Russo-Ukrainian War: The M14 Battle Rifle

Source: General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine

     A soldier from the 169th. Territorial Defense Battalion, 120th. Territorial Defense Brigade (TDB) trains with a M14 battle rifle sometime in 2025. M14 rifles first appeared in the hands of Ukraine's TDB units in 2022 and they came from Estonian and Latvian stocks of which Estonia provided up to 35,000 rifles. The M14 was accepted for U.S. Army service in 1957 with production commencing in 1959. The M14 was phased out of U.S. Army service starting in 1964 and by 1967, it was wholly replaced by the M16 assault rifle as the Army's main infantry weapon. Today, variants of the M14 are in limited use by some U.S. forces and the rifle remains in active service within the military forces over over twenty countries.

     The M14 is chambered for the 7.62x51mm cartridge and uses a gas-operated, rotating bolt action. The total length of the M14 is 3.7 feet with an empty weight of 9.2 pounds. The M14 is fed from a 20-round box magazine and with a full magazine, the M14 has a weight of 10.7 pounds. If need be, the M14 has guides for stripper clips, allowing the magazine to be reloaded without detaching it. 

     Stock, the M14 uses a rear mounted aperture sight and a barleycorn front sight. Also known as a pyramid sight, it consists of a triangular shaped sight rather than the more common post sight. Using the standard sights, the effective range is a little over 450 meters when firing the M80 ball cartridge. The maximum range of the M14 is 2.1 miles. Here, the M14 is fitted with a M1A SOCOM 16-style scope mount and the scope itself appears to be made by Athlon Optics but this isn't able to be confirmed with any certainty. The M14 has a rate of fire between 700 to 750 rounds per minute.

     Attached to the front of the weapon is a M1A Harris bipod while on the end of the scope is a micro-prism anti-reflection device (ARD). The purpose of the ARD is to cut down on sun glare as well as hide light reflection off the scope glass. The sling is not M14 issue as the operator has it looped around the stock's neck rather than connected to a metal loop on the underside of the buttstock (which could also be missing, hence how he has it secured). The soldier has also made a cheek pad by putting strips of material along the top of the buttstock and wrapping it with silver duct tape. Finally, the camouflage paint applied to the M14 is not standard and is one that has appeared on Ukrainian weapons on occasion. It is variation of “snake” style custom weapon camouflage patterns.

     As a note, the 169th. Territorial Defense Battalion has been renamed the 2nd. Territorial Defense Battalion and has a new unit patch. It is still part of the 120th. TDB.

Waifus with Raifus: The Walther WA 2000 Sniper Rifle

Source: Facebook

     When the Walther WA 2000 sniper rifle appeared on the market in 1981, it was a radical departure from the more conventional sniper rifles then in use. Development of the WA 2000 was started by the Carl Walther GmbH Sportwaffen, a response to the aftermath of the Munich Massacre that took place during the 1972 Summer Olympics. At that time, the standard West German police sniper rifle was the Heckler & Koch G3SG/1. This was simply a regular G3 assault rifle picked off the factory floor when it showed high accuracy on the testing range. A heavy bipod and Zeiss 1.5-6x36 telescopic sight was added to the rifle, creating the G3SG/1. Following the incident, after action reports pointed out the need for a dedicated sniper rifle that could be deployed in urban environments where engagement ranges were shorter. The WA 2000 was one of three designs developed, the other two being the Mauser SP66 (appearing in 1976) and the Heckler & Koch PSG1 (Präzisionsschützengewehr 1; Precision Rifle 1) which was introduced in late 1972.

     The WA 2000, visually, differed from both the SP66 and PSG1 greatly. The WA 2000 is a bullpup design in which the magazine and action are situated behind the trigger group. This permitted the rifle to maintain a standard 26 inch barrel but have a shorter overall length in comparison to a traditional rifle. As an example, the total length of the SP66 is 3.6 feet long while the WA 2000 is 2.9 feet long. This makes using the WA 2000 in the closer confines typical of urban terrain easier. The next visually striking difference is the floating barrel situated between the bottom stock and upper rail. A floating barrel means that the only point of contact the barrel has with the weapon is the connection to the receiver. The benefit is that there are no external factors acting on a floating barrel that could influence accuracy. With traditional barrels, the pressure caused by a bipod, rested stock, or even a sling can act against the barrel, affecting trajectory. In addition, temperature and humidity can warp plastic or wood stock furniture and cause accuracy reduction. Something as basic as draping a camouflage net over the rifle can even have a negative effect on bullet trajectory, especially at range.

     The WA 2000 uses a gas-operated, rotating bolt action and is a semi-automatic weapon. The primary round used in the WA 2000 is the .300 Winchester Magnum and the box magazine holds five rounds. There were three other calibers the WA 2000 could be chambered for, these being .308 Winchester, 7.5x55mm Swiss, and 7.62x51mm NATO. As the latter three rounds are smaller, the box magazine for these calibers holds six rounds. The rifle can use either a one-stage trigger or a two-stage trigger.

     Although not visible in this photograph, the WA 2000 has a adjustable spike bipod mounted on the top of the weapon near the muzzle which is fitted with a flash suppressor. Early makes used a “can” style flash suppressor while the final production make used a different design. The stock furniture is fully adjustable to suit the firer. The WA 2000 does not have iron sights and so it requires optics with the standard one being a Schmidt & Bender 2.5-10x telescopic sight. The sight used in the photograph is not a Schmidt & Bender but a more modern one, as is the scope mount which features a integral upper rail.

     The WA 2000, despite its impressive capability, did not enjoy success. Two factors doomed the rifle. The first was the cost and all in, the WA 2000 topped out at $12,500 when production ended in 1988. In 2025 value, the rifle would have cost $35,010. This was far more than either the West German military or police were willing to pay. By comparison, the H&K PSG1 could be had for under $5,000. The second factor was the WA 2000 was too frail to withstand the rigors of military use. With the military not interested and the West German police opting for the PSG1 and SP66, only 176 examples were made. A small number of German police units adopted the WA 2000 but it wasn't enough to justify continued production.

     Given Japan's strict weapon laws, the WA 2000 shown in the photograph is most likely an airsoft replica. The most common is the Walther licensed Ares WA 2000 which is a spring gun firing 6mm pellets from a 50-round magazine. The Ares WA 2000 does feature Hop-Up and is compatible with using CO2 bottles to work the action rather than the firer using their hand to rack the bolt. Retail cost for a Ares WA 2000 is around $650 to $800. Another replica is the Geneth WA 2000 though this isn't a licensed version and is not well received in regards to quality. In Japan, the Asahi WA 2000 is the de facto airsoft version of the rifle but is quite rare and examples come with a significant cost. Given the markings on the weapon in the photograph, it is not an Asahi as they do not use the Walther logo.

Russo-Ukrainian War: The InterProInvest "Malyuk" Assault Rifle

Source: inukraine.official on Instagram

     A screen capture from a smartphone video showing a Ukrainian soldier armed with a InterProInvest (IPI) “Malyuk” bullpup rifle. The “Malyuk” (“Baby”) is a development of the Kalashnikov AK-74 assault rifle but is also derived from a previous Ukrainian bullpup rifle, the “Vepr” (“Boar”). The “Vepr”, designed between 2001 and 2003, ended up being a victim of circumstances and did not enter service. Interestingly, the “Malyuk” rifle's development commenced in 2005 with the first prototypes appearing in 2008. It would no be until 2015 that IPI received any sort of feedback from the Ukrainian government following tests. Unlike the “Vepr”, the “Malyuk” actually achieved official adoption by the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense in 2019 and production continues through the Krasyliv Assembly Manufacturing Plant. As a note, the “Malyuk” is sometimes referred to as the “Vulkan” or “Vulkan-M”.

     As mentioned above, the “Malyuk” is a derivative of the AK-74 and it uses the AK-74's standard barrel (to include the mount and muzzle brake), bolt and bolt carrier, and uses much the same action which is a gas-operated, long-stroke piston, closed rotating bolt design. While the action is the same, the “Malyuk” uses its own gas tube (so it is not interchangeable with a AK-74) and removes the integral cocking handle from the bolt carrier (but otherwise, it remains as the AK-74). Instead, the “Malyuk” has a forward, sleeve mounted polymer charging handle. The handle can be mounted to accommodate left or right handed operators but the change requires disassembly of the rifle. To save weight, the “Malyuk” uses as much polymer components as possible and to enhance strength, some of the polymer parts have metal reinforcements embedded in them. The pistol grip is hollow while the top cover has multiple venting holes within it as further weight reduction measures. The buttpad can swivel and inside, there is a compartment for the standard AK-74 cleaning kit.

     The “Malyuk” can be chambered for one of three cartridges: 5.45x39mm, 5.56x45mm NATO, and 7.62x39mm. In the photograph, and based on the magazine design, the soldier is using a 5.56x45mm NATO configured “Malyuk”. The rifle can use 10-, 30-, or 45-round box magazines and if chambered for the Russian rounds, the “Malyuk” can use the same magazines as the AK-74. The maximum rate of fire is between 660 to 700 rounds per minute with an effective range in the region of 500 meters. Out of the box, the “Malyuk” is fitted with iron sights but does feature a Picatinny rail to allow for the mounting of optics. The soldier in the image appears to have a Aimpoint Comp™ M4s red dot reflex sight fitted with flip-up lens covers and he is also using a IPI produced suppressor. Also, attached to the rifle's right front side is a flashlight. The rifle's empty weight is 8.4 pounds.

Russo-Ukrainian War: The Avtomat Kalashnikova 47

Source: General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine

     Somewhere within Ukraine, a soldier of the 93rd. Mechanized Brigade “Kholodnyi Yar” trains with his Avtomat Kalashnikova 47 (AK-47) assault rifle. Development of the AK-47 commenced in 1945 with the first prototypes trialed starting in 1947 and in 1949, the AK-47 was officially accepted for service in the Soviet Army. Production of the AK-47 began in 1948 and it remains in production to this day. Over 100 million AK-47 rifles, of all variants, have been built and the AK-47 has seen combat around the world in just about every conflict...large or small.

     The AK-47 shown here appears to be a Maschinenpistole MPi-K, the designation of the AK-47 in the military of the former Deutsche Demokratische Republik (DDR; better known as East Germany). This observation is based solely on the shape of the safety lever and the dust cover as the rest of the rifle has been modified. That such a weapon would be in the hands of a Ukrainian soldier is because Germany provided the Ukrainian Army with a small number of AK-47 rifles (73 in all) and it is a possibility these were former DDR weapons that had been kept around in storage.

     Now, the MPi-K utilized plastic handguards, pistol grips, and stocks which were prone to cracking and given the relative age of these weapons, there is a good chance that the reason this soldier's AK-47 has a replacement stock and handguards is because the rifles had been received from Germany with broken hardware which needed replacement.

     The stock looks to be a Czech manufactured FAB Defense GLR-16 CP fixed telescopic stock with adjustable cheek piece. By fixed, it means the stock cannot fold to shorten the length of the weapon. Made of black polymer plastic, the stock's cheek piece can be fully removed if not needed. The original handguards have been replaced with what appears to be a TDI Arms LHV47S handguard set which includes upper and lower handguards equipped with Picatinny (and Weaver compatible) rails. Like the stock, the handguards are high-density polymer materials for strength as well as heat resistance. On the bottom rail of the lower handguard is a folding front pistol grip.

     The typical AK-47 is chambered for the 7.62x39mm cartridge and the rounds are fed into the AK-47 via a 20-, 30-, or 50-round box magazine. A 30-round magazine is in use here. In addition, a 40- or 75-round drum magazine can be used. The action consists of a gas-operated, long-stroke piston, closed rotating bolt. Cyclic rate of fire is a maximum of 600 rounds per minute with a practical rate of fire being 40 rounds per minute if using semi-automatic fire. Burst fire is around 100 rounds per minute. Sighting is done using iron sights that are adjustable between 100 to 800 meters. Effective range is 350 meters. Without a magazine, the AK-47 weights 7.7 pounds though this soldier's modified weapon is probably lighter. Length, with the regular stock, is 2.9 feet and without a stock, the length is 2.1 feet long.

300-Pounder (10") Parrott Rifle, Battery Strong, Morris Island: Down But Not Out

Source: Library of Congress

     Situated on Morris Island in South Carolina, its barrel broken, is one of only three 300-pounder Parrott rifles operated by Union forces during the Civil War. Part of Battery Strong, this particular Parrott rifle saw action during the Second Battle of Charleston Harbor which ran from July 18, 1863 until September 7, 1893 where it participated in the bombardment of Fort Wagner (also on Morris Island) which was defended by Confederate troops who had already defeated two Union assaults which attempted to take the fort.

     The Parrott rifle, designed by Captain Robert Parker Parrott, was heavily used by both Union and Confederate artillery forces. The 10-pounder Parrott rifle first appeared in 1860 and by 1862, larger Parrott rifles had appeared, to include the 20-pounder Parrott rifle (used as a field gun) and 30-pounder. In time, heavy artillery for siege warfare and bombardment saw the 100-pounder, 150-pounder, 200-pounder, and the rarest of them all, the 300-pounder Parrott rifle enter service by 1863.

     The Parrott rifle, regardless of caliber, was made of cast iron and this was chosen to extend the life of the rifling within the barrel. However, cast iron was brittle and was prone to splitting or cracking under the pressure created by the gasses of detonating gun powder. To reduce this risk, Parrott rifles had a wrought iron band around the breech. Parrott rifles were inexpensive, the 10-pounder only costing $187 to produce, and the Parrott rifle could be built quickly. Not surprisingly, the common 10-pounder and 20-pounder Parrott rifles were in widespread Union service. Despite the banding, the Parrott rifle was still susceptible to barrel bursts or damage.

     The 300-pounder (equivalent to a 10” caliber) had a length of 13 feet and a combat weight of 13.5 tons. Two primary shells were fired, one a sabot shell while the other was called a bolt. The sabot shell, a high-explosive munition, featured a metal ring (sabot) around the base of the shell and it was this ring that engaged the rifling within the barrel. Two fuzes were used, one being the Parrott time fuze while the other was a impact fuze. The Parrott time fuze consisted of a Zink plug in the nose of the sabot shell and within was a length of paper. The time delay until the shell exploded was derived by cutting the paper to a specific length. The impact fuze consisted of a percussion cap that was placed in the shell's nose and when the shell hit the target, the cap deformed and created a flame that set off the shell's charge. The bolt was a solid projectile and was mainly used to bludgeon through the armor of ironclad ships though it could also be used to smash into the stone and masonry walls of fortifications and shatter it. These shells had a weight between 222 to 300 pounds each and the typical powder charge weighed 26 pounds. The 300-pounder was muzzle loaded and though the crew size is not known, it was sizable. The 100-pounder Parrott rifle, as an example, required a crew of 17 men. With the barrel at a 30 degree elevation, the 300-pounder could hurl either a shell or bolt to a range of 5 miles.

     Returning to the 300-pounder in the photograph, on August 20, 1863, a shell burst towards the end of the barrel, blowing it apart. Exactly what unit was operating the Parrott rifle isn't known but it was either attached to a detachment from the 7th. Connecticut Infantry Regiment or was crewed by men from the regiment. This is because one Captain Sylvester Gray, who served with C Company, 7th. Connecticut, ordered the crew to take up tools and chisel and file away at the jagged end of the barrel until it was clear of any protrusions. With the remaining barrel unobstructed, the crew brought the Parrott rifle back into action with little loss in accuracy. 

     Fort Wagner held out, enduring near daily bombardment for two months, until September 6, 1863 when the remnants of the Confederate men within the fort (some 400 troops) abandoned it along with Morris Island, ceding it to Union forces.

Photograph taken by Philip Haas/Washington Peale.

Russo-Ukrainian War: The Accuracy International AXMC

Source: Ministry of Defense of Ukraine

     A sniper belonging to the 4th. Rapid Reaction Brigade “Rubizh” (“Frontier”) who looks to be equipped with a AXMC bolt-action rifle designed and built by the British company Accuracy International. The AXMC (MC standing for Multi-Caliber) is a rifle available on the open market, typically costing well over $7,500USD or more depending on the options added and what caliber is desired. The rifle finds use by military, law enforcement, and civilian sharpshooters. Of interest, the soldier is wearing the patch of the U.S. Army's 1st. Infantry Division, known as the "Big Red One".

     Ukrainian snipers are known to favor the .308 Winchester cartridge (made specifically for the civilian market) as it offers a much higher pressure and accuracy than the very similar military 7.62x51mm NATO cartridge. The .308 Winchester can attain velocities of up to 3,500 feet per second. Another benefit of having a rifle chambered for the .308 Winchester round is that the rifle can also utilize the military 7.62x51mm cartridge without any concerns. However, not all battle rifles using the 7.62x51mm cartridge can handle the .308 Winchester without risk of problems such as cartridge case rupture or splitting. In the hands of a trained sniper and the right conditions, the .308 Winchester round can hit targets out to .5 of a mile. The AXMC is also available in .300 Winchester Magnum and .338 Lapua Magnum cartridges.

     The barrel of the AXMC is made of match grade, stainless steel and uses Accuracy International's Quickloc system which permits the operator to change barrels without needing tools. The proofed steel action features a leaf spring extractor and a bolt whose handle is turned 60 degrees. The rifle has a 3-position safety along with a 2-stage trigger. From appearances, the rifle in the photograph looks to be fitted with a 27” barrel. Magazine capacity is 10 rounds.

     The AXMC utilizes a configurable pistol grip (as it is detachable and easy replaced with another style) and a buttstock which offers the ability to adjust stock length. There is also an adjustable cheek piece at the top of the stock and a rear grip along the bottom of the stock. The latter can use an optional butt spike. When not needed, the stock can fold forward, resting along the right side of the rifle.

     It is difficult to say what suppressor is fitted but most AX model rifles are built to accept suppressors made by the Swiss company B&T AG. Also, the AXMC has a top Picatinny rail (MIL-STD 1913). Additional rails can be added to the sides and bottom of the forend using Accuracy International's KeySlot™ system and the soldier here has added a bottom rail which supports a folding bipod. The scope mounted atop the rifle appears to be a Nightforce Optics ATACR series rifle scope.

Russo-Ukrainian War: The Snipex Alligator 14.5mm Anti-Matériel Rifle

Source: Reddit

     One of the biggest, if not the biggest, anti-matériel rifle in service with the Ukrainian Army is shown here: the Snipex Alligator. A product of XADO Holding Ltd. out of Kharkiv in Ukraine, the Alligator first entered limited production starting in 2020 and the rifle was accepted for service with the Ukrainian Army the following year. Given its size, it has appeared on several occasions in social media imagery since the start of the Russo-Ukrainian War in February 2022.

     The standard Alligator (without the suppressor seen used in the photograph) has a length of 6.5 feet and a weight of 55 pounds. It is chambered for the 14.5x114mm round which has been around since 1941 and remains the standard Russian heavy machine-gun cartridge to this day. As such, ammunition availability is quite high with many countries (including several former Soviet Bloc countries) keeping the round in production.

     The Alligator is a bolt-action weapon and uses a 5-round box magazine. The 14.5x114mm round has a length of 6.1 inches and the ammunition made for the Alligator is a 1,000-grain bullet which leaves the barrel at a muzzle velocity of 3,215 feet per second. This enables the Alligator to penetrate 10mm of armor out to a range just shy of 1 mile (.93 of a mile). The maximum effective range of the Alligator is 1.2 miles while the overall maximum range is 4.3 miles. Although 10mm seems paltry, it is more than enough to inflict damage to lightly armored vehicles, soft-skinned vehicles, and unarmored equipment. Likewise, the Alligator can be used in the sniper role against infantry targets. The Alligator can use older 14.5x114mm ammunition such as the steel core, full-metal jacket B-32 API (Armor-Piercing Incendiary) round (which is 988-grain) which can penetrate 32mm of armor but only at a range of .3 of a mile. Another older, yet common, cartridge is the 921-grain MDZ HEI (High-Explosive Incendiary) round.

     Given the weight of the Alligator, it comes with a carry handle (seen behind the bipod) to ease transport in the field. The polymer buttstock has three adjustable pieces that the operator can utilize to provide for comfort and assist stabilization. The first is a cheek rest on the top of the buttstock while the second piece is recoil pad for the shoulder. On the bottom of the buttstock is a monopod which can help support the rifle and take some of the weight off the operator. The barrel is of the floating-type for accuracy and recoil reduction while the chamber and bore is chrome-lined which helps in extraction of a spent round. The foldable bipod has four adjustment settings. Further recoil reduction comes from a damper within the buttstock and a 4-port muzzle brake.

     Atop the Alligator is a picatinny rail with a gradient range up to 50 minute of arc (MOA) for mounting scopes and other optics and here, the operator is using the standard Snipex Jove rifle scope used by the Ukrainian Army on their Alligator rifles. The scope has a 50mm tube, between 6x to 24x magnification, and a 56mm objective lens. The reticle is on the first focal plane (FFP) with a windage range of 12 mil. The Jove scope is optimized for long- and very long range shooting and is built to withstand the rigors of the battlefield and the jolting forces of the Alligator when fired.

Russo-Ukrainian War: The VSSM Vintorez Suppressed Sniper Rifle

Source: Ministry of Defense of Ukraine.

     A soldier of the 46th. Airmobile Brigade posing with captured Russian VSSM Vintorez 9mm sniper rifle. VSSM is the romanized abbreviation for Vintóvka Snáyperskaya Spetsiálnaya Modernizirovat (Special Sniper Rifle Updated). Interestingly, the Ukrainian Army ceased using the original VSS (introduced in 1981) in 2014 due to the lack of ammunition but the VSS and VSSM remains in service with Russian Spetsnaz (special forces) units.

     As mentioned, the VSSM falls into the 9mm caliber rifle class but it uses a uniquely Russian rimless 9x39mm round. The round is derived from the Soviet 7.62x39mm cartridge case. To put it simply, it is the 7.62x39mm case resized to fit a 9.2mm bullet. It is specifically designed to be subsonic and used in suppressed weapons, such as the VSSM. The VSSM is usually fired using the 9x39mm SP-5 subsonic round which uses either a hardened steel or tungsten tip in order to defeat body armor. The SP-5 round has a maximum muzzle velocity of 1,050 feet per second and can defeat NATO standard body armor at a range of 400 meters (.2 of a mile) which is the weapon's optimal engagement range. The integral suppressor of the VVS and VSSM works by having a dual-chamber arrangement where propellant gasses from the fired round are both cooled down and their pressure lowered within the chambers until the sound signature of the exiting gas is greatly reduced to the point that it does not have the sound signature of regular caliber battle rifles. Usually, the VVSM is fed from a 10-round box magazine but here in the photograph, it uses the 20-round box magazine of the similar AS Val (Avtomát Spetsiálny; Special Automatic). The VSSM is select fire with a 30 rounds per minute effective rate of fire in semi-automatic and double that in full automatic. Without a scope and ammunition, the VSSM has a weight of 5.7 pounds.

     The VSSM differs from the VSS in that the latter's wooden stock is replaced with a metal stock which has adjustable cheek and shoulder pads. Another difference is that the VSSM uses a integral picatinny-style rail for mounting optics whereas optics for the VSS need to be fitted using side mounts. Speaking of optics, the VSSM can use most of the Soviet/Russian military scopes to include the PSO-1, PSV, PSO-1-1, and PO 4X34 daytime sights or the MBNP-1 and NSPU-3 night scopes. Finally, it can mount the KOP-2 daylight/low-light scope. The night scope here, however, appears to be a civilian make rather than military issue. With a PSO-1-1 scope, the weight of the VSSM goes up to 7.5 pounds (without ammunition).

The Russian OSV-96: The 12.7mm "Burglar"

(Mustafa Karali, Associated Press)

     Taken in 2012, a rebel fighter in Syria took the time to pose for Associated Press war photographer Mustafa Karali. He is holding a captured Russian OSV-96 sniper/anti-material rifle which had been seized from Syrian army forces during combat actions in the city of Maraat al-Numan. The OSV-96 is the refined and improved result of the initial rifle designated the V-94 “Volga” which was designed in the early 1990s by the Instrument Design Bureau (KBP in Russian abbreviation). 

     The OSV-96 fires a special 12.7X108mm cartridge (with the nomenclature of 7N34) to ensure accuracy at long range. If need be, the OSV-96 can fire more standard 12.7X108mm ammunition but typically at the cost of accuracy at range. The weapon uses a free-floating barrel and a sizable muzzle brake to reduce recoil. The weapon has a nickname, “Взломщик”, which means “Burglar” in English. 

     Entering service with Russian forces in 1996, users today also include India’s elite Marine Commandos (MARCOS), Belarus, Vietnam (who makes the rifle under license), and as illustrated by this photograph, Syria (rebels and government).

The Model of 1941 Johnson Rifle: Domestic Failure but Foreign Success

(Photograph from the Dutch Nationaal Archief)

     Very much overshadowed by the M1 Garand semi-automatic rifle was the Model of 1941 Johnson Rifle. The designation Model of 1941 is no grammatical mistake as the naming was meant to convey that the rifle had been accepted by the U.S. military even when it hadn't. Melvin Johnson developed the rifle and after informally demonstrating the weapon to the U.S. Army in June 1938, the rifle was seen favorably to give it an official testing in August 1938 at Aberdeen Proving Grounds by the U.S. Army's Ordnance Department. The Johnson rifle was put up against the new M1 Garand and for the most part, found favor save a few minor concerns that Johnson rapidly corrected. The revised rifle was again put to the test in December 1939 but following the Ordnance Department's official final report on the testing issued in February 23, 1940, the Johnson rifle was found to have no significant advantages over the M1 Garand. This did not spell the end for the Johnson rifle as the M1 had some early “teething” problems of its own which made public headlines that even had Congress threatening to withhold funding for further M1 Garand purchases. Yet another competition between the M1 and the Johnson rifle was held on May 5, 1940 but once more, it did not win out against the M1. Some felt Johnson was dealt a bad hand and the competitions were rigged to the point in December 1940, the War Department had to issue a statement proclaiming there were no shenanigans and the testing between the two rifles was fair. Shot down twice by the U.S. Army, Melvin Johnson went to the U.S. Marine Corps (USMC) to interest them in the rifle only to be denied once again following a shoot-off between the M1 Garand and the M1903 Springfield bolt-action rifle (used as a control rifle) in which the M1 was deemed superior. With no U.S. military orders, Johnson had little option but to push export sales, the rifle often being called the M1941 Johnson Rifle in pitches to foreign buyers.

     The M1941 Johnson Rifle was chambered for the .30-06 Springfield round and a rotary magazine held ten rounds. The magazine could be fed singly or it could use the five-round stripper clip of the M1903 Springfield rifle to more quickly load the weapon. Total length of the M1941 was 3.8 feet long and had a loaded weight of 9.5 pounds. The M1941 used a short-recoil action with a rotating bolt. The usage of a short-recoil system was one of the main problems with the M1941. In short, upon firing, both the bolt and the barrel travel backwards. The barrel is stopped and the bolt continues backwards, ejecting the round. As the bolt rides back forward, it feeds a new round into the barrel and then pushes the barrel back into battery. This type of recoil system led to wider shot dispersion and while the M1941 could be fitted with a 8 inch triangular “spike” bayonet, attaching the bayonet to the barrel added enough weight to cause stoppages. In truth, the bayonet was an afterthought, included only as selling point for potential customers. The M1941 was unsuited for bayoneting as it risked damaging the rifle, the bayonet had no use outside of being attached to the rifle (and it had no true handle at all), and it was sometimes referred to as a “tent peg”. Muzzle velocity was 2,840 feet per second and the round was suitable for shots up to 1,000 yards using the rifle's iron sights.

     Johnson's efforts to obtain foreign sales paid off when the Netherlands ordered 70,000 examples in late 1941 to equip the Koninklijk Nederlands Indisch Leger (KNIL; Royal Netherlands East Indies Army) in the face of the looming Japanese attacks on Dutch holdings such as Java and Sumatra. The only change to the rifle was using meters instead of yards on the graduating sight. However, just under 2,000 M1941 rifles reached the Dutch East Indies before the Japanese completed their domination of the region by March of 1942. The Dutch government in exile (Nederlandse regering in ballingschap) embargoed some 33,000 rifles to prevent them from being captured by the Japanese while the remainder of the Dutch order was completed by Johnson (via the Cranston Arms Company) and kept in storage by the company. 

     Some of these rifles, however, were distributed and used to equip the Surinaamse Schutterij, the Surinamese Militia. At the time of World War Two, Suriname (located on the northeastern Atlantic coast of South America) was a Dutch colony and the country was an important exporter of oil, rubber, and bauxite, a rock that contains a high content of aluminum. Aware of the Japanese threat, the Dutch government in exile (as the Germans had conquered the Netherlands in May 1940) permitted the deployment of U.S. troops in November 1941 to Suriname (as well as the Antilles and Dutch Guiana) to protect these vital industries. The presence of U.S. troops in the Dutch colonies was seen by some as a threat to colonial rule by the Dutch governors of the territories, thinking the troops would remain permanently. In Suriname, the Surinaamse Schutterij was raised and supported U.S. troops in protecting important industrial facilities and ports. These men, photographed in Paramaribo (the capital city of Suriname) in 1942 during a visit by Prince Bernhard of the Netherlands, are dressed in the Dutch M1937 service uniform which was made of gray-green cotton material (called Garoet-B). The tunic was closed by seven brass buttons, had two pleated upper pockets and two lower patch pockets with all of the pockets having pointed flaps. Their headgear, however, isn't Dutch but looks to be patterned after British army side caps. For equipment, the men have brown leather belts and Y-straps to which a single M1931 ammunition pouch (normally used for the 6.5mm Mannlicher M95 carbine) has been fitted. None of the visible men have any rank. The rotary magazine of the M1941 Johnson Rifle is very much evident here as is the bayonet fitted to the barrels. The lack of a true handle and the spike nature of the bayonet is clear and illustrates how useless it was for anything else. Ultimately, neither the Japanese nor the Germans threatened Suriname though German U-boats shelled an oil refinery in Aruba (another Dutch colony) in February 1942. In September 1943, Suriname was deemed safe and the regular U.S. Army troops were replaced by Puerto Rican troops from the 65th. Infantry Regiment. These men were the last U.S. forces in Suriname, finally leaving in October 1947. 

     As for the M1941 Johnson Rifle, the USMC ultimately made a small purchase of the rifle to equip the 1st. Parachute Battalion on account the M1941's barrel was easily detached which made it shorter, important for combat drops. The unit was never deployed as airborne troops and saw action in the Solomons in 1942. However, they were rapidly replaced by the M1 Garand. Other U.S. users included the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) and the 1st. Special Service Force (the “Red Devils”). Other foreign users included the Free French Forces (Forces Françaises Libres) during World War Two and after the war, the largest user was Chile who equipped her navy with 1,000 M1941 Johnson Rifles chambered in 7X57mm Mauser.

     Following World War Two, most of the M1941 Johnson Rifles were demilitarized by destroying them. The fate of the Dutch weapons stored by Cranston Arms is believed to have been one of destruction or shipped to the Dutch after the war. The embargoed weapons were purchased by the Winfield Arms company sometime in 1953 and were sold into the 1960s before their supply ran out. Today, the Model of 1941/M1941 Johnson Rifle is much sought after by collectors and commands a high price when in good condition.