Weapons

The standard German Karabiner 98K became the final improved version of the 1898 Mauser.  Adopted in 1935 for the Wehrmacht, nearly 11 million copies were made by the end of the war.  The Mauser 98K is a bolt-operated, magazine fed shoulder weapon.  The internal magazine holds five rounds of 7.92 mm rifle ammunition.  Maximum range is approximately 8000 yards with an effective range of 800 yards.  The weapon weighs approximately 9 lbs. loaded with an overall length of 43.6 inches.

The development of a semiautomatic rifle by the Wehrmacht came with the help of the Russian Tokarev gas cylinder system.  The early model (G41) had a cumbersome gas operating system which proved unreliable in the field.  The adoption of the Russian system made the G43 reliable and well balanced.  Finish of the G43 was rough, having only machined areas where necessary.  The rifle was mostly used on the OST Front (Eastern Front) but saw use in the west. The rifle had a detachable magazine holding 10 rounds of 7.92 mm ammunition.  The weapon weighs 9 lbs./9 oz. and is 44 inches in length.

This main production machine pistol was developed from the MP38, an earlier model designed for issue to Fallschirmjäger troops and still used throughout the war.  Produced by ERMA (not Schmeisser as commonly believed), the MP40 was constructed with a combination stamped, welded, and formed parts (plastic and metal).   The magazines were ribbed for strength and held 32 rounds of 9mm ammunition.   The weapon is blowback operated and has a cyclic rate of fire of 500 rounds per minute, and a practical rate of 180 rounds per minute.  The weapon weighs 9 lbs. without a magazine and the overall length is 33 1/2 inches.

The STG44 was developed from the MP43/44, an earlier model that was constructed of pressed steel, gas operated and was magazine fed with 30 rounds of Kurz Patrone 7.92x33mm ammunition.  For propoganda reasons, it was renamed Sturmgewehr 44 (Assault Rifle 44).  The overall length is 37 inches and weighed 11 pounds.  It has a cyclic rate of fire between 500-600 rounds per minute, and a practical rate of 180-200 rounds per minute.

Designed by Mauser from the Swiss MG30 as the first general purpose machine gun.  It could be carried by one man for general infantry assault roles or mounted on a tripod for long range precision firing, or mounted on a AA mount for anti-aircraft roles.  The 26 lb./11 oz. recoil operated 7.92mm belt-fed machine gun fired 850 rounds per minute.  The close tolerance of parts made the MG34 vulnerable to stoppage under combat conditions.  The overall length is 48 inches.  The weight with bipod is 26 1/2 lbs., and weight with tripod is 42 lbs.  The practical rate of fire as a LMG is 100-200 rounds per minute, and as a HMG 300 rounds per minute.   The effective range as a LMG is 600-800 yards, and as a HMG is 2000-2500 yards.

The MG42 was adopted in 1942 by the Wehrmacht and first used in North Africa.  The 25 lb./8 oz. weapon was constructed of steel stampings and featured a quick change barrel system which enabled the operator to install a cool barrel in 5 seconds.  The weapon had a recoil firing mechanism and fired 7.92mm ammunition at a cyclic rate of 1200-1400 rounds per minute.  The overall length is 49 inches, and weighed 23 3/4 lbs.  The practical rate of fire as a LMG is 250 rounds per minute, and as a HMG 500 rounds per minute.  The effective range as a LMG is 600-800 yards and as a HMG is 2000-2500 yards.

This is the German equivalent of the U.S. 81mm mortar M-1. Minimum-Maximum range 591-2,625 yards. The launcher fired both smoke and explosive grenades. The launcher consisted of 3 individual parts; barrel with breech piece, baseplate and bipod with attachment and slider with spindle screw, which could be assembled to form a complete launcher in under three minutes. After 1943 when the 12cm (120 mm) Schwerer (Heavy) mortar was introduced, it took on the new designation of Medium launcher.