Automatic PPSh - technical characteristics. Shpagin's submachine gun

During the Second World War, the Soviet Union felt a lack of good weapons, at least at its very beginning. When the Nazi troops used the latest devices at that time, our soldiers had to tight. In addition, there was a poor supply of food and weapons, for example, cartridges for machine guns. On the side of the fascists were warriors, trained and well-prepared for war, who captured almost the whole of Europe. In general, we can say that the USSR was not ready for war.

Weapons

However, Soviet designers invented new mechanisms, invented various types of weapons even before the war. Stalin foresaw that the fascists would soon invade the country. And during the Second World War, new types of technology and small arms were created that directly influenced the course of the war, it is enough to recall the famous BM-13 or "Katyusha", which frightened the enemy soldiers with its fire. There were also other weapons that remained in the memory of the battles and their descendants, for example the T-34 tank. One of these can be called the Shpagin submachine gun or, as it was also called, the PPSh automatic rifle. His technical characteristics were one of the most revealing at the time.

History

In 1940, it was already clear to many that a war was coming, which would take the lives of many Soviet citizens. However, many believed in the indestructibility of the Red Army. Unfortunately, this was not quite so. The Germans were more prepared for war. Undoubtedly, their army was considered stronger at that time. The machine, which is better than analogs, was simply necessary. He had to behave with dignity on the battlefield, do not break down in bad weather conditions, in general, be universal. Today, on the battlefields, mainly in the CIS countries, samples of PPSh are found. They get into museums.

GS Shpagin was born in 1897, died in 1952. It was he who became the designer of the legendary submachine gun named in his honor. In 1940, the automatic weapon PPSh was adopted. Technical characteristics corresponded to the then norms, so it quickly spread in the army, becoming one of the most beloved in the army. To describe its popularity, it is enough just to say in what quantity the specimens were presented. More than 6 million machine guns. This is one of the most popular weapons in history. It should also be noted that in some countries PPSh has been in service up to the present time, that is, more than seventy years since its inception. This means that the submachine gun was really good. Next, the device PPSH - description, history, characteristics will be presented.

The well-known designer of the legendary weapon GS Shpagin was born in a village in the Vladimir region. With the production and invention of various weapons, he met in the army, which fell in 1916. After the First World War he began to work as a gunsmith. After leaving the troops, he fumed at the arms factory, where he got acquainted with his future teacher V. Degtyarev.

During the war with Finland, which was interrupted due to the Great Patriotic War, it was noticed that in the battle the submachine guns show themselves very well. Therefore Shpagin and Shpitalny, who was also a designer, presented their weapons to the government. As it is easy to guess, a sample of Shpagin was chosen. It is interesting that both the submachine guns were almost equal in combat performance. The aim of the designer was to simplify and reduce the price of PPD-40, which was created by Degtyarev. But the main dream of Shpagin was the creation of a stamped machine. This method of manufacturing greatly accelerated production.

Interesting solutions in construction

It is worth paying attention to interesting design solutions in the PPSh (Shpagin's submachine gun). The review is presented below in the text. All the specialists of the time were both surprised and annoyed that no one had thought of this before. The oblique sheath of the casing played the role of muzzle brake and compensator. Thus, the easiest way was to solve the problem of recoil, throwing up weapons and the weight of the machine. Shpagin perfected the creation of his teacher, surpassing him. PPSh was much more accurate and stable than PAP. It can be said that this was one of the first representatives of such automatic machines, which all are accustomed to seeing.

The fire could be fired by single shots and bursts. Shpagin achieved his: the machine gun of World War II PPSh-41 was easier to produce twice than the PAP.

Why not PPA

PP Shpagina was much more versatile and better in technical characteristics than PPD. But why was the latter generally handed over to the designers? The difficulty in manufacturing PP significantly slowed down production, which was very bad during the war. In addition, the details cost a lot of money, and during the crisis this is unacceptable. In this regard, the government also asked to improve the DPP or create a new machine. And the PPSh, in its turn, in contrast, had a simple construction. If it was necessary, then any machine-building plant could switch to the creation of this submachine gun.

If the parameters of the machine Shpagin and Shpitalnogo were almost equal, then in the test at the test site, the former proved much better. It is technological and versatility that brought the PPSh-41 to the first place, the technical characteristics of which were also high.

Reward

Shpagin's name is immortalized in the very name of the machine. But in addition, the great designer was awarded the Stalin Prize of the first degree and the Order of Lenin. High awards were deserved. Shpagin made a huge contribution to the victory over the fascist invaders. In military operations, a 1941 model was used, which was called PPSh-41. It was produced in the amount of more than 6,000,000 pieces in the USSR.

Advantages

PPSh-41 was a good weapon. Shpagin wanted to make such a PP, the creation of which would take a little time and money. He succeeded. All parts, excluding the trunk, could be manufactured with the help of cold stamping from steel sheet. Spot and arc electric welding and various rivets were also used. To create a trunk, it was necessary to resort to mechanical processing, which markedly slowed down all work. Very simple wooden parts also increased the speed of making the machine as a whole. Of course, another plus was the opportunity to collect and disassemble a submachine gun without a screwdriver. Therefore, the PPS was easily repaired or cleaned even in combat conditions. In general, the machine was more than others easy to manufacture and device, easily repairable and cost a little money.

Cartridges

Initially, the PPSh-41 was supplied with a disk store, the same as that of the PAP-40. Its capacity was 71 cartridges. It was almost the most expensive part of the submachine gun Shpagin. It consisted of a box of a store, a drum and a snail. In combat, it is not possible to carry a disk store in hand, so for these purposes a special eyelet was created, which helped to attach it to the belt. The cartridges were placed in two rows or streams inside and outside the cochlea. Thanks to the spring, it turned. After the outer row of cartridges was finished, the inner one was squeezed out with the help of the feeder.

The downside was the long process of loading the store, which was impossible in combat conditions, because soldiers and wore spare shops. Then, however, began to be used box, which were more convenient and cheap, but only since 1944. Such stores had only 35 cartridges, but were much more quickly supplied with new ones. The caliber of cartridges was either 7.62 mm or 7.62x25 mm.

Aim

Although PPSh-41 was a very convenient automatic machine, extremely simple and cheap in production, it was constantly improved. This is exactly what happened with the gun sight. Initially, an open-type sector sight was installed, which allowed fire at a distance of up to 500 meters. Then it was rejected as uncomfortable in combat conditions and set up a more simple fly-over, with which it was possible to shoot only at a distance of 100-200 meters, depending on the installation. You might think that the range is more priority, but the PPSh-41 though possessed a high accuracy for this type of weapon with the accuracy of shooting, could not be 100% accurate at 500 meters. The experience of the Great Patriotic War showed that the goal only improves the quality of the PP.

Improvement

PPSh was constantly subjected to changes and improvements. In addition to the above, it can be noted that in 1944 the store, in order to save time and money, was made only 1 mm thick. Also, the bore of the barrel was chromium plated, which ensured the safety of the PCB even with a long absence of cleaning. Therefore, the tactical and technical characteristics of PPSh-41 have become so high.

Other Features

The characteristics of the PPSh-41 (Shpagin's submachine gun) are detailed below. The fire was fired by bullets from the 1930 sample either as single or as bursts, which, in turn, could be either short (3-6) or long (15-20). The PP was intended primarily for short-range combat. The bullet retained its lethal force to 800 meters. And the initial speed was about 500 m / s. This is a good indicator for the submachine guns of that time. The rate of fire also pleased, as many as 1000 shots per minute. However, in the conditions of the battle it is necessary to hit the target fire and change the stores, so the rate was noticeably reduced.

It was very easy to use the automatic PPSS. Technical specifications also included the length of the barrel, which was 842 mm. The weight of the Shpagin submachine gun was 3.5 kg, with a disc magazine 5.3, with a box magazine 4.1. The weight of the submachine gun allowed to fire without much effort, which only went into a plus.

disadvantages

Although PP Shpagin and was leading in many respects, he still was primarily intended for infantry. The rest of the troops designers invented other, more convenient for them, submachine guns.

The submachine gun of Shpagin was a real find for the Soviet army at that time. The war was coming, and weapons were required that would be easy to use and universal, with high performance, low cost and simplicity in production. Just this was the automatic machine PPSh. His technical performance was excellent, and he did not need special equipment and knowledge to create. That's why as many as 6 million copies fell into the use of the Red Army. Even the fascists appreciated the automatic machine PPSh. Technical characteristics they could not leave without attention. The weapon was the most desired trophy on the battlefield. It is interesting that the Hitlerites preferred a disk store.