LSW Mare

LSW Mare
The LSW Mare.
Type	Squad Automatic Weapon, General Purpose Machine Gun.
Place of origin	The Empire of Common Territories
Service history
In service	2008 - Present.
Used by	TECT Armed Forces Ossoria
Production history
Designer	Wolf Armaments.
Designed	2008.
Manufacturer	Wolf Armaments.
Unit cost	$3,600 NSD.
Produced	2008 - Present.
No. built	N/A.
Specifications
Weight	7.48 kgs unloaded, 8.85 kgs loaded.
Length	103.33 cm.
Cartridge	6.45×42mm WA CTA (primary). 7.58×54mm WA CTA (V2 primary).
Action	Gas Operated, Open Bolt.
Rate of fire	Sustained rate of fire: 100 RPM. Rapid rate of fire: 200 RPM. Cyclic rate of fire: 800 RPM.
Muzzle velocity	952.5 m/s.
Effective firing range	700 m.
Maximum firing range	3,800 m.
Feed system	100 round linked belt system (box or threaded bag carrier), standard box magazine (10, 20, 30, 60 rounds).
Sights	iron, variable optics.

The LSW Mare or Light Support Weapon Mare, is a squad automatic weapon (SAW) designed by Wolf Armaments in 2008. The Mare was designed to be a lighter solution for automatic rifle support over medium machine guns for smaller military formations, such as squads and fireteams; an available modified variant, the 'V2', acts as a medium solution for customers interested in using a larger cartridge. Firing the same cartridge as the AR Scorpion, the 6.45×42mm WA CTA, Mares do not force soldiers to carry additional ammo types and allows for more efficiency in ammunition management. The Mare is manufactured with similar construction as other Wolf Armaments designed firearms - lightweight materials such as impact resistant hard plastics and aluminum alloy metal parts. What makes the Mare exceptional is its capability to use different feeding systems in a lighter platform to comparably older systems; both belt fed systems and magazines are options for Mare operators, allowing for continuous use without relying on belts of ammunition. Mares are also host to many operator friendly features including barrels with fast swapping mechanism that can replace an overheated barrel within seconds, a comfortable collapsing stock, and wide selection of attachment rails for equipment. A cold hammer-forged barrel provides a stronger barrel for greater safety in case of an obstructed bore or for extended firing sessions. The rail systems located around the weapon allow operators to mount various attachments including optics, grips, and electronic equipment. The wide selection of modifications and personalization options essentially make the Mare system one of Wolf Armament's most personalized weapon systems.

A larger barreled variant of the LSW Mare, the LSW MareV2, converts the weapon system to a general purpose machine gun role, or medium machine gun. This variant fires standard 7.58×54mm WA CTA. This popular variant is used as a weapon mounted system on a wide variety of vehicles and for heavy support roles.

Since its inception in 2008, the Mare has been used primarily by the TECT Armed Forces and Commoner allies around the world; the Mare is also a well bought weapon system with over nine million units sold to foreign military forces around the world.

LSW MareV2 "MSW"

The LSW MareV2 is a medium machine gun derived from the original Mare - it has appropriately been dubbed "MareV2" but is otherwise known as the "MSW", or "Medium Support Weapon Mare". This medium machine gun is used as a general purpose machine gun throughout the TECT Armed Forces and other militaries around the world, replacing the M240 in many cases; it is commonly used on armored vehicles, helicopters, watercraft, and by ground troops as automatic rifle support. For infantry uses, a lightweight ground mount is widely used; bipods or handles are also popularly used by infantrymen. MareV2 features modified bolt and firing components along with a new standard longer barrel, which is uncovered for easy access. These modifications were made so that the MareV2 would fire the larger 7.58×54mm WA CTA cartridge. This larger and more powerful cartridge produces significantly more damage and penetration at longer ranges then the 6.45 cartridge. The longer barrel (620mm over the Mare's original 482.6mm barrel) is coupled with a handle system, allowing it to be removed and replaced in combat. Further modifications done to the body include a new ejection system (brass is ejected bellow through an escape and disintegrating links are ejected from the right-hand side, this was done to resemble the M240 machine gun, which it replaces), solid buttstock, and improved barrel cover system with additional rails for add-ons.

LSW MareV2-1 "HSM"

LSW MareV2-1 is a medium machine gun derived from the original Mare and MareV2; it is known exclusively, however, as the "HSM, or "Heavy Support Mare". HSM shares an identical make-up to the MSW model of the Mare, including extensive modifications and bolt/firing components. Differences start with a new barrel (sporting a carrying handle adapter, similar to MSW) and muzzle break to compensate for the more extensive forces produced by HSM's different cartridge. Instead of the 7.58mm cartridge, HSM uses the larger 8.20×60mm WA CTA, which is a heavier/stronger choice compared to the MSW's 7.58 round. The downside to using this cartridge, however, is that it's larger and therefore heavier to carry; users, using a bipod or mount, must be stationary for the maximum potential to be reached. While the HSM isn't widely fielded, the TECT Armed Forces have been considering using the HSM more widely, especially on machine gun mounts for vehicles, tanks, sea vessels, and aircraft.

Simunition Conversion

Conversion kits are available for all models of the LSW Mare; they include a bolt carrier (partly colored blue to distinguish it), blank-firing adapter for firing blanks, and an upper receiver colored blue to distinguish it for its practice use. The standard kit will also include a laser transmitter for laser combat systems to use; such systems would include individual soldiers carrying small laser receivers scattered over their bodies, which detect when the soldier has been illuminated by a firearm's laser. Each laser transmitter would be set to mimic the effective range and potential damage of the weapon on which it is used. Depending on how complex the laser combat system is, trainers can retrieve immediate results and statistics compiled by the system; such examples include readings that give medics a digital readout to determine which first aid method to practice and probability readouts. Using the conversion kit, the LSW Mare can seamlessly integrate into these laser combat systems.