In 19, a large number of these ZF4 scopes were manufactured and delivered. It was produced by three companies, Voigtlander und Sohn (ddx), Opticotechna GmbH, Prerau (dow), and AGFA Kamerawerk (bzz). It would be used on the G43, FG42, MP44 and even the K98k. The ZF4 scope was a small, simplified 4 power scope very similar to the Russian PU scope and was intended to be used on all German sniper rifles. There was only one style of scope used on the G43 sniper, the ZF4. It is unclear why this practice was done but is certainly war time done and relates the rifle being equipped with (or at least selected for) optics. These stamps only seems to appear in the c, d and e block rifles produced in 1945. A number of late qve45 snipers have “ZF K43” stamped in the stock below the scope rail. G43 snipers have no external markings to designate them as such with one exception. Aside from a matching mount there is no way to identify a rifle as a factory produced sniper rifle. A total of 46,042 rifles equipped with scopes were delivered during this time period. The first G43 sniper rifles were produce in May of 1944 and were produced until the end of the war. Gustloff was only able to produce the G43 for a short period and never produced any sniper rifles. Walther and Berlin-Lubecker were the only factories to produce rifles equipped with optics. However, in the end, the G43 proved not accurate enough for sniper use due in part to mount and scope issues. The G43 was to remedy these problems and speed up the production of sniper rifles. Nearly every G43 was manufactured with a integral scope rail machined on the right side of the receiver, and it was intended that every G43 be a potential sniper rifle since K98k sniper production was too slow requiring rifle selection and time consuming mounting of scopes. In 1943, the gas system on G41(W) was redesigned after the Russian SVT 40 and became the G43.īy early 1944, the G43 was being produced by three factories, Walther (code ac), Berlin-Lubecker Maschinenfabrik (code duv and later qve) and Gustloff-Werke II (code bcd). Despite many G41 rifles having the capability to mount a scope very few were actually equipped with optics. Sometime in 1943, a rail was added to the right side of the receiver near the rear. The scope used on the straddle mount was the ZF40. What allowed the mounting of these straddle mounts were rails on either side of the sight base which were a part of the receiver itself. The mount used on these is referred to as the “straddle” mount, so named for straddling the rear sight. A small number of G41(W) rifles were also equipped with optics. Despite not meeting all the requirements given by the HWaW, the G41(W) was a superior design compared with the G41(M), and it was accepted and put into large scale production by 1943. Walther disregarded several of the requirements and proposed the G41(W). By the end of 1942, Mauser stopped production of all G41(M) rifles as they proved to be an unreliable rifle in combat. and examples today are almost non existent. It would appear then that a small number of rifles had an experimental version of the ZF40 mount on a single rail attached to the side of the rear sight, similar to the failed ZF41 mount used on K98k rifles. Initially a 1.5 power scope was mounted using a double sided “straddle” mount that was placed over the rear sight. There were attempts to mount an optic to the G41(M). The design was not successful and was only manufactured in small numbers. Mauser submitted a design which met all the requirements known as the G41(M). In the case of such a failure the rifle must be manually loaded similarly to the Model 98. If the automatic mechanism fails, the use of the rifle must not be halted. No part on the upper surface may move with the automatic loading movements. The barrel may not be bored to extract gas There were certain requirements the rifle had to meet: Supposedly Kreighoff and Rheinmetall were also told to present a proposal. It was in 1940 that the HWaA ordered Walther and Mauser to present a design for a semi auto. There had been several experimental semi autos but none had yet to be put into large scale production. At the start of WWII, the German Army did not have a standard semi automatic rifle.
0 kommentar(er)
