Machine-gun tape: types, purpose, charging

The rate of fire in a certain period of time largely depends on the ammunition. The tape feeding system gives the opportunity to increase the practical rate of fire of small arms, allowing continuous fire for a long time. Such a system is mainly used for combat feeding machine guns, less often for grenade launchers and automatic guns. Hence the tape, loaded with cartridges, received its name - a machine gun belt.

Cartridge belt feeding system

In addition to the undeniable advantages of ribbon feeding of cartridges, this system also has disadvantages, namely: to a certain extent, aggravation of maneuverability due to the increase in mass and dimensions of the weapon is noted. In this regard, the most effective areas of application of tape feed have been determined: machine gun, large-caliber infantry, tank, anti-aircraft and aircraft machine gun, automatic grenade launcher, small-caliber guns. In modern hand machine guns, this system is used in combination with the store.

The main elements of the system are: a cartridge belt (machine gun) - a tape with sockets for cartridges, and a mechanism for feeding it to a docking line, which consists of a movement mechanism and a displacement drive. The essence of the tape system is the automatic movement of cartridges loaded with cartridges with each shot by a movement mechanism one step, which is equal to the gap between neighboring cartridges. The smaller the displacement step, the less amount of energy is required to feed the machine gun belt. This improves the reliability of the feed mechanism, allows you to make the tape more compact, which reduces the "dead weight" and increases the overall maneuverability of the weapon. At the same time, this reduces the flexibility of the tape, which can affect the size of the cartridge box.

Purpose machine gun belt

Machine-gun tape serves to place on it cartridges with a certain gap from each other. Feeding of the tape to move the cartridge into the chamber is carried out by a mechanism that is activated by the energy of the moving parts of the weapon, while the next cartridge is in a strictly fixed position (step) for the next feeding step.

The cartridge belt has a smaller "dead" mass than the weapon shop, that is, the mass of the empty tape is less than the mass of empty stores in calculation for an equal number of cartridges. At present, with ever increasing demands on the intensity and duration of shooting, as well as increasing the maneuverability of weapons, the tape feed systems are increasingly being used in large-caliber, machine-gun and machine guns. Due to the presence of a number of shortcomings that create some inconvenience in the operation, work is constantly being carried out to improve machine gun belts that require more complicated construction.

A bit of history

One of the first tape feeding systems for a unitary cartridge was used in a machine gun with a manual drive Bailey (Bailey). This system with a fixed gate and rotating block of barrels was patented in 1876. The machine-gun belt used in the Bailey system was a canvas strip with sewn L-shaped metal angles. Holders of tubular type cartridges were attached to the corners. After the shot, the cartridge remained in the tape.

So, having remained experimental, the Bailey system was not widely used. The first truly massive example was the Maxim machine gun. The tape for this weapon was as simple as possible in design and represented an elongated version of belt strapping. Two linen strips sewed together, forming through, with equal steps, pockets for cartridges.

Kinds

In the practice of application, there are two main types of machine gun belts: flexible and rigid. The first, in turn, are divided into soft, semi-rigid and combined. The machine-gun belt can be made from a canvas or a cotton fabric, from a spring steel, from a plastic. The most common material for modern cartridge belts is steel, since it is least likely to be affected by atmospheric conditions.

By the method of connecting the links, there are two types of metal bands: with detachable links and a fixed length. In a detachable tape, individual links unite the cartridges themselves with its equipment. During the shooting, when the shot is fired from the connecting sleeve, the links are scattered. Such tapes are not limited in length, have a small step and are convenient to handle, for example in the constrained conditions of BMP and armored personnel carriers.

In the field systems, tapes of fixed length are used. Their integral links are combined with each other, eliminating disconnection during operation, allowing their use for re-equipment. These are reusable tapes. Machine-gun tape 7.62 mm of fixed length is used in Goryunov machine guns and Kalashnikov's single machine guns. The capacity of such tapes is from 50 to 250 cartridges.

A rigid cartridge belt - a metal strip with the nests for cartridges stamped in it. Rigid ribbon does not differ with any advantages except for the simplicity of the device. Their capacity is extremely small. It is used in machine guns, for example, the "Gochkiss" system.

The basic requirements for machine-gun belts

When automatic weapons are used, the machine-gun belt is subjected to jerks and considerable effort. Therefore, one of the main requirements for tape is its strength. It is caused by heavy workloads during the operation of the weapon and its transportation.

When the automation is in operation, the cartridge delivered to the receiver must be in a strictly designated position. This will eliminate the distortions and, as a consequence, delays in shooting. Fixation of the cartridge in the tape must be reliable in a certain position and not be broken when shaken during shooting or transportation. In this case, the force required to remove the cartridge from the retainer should not be excessively large for the normal operation of automatic weapons.

Device links

Any machine gun belt always has devices for fixing the cartridge and its alignment. In metal bands, the locking and alignment of the cartridge is carried out by one part of the link at the same time. To do this, the bends of the link are used, in which the liner rests against the bottom, or the protrusions (tails) of the link falling into the bore of the sleeve. Fixation can also be provided by focusing the slope of the sleeve on the inner surface of the ramp of the link. In linen belts, the alignment of the cartridges was carried out with the help of each tenth metal separation plate, which was made longer and protruded beyond the linen strip. Fixation, as well as alignment, were achieved due to the canvas fold on the dummy of the sleeve.

Famous machine guns of World War II

As early as the beginning of the 20th century, machine guns were regarded as a special kind of weapons with a narrow range of combat missions. By the middle of the century, this type of weaponry was considered one of the most important means of conducting combat operations at short and medium distances. The revision of the significance of this weapon fell on the Second World War, it was during this period that some machine gun samples became legendary and prototypes for future developments. The most famous machine guns of the Second World War, in which the tape cartridge feeding system was used, are listed below:

• MG 42 single machine gun. German MG 42 machine gun 7.92 mm Mauser (short for Maschinengewehr, which is translated as a "mechanical rifle"), was adopted by the Wehrmacht in 1942. According to most weapons experts, it is considered the best machine gun of its time. Differed simplicity, convenience, durability, reliability, and most importantly, incomparable rate of fire.
• The legendary machine gun 7.62 mm "Maxim" of the 1941 model with an enlarged throat of the cooling jacket. In the field, even snow was used to cool the barrel.
• 7.62-mm machine gun machine Goryunova SG-43. Designed and adopted in service in 1943 as a replacement for "Maxim" and the machine gun Degtyarev DS-39.

Charging machine gun belt

Ribbon equipment can be carried out manually, even there is a certain standard for this. But with a large volume of ammunition used a special machine for charging machine gun belts. A device for loading cartridge ribbons of the Rakov design is known. This machine, designed for cartridges of 7.62 mm, consists of several key parts: a hopper, a movable bottom, a tape retainer, a sorter with a yoke, a feeder, a crank handle, a panel, a clamp, a sender, a tape stop. The hopper is filled with cartridges, so that they are located across it. The receiver cover opens, the tape is inserted with the links down. The first cartridge in the link is inserted manually, the tape is pawned against the dispatcher. For charging, the handle rotates uniformly clockwise, while adding cartridges to the hopper and making sure that the belt does not twist in the gear.

When manually loading the tape, it is placed on the palm of the left hand with the tip to itself and stick to the thumb. With the right hand, the cartridges are collected and the links are inserted so that the limiting protrusion enters the annular groove of the cartridge. It is strictly forbidden to equip the tape through one link, which can lead to breakage of links, and also use damaged cartridges.

Cartridge boxes

For ease of operation and transportation, the loaded belts are packed in special boxes for machine gun tape:

• Cylindrical (machine guns RPD) in which the tape rolls up a roll. When the tape moves, during the shooting, the entire roll rotates, which consumes considerable energy of the weapon.
• Rectangular (machine guns PC / PCM, CPV, NSV "Utes"). The tape is stacked across the box in rows. The feed mechanism moves only the top row in the box and the hanging part of the tape.

Rectangular cartridge boxes have been most used in modern models of automatic weapons. Their size depends on the type and number of cartridges in the tape. Cartridge boxes for machine guns using cartridges of the same type (for example, PC, SGM, PCT - rifle 7.62 mm) are interchangeable. Capacity of standard cartridges - 100, 200 or 250 cartridges, for tank machine guns there are boxes of increased capacity.