B-10 recoilless rifle
Encyclopedia
The B-10 recoilless rifle (Bezotkatnoye orudie-10, known as the RG82 in East Germany) is a Soviet
82 mm smoothbore
recoilless rifle
. It could be carried on the rear of a BTR-50
armoured personnel carrier. It was a development of the earlier SPG-82
, and entered Soviet service during 1954. It was phased out of service in the Soviet Army in the 1960s and replaced by the SPG-9
, remaining in service with parachute units at least until the 1980s. Although now obsolete it was used by a large number of countries during the Cold War
.
The tripod can be deployed in two positions providing either a good field of fire or a low silhoutte. Rounds are inserted into the weapon through the breech, and percussion fired using a pistol grip to the right of the barrel.
The PBO-2 optical sight has a 5.5x zoom direct fire sight, and a 2.5x zoom sight for indirect fire.
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
82 mm smoothbore
Smoothbore
A smoothbore weapon is one which has a barrel without rifling. Smoothbores range from handheld firearms to powerful tank guns and large artillery mortars.-History of firearms and rifling:...
recoilless rifle
Recoilless rifle
A recoilless rifle or recoilless gun is a lightweight weapon that fires a heavier projectile than would be practical to fire from a recoiling weapon of comparable size. Technically, only devices that use a rifled barrel are recoilless rifles. Smoothbore variants are recoilless guns...
. It could be carried on the rear of a BTR-50
BTR-50
The BTR-50 The BTR-50 The BTR-50 (BTR stands for Bronetransporter (БТР, Бронетранспортер, literally "armored transporter") is a Soviet amphibious armored personnel carrier (APC) based on the PT-76 light tank. The BTR-50 is tracked, unlike most in the BTR series, which are wheeled. The BTR-50...
armoured personnel carrier. It was a development of the earlier SPG-82
SPG-82
The SPG-82 was a Soviet wheeled antitank rocket launcher that entered service after the end of the Second World War...
, and entered Soviet service during 1954. It was phased out of service in the Soviet Army in the 1960s and replaced by the SPG-9
SPG-9
The SPG-9 Kopye is a Russian tripod-mounted man-portable, 73 millimetre calibre recoilless gun developed by the Soviet Union. It fires fin-stabilised, rocket-assisted HE and HEAT projectiles similar to those fired by the 73 mm 2A28 Grom low pressure gun of the BMP-1 vehicle...
, remaining in service with parachute units at least until the 1980s. Although now obsolete it was used by a large number of countries during the Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
.
Description
The weapon consists of a large barrel, with a PBO-2 sight mounted to the left. It is mounted on a small carriage, which has two large wheels, which can be removed. The carriage has an integrated tripod, from which the weapon is normally fired. A small wheel is fitted to the front of the barrel to prevent it touching the ground while being towed. It is normally towed by vehicle, although it can be towed by its four man crew for short distances using the tow handle fitted to either side of the muzzle.The tripod can be deployed in two positions providing either a good field of fire or a low silhoutte. Rounds are inserted into the weapon through the breech, and percussion fired using a pistol grip to the right of the barrel.
The PBO-2 optical sight has a 5.5x zoom direct fire sight, and a 2.5x zoom sight for indirect fire.
Variants
- Type 65 - Chinese version that weighs only 28.2 kg with a tripod mount and no wheels.
- Type 65-1 - Chinese version that can be broken down into two parts for long distance carrying.
Ammunition
- BK-881 - HEAT-FS 3.87 kg. 0.46 kg of RDXRDXRDX, an initialism for Research Department Explosive, is an explosive nitroamine widely used in military and industrial applications. It was developed as an explosive which was more powerful than TNT, and it saw wide use in WWII. RDX is also known as cyclonite, hexogen , and T4...
. GK-2 PIBD fuze. - BK-881M - HEAT-FS 4.11 kg. 0.54 kg of RDXRDXRDX, an initialism for Research Department Explosive, is an explosive nitroamine widely used in military and industrial applications. It was developed as an explosive which was more powerful than TNT, and it saw wide use in WWII. RDX is also known as cyclonite, hexogen , and T4...
. GK-2M PDIBD fuze. 240 mm versus RHA. Muzzle velocity 322 m/s. - O-881A - HE-FRAG 3.90 kg. 0.46 kg of TNT/dinitronaphthalene. GK-2 fuze. Muzzle velocity 320 m/s. Indirect fire maximum range 4500 m.
- Type 65 (Chinese) - HEAT 3.5 kg. 356 mm versus RHA. Muzzle velocity 240 m/s.
- Type 65 (Chinese) - HE-FRAG 4.6 kg. Warhead contains approx 780 balls - lethal radius 20 m. Muzzle velocity 175 m/s. Max range 1750 m.