More than 20 years ago, "Wuhan Public Transport News" published my series of comic books "The History of Our Army's Light Weapons", a total of seven episodes. This is the fourth episode.
The manuscript of the history of light weapons of our army (4) is mainly based on the clothing (boat-shaped hats) and weapons (imitation of the Soviet Union) of the PLA soldiers after the military rank system in 1955. Painting: Hou Hongzhi
History of Light Weapons of Our Army (4)
Hou Hongzhi text/photo
In the early days of the founding of the People's Republic of China, our army began to be equipped with a series of light weapons for squad use manufactured by the mainland itself. But everything from light machine guns, submachine guns to rifles was copied with the help of prototypes of Soviet standard weapons. Today, it seems that the performance of these weapons is relatively backward, but at that time they were in line with the level of industrial development of the mainland, and laid a solid foundation for the localization of weapons and equipment. They are introduced as follows;
1. Type 50 7.62 mm submachine gun
In 1950, it was modeled on the Soviet PPsh 41 submachine gun, which was the first type of firearm imitated after the founding of New China, and was once a single combat weapon of our army's infantry squad, mainly equipped with the Chinese People's Volunteers, and effectively supported the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea. The gun is 840 mm long, with an empty magazine and a total gun weight of 3.63 kg, the automatic mode is free bolt type, inertial locking, can be single, burst shooting, the use of 7.62 mm pistol cartridges, ammunition supply includes 35 rounds of magazines and 71 rounds of drums, the gun is characterized by a simple structure, the whole receiver and barrel guard is stamped from steel plates, easy processing, good economy.
2. Type 54 7.62 mm submachine gun
Imitation of the former Soviet PPS-43 submachine gun, produced in 1954. The gun differed from the Type 50 submachine gun in that it was light (with a 35-round empty magazine, the whole gun weighed 3.3 kg), had a folding metal butt (folded, the whole gun was 616 mm long), and the firing mode was bursting. In terms of manufacturing, stamping, welding, and riveting processes are widely used, which is easy to produce in large quantities.
Type 50 7.62mm submachine gun (top)Type 54 7.62mm submachine gun (bottom)
Type 50 7.62mm submachine gun in the Military Museum Photo by Hou Hongzhi
Type 54 7.62mm submachine gun in the Military Museum Photo by Hou Hongzhi
3. Type 53 rifle
Imitation of the Soviet Union 1944 type infantry rifle, production in 1953. The gun has a stab length of 1325 mm when opened, 1020 mm when folded, the gun weighs about 3.9 kg, the magazine capacity is 5 rounds, the effective firing range is 400 meters, the maximum firing range is 1000 meters, the muzzle velocity is 820 m / s, and the combat rate of fire is 10-12 rounds / min. The Type 53 rifle rifle has good shooting accuracy, few failures, and good rigidity of the spear. But it was a non-automatic weapon after all, and it was soon replaced by automatic weapons.
Type 53 rifle
4. Soviet DP 7.62 mm squad light machine gun
The gun uses the principle of gas-conduction automation, and the intermediate part is a locking mechanism. The whole gun has a very simple structure, with only 65 parts, and the barrel can be quickly replaced. It uses a simple cartridge feeding mechanism, the cartridge disc is located above the receiver, and the cartridge can hold 47 rounds, which ensures the continuous fire of the machine gun. The DP light machine gun fires 7.62 mm M1908 flange rounds, has an effective range of 800 meters, and weighs 11.8 dry grams overall. After copying, our army was named the Type 53 7.62 mm light machine gun.
Soviet DP 7.62 mm squad light machine gun
The Military Museum has a collection of imitation Su-53 7.62mm light machine guns Photo by Hou Hongzhi
5. Soviet 7.62mm SG43 heavy machine gun
Designed by the Soviet Union in 1940-1942. The gun adopts the principle of gas conduction automatic, and the bolt is an offset locking mechanism, and the automaton is simple and reliable. In 1943, the Soviets officially finalized it, and the gun was equipped with a wheeled or tripod gun mount, both of which could be quickly converted to an anti-aircraft state to hit exposed targets within 1,000 meters or low-flying targets at 500 meters. The model copied by the mainland is the Type 53 7.62 mm heavy machine gun.
Soviet 7.62 mm SG43 heavy machine gun
"Wuhan Public Transport News" published the draft of "The History of Our Army's Light Weapons (4)".