Is there a name for these types of guns?

D

dakota.potts

New member
Not an important question, just one that I wondered about. We generally know to call a full sized rifle with full power cartridge a battle rifle (M14), a select-fire intermediate cartridge rifle an assault rifle (M4/AK), a pistol caliber automatic a submachine gun (MP5) etc. but I got to thinking about a different class of weapon.

That is, the short-barreled fully automatics with a full powered rifle cartridge. In this I'm thinking of the HK51, SCAR H, DSA OSW, etc. Is there a classification for these types of rifles different from PDW, assault rifle, battle rifle, etc? DSA calls theirs the OSW (Operational Special Weapon). So these full auto .308s with 7-11" barrels - do they have a category their own, or are they rare enough that we haven't come up with one yet?

Just a thought.
 
"do they have a category their own, or are they rare enough that we haven't come up with one yet? "

Yes, they do have a classification: W(orthless) A(mmo) W(asters)
or maybe:E(ar) B(usting) B(lasters)
 
I think they deserve a new name different from all of those that already exist. How about Urban Battlematic.:D
 
A full auto, .308 with 7-11" barrels is a marketing gimmick. The HK51 is not made by H&K. It's an American aftermarket big kid's toy. Bubba'd HK 91 by Fleming Arms
Brits call an MC51 a Machine Carbine. It's an MP5 length, suppressed, Special Boat Service, G3. Didn't work well(excessive recoil and unreliable) and was dropped over the side. The HK53(5.56) apparently works.
"Operational Special Weapon" is pure marketing.
 
You mean to tell me the OSW isn't used by high speed, low drag elite operators? :D I'm aware of the limited uses and deployment of these types of firearms, I was just curious if they had a class like everything else. Machine carbine seems to be a pretty good name for them
 
Machine carbine

The original term is machine pistol.
The concept started with Artillery Lugers (long barrel, detachable shoulder stock and huge magazines) and similar Mauser 9mm pistols carried by WW1trench-raiders.
By 1918, the German Army introduced small numbers of Bergmann submachineguns guns which set the pace for several generations of SMGs.

British copied Bergmanns (RN Lanchester) and called them "machine carbines"'because they were shorter than rifles and fired full-automatic.

Is there a special name for carbines that fire (semi-auto) pistol ammunition e.g. Kel Tec sub2000?
 
Pistol caliber carbine?

Hk thought a 12.5" barreled .308 was worth producing in the G3K, but its difficult to find much information about who used them or for how long.
 
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