invasion was admittedly a close-run affair and water-cooled Maxims fully deployed for both direct and indirect fire would have been more than enough to dip the balance in the German defender’s favor.

During WWII, in Burma, the British managed to sucker the Japanese into Banzai charges against WWI-style barbed wire backed by their Vickers machine guns (a Maxim variation) resulting in the annihilation of the attacking Japanese troops.

No machine gun is as reliable or able to fire as long as a Maxim. When John Basilone got his medal of honor defending Henderson Airfield at Guadalcanal with the two machine gun sections he commanded, his commendation stated, “he went from machine gun to machine gun repairing them and keeping them firing.” They weren’t supposed to need repairing! If they had Maxim guns, there would not have been any stopping for repairs. And if there was a problem, the gunner could have swapped out the modular part in a few seconds and kept firing without needing his commander’s help. It seems clear that water-cooled guns would have been a powerful help against Japanese Banzai attacks throughout the war as they could keep on coming long after an air-cooled gun overheated.

In the Korean War, the Chicom human wave assaults pushed back the American troops just as the Russian human wave assaults had done against the Germans in the preceding war. Water-cooled guns properly employed for direct and indirect fire would have foiled these assaults, but they were scarce, and the U.S. military has never wanted to invest the training time and equipment needed for effective indirect machine gun fire.

During the Vietnam War, American fire bases were overrun largely because of inadequate machine guns of modern design and the improper use of them. No one wants to learn the lessons of history if it involves using old ways. Newer is always supposed to be better and anything from the past tends to be dismissed out of hand if not ridiculed as anachronistic and obsolete. What could be more obsolete than the world’s first machine gun? A weapon designed back in 1884! The problem with that line of reasoning is that the inventor got it right and the design was perfected. Once you get to the top of the mountain of machine gun design, all roads go downhill… and the Maxim is the pinnacle. No gun made since has come near its longevity and reliability.

MORE THAN GUNS

Maxim was one of the great geniuses of all time. He patented the electric light bulb and Edison was only able to steal the design when Maxim went out of town and told his plant director to renew the patents… which he failed to do. The patents lapsed and Edison was able to grab the invention and run with it.

Maxim also flew the first airplane in front of England’s elite and the English press. When investors were not forthcoming, he wisely dropped the project. The airplane industry didn’t take off until many years later in WWI. When the Wright brothers wanted to build an airplane, they went to Maxim, and he gave them his notes, enabling them to build an airplane, as well.

When you look up and see an automatic fire sprinkler system in a building you are looking at another of Maxim’s inventions that has remained unchanged, defying improvement.

When you look more closely at the man behind the Maxim machine gun you realize why it has also defied improvement and still reigns supreme as the all-time greatest in its field.

The U.S. Office of Strategic Services (OSS) used flechettes in mini crossbows and handgun spigot launchers. Spigot launchers were a device that went on the muzzle of the M1911A1 pistol, rather like a rifle grenade launcher. A rod acted as the firing pin extension to transfer the blow to the primer in the device. The cartridge was self-contained, as ignition drove a piston which did not leave the cartridge case, thereby containing the expanding powder gasses so that the cartridge produced little noise. The piston drove a big flechette ahead of it, which shot from the launcher as a projectile dragging the cartridge case with it.

The big flechette had enormous killing power due to its size, which was important when only one shot can be made. The large flechette was more deadly than a small caliber handgun but produced similar or audible less report. This made the spigot launcher a single-shot weapon of great value for covert assassinations where the sound of a gun firing could alert the enemy forces and hinder escape.

This system was used in Vietnam with Smith & Wesson .44 Magnum revolvers bored out to accept this sort of cartridge except that in these, the piston drove a conventional bullet out ahead of it. In these, the case stayed in the gun. These were well appreciated by the “tunnel rats” who had to fire in tightly confined spaces where the noise of a normal gun was greatly magnified to a permanently deafening level. A silent weapon was a necessity if you wanted to avoid deafness. The U.S. Navy also had a revolver firing one large flechette on this principle for underwater use. The Russians copied this design to work with smaller cartridges in a compact automatic pistol also adapted the design for use in an underwater gun.

The need for an improved cannister round for tank guns led to research in flechettes loaded in artillery shells as an alternative. This research bore much fruit during the Vietnam War when flechettes were used in 12-gauge shotguns, 40 mm grenade launchers, 2.75-inch and 5-inch aircraft rockets, 81 mm riverine mortars, 90 mm and 106 mm recoilless rifles, 105 mm howitzers, 120 mm cannon, and in 90 mm, 105 mm, and 152 mm tank guns.

Anti-war protestors, championing the communist side in the Vietnam War, attacked the use of flechettes vehemently as these munitions were devastating to the communist forces attacking American soldiers. The political pressure they brought to bear resulted in a decline in the fielding of flechette systems, which left American forces more vulnerable to communist human wave assaults.

Today, Israel makes a copy of the U.S. 105 mm tank flechette round and both Russia and China reportedly maintaining large inventories of flechette ammunition for their major caliber artillery.

Current U.S. fielded flechette munitions include the 70 mm Hydra rocket (a modernized version of the 2.75-inch rocket), 84 mm Carl Gustov recoilless rifle munitions, and classified defense systems. Both the 70 mm Hydra rocket and the 84 mm Carl Gustov recoilless rifle flechette loads have been used in the Global War on Terror that began in 2001.

FLECHETTE SHOTGUN SHELLS

The use of flechettes in shotgun shells is the most common small arms employment of flechettes and the application of most interest to civilians. Credit for being the first to apply this concept to small arms goes to Irwin R. Barr of Aircraft Armament Co. in the early 1950’s. Originally, the idea was for one flechette per round and this led to the Army’s SPIW program. The first shotgun shells were loaded in 1953. These 32 flechettes-per-round loads were of a smaller size than those of today.

During the Vietnam War, flechette-loaded shotgun shells made kills out to 100 yards, proving their worth as a military weapon. Whirlpool Corporation had done development work on them, also loading many shells. Federal Ammunition made them, loading 25 flechettes per round while Western Cartridge Company’s load held 20 flechettes per round. Both of these rounds had their flechettes in a plastic cup buffered with granulated white polyurethane powder to maintain bore alignment. There was a metal disk at the rear of the cup the prevented the wad from being driven through the sharp tail fins of the flechettes. The tips of the flechettes were exposed and were visible at the mouth of the cartridge case These rounds would ruin a choke if fired through one, and they were only used in cylinder bore riot guns.

SPECIFICATIONS

Sometimes at gun shows, I have seen shotgun shells loaded with surplus artillery flechettes. Typically, some are loaded forwards and some backwards. Do not fire these in anything. They will tear up the inside of a shotgun barrel, as the hard steel of the flechettes will plow furrows in the bore and destroy any choke that gets in their way.

Properly loaded flechette shotgun shells are available from Sabot Designs LLC. The current loads are safe to use in any shotgun and will not hurt even a full choke, as the bore and choke are protected from the hard steel flechettes by a patented sabot that prevents any metal-on-metal contact. This was the invention of the firm’s oner, John Flannigan, and enables them to be used in any shotgun, not just cylinder bored riot guns.

Considered by many to be the greatest expert in flechette design and manufacture, much of Flannigan’s work remains classified, but what we can divulge is impressive. He made experimental tantalum flechettes for the Naval Surface Warfare Center’s Cargo Round. He designed and manufactured tungsten flechettes for the NSWC EMRG electro-magnetic rail gun sub-munition. His collaboration with General Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems on the development and testing of the “High Density Packing” (HDP) cannister for the M1 Abrams tank resulted in his patent for the HDP Cannister round. Lockheed-Martin engaged him as a consultant for the fin design of the flechette projectiles for the Hydra-7 mine clearing system. The Marines Corps had him develop a flechette round for shooting down drones. That’s about all that we are free to talk about though.

FLECHETTES COMPARED TO BUCKSHOT

Comparing flechettes to the old standard, buckshot, reveals the strengths and weaknesses of both. Buckshot depends on its size, weight, and momentum to produce casualties. Of all projectiles, buckshot’s round ball deflects the least when hitting foliage and twigs. For this reason, it was often favored in jungle encounters.

Flechettes have 211% more projectiles per shell than buckshot which greatly increases the chance of a hit at longer ranges. They have 19 projectiles compared to just nine in the military buckshot load. Flechettes are a near perfect aerodynamic shape, whereas the round ball is the least aerodynamic. Furthermore, lead balls tend to deform when fired so they are not even perfectly round anymore. At longer ranges this becomes more of a factor. Additionally, flechette loads weigh about half as much as an equivalent buckshot load, so combatants can carry more ammo into the fight.

The stopping power of flechettes is a result of their velocity, penetration, and energy. Each flechette has the same energy signature as a 9 mm Parabellum round. It will shoot through a car door and produce a casualty on the other side, or it will go through over 20 inches of ballistic gelatin. Its energy is transmitted to a casualty by creating a supersonic cavitation wound channel. It will yaw off course as it penetrates, creating a wound channel approximately 800% larger than the flechette. This averages about .58 caliber for each flechette. Flechettes may also bend or break, creating secondary wound channels. They also typically shatter bones on contact.

ENGAGEMENT RANGES

* This being the longest range that a single flechette will produce a casualty.

CIVILIAN USE

12-gauge shotgun flechette loads are extremely useful to civilians. I’ve heard of a person taking out the heart and lungs of a wild hog at seven yards that was chasing and about to overtake his friend. Flechettes will penetrate the thick skull of an enraged bull or a 1000-pound hog when buckshot may fail. Flechettes have proven effective on deer, turkey, wild hog, and bear and are earning a devoted following among hunters. People depending on a shotgun for home defense are looking to flechette rounds for increased effectiveness.

Ever since the American Derringer Co. first invented the pistol chambering both the .45 Colt and the 2.5-inch .410 shotgun shell in 1980, there have been more companies making pistols that chamber these rounds interchangeably. Sabot designs makes a 2.5-inch .410 flechette load with seven flechettes for these.

Standard flechette rounds may not function reliably in automatic shotguns. Rounds that will reliably function a semi-auto are available under special order from Sabot Designs LLC.

Like birdshot, slugs, and buckshot, the flechette shotgun load has taken its place among the standard loads available for shotguns today.

The ZG 1229, code named “Vampir,” was an infrared night scope developed during World War II for the German Wehrmacht for night operations. It was intended to be mounted on a Sturmgewehr 44 (StG 44). It was first used in combat in February 1945. Built at the C.G. Haenel Munitions plant at Suhl in Thuringia, Germany, a total of 310 units were issued by the end of the war. Its main drawbacks were its weight and bulk. It was too cumbersome to use in fluid situations; however, it worked well when in a fixed position.

The infrared scope and spotlight weighed a little over 5 pounds. The battery unit that was encased in a wooden box and carried on a harness on the back of the Nachtjager (night hunter) weighed 30 pounds. The battery that ran the image converter sat under the main battery box in a modified gas mask container. The whole package was strapped to the Tragegestell 39 (pack frame 1939). Ernst Leitz GmbH, located in Wetzlar, Germany, developed the complete package.

The searchlight contained an incandescent, tungsten filament light source that had a color temperature of 3200K. The light projected through a filter that only let infrared wavelength light pass. The telescopic sensor operated in the high infrared, not the low infrared which the human body emits, so it could not detect body heat. Eastern Front Russian fighters reported that the Germans were using it at night with the aid of “peculiar non-shining torches coupled with enormous optical sights” mounted on their rifles.

Close to the end of hostilities, the MG34 and MG42 machine guns were fitted with similar night vision optics. However, the war ended before many of these reached the front lines.

C.G. Haenel Munitions

The Vampir system was produced by C.G. Haenel Munitions. Carl Gottlieb Haenel, a Prussian gun factory commissioner, began weapons production in 1840 with the production of bicycles and weapons, a common combination in pre-World War I years. During that war, C.G. Haenel produced large quantities of the Mauser M98 rifle. After World War II, the factory was disassembled and transported to the Soviet Union as part of war reparations. Only air rifles and carbines were manufactured until 2008 when the Suhl Arms Alliance was formed with Merkel, and rifle production began again.

By the end of World War II, just about everyone had decided that the era of the magazine-fed bolt-action rifle had ended, at least in a modern well-equipped army thanks to the U.S. Rifle Caliber .30 M1. However, millions remained in service and stores all over the world while their state owners modernized small arms and replaced the bolt action rifle with both selective fire and semi-automatic firearms.

Yugoslavia doesn’t exist as a state anymore; it began with the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian Empire following the end of World War I in 1918 and started its slide into disintegration with the death of Marshal Tito in 1980 and picking up momentum with the implosion of the Soviet Union in 1991.

The Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes, cobbled together like Frankenstein’s monster (with about the same results) from the remains of the Austro-Hungarian Empire shortly after the end of WWI, became Yugoslavia in 1929.

Serbia, the most nationalistic and militant province, the former Kingdom of Serbia (and now the Republic of Serbia) has a long history of arms manufacture that dates back to 1853 when they began the manufacture of cannons in Kragujevac.

The Kingdom of Serbs et al first order of business was to an attempt to modernize and standardize their small arms, as they were using an assortment of rifles procured from Turkey, Germany, and others. They adopted the German 7.92×57 service cartridge as a standard and in 1924 contracted with FN in Belgium and BRNO in Czechoslovakia to produce the Mauser designed M1924 rifle, then proceeded to acquire machinery and tooling to produce their own M24 in country. The M24 was a “short rifle” having a barrel length of 23.25 inches.

The short rifle concept was intended to supply a single length weapon for all troops replacing the assortment of full-length rifles for infantry, short rifles for service troops, and carbines for mounted troops. The Austro-Hungarian Army was the first to field the short rifle concept, that is a rifle with a barrel length in the vicinity of 24 inches, in 1895 and the U.S. followed suit with the Model 1903 rifle. Yugoslavia adopted the short rifle concept in 1924, while the 98k didn’t appear until 1936.

Germany invaded Yugoslavia in 1941 and proceeded to lay waste to everything it came across, including the capture of the arms complex in Kragujevac.

Things did not go well for the Germans; various bands of partisans of every political stripe resisted the invasion and each other with equal enthusiasm.

Even with all the infighting and jockeying for position with the Allies and the Soviet or both, the partisans, or banditti (depending on who was doing what to whom and your point of view) managed to toss the Germans out in 1944 without direct boots-on-the-ground Allied help. No small accomplishment when dealing with the German Army.

The Communist partisans headed by Josip Broz, better known as Marshal Tito, ended up being the most powerful political force in post WWII Yugoslavia. While Tito was a confirmed Socialist, he entertained some closet free-market ideas that put him at odds with Stalin. When he died in 1980, things began to unravel and in the early 1990’s the situation turned into a civil war between the disparate parts of Yugoslavia complete with “ethnic cleansing”, NATO airstrikes on the Zastava Works, and war crime trials.

Tito was very wary of the Soviets and their history of heavy-handed take overs and continued his successful WWII strategy of playing both ends against the middle. Yugoslavia became a “non-aligned” state, neither fish (aligned with NATO) nor fowl (a member of the Warsaw Pact), receiving aid from both the west and the Soviets. This caused the COMINTERN (Communist International) to toss Yugoslavia out in 1948.

The Kragujevac complex was rebuilt after WWII using some machinery confiscated by the Soviets as war reparations from Germany and some of Czech manufacture, also furnished by the Soviets.

The Yugoslavian Army continued to use the 7.92×57 cartridge as their service standard cartridge rather than adopt the Soviet calibers.

By 1948, the Yugoslavians had perfected the design of a “new” rifle. It was to be a amalgamation of the M24 and the German 98k rifles, of which they had a good supply captured from German forces both in the Soviet Union and Yugoslavia.

While the M48 design was approved in 1948, production didn’t really get under way until 1950 and continued to 1952, when, as a cost cutting and production expedient, the M48A variant was adopted and produced until 1954. The A model, as it left the factory, features a stamped fabricated magazine floor plate.

There is also an M48B model with a few more stamped parts such as trigger guard and barrel band and a welded magazine well which had a production run from 1954 to 1965. However, this model is also marked M48A. Last but not least, there is the M48BO model which has no markings whatsoever except for a serial number. It was intended for export to various insurrectionist groups in third world countries. Some M48s were converted to “sniper” rifles by the addition of optics and used unofficially in the civil wars that consumed Yugoslavia in the 1990s.

The M48 uses the same intermediate length receiver and bolt as the M1924/M24. The M48 is definitely a 98k clone with standard Mauser features such as the three position turn-over safety and large circular gas shield on the bolt sleeve, the cup-style butt plate, and tangent rear sight (regulated out to 2000 meters in 100 meter increments for the Yugoslavian M49 Ball cartridge), with a 196 grain projectile and a “V” notch battle sight regulated to what appears to be (on the author’s sample) 200 meters and hooded inverted “V” front sight.

The major differences between the 98k and the M48 are overall length, longer upper hand guard that extends all the way to the nose cap, and the bolt handle/stock area. While both have a turned down bolt handle, the 98k has a round bolt knob and a relief cut in the stock to aid in grasping the bolt handle. The M48 has a flattened bottom surface on the bolt knob and has slightly less of a bend to provide grasping clearance.

Except for very late war production, most 98ks have a metal ferrule set into the stock as a bolt take-down assist tool or a hole drilled through the side of the cup butt plate to accomplish the same function. The M48 did not have this feature.

All of the M48 models were produced in the “PREDUZECE 44” factory, which is really a code for the Zastava Works in Kragujevac, Serbia. Preduzece translates to “enterprise” and 44 was the number assigned. This complex has operated under many different names including Military Technical Workshops Kragujevac, Military Technical Works, and during the M48 production period, Zavodi Crvena Zastava or Red Flag Institute. Zastava, the name of the Serbian firm operating the complex today, means flag or banner in English. The total production run was between 1.25 and 1.5 million.

Apparently, post WWII Yugoslavian troops were armed with various models of the M24 arsenal rebuilt as M24/47 and M24/52 models and the M48s were placed in stores for some contingency not readily apparent today as a good number imported to the U.S. are in arsenal new condition.

This situation went on until 1959 when Nikita Khrushchev, trying to woo the Yugoslavians into the Soviet camp, gave them a complete production line to produce the SKS. The Zastava works proceeded to build a very high quality SKS Models 59 and 59/66.

This illustrates the main fault with any socialist government operating with central economic planning and production. The infamous Soviet 5-year plan comes to mind, they keep producing goods that they don’t need, that their people don’t want, and end up selling for pennies on the dollar.

In any event, the Kragujevac/Zastava works was the only producer of the high-quality M48. With its forged and machined parts, it’s nearly the equal of pre-war German 98k production rifles in both fit and finish.

The author’s sample was delivered in arsenal mint condition with what appears to be a good quality nitrate blue/black finish. The bolt and the cup style butt plate are in the white. The wood-to-metal fit is very good for a service weapon; however, the stock (which looks to be made of some sort of birch) is extremely rough and gave the impression that splinters would result if one rubbed the grain in the wrong direction. The stock finish seems to be a very light coat of Tung oil, giving a yellowish finish. Several coats of linseed oil smoothed the stock and improved the feel. The M48 is designed for the 98k style sling, (actually, a carry strap) on the left side.

The M48 features a 23.5-inch (597 mm) barrel with four-groove rifling, right hand twist 1 in 240 mm (about 9.44 inches). The M48 has a 5-round internal magazine with a removable floor plate and can be filled with 5-round stripper clips or loose rounds. The author’s sample weighs 4.6 kg or just under 9 pounds with a leather sling.

Many of the imported M48s were marketed with a bayonet, steel scabbard, and leather frog, two-cell ammunition pouch, and cleaning kit.

The M48 was being produced in one form or another all the way up to 1965, mostly because it was a reliable and inexpensive way to equip third-world insurgent combatants (many of which had limited mechanical skills and little or no experience with firearms) with a simple weapon to master, or at least to shoot someone with.

After designing the M1941 semi-automatic rifle, Melvin Johnson set his sights on a light machine gun version of his design. While making it accept the already issued M1918 Browning Automatic Rifle magazines seemed a logical choice, that was not an option due to Johnson’s prior experience submitting his M1941 rifle to the Army. When the U.S. Army Ordnance Department first tested the Johnson rifle, it had a detachable box magazine. According to Bruce Canfield in his authoritative work on Johnson’s firearms, “Johnson Rifles and Machine Guns: The Story of Melvin Maynard Johnson, Jr. and His Guns”, soldiers testing the rifle loaded the cartridges in the detachable BAR magazine used in the M1941 backwards. This had the effect of bending the feed lips, rendering the magazine’s operation unreliable. Johnson saw this and demanded new magazines before the test started. Ordnance refused and, adding insult to injury, counted each of the resulting magazine-induced stoppages as “malfunctions”, tanking the gun’s performance in testing on paper. Years later, Johnson’s son, Edward Johnson, suggested to me in a conversation that this was a blatant attempt to influence the outcome of the test in favor of the competing incumbent M1 Garand rifle.

Faced with such brazen dishonesty, Johnson responded by developing a rotary magazine that could not be sabotaged in this way and that offered the benefit of being able to be topped off in use with stripper clips so that soldiers would never be caught changing magazines when an enemy suddenly appeared wanting to shoot you. For his light machine gun, Johnson added a detachable magazine to one side. He could not use a double column magazine for fear Ordnance would sabotage them and count the resulting failure of the magazines to work as the gun malfunctioning, so he developed a 20-round single-column feed magazine that was immune to such tampering. That, plus the five rounds held in the rotary magazine, gave the soldier 25 rounds at their disposal.

Johnson was well aware of the Browning Automatic Rifle’s faults. The M1918A2 was a heavy, 21 pounds and very clumsy to handle. It was gas operated with all the attendant powder fouling and jamming that goes with that kind of system. It lacked a quick-change barrel, so sustained full-auto fire was out of the question. The exposed barrel would burn you sooner or later, disassembly and reassembly was a nightmare, and most damning of all, the gun wore heavily under heavy usage, necessitating constant Ordnance rebuilds. These rebuilds, while straightforward, were often poorly done by Ordnance resulting in the troops getting weapons that did not work reliably.

Johnson set out to make a light machine gun that had none of these faults… and he succeeded. At 12.5 pounds, the weapon was still within the upper limits of what a rifle could weigh. It handled fast and sure with no hint of clumsiness. There was a ventilated barrel shroud and a quick-change barrel just like the Johnson M1941 rifle had. This was a light machine gun that could maintain sustained fire like any other air-cooled machine gun with a quick-change barrel The short recoil system of the Johnson rifle eliminated all the problems inherent in a gas-operated machine gun. It was extremely rugged and didn’t fall apart under heavy use like the BAR did. Like the Johnson rifle, it was totally reliable. Accuracy in full-auto was superior to the BAR, but unlike other weapons, the M1941 LMG fired open-bolt when in full-auto (benefitting from the 50% recoil reduction that offers) but it fired from a closed bolt when the selector was set on semi-auto for sniper rifle accuracy.

The M1941 LMG shared many components of the M1941 Johnson rifle and was actually a rifle designed to fill the LMG role. As such, it and its successor, the M1944 Johnson, remain the only rifles in history to succeed in this role. The increased speed of mobility that a lighter LMG delivers was amply demonstrated by one of Johnson’s favorite tricks, firing the M1941 LMG one-handed with his arm fully extended, as shown in the photograph. I’ve never seen or heard of anyone firing an M1918A2 BAR with one hand like that. The speed of deployment of a weapon in combat is the difference between hitting the enemy and being hit by the enemy. As a LMG is supposed to be part of a mobile squad, its mobility is a decisive factor in its effectiveness in many situations.

Since the M1941 didn’t come from Army Ordnance’s tight little clique, they immediately hated the Johnson guns — even going so far as to deny export licenses for the M1941 LMG to America’s WWII ally, Holland, in the early days of the war. However, the Marine paratroopers liked the way the quick-change barrel of the Johnson rifle and the Johnson LMG could be removed and stowed alongside the rest of the weapon making for a more compact package during parachute jumps, and they were able to get a quantity. Both the rifle and the LMG were already in production for a Dutch order. When Holland fell, these guns became available to both the Army and the Marines where they were widely loved by their users.

U.S. troops weren’t the only ones impressed with the Johnson. In Germany, Louis Stanga took it as his inspiration for the famous FG42 which was intended to replace the 98 Mauser when production permitted. Not having a hostile Ordnance Board to deal with Louis used a conventional 20-round, double column box magazine. The action was based on an improved version of the WWI Lewis Light Machine Gun and a muzzle brake was fitted. It lacked a quick-change barrel and for all its virtues, it was still inferior to the M1941 Johnson.

There were also six light carbine versions made as semi-auto rifles with a standard 10-shot rotary magazine and no bipod. Dubbed “Daisy Mae”, one of these was carried into WWII by U.S. Marine officer Harry Torgerson.

Always trying to improve his guns, Melvin Johnson determined to make the most controllable light machine gun of all time and he succeeded with his M1944 Johnson LMG. The weight went up to 14.7 pounds and the bipod and wood forend were replaced with a 1.7-pound folding monopod that served as either a vertical or a horizontal fore grip, depending on its position. This monopod proved much faster to engage and more effective than the traditional bipod. The wooden buttstock was replaced with two tubes. The top tube enabled the mainspring to have more room while the bottom tube could store a cleaning kit. There was a substantial metal buttplate that was hinged and could be flipped up to access the two tubes for maintenance. Depending on the ammunition type, the cyclic rate was anywhere from 450 -750 rounds per minute. This could also be adjusted by changing the recoil spring.

As previously stated, the M1944 Johnson LMG is totally controllable in full auto fire. By the time the 22-inch barrel has moved back a half-inch and the bolt has been cammed back 20 degrees to allow unlocking, the bullet is four or five feet from the muzzle. This also reduces the amount of powder and gas left in the barrel that typically fouls the action once the breech is unlocked. The bolt has a long throw and a long recoil spring to spread out and absorb the recoil, this is in addition to the weight of the gun doing its part to absorb recoil. The weight of the bolt and the barrel for the half-inch of unlocking travel also counts as bolt weight during that time. The result is a steady straight rearward push instead of the normal jack hammer effect of recoil in a full-auto gun that jerks the muzzle up with each shot. Fired from the prone in full-auto with the monopod deployed, the recoil from each shot is just 1.33 pounds. By way of comparison, the M16 has seven pounds of recoil per shot. Fired from the shoulder, the M1944 is still controllable. Plus, it achieves this controllability without the use of a muzzle brake that would likely cause permanent damage to the shooter’s hearing. Combining its controllable nature, its ability to fire semi-auto from a closed bolt for precise shots, and its unsurpassed reliability, Johnson may have produced the most effective one-person operated firearm of all time in his M1944 LMG.

With the selector set at semi-auto, the cycling of the action begins when the cartridge is fired. The bolt and barrel remain locked together as the barrel recoils a half-inch back into the receiver. During this travel time, the multi-lugged bolt is rotated 20 degrees to unlock by the camming arm of the bolt sliding against the camming face of the receiver. Once the bolt is unlocked, the rearward travel of the barrel is halted while the bolt continues to the rear, compressing the long recoil spring, cocking the hammer, extracting, and then ejecting the spent cartridge case. The recoil spring now drives the bolt forward, where it locks into the barrel, and the gun is ready to fire semi-auto again. This action is just like the M1941 rifle.

When the selector is set for full-auto, the cycle begins with the bolt catch holding the bolt in the open position until it’s released by pulling the trigger. It then chambers a cartridge, closes, and locks into the barrel. At this point the automatic sear is tripped, firing the round. The gun continues to fire full-auto until it is out of ammo or the trigger is released (catching the bolt in the open position.) When the last round is fired, the bolt remains closed in either the semi-auto or full-auto setting.

While the Marine Corps wanted to replace the BAR with the M1944 Johnson, this was not approved as the Marine Corps was considered a client of the Army in weapons procurement.

After the war, Johnson continued trying to get his guns adopted, even going so far as to add gas assisted operation to the guns to please Ordnance, even though this negated one of the principal advantages of his design. These efforts were unsuccessful, and it appears Ordnance was just stringing him along to offset the criticism of their scandalous behavior on this matter. The M1944 remains the high-water mark of the Johnson LMG. There has never been another non-crew-operated firearm approaching its effectiveness.

Successful inventors often have to think outside the box. In weapons technology, too, many a smirked-at pipe dream has turned out to be a great success. But now and then it’s difficult to distinguish deliberate charlatanry from actual conviction. This is a problem that the SS-Waffenamt also had to contend with when so-called “inventors” described their ideas in grandiose terms. Like Dr. Christian Fuchs, for example, with his centrifugal machine gun.

Machine guns became an indispensable weapon in warfare. Their firepower helped both in attack and defense. On days of heavy fighting, however, this turned into hard work for the ammunition carriers, considering that a German MG34 could easily fire 800 rounds per minute. The MG42 even managed 1,500 rounds in the same amount of time.

Dr. Fuchs, from Poznań in the Nazi-occupied Reichsgau Wartheland area of Poland, who had a doctorate in law, had the idea of developing a machine gun that used kinetic energy instead of gunpowder to impart thrust to projectiles. Whether he was aware of other prior attempts to create such a device is unknown. He approached the Heereswaffenamt (Army Ordnance Office) with this idea and on 8 February 1943 his project was discussed during a weapons demonstration at the proving ground Kummersdorf as the agenda item “Development of a new machine gun with mechanical projectile acceleration.” According to Dr. Fuchs, his invention was recognized as correct in principle, but the development time needed to create a weapon suitable for frontline use was judged to be too long and he was refused further support.

However, Dr. Fuchs did not give up that quickly. He contacted a Nazi SS office in Poznań and presented his idea there on 20 November. “With this machine, the projectiles are hurled away without explosives, i.e. silently,” it was reported, and that, “Dr. Fuchs has already achieved a performance of 50 shots per second, that is 3,000 shots per minute, with his model.” Furthermore, he lambasted the lack of support from the Speer Ministry, declaring that he needed only six months to complete a weapon “which could be used immediately at the front,” but, of course, only if qualified mechanics and raw materials were made available to him. Furthermore, Dr. Fuchs urged a quick decision, because the suspension period for the public announcement of his patent would soon end and failing to gain an extension would be contrary to the interest of national defense. He urgently requested the support of Gauleiter SS-Obergruppenführer Arthur Greiser and wanted to demonstrate the invention to him personally.

Despite the support of the SS, Dr. Fuchs was unable to procure the necessary high-speed motors and other individual parts. In May 1944, he travelled specially to the Siemens company in Berlin where he learned the compact, high-speed electric motors he had planned to use in his design were no longer being built. Instead, he had to make do with motors that provided only 7,000 revolutions per minute, for which, however, a gearbox was necessary. Siemens agreed “in the most obliging manner” to produce a model of the machine gun and also commissioned the development of a gearbox that ran in oil. But nothing came of it.

In June 1944, Dr. Fuchs wrote to the SS headquarters (Technical Office VIII FEP), “Due to the two heavy air raids on Poznań, the workshops of the company entrusted with the construction of the gearbox were partly destroyed. […] In addition, the manager of the Poznań workshop of the Siemens company has collapsed due to work overload and is therefore no longer able to provide the kindly promised help in the construction of the machine gun.” Dr. Fuchs then built a prototype gearbox himself that reached a speed of 15,000 rpm. On the finished weapon, one bullet would have left the barrel for every revolution.

Dr. Fuchs felt very important. He again pressed for help from the SS, who this time were to make certain parts for him. The work would only progress so slowly and Fuchs urged, “since I must not neglect my professional duties as a judge, nor can I cease my intensive collaboration as Hauptsturmführer of the SA, lest I betray the cause. […] Without the requested help, it would hardly be possible to make the new weapon operational for this war. In my opinion, however, that would not be in the Führer’s interests”. Two weeks later, the SS-Führungshauptamt agreed to have the parts manufactured in SS workshops and asked for drawings to be sent to them. In mid-July, the finished parts were sent to Dr. Fuchs.

Now the personal staff of the Reichsführer-SS also intervened. SS-Obersturmbannführer Gräßler wanted to know why the matter was taking so long. The head of the technical office, SS-Brigadeführer Schwab, himself a doctor of engineering, made it clear in his answer of 3 October 1944 what he thought of the centrifugal machine gun. He reportedly said the invention was a technical gimmick and that such a weapon would weigh 100 times more than a normal machine gun and the trajectory would be uncontrollable. All this did not justify the use of an extensive test facility and the assignment of dozens of experts, he continued. Presumably in order not to upset anyone, he added, “It must remain the case that we give Dr. Fuchs further opportunities to improve his ideas and to see for himself on basic tests how far things can be realized. […] Dr. Fuchs has now expressed the wish to be transferred to the Waffen-SS in order to be able to continue working here within the framework of the Technical Office. I have no objection to this and will clear the way for him to do so. With the best will in the world, that is all that can be done at the moment.”

Unfortunately, this is where the story ends. The further fate of Dr. Fuchs, the whereabouts of his prototype and the technical drawings of his design are unknown. But, based on what we know of his ambition, the ammunition consumption of his invention would have been incredibly high, if the system worked at all. With some basic math we can see how absurdly the idea was likely viewed at the time. The common heavy pointed bullet (schweres Spitzgeschoss) of the rifle cartridge weighed 12.8 grams. At the intended target of 30,000 revolutions per minute, the centrifugal machine gun would thus have hurled 384 kilograms (about 85 pounds) of lead per minute at the enemy. So, assuming the technology could be developed to realize Fuchs’ design, the weapons insatiable appetite for ammunition would have precluded it from ever becoming a reality given that ammunition was already in short supply in almost every corner of the German Reich by this point of the war.

Designed in 1886 and adopted the following year by the French military, the Lebel Modèle 1886 has the distinction of being both France’s first repeating service rifle, and the world’s first service rifle chambered for a smokeless round.

The defeat in the Franco-Prussian War of 1870/1871 and the subsequent fall of the Second French Empire forced the newly formed Third French Republic to re-evaluate its military needs in light of the increasing mistrust towards the neighboring and aggressive German Empire. Over a decade after the end of what was arguably the most important conflict fought in Europe between the end of the Napoleonic wars and the onset of World War I, French infantrymen were becoming seriously outgunned if compared to the German troops, which were being issued with the new Mauser Model 71-84 repeater rifle – an upgrade over the Model 1871, using an eight-shot magazine tube.

On the other hand, the French Army was still issuing the Gras Model 1874 single-shot bolt-action rifle, essentially a brass cartridge conversion of the old Chassepot design, designed by Austrian engineer Alfred Von Kropatschek and chambered for the 11×59mm rimmed black powder caliber. The French Navy had it substantially better, with the Kropatschek Model 1878 rifle, which was basically a repeater version of the 1874 feeding through a magazine tube that held eight rounds. Both would, however, go down in history as interim adoptions with the next quantum leap in individual firearm technology being just around the corner.

HARNESSING NEW TECHNOLOGY

Between 1882 and 1884, French chemist Paul Vieille perfected the first viable smokeless powder. His creation, named “Poudre B” (“B-powder”, where the B stood for “Blanche”, or “white”, thus meaning “white powder” in contrast to black powder), a nitrocellulose-based compound, was three times as powerful as black powder and generated a substantially lower amount of smoke and residue, keeping rifles cleaner and the rifleman’s field of view relatively unobstructed on the battlefield.

The formulation of smokeless powder, including the French Poudre B, would improve substantially in the coming years, but the French government was hell-bent on becoming an early adopter of such revolutionary military technology. The sitting French minister of war, revanchist general George Ernest Jean-Marie Boulanger, ordered the institution of a commission to design a new repeating service rifle using smokeless powder ammunition. Headed by general Baptiste Tramond, the commission was given orders to have a rifle ready within one year.

Part of the commission was Lt. Col. Nicolas Lebel, who came up with the idea of the first bullet used by the 8×50mm rimmed round for the new rifle. Dubbed the “Balle M”, this was a nickel-brass jacketed, round-nose, lead 232-grain bullet that would be safe for use in the intended feeding system – a tube magazine holding eight rounds, plus an additional ninth round in the elevator, as holding an additional round in chamber would be considered unsafe.

Despite Lebel’s contribution being limited mostly to that aspect – and despite the Balle M being replaced in a few years by a more effective boat-tailed Spitzer bullet – he received the honor of becoming the namesake of the new rifle. In his defense, for most of his life and up until the end, Lebel would insist that the creation was a collective effort, and that other members of the commission would have deserved that honor more than he did; those included famed colonel Yves Gras – a familiar name in French gunmaking at the time – and captain Georges Desaleux, who worked on the concept of the new 8×50mm Lebel cartridge; colonel Jean-François Marie Bonnet, who designed the bolt and its two sturdy parallel locking lugs necessary to withstand the pressure levels generated by the new smokeless propellant; and engineers Albert Close and Louis Verdin, weapon inspectors at the Châtellerault arsenal (better known as MAC), who worked with Gras for the best part of the engineering process, concerning both the rifle itself and the manufacturing technologies and machineries.

BACKWARD COMPATIBILITY AND NEW FEATURES

The commission had been directed to design the new rifle so that it could be compatible with existing stock of spare parts for the Gras and Kropatschek rifles, particularly the Navy-issue Kropatschek Model 1878 repeater. Additionally, the 8×50R Lebel cartridge was designed to be manufactured on the existing tooling used to make 11mm Gras ammunition. Hence, features such as the magazine tube (slow to load but offering a relatively high capacity for the time and featuring a manual cut-off feature, a very popular feat among military rifles back in the day), the straight trigger, horizontal-handle bolt action with cock-on-open, 90-degree bolt throw, and rimmed cartridge case.

That’s not to say that the new Lebel rifle – designated as the Modèle 1886 – didn’t have any merit on its own, though. It was built on an incredibly robust machined steel receiver, to withstand what were arguably the highest pressures sustained by a service rifle back in the day. The wooden stock was composed of two separate pieces – buttstock and handguard – and despite inheriting a huge deal of drawbacks from the designs that preceded it, the Lebel 1886 rifle packed a hell of a lot of firepower for its time, being far superior to its most direct competitor, the German Mauser 1871/84. The 8mm Lebel round, loaded with smokeless powder, developed a muzzle velocity of 700m/s (2296.59 fps) and offered a maximum effective range of 3500 yards, making it superior in terms of performance to the .303 Mk1 cartridge being adopted around the same time for the MLM Magazine Lee-Metford rifles of the British Empire.

PRODUCTION, INITIAL RECEPTION, AND UPDATES

The three French state-owned arsenals of Saint-Étienne, Châtellerault, and Tulle were all instructed to start mass manufacturing the new Lebel Model 1886 service rifle at once. General Boulanger’s plans were to procure one million samples by May 1887, but that goal soon turned out to be unrealistic and in the same year Boulanger was sacked from his position as the minister of war for his revanchist approach that risked sparking a new war with Germany. Nevertheless, the combined effort of the three arsenals allowed the French military to acquire over two million Lebel Mle.1886 rifles in six years, along with a quadrangular épée-style bayonet aptly dubbed the Model 1886.

As usual with newly adopted service rifles, the troops immediately started reporting the first teething issues: the rear sight assembly – whose ramp was adjustable to engage targets at 2,400 meters, or a little bit over 2,624 yards, a very optimistic estimate for the average infantryman despite the technical capabilities of the ammunition – required strengthening, and the bolt needed to be modified with a gas shield to protect the shooter’s face from the hazard of potential cartridge case ruptures. Said modifications were applied in 1893; the modified rifle came to be known as the Lebel Modèle 1886 Modifié 1893, or Mle.1886 M93 for short. Basically, all pre-existing Mle.1886 rifles were retrofitted to the M93 standard in relatively short time, which is why original, non-modified Lebel 1886 rifles are exceedingly rare today.

FURTHER AMMUNITION DEVELOPMENT

Field experience with the Mle.1886 M93 issued across the board in the vast French colonial empire and elsewhere, such as in the French concessions in China, where it was used by the French troops that contributed to quell the Boxer Rebellion of 1899-1901, also led to modifications to the ammunition. As stated above, the original round-nose bullet was replaced with a Spitzer (a.k.a. pointed tip), boat-tail bullet for improved performance. The new round, dubbed “Balle D”, has the distinction of being the first boat-tail bullet ammunition ever adopted for military service. The new Balle D also featured a slight annular rebate around the primer pocket to prevent accidental ignition in the magazine tube, a wise and cautious move on the behalf of the French engineers. The modification was conceived by Georges Desaleux, a member of the original engineering team for the rifle, although, to be fair, no such catastrophic incident was ever recorded with any Lebel 1886 rifle and any type of ammunition. The 8×50R ammunition would be subject to a further safety modification much further on, in 1912, with the adoption of the “Balle D A.M.” load, with “A.M.” standing for “Amorcage Modifié” (“modified primer”), whose primers were crimped to prevent bulging and expulsion from their pocket when the ammunition was used in a machine gun such as the Saint-Étienne Mle.1907 or, later, the Hotchkiss Mle.1914.

After WWI, a new round would be launched for the Lebel rifles still in service. Dubbed the “Balle N”, which was loaded with a steel-jacketed, Spitzer, boat-tail, lead bullet that had initially been designed for the Hotchkiss machine gun and required rifles to be rebored before they could safely fire it. The fact that rifles introduced back in 1886 were still around at the eve of World War II shouldn’t come as a surprise for the reader: the Lebel was, after all, a mighty solid rifle, although pushed into early obsolescence by the widespread adoption of smokeless powder cartridges by other countries.

PHASING OUT THE LEBEL

With most nations adopting rimless cartridge designs, quick reloading via detachable magazines and stripper clips became feasible and improved the volume of fire that an individual infantryman could provide at any given time. In 1906, the French military started to research a new service rifle that would replace the Lebel and give them the edge against their arch enemy, Germany, once again. Berthier bolt-action rifles were issued as a stop-gap measure to colonial troops, chambered in 8×50R Lebel and, later, in 7.5mm. But at the turn of the 20^th Century, thus much before other countries, the French had their eyes already set on adopting a semi-automatic rifle. Tentatively, this had to be the Meunier A6, chambered in a powerful 7×59mm round, but the lengthy development process led to just about 1000 Meunier A6 rifles being manufactured before WWI broke out.

French troops thus found themselves fighting off advancing German armies for four years using a mishmash of Berthier 1892 rifles, a large quantity of Lebel Mle.1886 M93, and several tens of thousands of RSC M1917 and M1918 semi-automatic, gas-operated rifles chambered in 8×50R Lebel and designed to be assembled using numerous Lebel rifle components. The Lebel rifle could be equipped with a muzzle-mounted launcher for the VB Viven-Bessières rifle grenades, and it often was during the conflict. Accuracy of the rifle was deemed good enough that French snipers during WW1 were equipped with Lebel rifles supplied with two types of scopes – the APX Model 1916 and APX Model 1917, manufactured by the State-owned Atelier de Construction de Puteaux.

The retirement of the Lebel rifle was long postponed at the end of the “war to end all wars”, due to a lack of political interest in rearmament and the poor state of the French economy. Before, during, and after WWI quantities of the Lebel rifle were sold to Greece and Ethiopia, among others, as well as to the Republican side during the Spanish civil war. The MAS 1936 bolt-action rifle arrived too late, and the RSC 1917 and 1918 rifles were too scarce to fully replace it, and soldiers overall liked the high capacity of the old Lebel. A more advanced scope, the APX Model 1921, was developed for sniper-issued Lebel rifles and used up until the end of WWII, which saw French troops still fielding the old 1886 warhorse in very significant quantities.

Meanwhile, newly manufactured, refurbished Lebel rifles, and carbines had found their way through mail order to French civilians, with Manufrance being the biggest distributor. The history of Manufrance commercial developments over the Lebel rifle warrants an article on its own, but in the inter-war period, a significant quantity of Lebel Mle.1886 M93 rifles were repurposed, refurbished, and converted into short carbines or mounted colonial troops in French Africa by Manufacture Nationale d’Armes de Tulle (“Tulle National Weapons Factory”) the French state-owned weapons manufacturer in the town of Tulle, Corrèze. These carbines, dubbed the Lebel Mle.1886 M93 R35, along with pre-existing Mle.1886 M93 rifles, saw use during WWII. They were captured by Axis powers and deployed by their rear line units during the last chaotic months of the war, ultimately ending its tour of duty in the French military when they were issued to local colonial auxiliary troops in Algeria and Indochina before being finally being completely replaced across the board by the MAS 49 and MAS 49/56 semi-automatic rifles. To this day, functional Lebel rifles can still be found in the hands of irregular militias in Africa and the Far East.

LEGACY OF THE LEBEL RIFLE

Nowadays, the Lebel Mle.1886 M93 rifle and M93 R35 carbine are appreciated collectibles among shooters in North America and Europe. Paradoxically, up until fairly recently, their motherland of France was the country where they were least easily available.

Until France implemented the 2008/51/EC European Firearms Directive in its national laws (which back then considered every firearm ever fielded by the French military or any other armed force in the world in the past century or so to be still a “military firearm”), the Lebel Mle.1886 rifle was considered a 1ére Categorie or “Category 1” firearm – essentially a “weapon of war”, like a machine-gun. Lebel rifles were thus often converted to calibers such as 348 Winchester for civilian sales in France. With such restrictions gone, now the original 8mm Lebel rifle in all its variants is considered a Catégorie C firearm in France, requiring registration of ownership, but no license for purchase or possession by anybody over the age of 16.

Interestingly enough, the Lebel name still lives on in modern French gun making, having been adopted by Verney-Carron, a well-known manufacturer of hunting and sporting firearms based in Saint-Étienne, as the new brand name for its line of riot control weapons and MIL/LE armaments. On November 8, 2023, Verney-Carron was contracted to deliver 10,000 assault rifles based on the M4 platform, 2000 designated marksman rifles based on the AR-10 design, and 400 40x46mm SR grenade launchers, all under the Lebel brand, to the armed forces of Ukraine. The contract is worth €36m, or just over US$39m at the current exchange rate. Deliveries will start in 2024.

The Nambu Type 14 was adopted in 1926 as the service pistol of the Imperial Japanese Army and served as its military sidearm until the Japanese surrender in 1945. It was designated the Type 14 because it was adopted in the 14^th year of their current emperor’s reign, 1925. Of the estimated 400,000 Type 14 Nambu pistols made, many found their way home to the U.S. as war trophies of WWII. There they languished as lack of ammo prevented their use. Now, Steinel Ammunition is making 8mm Nambu ammo and I had 100 rounds of it for test firing.

Shooting these pistols is an eye-opening experience. This a super easy-to-hit-with pistol that is fun to shoot. It delivers pinpoint accuracy, easily hitting one-inch targets at 25 yards firing the pistol with one hand, like pistols are supposed to be fired. Recoil is the about the same as a .22 pistol. It points perfectly and hangs steady. Workmanship on all but the late war production guns is flawless, and the gun functions reliably as is expected of a military issue pistol. Trigger pull on the test gun was so perfect that it could not be improved on. The sights were high visibility with the rear sight opening broader at the bottom in order to let in more light in low light conditions.

I also let two other men and one of their wives shoot the Nambu and all three wanted to buy one. I have never had that universal reaction to a gun that I let others fire.

DESIGN CRITERIA

This ease of hitting with the Nambu was a design necessity for the Japanese and Colonel Kijiro Nambu was up to the challenge. The average Japanese officer of the day was not a pistol shooter and he dreamed of cutting down the emperor’s enemies with his samurai sword, not shooting them. In order for him to be effective with a pistol, he had to be given every advantage possible. The Luger pistol was the best pointing pistol of the day, but it had a little more recoil than the Japanese designers wanted. In addition, the Luger’s grip was a bit large for some of the Japanese hands of the period. While the Imperial Naval Marines had a 6-foot minimum height the poor diet of most of the Japanese of this period left a lot of small men as a result. You need good nutrition to grow big.

CALIBER SELECTION

At this time the Japanese were looking toward Europe as a model for their modernization and the 32 ACP was considered a perfectly adequate military and police caliber in Europe in the early 20^th Century. A lot of Japanese officers were carrying various private purchase .32 automatics. One big reason for this was the fact that the 32 ACP is the largest pistol caliber that has about the same recoil as a 22 LR making it easy to master. This is why that even today it is the most produced pistol caliber in the world.

The Japanese military felt that their status demanded their own cartridge though, so they developed the .32 caliber 8mm Nambu cartridge which looks like a 30 Luger but performs like a relatively hot loaded 32 ACP. The Steinel ammo, which shoots to the sights of the Nambu perfectly, has an 83-grain FMJ bullet moving at 1040 FPS. Like the 32 ACP FMJ, it is a very good penetrator, and the Japanese military were quite happy with it.

ERGONOMICS

The grip angle of the Luger was copied but the grip was made smaller by the expedient of placing the two recoil springs mounted alongside the bolt and leaving the grip as just a magazine well. Great attention was paid to getting a perfect balance and the final result was a gun that pointed fast and accurately yet had no real recoil to disturb the shooter. This also makes the Nambu the ideal gun for teaching a small child to shoot a pistol. It is certainly not too big being only 32 ounces and 9 inches overall with a 4 3/4-inch barrel.

The magazine is copied from the German Luger, and, like the Luger, its angle causes enough friction that the magazine spring is only 60% efficient, so you have to have a heavier, stronger spring. There is a loading button to pull the follower down for easier loading.

MAGAZINE RETENTION AND OTHER STRANGE FEATURES AND FLAWS

The Japanese lack of expertise with a semi-auto pistol was shown by the fact that the Japanese did not like the magazine coming out easily when the magazine release catch was pushed in on the first model of the Type 14 (which had a smaller, round trigger guard.) Apparently, they were afraid of dropping and possibly losing magazines. So, they added a spring to the front of the grip to retard the magazine from dropping free. Add to this the fact that the bolt is held open by the magazine at the last shot and removal of the magazine can become difficult. I have fired Nambus where magazine removal was not a problem and others where it was.

The first models with the round trigger guard usually do not have a magazine safety while the second model always was fitted with one. In addition, not all the parts interchange. For example, the first model has a long firing pin that stops short of the bolt lock while the second model has a short firing pin that passes through a notch cut into the bolt lock.

The safety is too far forward to be operated by the shooting hand but apparently the Japanese figured your left hand had to be doing something so let it handle the safety.

The most serious flaw is that the pistol can be reassembled and fired without the locking block which could result in damage to both the gun and the shooter. Perhaps the Japanese were too prideful to admit that the emperor’s second lieutenants could do something stupid.

CYCLE OF OPERATION

The operating cycle of the Nambu begins with the chambered cartridge being fired. The bolt is locked firmly in to the barrel extension by the locking block and the recoil drives them all to the rear until the barrel hits the barrel stop where the locking block is cammed down by a cut in the receiver permitting the bolt to continue its journey to the rear alone as it extracts the fired case and pulls it along until the case hits the ejector and is thrown clear of the gun. Upon going back as far as it can go the compressed dual recoil springs begin throwing it forward again where it meets the next cartridge in the magazine which has risen in the space left by the retreating bolt. As it continues forward it drives this cartridge out of the magazine and into the chamber. During this time the locking bolt swings up on its pivot through its slot in the receiver locking into the underside of the bolt as the completed assembly is rammed home. Now the disconnector unblocks the striker, and the pistol will fire at the next pull of the trigger.

TEAR DOWN

Field stripping is relatively easy. Just remember to not put it together without the locking block. Take out the magazine and clear the chamber. Put the safety on fire. Now push the head of the firing pin extension at the rear of the bolt and turn the bolt head to unscrew it. Now the firing pin, firing pin spring, and firing pin extension will come out. Push the muzzle against a hard object until the barrel is forced all the way back holding it there while you push in on the magazine catch and pull the trigger guard straight down and out of its groove in the grip.  The barrel and bolt may now be pulled off the front of the receiver. Take the locking block out of its pivot and then the bolt and the 2 recoil springs. Reassemble in reverse order being damn sure you put the locking bolt back in.

VARIATIONS

While the type 14 is the most common version of the Nambu it was not the first. In about 1904 Colonel Nambu came out with the first of his pistols which was not adopted but was sold for private purchase by military officers. Large scale production began with WWI hence this is also mistakenly known as the M1914. These guns were made by Kayoba Mfg. Co. in Tokyo.

The Improved Type 14 was officially adopted in 1925 and remained in production throughout WWII at the Nagoya Arsenal in Nagoya and the Kayoba Manufacturing Co, Ltd. In Tokyo. After the war it saw service in all the lands previously occupied by Japan especially in China who used large numbers in the Korean War.

The design had sufficiently good features to help inspire Bill Ruger when he made his .22 semi-automatic pistol after the war. A close look at the two guns shows clearly the Nambu’s influence on the design of the Ruger Standard. While the Ruger handles well it still does not attain the ease of hitting the Nambu has.

A lack of ammo has left the Nambu mostly unfired and thus unappreciated. This gun is a joy to fire, and I love a gun that is easy to hit with just as I despise one that is hard to hit with. We can thank Andy Steinel at Steinel Ammunition for finally making it possible to have the pleasure of shooting this most enjoyable pistol again. Steinel also makes other previously unobtainable military rifle and handgun rounds as well as a full line of modern cartridges.