What the heck

[DubC-Hicks]

That'll be a Lebel 1886 in 8x50r.

[Ozzieman]

Very good DubC-Hicks
Lebel rifle of 1886 or Le fusil de 8 mm modèle 1886 is a very important infantry weapons of the time. It was the first ever military rifle to fire small-bore, smokeless powder cartridge. It was a fast firing rifle with light, long-range flat-firing cartridge. When fired very little smoke was made because of the smokeless powder. Both cartridge and rifle were designed by General Tramond. It was named after Colonel Nicolas Lebel.

[Ozzieman]

Next anyone??

[RANGER94]

Awesome Thread!!!!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Mike Irwin]

"Britain refused to supply Canada with enough Lee-Enfield rifles during the second Boer war resulted in adoption of the .303 caliber Ross Mark I rifle in 1902."

It wasn't just that. The British government also REFUSED to issue Canada a license to manufacture Lee-Enfield rifles at a Canadian arsenal, which is what led Ross to offer his Model 1903.

The 1903 had a faulty bolt retention design, which allowed the bolt to drop out unexpectedly and at odd times. That led the North West Mounted Police to abandon the 1903 and reissue Winchester lever action rifles.

Ross redesigned the bolt retention catch in the Model 1905, which was adopted by Canadian armed forces.

Interesting tidbit...

The Ross factory was located in Quebec on the Plains of Abraham. The area is now part of a huge, and quite beautiful, park.

The Plains of Abraham is also where the pivotal battle of Quebec took place during the 7 Years War.

[Mike Irwin]

As for the latest entry, Volkssturmgewehr 1-5.

One of Germany's "last ditch" weapons. Used a gas retarded blowback action not unlike the type now seen on the HK P7 series of handguns.

[Ozzieman]

Your kicking my but Mike way to go

http://world.guns.ru/rifle/autoloadi...e/vg1-5-e.html

The weapon's name in German Gewehr means "rifle", whereas Sturmgewehr means "assault rifle". The term "Volkssturmgewehr" can therefore be translated either as "People's Assault Rifle" or "Volkssturm Rifle".
The VG.1-5 rifle, developed by the engineer Karl Barnitzke at the Gustloff Werke factory, was among the most interesting Volkssturm weapons, as it provided plenty of firepower in a relatively compact package, especially compared to other Volkssturm rifles. Production of the VG.1-5 commenced early in 1945, with about 10 thousands produced before the capitulation of the Reich on May 8th, 1945.
The Volkssturmgewehr VG.1-5 rifle was known for sensitivity to cleaning and oiling, and easily jammed if not properly maintained. Its construction relied heavily on steel stampings, welding and pinning.
The Volkssturmgewehr VG.1-5 rifle was delayed (retarded) blowback operated, semi-automatic weapon. It used power of expanding powder gases to slow down opening of otherwise unlocked breechblock (bolt) during the initial stages of its recoil. To achieve this effect, the breechblock (bolt) was permanently pinned to the tubular slide (similar in design and concept to most semi-automatic pistols), which run almost all the way toward the muzzle. Front part of the slide formed the annular gas cylinder around the barrel, and four gas ports were drilled in the barrel which fed hot powder gases from the bore into the gas cylinder, closed at the front by the slide bushing, and at the rear by stationary collar on the barrel. These expanding gases resisted the rearward movement of the slide and bolt under the recoil, slowing (retarding) it down while pressure in the bore was still high. The return spring was located around the barrel, inside the slide and just behind the gas cylinder. The retracting (charging) handle was formed from sheet steel and pinned to the slide. Weapon was fed using 30-round detachable box magazines of the MP.43 / Stg.44 assault rifle. Sights were fixed, without any adjustments.

The Gustloff Volkssturmgewehr was designed by Karl Barnitzke of the Gustloff-Werke for the Primitiv-Waffen-Programm ("primitive weapons program") in 1944 and was intended to be used by the Volkssturm. Production of the Gustloff Volkssturmgewehr occurred from January 1945 till the end of the war; roughly 10,000 were made.

This gun was initially called MP 507.[3] The MP 508 was fairly similar except it had a semi-pistol grip stock.[4]

The weapon employed the same 7.92×33mm Kurz intermediate cartridge as the earlier StG 44 assault rifle and also used the same detachable 30-round box magazine.

The Gustloff Volkssturmgewehr uses a gas-delayed blowback action based on the Barnitzke system, whereby gas bled from the barrel near the chamber creates resistance to the rearward impulse of the operating parts, which ceases when the projectile leaves the muzzle, allowing the operating parts to be forced rearward by the residual pressure of the cartridge case. This principle has been used most successfully in the Heckler & Koch P7 pistol.

The Gustloff Volkssturmgewehr is constructed rather like many semi-automatic pistols, it has a casing and spring around the barrel; the whole casing recoils backward. The breech block, with firing pin and extractor, is pinned to the back end of the barrel casing. The rear end of the gun does not recoil and has the hammer, sear and trigger built into it. Gas coming from four vents, near the end of the barrel, holds the bolt closed till the gas pressure drops to a safe level. Some selective fire Gustloff Volkssturmgewehrs were made.

The Grossfuss Sturmgewehr used the same principle of gas-delayed blowback operation, but it was somewhat more efficient in the use of gas; its bolt weighed 0.8-0.9 kg compared to 1.4 kg in the Gustloff Volkssturmgewehr.[5]

The Gustloff Volkssturmgewehr was assembled out of 39 metallic parts, not counting rivets and screws. Of these specific parts, 12 required milling, 21 could be produced by stamping alone, and 6 were springs.[6]
More
Testing of a captured Gustloff Volkssturmgewehr at a Soviet GAU shooting range showed that it was rather inaccurate, with 50% of the shots at 100 m landing in a circle with 10.2 cm radius and with 100% of the shots at the same distance landing in a circle with a 19.8 cm radius. At 300 m these the corresponding radii were respectively 25 and 50.3 cm. The fixed sights of the Gustloff Volkssturmgewehr made aiming difficult because the Kurz patrone raised some 29 cm above the sightline at 100 m and dropped 43 cm below it at 300 m.[6]

[Ozzieman]

Next installment

[Mike Irwin]

I have one of those in my closet.

Well, not exactly. I think that one is a Berthier 1892 artillery carbine, mine is a 1916.

The magazine is flush, so it's a 3-shot Mannlicher clip system.

[Mike Irwin]

Absolutely great thread, Ozzie!

[Ozzieman]

Another Mike although owning one is kind of cheating

History of Berthier rifles began in around 1887, when French cavalry demanded a compact, magazine fed carbine firing then-new 8x50R smokeless ammunition. The new Lebel M1886 rifle was too heavy and too cumbersome to load while on horseback, and French cavalrymen turned instead to a handy carbine, developed by Emile Berthier, an engineer for the Algerian Railway System. This weapon had its action broadly based on the Mle.1886 rifle, although its bolt head had lugs that locked vertically in receiver rather than horizontally. The new carbine also employed a modified Mannlicher-type en-block clip loading system, with symmetric clip that could be inserted into the rifle either way up. It was more convenient to load compared to original Mannlicher system, but it came at the cost of increased size of the clip (and magazine to hold it), which limited its capacity to three rounds. First Berthier weapons to be adopted were model 1890 Cavalry, Cuirassier and Gendarmerie carbines, with Artillery carbine following in 1892. After initial success with carbines, in 1902 Berthier system was lengthened into rifle, to be used by colonial troops in Indo-China. The Berthier rifle was more preferable for smaller-statute Asian troops than larger and heavier Lebel. In 1908, similar but slightly longer rifle was adopted as Model 1907 for use by Senegalese and other African colonial troops. Both M1902 and M1907 rifles were produced on a rather limited scale
http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=...96&FORM=VRDGAR

[Ozzieman]

Next installment

Guess I will have to do more research for you guys

[burrhead]

I don't have one in my closet but that's a Farquhar. It has a bizarre action in which the barrel recoils and preloads a spring that actuates the bolt. I don't really understand how it works but it did father a machine gun several years later called a Beardmore Farquhar.

[Mike Irwin]

I think that one is actually the Farquhar-Hill semi-automatic rifle.

[burrhead]

I think that one is actually the Farquhar-Hill semi-automatic rifle.

Yeah Mike, you're right. I'm old and my brain is smooth.

[Ozzieman]

Way to go, the first web site shows one being fired. Good video

http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=...04&FORM=VRDGAR

http://world.guns.ru/rifle/autoloadi...ar-hill-e.html
The Farquhar-Hill self-loading (semi-automatic) rifle was a joint development of two British gentlemen, Moubray G. Farquhar and Arthur H. Hill. Their original invention, patented in UK in 1908 and in USA in 1909, was a long-recoil operated rifle with rotary bolt locking. The key feature of this firearm was the fact that recoil energy of the moving barrel was stored in the intermediate spring. Upon discharge, barrel recoiled back and forth while still locked with the bolt, compressing the intermediate spring on recoil. Upon return of the barrel into the forward position the energy, stored in the intermediate 'action' spring, was used to cycle the bolt back and forth, extracting and ejecting the spent case and feeding a fresh round into the now stationary barrel. The main goal was to achieve smooth and reliable cycling of the bolt, but the design was very complicated and thus badly suited for a military firearm. By 1911, Farquhar and Hill revised their rifle, changing its source of energy from barrel recoil to more convenient gas operated action. This new weapon also utilized intermediate spring as a source of energy for cycling of the bolt, but the barrel was now stationary, simplifying design and making it potentially more accurate and reliable. During following years this design was further refined and tested by Brithis Army on several occasions. This rifle was initially chambered for the new “.303 rimless” round, designed by necking up the 7,65x53mm Belgian Mauser case and loading it with British-issue Mk.VII bullet of .303 caliber. Later on this experimental loading was discarded in favor of the standard issue .303 British ammunition. After several trials, including troop trials at the front, in 1918 the Farquhar-Hill rifle was found to be suitable for military use, and an official request was issued for procurement of as much as 100,000 of Farquhar-Hill rifles for British forces fighting on the Continent against Germany. Official nomenclature assigned to the military Farquhar-Hill rifle in August 1918 was “Rifle. .303 inch, Pattern 1918”. However, hostilities of the Great War ended before production facilities were allocated for this rifle, and in the view of an upcoming peace the requirement for manufacture of Farquhar-Hill rifles was dropped in 1919. During 1920s and early 1930s Farquhar redesigned this rifle into a light machine gun of lightweight design, fed from top-mounted pan magazines. This machine gun, known as the Beardmore-Farquhar, was also tested by British army on several occasions but was ultimately rejected for variety of reasons.


The Farquhar-Hill self-loading (semi-automatic) rifle, as it was formally accepted by British army in 1917, was a gas-operated weapon. It had a long stroke gas piston, located below the barrel and fitted with two springs – one more powerful and one less powerful. Upon discharge, gas piston was pushed rearwards against both springs, compressing them, while bolt group remained stationary. The more powerful spring (action spring) had latches on both ends, and during the early stages of discharge its rear end was held by rear latch while its forward end was compressed by the gas piston. At the end of the gas piston rearward stroke the front of the powerful action spring was captured by its front latch, while being disconnected from the gas piston; at the same time its rear latch was released to allow compressed spring extend rearwards, against the operating rod connected to the bolt carrier, and release its energy to cycle the bolt group. At the same time, gas piston was forced forward by its own return spring, which was relatively weak. Upon opening of the breech, the front latch of the action spring was automatically released, and the uncompressed action spring returned into its forward position, ready for the next cycle. The bolt group was returned into the battery by its own return spring, which also was noticeably less powerful than the action spring. All this complication was invented to ensure smooth cycling of the bolt group regardless of the variations in the ammunition, and somehow decrease felt recoil. The barrel locking was achieved by a fairy conventional rotary bolt with dual locking lugs at the front. Feed was from detachable drum magazines with 19-round capacity. Rifle was fitted with wooden stock with semi-pistol grip. Complicated gas and spring action, which was located below the barrel, was enclosed in the sheet steel forend. To ensure comfortable handling, rifle was fitted with vertical foregrip under the forend, whose position could be adjusted along the specially fitted rail with several mounting holes. The Farquhar-Hill self-loading (semi-automatic) rifle was provided with adjustable iron sights and sling swivels. Provisions were made for mounting of a knife-type bayonet, located below the forward part of the barrel.

[Ozzieman]

Next one is up

[DubC-Hicks]

That'll be the Pederson rifle

[Ozzieman]

Way to go, I didn't think that one would last long.
A little more reading for your enjoyment, it is one of my favorite rifles, handled one but never had the chance to fire one.
.276 Pedersen rifle
Slow motion of one being fired
http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=...=0&FORM=VDFSRV

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pedersen_rifle

The Pedersen Rifle, officially known in final form as the T1E3 rifle, was a United States semi-automatic rifle designed by John Pedersen that was made in small numbers for testing by the United States Army during the 1920s as part of a program to standardize and adopt a replacement for the M1903 Springfield.
Although the Pedersen was rated for a time as the most likely candidate for standardization and adoption, the .30 caliber M1 Garand was chosen instead.[1]
Background[edit]
The U.S. Army had shown interest in the idea of self-loading (semiautomatic) rifles before World War I. Combat experience during that war had made clear two general points: that the standard caliber .30-06 rifle cartridge was excessively powerful for the ranges (500 yards and less) where infantry combat was likely to take place, and that bolt-action rifles such as the M1903 Springfield were seriously lacking in firepower and second-shot hit capability. The U.S. Army Ordnance Bureau had no problem in soliciting designs and prototype weapons from inventors, and sought to facilitate their work by supplying barrels and other hardware that the inventors were likely not to be able to fabricate. However, such a traditional way of developing new weapons all too often saw potentially worthwhile designs wash out of the testing process due to a lack of engineering skills and experience both in the design and manufacturing phases.
Testing in the early 1920s led the Ordnance Bureau to identify three rifle designs - the Bang rifle, the Thompson Autorifle, and the primer-protrusion actuated Garand rifle - as promising candidates. However, all three designs were burdened with the high pressure and heat generating characteristics of the .30-06 ammunition, which looked likely to result in a weapon too heavy and too subject to overheating to be worthwhile. Trials with a small number of "militarized" .25 Remington autoloading rifles, despite their unsuitability for combat, provided a body of practical experience with semiautomatic rifles and an appreciation for the idea less powerful ammunition might be a critical part of the successful development of such weapons.
Proposals[edit]
At this point in time, John Douglas Pedersen made an unsolicited proposal to the Army Ordnance Bureau which would have a profound impact on the entire effort to develop a serviceable semiautomatic rifle. In essence, he proposed to develop a rifle that would be neither recoil operated (excessive recoil and inaccurate) nor gas operated (complexity, weight, and potentially undesirable operating characteristics). Additionally, he proposed to develop a new cartridge in the caliber .256 to .276 (6.5 mm to 7 mm) range that, while less powerful that the .30-06, would be effective out to 300 yards. Pedersen had gained a good reputation as both a firearms designer and production engineer at the Remington Arms Company. While at Remington, he designed four notable commercial firearms. Pedersen also designed the Pedersen Device during World War I. This was a sub-firearm intended to allow battlefield conversion of Springfield and M1917 Enfield rifles into semiautomatic rifles firing a pistol-sized cartridge.[1]
The Bureau of Ordnance was sufficiently impressed that in 1923 it granted Mr. Pedersen a contract providing office space, a project budget, an annual salary, and in compensation for his departure from Remington the right to patent his work and collect royalties from the U.S. Government if his rifle was adopted.
Development of the rifle and cartridge[edit]
Pedersen got to work in 1924, focusing first on the cartridge. The .276 Pedersen (7 x 51 mm) cartridge as finally standardized and manufactured at Frankford Arsenal was 1⁄2 in (13 mm) shorter than the .30-06, one quarter lighter, would generate nearly a third less heat and about half the recoil energy. Despite being smaller, it had a trajectory similar to the .30-06., with a muzzle velocity of 2,600 feet per second (792 m/s). The drawbacks of the design were diminished tracer performance, less effective armor piercing, plus anticipated logistical complications coming from the fact the .30-06 would remain in use for machine guns. The cartridge did, however, make a reasonably light yet effective semiautomatic rifle possible.
By early 1926, Pedersen had designed and built a prototype rifle. He had researched Army tactics and operational concepts, and had engineered the tooling for parts manufacture as an integral part of engineering the gun parts themselves. Such an application of sound research and development made a very strong impression on Army personnel when the rifle was presented for inspection and testing. The rifle was a solid, well-finished weapon, 44 inches (112 cm) long, weighing slightly over 8 pounds (3.6 kg). It utilized a disposable ten-round en bloc clip, a system favored at the time. Pedersen's rifle utilized a sophisticated up-breaking toggle-joint system like the Parabellum P.08[2] but improved by utilizing delayed blowback. This system was simple and free of both the fragility and severe kick of recoil operation, and the weight and complexity of gas operation (as in the Browning Automatic Rifle). To ease extraction, cartridge cases were coated in mineral wax.[3] This left a thin film that was “hard, and durable, and was not sticky,”.[4] The waxed cases solved the issue of difficult extraction, but hindered acceptance of the Pedersen rifle because officials feared that the wax would attract dirt and cause operating failures.
Testing and evaluation[edit]

En-bloc clip loaded with 10 rounds of .276 Pedersen. Image from John Pedersen patent.
In February 1926, the new rifle and ammunition were tested in the presence of representatives of both the Army Chief of Infantry and the Chief of Cavalry. The results were “highly favorable”[5] Production was authorized on May 20, 1926 of 20 rifles and 5 carbines. Following tests of reworked versions of the Thompson and primer-actuated Garand rifles, the Infantry Board in June, 1926 recommended further testing of all three rifles, but clearly indicated in its report the Pedersen rifle was the most developed of the three.
In April 1928 came the Infantry Board test report on the T1E3, and it was a solid endorsement of the rifle. The Board called for adoption of the T1E3 rifle to replace both the Model 1903 Springfield and the Browning Automatic Rifle. The Cavalry Board was also positive in its own evaluation of the T1E3. To soldiers used to the heavy recoil and exhausting manual operation of the Springfield rifle, the moderate recoil and self-loading functionality of the T1 rifle clearly must have made an impression. Due to problems with primer-actuation, John Garand gave up work on a .30-06 semiautomatic rifle and also focused exclusively on caliber .276.
Doubts about the lethal effect of the .276 round were strong enough to result in extensive tests in June and July 1928 by the “Pig Board” (so called because lethality tests were carried out on anaesthetized pigs). The Board found all three rounds (.256, .276, and .30) were wounding out to 1,200 yards (1100m), and lethal ability out to 300 or 400 yards (270-365m) was comparable. The “tiny” .256 caliber round was perceived to be the deadliest of them all. No compelling case could be made against the Pedersen rifle and round that it could not perform on the battlefield.
Further tests and a final decision[edit]
In July 1928, the War Department created the Army, Navy, and Marine Corps Semiautomatic Rifle Board to further test and evaluate both existing and newly submitted rifles with an eye toward focusing on standardizing the most serviceable design. Unlike previous boards, this one would continue to function for three years, and would end up undertaking three series of tests. This Board displayed a strong interest in the development of a .30-'06 semiautomatic rifle, but at the same time recognized the potential effectiveness of the .276 round at ranges up to 600 yards and that relatively light weight rifles that could be built around it; the Board remained consistent with the de facto Army policy of favoring adoption of the .276 round. Counting the Pedersen T1E3 rifle (by this time covered by U.S. Patent 1,737,974), seven rifles were submitted for consideration. One of these rifles was John Garand’s gas-operated .276 rifle, the T3, which had a 10-round magazine loaded with a symmetrical en bloc clip.

Pedersen toggle-delayed blowback action. Image from John Pedersen patent.
The conclusion of the tests, held in August 1929, saw the Board rate the T1E3 and the T3 as superior to all the others.[1] Both rifles were found to be subject to excessive malfunctions, but the T3 was rated superior to the T1E3. Specific T1E3 defects were: failure of the breech mechanism to close, misfires, breech mechanism override (failure to feed), and breakage of a crank and a sear bar. The Board recommended manufacturing of 20 T3 rifles for service test, and in addition recommended building a caliber .30-'06 version of the T3 for evaluation.
Cartridge lethality was again investigated by the “Goat Board”, this time with shooting tests on anaesthetized goats and careful measurement of entry and exit velocities. However, the test results again demonstrated no superiority of caliber .30 ammunition at normal combat ranges.
The year 1931 saw testing of the T1E3 and the twenty T3E2 rifles by the Infantry. The Infantry Board rated the T3E2 superior in effective firepower and simplicity of construction (the T3E2 had 60 parts, while the T1E3 had 99 parts). This Board, which three years earlier had recommended adoption of the T1, now favored the T3E2; it continued to favor the .276. However, the Chief of Infantry broke with the Infantry Board and stated a preference for .30 caliber.
The .30-'06 Garand rifle (essentially an enlarged T3E2) was quickly built and, under the confusing designation T1E1, was tested along with the T3E2 and the Pedersen T1E3 during the remainder of 1931. The Semiautomatic Rifle Board now exhibited a notably critical attitude toward the T1E3. The Board found fault with the requirement for lubricated cartridge cases (seemingly regardless of the technical merits of Mr. Pedersen’s case treatment concept), poor trigger pull, and the upward break of the breech mechanism. A more substantive complaint had to do with the complete exposure of the breech mechanism when held open—the Board correctly cited the vulnerability of the rifle to mud and dust while in this condition. The Board also reported slamfires (the Garand T3E2 was reported to dimple cartridge primers with its firing pin, but did not slamfire).
In the end, funding issues forced a decision. Faced with the possible loss of funds already authorized by Congress, the Board met for one more time in January 1932 and decided to recommend approval of the T3E2 (the .276 Garand) for limited procurement by the Army and to continue development of the T1E1 (the .30-'06 Garand). With this action, the Pedersen rifle was effectively dropped from consideration. In four more years, almost to the day, an improved version of rifle T1E1 would be adopted as the M1.
As Springfield Armory tooled for and refined the Garand, Pedersen continued to work on another rifle. He developed a .30 caliber model with a conventional gas-trap piston and multi-piece operating rod system. He fought to have it tested by the U.S. Army prior to World War II. At around the same time, serious difficulties were being encountered with the Garand and questions had been raised. Both Pedersen and Melvin M. Johnson, Jr. attempted to capitalize on the troubles. Based on serial numbers, it is thought up to 12 prototype gas-trap Pedersen rifles were made. One example of the model G-Y resides at the Springfield Armory Museum.[6]

[Ozzieman]

NNNeeeeeexxxxxttt

[Ulrice]

It is a Czech Vz 52

[tangolima]

Vz52 indeed. I have one in my safe.

-TL

Sent from my SM-G930T using Tapatalk

[Ozzieman]

Man I want to see some of your safes,,,,
Good one Ulrice tangolima
Video of a nice one being fired
http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=...4A&FORM=VRDGAR

http://world.guns.ru/rifle/autoloadi...-vz5257-e.html

The Czechoslovak army recognized the need for intermediate cartridge, and by the 1952 perfected and adopted the 7.5x45mm Vz.52 ammunition and two infantry weapons for it, the Vz.52 semiautomatic carbine and Vz.52 light machine gun. The 7.5x45mm ammunition is slightly more powerful than the Soviet 7.62x39mm ammunition, and has slightly better long-range performance. By the mid-1950s Czechs had the 7.5mm fully automatic rifle in development, but, under the pressure of Warsaw pact standardization, enforced by Soviet Union, Czechoslovak army ended up adopting soviet 7.62x39mm ammunition as a standard in 1957. Consequently, they rebarelled their machine guns and carbines for "new" ammunition, but the modified Vz.52/57 carbines not stayed in service for too long. Since the late 1950s they were gradually replaced in service with 7.62x39mm SA Vz.58 assault rifles. Many of Vz.52 and Vz.52/57 carbines were exported and sold as surplus, and can be encountered in various parts of the world.
Vz.52 is a semi-automatic, gas operated, magazine fed weapon. The short stroke, annular gas piston closely resembles that of Mkb.42(W) German assault rifle. The bolt is locked by tipping its front part with locking lugs down, into the recesses of the receiver. When the last shot is fired and magazine is empty, a bolt stop device is activated to hold the bolt open for faster reloading. The trigger unit very closely resembles that of US M1 Garand rifle, with safety lever located at the front of the trigger guard. Open sights are marked up to 900 meters, in 100 meters increments. The stock is made from wood, with separate top cover above the gas system. Integral blade bayonet is hinged to the stock and folds to the left and back, when not in use. A hollow cavity in the butt, under the buttplate, is used to store cleaning kit. Removable box magazine holds 10 rounds, but also can be reloaded in place from stripper clips.
The vz. 52 rifle (often incorrectly called the "CZ 52") is a self-loading rifle developed shortly after the Second World War in Czechoslovakia. Its full name is 7.62mm Samonabíjecí puška vzor 52.[2] Vz. 52 is an abbreviation for vzor 52, meaning "model 52". It fires the unique 7.62×45mm cartridge. It is considered both reliable and accurate. The first 5000 vz. 52 rifles were made by Považské strojárne in Považská Bystrica, but due to production difficulties, its manufacture was taken over by Česká zbrojovka Uherský Brod.[3]
The vz. 52 is a shoulder-fired semi-automatic rifle with a tilting-bolt locking mechanism powered by an annular short-stroke gas piston system. The bolt is locked by two lugs that recess into slots machined into the receiver. However, unlike most vertically-locking breech mechanism, the rifle's bolt has the unusual feature of tipping the bolt frontally to lock the mechanism, whereas other tipping bolt designs tip the bolt to the rear.[2] The piston is actuated by residual gases from the bore, vented into a sleeve surrounding the barrel to overcome the inertia of the bolt carrier, bolt and the resistance of the return spring in order to unlock the chamber, eject the empty cartridge casing and then introduce a new round into the chamber upon return to battery.
The barrel is press-fit and pinned into the receiver. The manual safety switch is placed inside of the trigger guard and is manipulated by the shooter's index finger. The trigger mechanism closely resembles that used in the American M1 Garand semi-automatic rifle. The cocking handle is integrated into the bolt carrier and is located on the right side of the rifle; this arrangement enables the shooter to reload the rifle without disturbing his aim.
The rifle is equipped with open-type iron sights with a hooded front post and V-notch rear sight placed on a sliding tangent, adjustable for elevation between 100–950 m. The rifle can also accept day and night-time optics that interface with an optional, receiver-mounted side rail. The one-piece pistol grip stock is carved from either walnut or beech and stained a yellowish-brown color; the stock has a hollowed butt which is used as a storage compartment for a cleaning rod, oil bottle and accessories. The rifle has an integral blade bayonet which folds into a recess carved into the stock on the right side.
The vz. 52 feeds from a detachable box magazine with a 10-round cartridge capacity but could also be rapidly recharged from stripper clips with the bolt retracted. For this purpose, a stripper clip guide is milled into the front face of the bolt carrier, aligning with the magazine when the bolt is locked in the open position. This is the primary method of reloading the rifle as infantrymen were only issued 2 magazines per rifle. It ejects cartridge cases vigorously forward and to the left.

[Ozzieman]

I have decided to turn the difficulty level up from easy to hard for the time being.
I am working on REALLY BAD for later on.

Next installment

[DubC-Hicks]

I'm not sure on this one. Looks to be an early prototype of the Winchester 1907 SL.