Frag Out! Magazine
Issue link: https://fragout.uberflip.com/i/1115818
Through decades with Carl Swedish designs are actually older than the Carl Gustaf itself, dating back to 1940, when two engineers – Hugon Abramson and Captain Harald Jentzen from Kungliga Arméförvaltningens Tygavdelning (KAFT, the Royal Swedish Arms Administration) – designed a 20-mm recoilless rifle, which became part of regular Swedish weaponry in 1942 as the Pansarvärnsgevär fm/42 (Pvg fm/42). Only 1,000 such rifles were man- ufactured, and the weapon itself became obsolete quite quickly, mainly because of the too poor penetration of the 20x180R ammo. Still, the general idea of the weapon was considered reasonable, and after exam- ining the structural ins and outs of the Panzerschreck rocket launcher, the recoilless Panzerfaust, the Leichtgeschütz 40/42, and the Soviet DR BPKs, the concept evolved towards an 84-mm recoilless gun with a rifled barrel. The said engineering duo designed a new rifle already in 1946, which became a regular weapon in 1948 as the Granatgevär m/48 (Grg m/48) 8.4 cm. But the name that stuck with the weapon came actually from the name of the factory manufacturing Grg m/48s – Carl Gustav Stads Gevärsfaktori. In Sweden, it was categorized as an anti-tank gre- nade launcher, but the broad range of the dedicated ammunition and the multi-purpose nature of the solution made it become considered a hand-held recoilless gun and a lowest-tier support weapon. In 1962, an improved version labeled M2 was introduced. It quickly became a favorite among overseas clients, joining ranks of several dozen armies across the world. CG's main disadvantage has always been its relatively big weight – 14 kg, compared to e.g. the RPG-7, which weighs only 6.3 kg together with its optical sight. No wonder that the solution has lost some weight with the development of manufacturing technology. A new version of the Carl Gustaf – the M3 – made it to production in 1991. In Sweden, it became part of the country's weaponry, named Granatgevär m/86. In the meantime, the factory was taken over by SAAB-Bofors Dy- namics. The new M3 weighed only 9.5 kg thanks to thinner barrel walls, made of lighter alloys and additionally covered with a layer of fiberglass reinforcement. All other elements of the weapon (excluding the nozzle) were made of aluminum or plastics. Other modifications included slim- ming down the adjustable bipod and featuring a carrying handle. Later production series had the barrel sleeve made of polymers, which acted as not only means of reinforcement but also as thermal insulation. But cutting on weight and modifications did not end on the version in question. New solutions, and especially the new US requirements, led to the premiere of the M4 in 2014. The new version boasted half the weight of its original ancestor (6.7 kg vs 14 kg). It also featured a 13-cm short- er barrel – made of titanium instead of steel, and the resin-and-fiber- glass-based thermal insulation and reinforcement layer was substituted with a new material based on carbon fibers. The breech and the steel nozzle were also redesigned and slimmed down. Similar changes took place in the case of the bipod, the shoulder pad, and the carrying handle. The changes did not affect the life of the solution (still 1,000 rounds), but they did increase its price. The Carl Gustaf has undoubtedly been an export success – it is now used in the armed forces from over 46 countries. To understand why the Swedish recoilless rifle has become so successful, we should draw our attention to its description, to its advantages and disadvantages, and to how the battlefield has changed in the last 30 years. Swedish designs are actually older than the Carl Gustaf itself, dating back to 1940, when two engineers – Hugon Abramson and Captain Harald Jentzen from Kungliga Arméförvaltningens Tygavdelning (KAFT, the Royal Swedish Arms Administration) – designed a 20-mm recoilless rifle, which became part of regular Swedish weaponry in 1942 as the Pansarvärnsgevär fm/42 (Pvg fm/42). Only 1,000 such rifles were man- ufactured, and the weapon itself became obsolete quite quickly, mainly because of the too poor penetration of the 20x180R ammo. Still, the general idea of the weapon was considered reasonable, and after exam- ining the structural ins and outs of the Panzerschreck rocket launcher, the recoilless Panzerfaust, the Leichtgeschütz 40/42, and the Soviet DR BPKs, the concept evolved towards an 84-mm recoilless gun with a rifled barrel. The said engineering duo designed a new rifle already in 1946, which became a regular weapon in 1948 as the Granatgevär m/48 (Grg m/48) 8.4 cm. But the name that stuck with the weapon came actually from the name of the factory manufacturing Grg m/48s – Carl Gustav Stads Gevärsfaktori. In Sweden, it was categorized as an anti-tank gre- nade launcher, but the broad range of the dedicated ammunition and the multi-purpose nature of the solution made it become considered a hand-held recoilless gun and a lowest-tier support weapon. In 1962, an improved version labeled M2 was introduced. It quickly became a favorite among overseas clients, joining ranks of several dozen armies across the world. CG's main disadvantage has always been its relatively big weight – 14 kg, compared to e.g. the RPG-7, which weighs only 6.3 kg together with its optical sight. No wonder that the solution has lost some weight with the development of manufacturing technology. A new version of the Carl Gustaf – the M3 – made it to production in 1991. In Sweden, it became part of the country's weaponry, named Granatgevär m/86. In the meantime, the factory was taken over by SAAB-Bofors Dy- namics. The new M3 weighed only 9.5 kg thanks to thinner barrel walls, made of lighter alloys and additionally covered with a layer of fiberglass reinforcement. All other elements of the weapon (excluding the nozzle) were made of aluminum or plastics. Other modifications included slim- ming down the adjustable bipod and featuring a carrying handle. Later production series had the barrel sleeve made of polymers, which acted But cutting on weight and modifications did not end on the version in question. New solutions, and especially the new US requirements, led to the premiere of the M4 in 2014. The new version boasted half the weight of its original ancestor (6.7 kg vs 14 kg). It also featured a 13-cm short- er barrel – made of titanium instead of steel, and the resin-and-fiber- glass-based thermal insulation and reinforcement layer was substituted with a new material based on carbon fibers. The breech and the steel nozzle were also redesigned and slimmed down. Similar changes took place in the case of the bipod, the shoulder pad, and the carrying handle. The changes did not affect the life of the solution (still 1,000 rounds), but The Carl Gustaf has undoubtedly been an export success – it is now used in the armed forces from over 46 countries. To understand why the Swedish recoilless rifle has become so successful, we should draw our attention to its description, to its advantages and disadvantages, and to www.fragoutmag.com