Given the lack of an appropriate machine gun description, I tried my hand at bunching up some advantages others forgot. Credit goes to Mandemon and Funk for bringing my attention to the poor formatting of the original. I should add that the design is confirmed to be of the same difficulty as the Model 1 and 2, so it's a valid contender for the design, while also giving us several nice additions to supplement it's performance.
Reseph Sekhmeth Series 1 Rapid Repeater RifleAfter years of weapons development and experimentation, Reseph decided to try his hand at another government contract to prove his worth after being bested for the last two years - this time in a field he'd only dabbled in. The contract was for a rapid fire repeating rifle meant to mow down enemy troops. Building off the experience gained from working on the Akar, Vizier and various prototypes onwards, a new action had been developed for the weapon where-in the firearm's own recoil forces the barrel and bolt to recoil together a short distance before they unlock and separate (
short recoil action). The barrel stops quickly, and the bolt continues rearward, compressing the recoil spring and performing the
automated extraction and feeding process, with the spent casings ejected to the right of the weapon. During the last portion of its forward travel, the bolt locks into the barrel and pushes the barrel back into battery, while the firing pin is part of the bolt,
saving on manufacturing costs and the inertia of the bolt closing also causes the fixed firing pin to strike a blow on the primer, without need for a separate hammer/striker and spring,
increasing rate of fire.To facilitate this high rate of fire, the weapon has a so-called
belt feeding mechanism, where a triangular, riveted 250 round belt holding the R.305S97 cartridge (
noted below, in a spoiler) in open fabric pockets woven together and interlinked with two staples near the case mouth and two stitches on the case body is inserted into the left side of the feed system with the projectiles pointing toward the muzzle and pulled by the tab from the right side until the first cartridge depresses and passes over the spring loaded belt holding which keeps the belt from falling out of the weapon while it is cycling.
To produce a sturdier and more uniform pocket for the cartridges, the edges are are additionally reinforced with wire and by crossing the threads. The belt comes packaged in rugged, convenient, re-sealable, weatherproof containers that are easy to hand-transport and can be opened without the use of tools, with the contents ready to be fed directly into the weapon -
making it easier for gun crew to reload the gun, carry the ammo and use it reliably. The basic idea behind the pockets is that the machine will force the cartridge pocket open and hold it open by clamping the belt in the proper position while pushing the cartridge into place. The belt is also made to feature a buckle tab on one end marked with black stitching, with the entire belt denoted by it's round count and cartridge used. Upon loading, the first cartridge ends up against the extractor. The weapon is loaded when the operator pulls and releases a bolt handle which advances the belt and places a cartridge under the extractor. This operation is known as the "half load", next the bolt handle is pulled and released again which advances the belt and places the first cartridge in the chamber, the second cartridge under the extractor. This second operation of the bolt is called the 'full load", and after it's completion the weapon is ready to fire.
The way the belt is set up, additional belts can be linked onto each other by placing the tab over the last round in the receiving belt, effectively connecting the two,
allowing for either prolonged continuous fire or longer burst fire without needing to worry about reloading in the heat of battle.A jacket filled with oil surrounds the barrel, enabling
longer sustained fire compared to air-cooled weapons, and slightly more than water-cooled weapons, while also
acting as a lubricant and preventing corrosion. Additionally, a
muzzle booster is constructed - a shroud intended to harness the energy of the escaping propellant to augment the force of recoil on portions of the firearm (the barrel and the bolt), while
increasing reliability and rate of fire by directing some of the escaping gas into pushing the barrel back rather than letting it all expand outwards at the muzzle, in essence acting as an auxiliary gas-operating system, with the barrel acting the role of the operating rod.
The weapon's intended to be carried by a three man team, with one carrying the weapon, while two others carry a tripod fixture and several belts of the weapon's ammunition. The tripod in question includes a
traversal and elevation mechanism to aid in aiming and so gunners spend
less time calibrating for distance in combat. A simple iron sight is also attached to the top of the weapon to aid in aiming. The weapon is to be 44 inches long, with a barrel measuring 29.53 inches in length, rifling of one turn per 13 inches and is to weight no more than thirty five pounds without the tripod.
Reseph .305 caliber Sekhmeth 97' Rebated Boat-Tail Rapid Repeating Rifle Cartridge
The cartridge is classified by foreigners as a brass-cased, centerfire cartridge measuring 0.62 inches by 4.15 inches, firing a 0.305 by 1.1 inch 350 grain spitzer round. The casing has a capacity of around 182 grains, while 121 grains are used to attain a velocity of 835 m/s and an empty casing weight of 278 grains. The stronger base of the cartridge allows it to withstand higher pressures which in turn give a bullet greater velocity and energy while the cartridge case itself contains the propellant. As per Reseph's cartridge doctrine, the cartridge is made with precision, stopping power and range in mind, as to smite the enemies of Neferu with a hail of powerful rounds from beyond what they can hope to accurately shoot at, while also providing excellent performance at medium and short range should the need for their use arise, compromising cover the enemy would usually consider safe and striking fear into their bones. Due to the bullet's muzzle velocity and the system's cyclic rate, a theoretical rate of fire for the weapon is estimated at around 800 RPM, but something closer to 600-700 RPM is to be expected given the conditions found in practice.
Carrera Series 3 Model 1 Machinegun (2): Taricus, TFF
Carrera Series 3 Model 2 Machinegun (4): Funk, Mandemon, NAV, Talion
Samir Mark 1 Ultra-Light-Repeating-Artillery (1): Lightforger
Reseph Sekhmeth Series 1 Rapid Repeater Rifle (1): Thanik
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Topic: The Ameliorate War, An Arms Race game, Nafuna, 1904 Battle Phase (Read 53496 times)