StG M51
| Stormgevær Modell 1951 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Type | Assault Rifle |
| Place of origin |  Acrea |
| Service history | |
| In service | 1950 - Present |
| Used by | See Users |
| Production history | |
| Designer | Försvarets Fabriksverk Katrineholm |
| Designed | 1946-1949 |
| Manufacturer | Försvarets Fabriksverk Katrineholm |
| Specifications | |
| Weight | 4.4 kg |
| Length | 1,025 mm |
| Cartridge | 7.62x51mm |
| Action | Roller-delayed blowback |
| Rate of fire | 600 rounds per minute |
| Muzzle velocity | 800 m/s |
| Maximum firing range | 3,700 metres |
The StG M51, officially the Sturmgevær Modell 1951, is an Acrean select-fire 7.62x51mm battle rifle designed by Försvarets Fabriksverk Katrineholm for the Acrean Armed Forces in the late 1940s. It entered service in late 1950, becoming the standard service rifle for the Acrean Army and replacing both the StG M43 and StG M46. It is one of the most ubiquitous small arms found in Tyran, being used in its various iterations by several national militaries and numerous other armed groups.
History
In the final years of the Great War, a new select-fire service rifle was sought to replace the Gewær m/36. Collaboration with Cacertan arms manufacturers resulted in the creation of the Gisenti AR762/FFVS Stormgevär Modell 1946 which utilised a tilting bolt action derived from the StG M43.
Although the M46 rifle was adopted in 1946 to replace the m/36 in service, it was not considered ideal to what Acrean military officials desired. Its adoption was driven in part for political reasons, and in part as a way of gaining from the funding that had been put into its development. While the rifles performed well, most concern was directed at the manufacturing process. The receiver was machined and fairly complex; from practical and political perspectives it was undesirable to not utilise Acrea's advantage in manufacturing processes that had been developed during the war. Namely, the use of a quicker and easier to manufacture stamped receiver was desired for the noted advantages of cheaper and faster manufacturing. When new designs for submissions came in 1949, the design from FFVK proved to be more mature than other submissions. Developed from a potential replacement for the StG m/43 originally designed in late 1946, FFVK up-scaled an existing 6.8x39mm design to the new cartridge.
Testing reports concluded that the StG M51 held advantages in robustness, reliability, and accuracy compared to the StG M46. Its robustness and reliability are frequently contributed in part to the action's violence when the rifle cycles during operation. Its accuracy is afforded by an effectively free-floated barrel, which is kept independent by a small amount of space where the charging handle tube is mounted to the barrel; the degree to which this plays a part and whether or not the rifle is notably more accurate than the StG M46/Gisenti AR762 is disputed.
