Category: Arms & Munitions ID

Counter-IED Report article: Improvised chemical munitions in Syria, January 2017-August 2018

ARES Researcher Galen Wright and Director N.R. Jenzen-Jones authored an article which was published in the latest edition of the Counter-IED Report. The Syrian government has made extensive use of improvised munitions delivering a chemical payload over the course of the civil war, with incidents involving re-purposed toxic industrial chemicals (TIC) substantially outnumbering those committed with military-purpose chemical

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Ethiopian .30-06, 7.62 × 51 mm & 7.92 × 57 mm cartridges

N.R. Jenzen-Jones This article is an abridged version of a piece which will be published in a forthcoming edition of the International Ammunition Association Journal. – Ed. Introduction Although Ethiopia has produced small-calibre ammunition for at least sixty years (and probably 90 or more), little information is publicly available regarding Ethiopianoutputs, and knowledge of Ethiopian cartridges

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A Cartridge in Brief: 4.85 × 49 mm British

Jack Dutschke Since the adoption of the 7.62 × 51 mm cartridge by NATO in 1954, it has been criticised for its substantial recoil impulse, which many argued resulted in uncontrollable automatic fire from service rifles of the period. This problem was not unique to the 7.62 × 51 mm cartridge, and other full-power rifle

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Soviet 2B9M Vasilek self-loading mortar

Ernő Lovass & N.R. Jenzen-Jones The 2B9M Vasilek (‘Cornflower’) is a muzzle or breech-loading, long recoil-operated automatic smoothbore medium mortar. It is a modernised, air-cooled version of the 2B9 water-cooled mortar, itself derived from the earlier F-82 automatic mortar. Development of the 2B9 began in the late 1960s, with the Soviet army adopting the weapon in 1970. The modernised 2B29M

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Hungarian 42/48 M. hand grenade

Kristóf Nagy Introduction The Hungarian-developed and produced 42 M. hand grenade, and the later 42/48 M. variant, became the primary weapon of its class for the Hungarian armed forces from the late phase of the Second World War until the early 1990s. Its reliable, easy-to-manufacture construction and the versatility of employment against a multitude of

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The “Faule Magd” bombard of Dresden

Thorsten Peger The “Faule Magd” (Lazy Maid) of Dresden is one of only a few dozen still extant medieval bombards, and one of the most notable due to its well-preserved wooden carriage. At the time of writing, in July 2018, it is on exhibition in the Militärhistorisches Museum der Bundeswehr in Dresden, Germany. The barrel

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Swiss MZW 04 multipurpose launcher

Kristóf Nagy The Swiss MZW 04 (Mehrzweckwerfer 04; ‘multipurpose launcher 04’) is a less-lethal launcher developed for and used by the Swiss police. It remains little-known outside of the alpine state. Although generally very economically and socially stable, the significant upheavals throughout western society of the late 1960s also reached Switzerland. This resulted in turmoil

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ISOF Arms & Equipment Part 4 – Grenade Launchers & Anti-Armour Weapons

Miles Vining Editor’s note: This is the fourth and final part in a series examining the arms and equipment employed by the Iraqi Special Operations Forces, in light of the prominent role played by this unit in recent fighting. Part 1 (personal equipment) is available here, Part 2 (precision rifles) is available here, and Part 3 (machine guns) is

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A Cartridge in Brief: .280 British

Jack Dutschke During the Second World War, Germany developed a number of innovative small arms. One key development – the Sturmgewehr, chambered for the 7.92 × 33 mm Kurz cartridge – is rightly considered the grandfather of the modern ‘assault rifle’. The concept behind the assault rifle was a box magazine-fed, select-fire rifle chambered for

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Counter-IED Report article: Improvised, craft-produced, and repurposed UAV munitions

ARES Researcher Galen Wright and Director N.R. Jenzen-Jones authored an article which was published in the latest edition of the Counter-IED Report. Since 2016, the use of improvised munitions delivered by unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) operated by non-state actors – and even some governments – has increased dramatically. The article, which draws largely on three

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