SG-43 Goryunov

The SG-43 Goryunov (Russian: Станковый пулемет системы Горюнова, Stankovyy pulemet sistemi Goryunova, meaning "Mounted machinegun, Goryunov design") was a Soviet medium machine gun that was introduced during the Second World War. It was chambered for the 7.62×54mmR cartridge, and was introduced in 1943 as a replacement for the older M1910 Maxim machine guns. It was mounted on wheeled mounts, tripods and armored vehicles.

SG-43
Egyptian marines with SG-43, 1985
Type	Medium machine gun
Place of origin	Soviet Union
Service history
In service	1943–1968 (Soviet Union)
Wars	World War II Korean War Vietnam War Hungarian Revolution of 1956 North Yemen Civil War Yom Kippur War Lebanese Civil War Uganda-Tanzania War Wars in Afghanistan Somali Civil War Gulf War Burundian Civil War Congo-Brazzaville Civil War Iraq War Kivu conflict Northern Mali Conflict Syrian Civil War
Production history
Designer	P.M. Goryunov
Designed	1940–1943[1]
Variants	SG-43, SGM, SGMT, SGMB
Specifications
Mass	13.8 kg (30.42 lb) gun body 41 kg (90.39 lb) on wheeled mount
Length	1,150 mm (45.3 in)
Barrel length	720 mm (28.3 in)
Cartridge	7.62×54mmR
Action	Gas-operated
Rate of fire	500–700 rounds/min
Muzzle velocity	800 m/s (2,624 ft/s)
Effective firing range	1100 m (1200 yd)
Maximum firing range	1,500 meters[2]
Feed system	200 or 250 round belts
Sights	Iron sights

The SG-43 used a tilting breechblock, moving sideways and locking into the side of the receiver. The feed is not straightforward, as the gun fires the 7.62×54mmR round, and this has to be withdrawn rearwards from the belt before ramming into the breech. The reciprocating motion is achieved by using two claws to pull the round from the belt, and then an arm pushes the round into the cartridge guide ready for the bolt to carry it to the breech. Despite this complication, the SG-43 was remarkably reliable and feed jams were apparently few.

The barrel is air-cooled and massively dense, contributing to a fairly high overall weight. The bore is chromium-plated and able to withstand continuous fire for long periods. The barrel can also be easily changed by releasing a simple lock, and the carrying handle allows a hot barrel to be lifted clear without difficulty. The World War II version of the gun had a smooth outline to the barrel, and the cocking handle was under the receiver, with no dust covers to the feed and ejection ports.

After the end of World War II, the SG-43 was improved and renamed SGM ("M" for modernized); dust covers and a new barrel lock were fitted, and a splined barrel was fitted to improve cooling.[3] A coaxially-mounted stockless electric solenoid-fired variant was developed under the designation SGMT (the "T" standing for Tankovy, or "Tank"). The SG-43M and SGMB are versions modified with dust covers and used mostly on armoured personnel carriers.[4]

The SG-43/SGM was widely exported and also licensed for construction in several countries. It was manufactured in the People's Republic of China as the Type 53 (SG-43) and Type 57 (SGM) heavy machine guns.[5] It was also produced in Czechoslovakia (as Vz 43) and Poland (as Wz 43).[6]

In addition to World War II, SG-43 saw service in the Korean War with the Communist North Korean and Chinese forces.[7] In Soviet service, the Goryunov, together with the RP-46, was replaced in the 1960s by the PK machine gun due to the switch in Soviet tactical doctrine to the general-purpose machine gun concept, rendering the gun effectively obsolete.[4]

Users

•  Afghanistan: SGM used by DRA and Mujahideens during the Soviet–Afghan War[8][9] and by Afghan National Army[10]
•  Albania
•  BangladeshType 53
•  Burundi: Burundian rebels[11]
•  Central African Republic[12]

Type 53 MMG

•  China: Type 53 and Type 57[5]
•  Cuba: SG-43[13]
•  Cyprus
•  Republic of Congo: Chinese-made SGM used by Cocoye militia during Congo Civil War[14]
•  Democratic Republic of Congo: Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo used SGMs[15]

• Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda, sometimes known as MILOU, for mitrailleuse lourde (heavy machine gun)[15]

•  Czechoslovakia: produced under license as Kulomet vz. 43 from 1953.[16]
•  Egypt: built under license[17] Used SG-43 and SGM.[18]
•  Finland: used during World War II in limited numbers [19]
•  Georgia[20]
•  East Germany: SG-43 and SGM[21]
• Hungary[22]: SG-43 and KGK variant[23]
•  Indonesia:[24] used by Mobile Indonesian Police Brigade (BRIMOB)
•  Iran: SGM variant.
•  Iraq: SGM variant[25][26]
•  Libya: SGM variant[27]
•  Mali: SG-43, SGM, Type 53[28] and Type 57 variants[29]
•  Mongolia
•  North Korea: used during the Korean War.[2]
•  North Vietnam: SG-43, Type 53, SGM and Type 57 variants used during the Vietnam war by the NVA[30] and the Vietcong[31]
• Palestine Liberation Organisation[32]
•  Poland: SG-43[33]
• Romania: SG-43 and SGM[34]
•  Somalia[35]
•  Soviet Union: SG-43 and SGM were still in service in the late 1960s[36]
•  Syria[37]
•  Tanzania[38]
•  Yemen[39]
•  Zimbabwe[40]

See also

• List of Russian weaponry

References

1. Советская военная энциклопедия. / ред. Н.В. Огарков. том 2. М., Воениздат, 1976. стр.617
2. Edwards, Paul M. (2006). The Korean War. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press. p. 77. ISBN 0-313-33248-7.
3. Smith 1969, p. 607.
4. Smith 1969, p. 608.
5. Smith 1969, p. 297.
6. Small Arms Identification and Operation Guide--Eurasian Communist Countries, Defense Intelligence Agency/United States Army Materiel Command ST-HB-07-03-74, p. 324
7. Kinard, Jeff. "Machine guns". In Tucker, Spencer C.; Pierpaoli, Paul G., Jr. (eds.). The Encyclopedia of the Korean War: A Political, Social, and Military History. 1. A-L (2nd ed.). ABC-CLIO. p. 535. ISBN 978-1-85109-849-1.
8. Wright, Lawrence, The Looming Tower, Vintage Books (2006), ISBN 978-1-4000-3084-2, p. 134
9. Isby, David C. (1990). The War in Afghanistan 1979-1989: The Soviet Empire at High Tide. Concord Publications. p. 13. ISBN 978-9623610094.
10. Neville 2018, p. 26.
11. Small Arms Survey (2007). "Armed Violence in Burundi: Conflict and Post-Conflict Bujumbura" (PDF). The Small Arms Survey 2007: Guns and the City. Cambridge University Press. p. 204. ISBN 978-0-521-88039-8.
12. https://sites.google.com/site/worldinventory/wiw_africa/https-sites-google-com-site-worldinventory-wiw_af_centralafricanrepublic
13. Smith 1969, p. 300.
14. Small Arms Survey (2003). "Making the Difference?: Weapon Collection and Small Arms Availability in the Republic of Congo" (PDF). Small Arms Survey 2003: Development Denied. Oxford University Press. p. 274. ISBN 0199251754.
15. Small Arms Survey (2015). "Waning Cohesion: The Rise and Fall of the FDLR–FOCA" (PDF). Small Arms Survey 2015: weapons and the world (PDF). Cambridge University Press. p. 202.
16. "Gorjunov SG 43". vhu.cz (in Czech). Vojenský historický ústav Praha.
17. Laffin, John (1982). Arab armies of the Middle East wars, 1948-73 (Illustrated ed.). Osprey Publishing. p. 15. ISBN 0-85045-451-4.
18. Smith 1969, p. 613.
19. Jowett, Philip (2006). Finland at War 1939-45 (Illustrated ed.). Osprey Publishing. p. 50. ISBN 1-84176-969-X.
20. https://matsne.gov.ge/ka/document/view/114010
21. Smith 1969, p. 381.
22. Schmidl, Erwin; Ritter, László (10 Nov 2006). The Hungarian Revolution 1956. Elite 148. Osprey Publishing. p. 45. ISBN 9781846030796.
23. Lugosi, József (2008). "Gyalogsági fegyverek 1868–2008". In Lugosi, József; Markó, György (eds.). Hazánk dicsőségére: 160 éves a Magyar Honvédség. Budapest: Zrínyi Kiadó. p. 383. ISBN 978-963-327-461-3.
24. Smith 1969, p. 461.
25. Rottman, Gordon L. (1993). Armies of the Gulf War. Elite 45. Osprey Publishing. p. 49. ISBN 9781855322776.
26. Small Arms Survey (2012). "Surveying the Battlefield: Illicit Arms In Afghanistan, Iraq, and Somalia" (PDF). Small Arms Survey 2012: Moving Targets. Cambridge University Press. p. 321. ISBN 978-0-521-19714-4.
27. "World Infantry Weapons: Libya". Archived from the original on 5 October 2016.
28. Touchard, Laurent (18 June 2013). "Armée malienne : le difficile inventaire". Jeune Afrique (in French).
29. Powelson, Simon J. (December 2013). "Enduring engagement yes, episodic engagement no: lessons for SOF from Mali" (PDF). Monterey, California: Naval postgraduate school. p. 24. hdl:10945/38996.
30. Rottman, Gordon L. (10 Feb 2009). North Vietnamese Army Soldier 1958–75. Warrior 135. Osprey Publishing. p. 31. ISBN 9781846033711.
31. http://www.nam-valka.cz/zbrane/sg-43.html
32. Neville, Leigh (19 Apr 2018). Technicals: Non-Standard Tactical Vehicles from the Great Toyota War to modern Special Forces. New Vanguard 257. Osprey Publishing. p. 4. ISBN 9781472822512.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
33. Smith 1969, p. 526.
34. Smith 1969, p. 533.
35. Small Arms Survey 2012, p. 338.
36. Smith 1969, p. 606.
37. Asher, Dani, ed. (2014). Inside Israel's Northern Command: The Yom Kippur War on the Syrian Border. Foreign Military Studies. University Press of Kentucky. pp. 130, 462. JSTOR j.ctt19jcgzg.
38. "WWII weapons in Tanzania". 24 November 2017.
39. "WWII weapons in Yemen's civil war". wwiiafterwwii.wordpress.com. September 9, 2018.
40. Headquarters 1 Brigade (Brady Barracks) (Gate Exhibit), Bulawayo, Zimbabwe: Zimbabwe National Army, 2010

• Smith, Joseph E. (1969). Small Arms of the World (11 ed.). Harrisburg, Pennsylvania: The Stackpole Company.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)

External links

• Goryunov SG-43 and SGM
• 7.62mm Goryunov Heavy Machine Gun
• 7.62mm Goryunov Heavy Machine Gun, SG43 – Walk around photos