Real Gunbucket For Real Designs

[dalamace]

Good idea to depict the very early G3 ... You should do an almost black butt instead of the greenish later version.

I've seen some pictures on the internet in which the early G3 uses wooden furniture so that's what I am trying to make. I have one that uses a near-black butt but does the early versions uses wooden ones or are these just retrofits?



Also, I have made a Rheinmetall G3 rifle that is used by the Indonesian paratroopers that have a nifty looking sliding stock which does make the G3 looks abnormally front heavy in my opinion.

[reytuerto]

Good morning!
With the introduction of the Cetme C battle rifle, the spanish army also fielded a bolt action rifle for second line troops: Cetme FR-8 (for Fusil Reformado 8), called by the troops "Cetmetón" (for Cetme + mosquetón):

Made from the woodwork and working parts of the previous Model 43 rifle (which was itself the well known german Kar 98) grafted with a new barrel and chambered in the then new NATO cartridge. The tube under the barrel was used only as a storage space for the cleaning rod and other tools and accersories. The bayonet used was the same of the semiautomatic Cetme.
Credits: My starting line was the very well done Kar 98 by Colosseum. I also used the idea of the round shadow of the handle´s ball from Pombo´s Vz 24 rifle. Thanks to both of them. Cheers!

[eswube]

Excellent additions!

[reytuerto]

Good evening, gentlemen.
The french workhorse in the trenches of the Western Front, the well tried, sturdy, reliable Mitrailleuse Hotchkiss Mle. 1914:

Based in the design of an austrian officer, it was the one of the firsts successful gas operated machine guns. In the late XIX century, the patent was bought by Hotchkiss and perfected by an american engineer, L. Benet. It was used by Japan in the russo-japanese war and was there the basis of a series of similar gas operated, strip feed machine guns. The gun was very reliable and robust, but also very (and the american soldiers found that the tripod was too tall). It was chambered in 8 mm Lebel, and also in other calibers, including 7 mm spanish, 7.65 belgian and 30-06.

The Spanish Army first bought the Hotchkiss for the Morocco Wars at the beginning of the past century. In 1914 begun to built at the Oviedo factory with a bronze short butt, and was the main machine gun in both sides at the beginning of the SCW. It was chambered in 7 mm. Later in the war, it was suplemented by french made Mle 1914 at least in the republican side.


Cheers.

[eswube]

Well done!

[reytuerto]

Thanks, Eswube!
I will finish the Hotchkiss series with the LMG Model 1922 (I had failed in getting a good pic of Modele 1909 aka "Hotchkiss portative"), which was much less known that the heavier Modele 1914, but was also gas operated and strip feed:

I was well marketed and was sold to the Czech Republic in 7.92x57, to the Republic of China also in the German cartridge, to the Spanish Army in 7 mm spanish, to Peru in 7.65 argentine, and even to Britain in .303. In Peru there was also a heavy barreled version that was used with a tripod. I am trying to find a good picture of the spanish model with top magazine instead of the rather odd (at least for a LMG) strip. Cheers.

[eswube]

Good work. Thank You for that recent series!

[reytuerto]

Thanks, Eswube! After many weeks (months!) of severe procastination, I decided to end the series (weapons of the spanish civil war, plus some eye catching models of the inmediate post war years) of firearms that I had already resized.

One of the guns finished was a noble member of the last generation of beautiful and finely made weapons: FN Model 1949.


Chambered in different cartridges, ranging from 7 mm spanish (for Venezuela, the first customer), to 7.92 mauser (forEgypt), 30.06 (for Belgium an Luxemburg), 7.65 argentine (for Argentina) which later wer converted locally to fire the then new 7.62 NATO from a 20 round detachable magazine. Cheers.

[Cplnew83]

One of the guns finished was a noble member of the last generation of beautiful and finely made weapons: FN Model 1949.

I totale agree with you.
IMHO, you should use a less dark grey tone (a slightly darker tone of the grey you have used for the Hotchkiss Mle 22, for example) so that we could appreciate the excellent detailing of the trigger guard and the breech.

[eswube]

Great. Keep it up!