Ag m/42

Ag m/42
6.5 mm Automatgevär m/1942B
Type	Semi-automatic rifle
Place of origin	Sweden
Service history
In service	1942 - 1960s (Sweden)
Used by	See Users
Production history
Designer	Erik Eklund
Designed	1941
Manufacturer	Carl Gustafs Stads Gevärsfaktori
Number built	30,000
Variants	Ag m/42B
Specifications
Weight	4.71 kg (10.4 lb) unloaded & without bayonet
Length	1,214 mm (47.8 in)
Barrel length	622 mm (24.5 in)

Cartridge	6.5×55mm
Caliber	6.5 mm (0.256")
Action	Direct impingement gas operation
Rate of fire	40 (rd/min)
Effective firing range	500–800 m sight adjustments
Feed system	10-round box magazine

Top to bottom: Swedish AG-42B Ljungman rifle, Egyptian Hakim rifle, Egyptian Rasheed carbine

The Automatgevär m/42 (Ag m/42, outside of Sweden commonly known as the AG42, AG-42 or Ljungman) is a Swedish semi-automatic rifle which saw limited use by the Swedish Army from 1942 until the 1960s.

History

The Ag m/42 was designed by Erik Eklund of the AB C.J. Ljungmans Verkstäder company of Malmö around 1941, and entered production at the Carl Gustafs Stads Gevärsfaktori in Eskilstuna in 1942. Some 30,000 rifles were manufactured in all for the Swedish Army. This was a relatively small number of weapons and the standard infantry rifle remained the 6.5 mm bolt-action m/96 Mauser.

Norwegian "police troops" trained in Sweden during World War II were issued a number of Ag m/42s and brought these rifles to Norway when the Germans surrendered in 1945. These rifles were never modified to the later Ag m/42B version.

After a number of issues had been discovered, including a serious problem with rusting gas tubes, the existing stocks of the rifle were modified between 1953 and 1956, and the reworked rifles were designated Ag m/42B. Modifications included a stainless steel gas tube, two knobs on the breech cover, a new elevation knob for the rear sight, a rubber case-deflector, new magazines and new cleaning rod. The Ag m/42B was replaced in Swedish service in the mid 1960s by the Ak 4 (derived from the Heckler & Koch G3).

In the early 1950s the Ag m/42B manufacture license was sold to Egypt resulting in the Hakim rifle, which uses the 7.92×57mm Mauser cartridge. Sweden sold the machinery to Egypt and the Hakim was therefore built with the same machine tools used for the Ag m/42B. Eventually, the Hakim was modified into a carbine using the intermediate-power 7.62×39mm Russian cartridge, called the Rasheed Carbine.

Operation

The Ag m/42 is operated by means of a direct impingement gas system, similar to that of the French MAS-49 rifle. The Ag m/42 also uses a tilting breech block like the Tokarev SVT-38/SVT-40, the MAS-49 and FN FAL rifles. The Ag m/42 is ammunition specific since it does not have an adjustable gas port or valve to adjust the rifle to various propellant and projectile specific pressure behavior.

The Ag m/42 uses the 6.5×55mm cartridge loaded into a removable 10-round box magazine. In practice, however, the magazine usually remained attached to the rifle while it was loaded from the top with five-round stripper clips. Like the British Lee–Enfield and Soviet SVT-40, the Ag m/42's magazine was intended to be removed only for cleaning.

The ammunition used by the Swedish military from 1894 was 6.5×55mm skarp patron m/94 projektil m/94 (live cartridge m/94 projectile m/94) service ammunition with a 10.1 grams (156 gr) long round-nosed m/94 (B-projectile) bullet. From 1941 onwards Sweden, which remained neutral during World War II, adopted skarp patron m/94 prickskytte m/41 (live cartridge m/94 sniping m/41) ammunition loaded with a 9.1 grams (140 gr) spitzer bullet (D-projectile) Besides a pointed nose the m/41 D-projectile also had a boat tail to further reduce aerodynamic drag and replaced the m/94 ammunition loaded with the m/94 projectile for general use.^[1]

The Ag m/42 rear sight has two bullet drop compensation options, one calibrated for spitzer m/41 ammunition and one for round nose m/94 ammunition. Which one is installed can be seen between the sight screw and the range window. The bullet image (spitzer or round nose bullet) should match the ammunition used. With a hand adjustable elevation screw the rear sight can be adjusted for bullet drop in 100 metres (109 yd) increments. From 100 to 800 metres (109 to 875 yd) with m/41 spitzer ammunition, or 100 to 600 metres (109 to 656 yd) m with m/94 round nose ammunition.^[2]

Users

Denmark (Made under license by Madsen)
Iraq 1975
Egypt
Norway
Sweden

References

External links

Weapons and military equipment designed in Sweden 1914–1945

Firearms

Rifles	Carl Gustaf Model 1942

Submachine guns	Carl Gustaf Model 1945

Machine guns	Svenska Automatvapen Model 1940 Carl Gustaf Model 1942

Artillery

Tank and Anti-tank guns	Bofors 37 mm Gun Model 1934

Mountain guns	Bofors 75 mm Model 1934

Field, Medium and Heavy guns	Bofors 105 mm Howitzer Model 1924 Bofors 105 mm Howitzer Model 1935 Bofors 105 mm Howitzer Model 1937 Bofors 105 mm Gun Model 1927 Bofors 105 mm Gun Model 1931 Bofors 105 mm Gun Model 1934 Bofors 120 mm Howitzer Model 1914 Bofors 150 mm Howitzer Model 1931

Anti-aircraft guns	Bofors 20 mm Automatic Gun Model 40 Bofors 25 mm Automatic Gun Model 1932 Bofors 40 mm Gun Model 1936 Bofors 75 mm Gun Model 1929

Coastal guns	Bofors 105 mm Gun Model 1927 Bofors 105 mm Gun Model 1934

Naval guns	Bofors 120 mm Gun Bofors 152 mm Gun Bofors 283 mm Gun

Armored
Fighting
Vehicles

Light tanks	Strv m/21-29 Landsverk L-10 Landsverk L-60 Landsverk L-120

Medium tanks	Landsverk Lago

Self-propelled guns	Stormartillerivagn m/43

Self-propelled anti-aircraft guns	Landsverk L-62

Armoured cars	Pansarbil M/31 Landsverk Lynx Landsverk L-180/L-181/L-182 Landsverk L-185

Armoured personnel carrier	Tgbil m/42

Artillery tractors	Landsverk L-131 Landsverk L-132 Landsverk L-135

Prototypes	Landsverk L-5 Landsverk L-100 Landsverk L-101

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