#Experimental

Kalashnikov Media has published a video showing a very interesting AK-47. This is an experimental Type 1 AK that has some design changes done by Mikhail Kalashnikov himself. The experiments were done in the early ’50s, shortly after the adoption of AK-47 in 1949, in an attempt to find ways of improving the weapon’s performance, especially when firing in full auto mode and from unstable stances.

DNO Firearms has published a video where they test a DX-7 rifle with 3D printed polymer receivers. The DX-7 rifle is basically an improved AK that utilizes upper and lower receiver layout still using many standard AK parts with no or minor changes. The original DX-7 receivers are made of aluminum, however, looks like the design of these receivers will allow to successfully make their polymer versions, too. Let’s watch the mentioned video.

This experimental Thompson submachine gun is kept and displayed in the  Military Historical Museum of Artillery, Engineers and Signal Corps which is located in Saint Petersburg, Russia. The photos of this Model 1928A1 Thompson SMG were taken by a fellow firearms researcher Marin Milchev who kindly provided them to TFB to be used in this article.

Thanks to the Kalashnikov Gun Magazine, today we have a chance to take a look at one of the Soviet experimental sniper rifles/DMRs chambered in the 6x49mm caliber. The rifle is called TKB-0145S (ТКБ-0145С) and as one can expect from an experimental rifle, it has a lot of interesting and unusual design solutions.

Probably one of the most important developments in submachine gun design history was the invention of a telescoping bolt. The first production SMG utilizing such bolt layout is considered the Czech Sa 23 and probably the most recognizable SMG that uses this solution is the Uzi. Thanks to the images published by the Kalashnikov Gun Magazine, today we have a chance to take a look at an early experimental Russian SMG using a telescoping bolt designed by a gentleman named Nikolay Rukavishnikov.

NRA Museums regularly publish on their social media pages a series of firearm images under a title “GUN OF THE DAY”. Recently, they shared images of a weird looking experimental shotgun with a complicated mechanism designed to counter the recoil. By doing a brief research, I found the patent of this gun which will allow us to examine and understand its mechanism better.

In the late ’50s, there was a need in the armed forces of Soviet Union for replacing the rifles deployed in sniper and DMR roles. By that time they were mainly using scoped Mosin-Nagant, SVT and SKS rifles. All these rifles were outdated and they needed something new that would better integrate with the newly adopted assault rifles.

The Soviet Union attempted to adopt a high capacity semi-auto pistol back in the late ’30s. Various branches of their armed forces had complaints concerning the Tokarev pistol. Particularly, the low capacity magazine, likelihood of unintentional release of the magazine due to the location of the thumb release, inability to stick the barrel out of the tank and shoot the enemy that is in close proximity to the vehicle and can’t be engaged by the armament of the tank etc. They even launched trials which were almost won by Voevodin pistol. Almost, because the Soviet Union entered the WW2 and the trials/production were halted.

Tromix Lead Delivery Systems has published on their social media pages images of one of the prototype guns that they have been experimenting with back in 2007. They converted a Saiga-410 shotgun into a rifle chambered in .444 Marlin.

Kalashnikov Media has recently published an article about one of the Soviet experimental caseless rifles. Just like in other countries where the caseless ammunition was developed, the goal was to get rid of the case in order to have a much more compact and lightweight ammunition which would in its turn result in more compact and light weapons, too.

In this article, we’ll take a look at an experimental Soviet cartridge (5.6x60mm) and an interesting technological failure of the manufacturing process. This article is based on one written by Nikolay Dvoryaninov, a renown Russian ammunition and firearms expert. Dvoryaninov’s article was published in Kalashnikov Gun Magazine.

In the Soviet Union, arms designing was almost exclusively done in government armories and design bureaus. And only on very rare occasions, individuals could be licensed to design firearms. This article tells about one of such independent designers – a gentleman named Firs Barkanov. The article is based on the story published by the Kalashnikov Gun Magazine. Mikhail Degtyaryov, the chief editor of that magazine, kindly provided us the rights to use the content.

This experimental Soviet light machine gun was designed in a military academy called “F.E. Dzerzhinsky Artillery Academy” by a gentleman named Major E. Gorov. In 1942, Gorov finished the designing process of his light machine gun and submitted it to government tests.

Looking like the bizarre lovechild of a bolt-action rifle, a boat oar, and those weird prop rifles from the original Planet of the Apes movie, the Thorneycroft Carbine is one of the unsung “firsts” of the 20th Century. Specifically, this British repeater is the world’s first military bullpup rifle. Ian McCollum of Forgotten Weapons gives us a real-time look at one of the Thorneycroft prototypes, located at the Royal Armouries museum:

Recently on The Firearm Blog we talked about one of the great might-have-beens, the German caseless G11 rifle developed by Heckler & Koch during the 1970s and 1980s. Today we have a video from 1990 filmed at Aberdeen Proving Grounds of a demonstration of the G11K2 on the firing range.