Gewehr 41

• Name — Gewehr 41 • Origin — Nazi Germany • Type — Semi-automatic rifle • Is Ranged — yes • Service — 1941–1945 • Used By — See operators • Wars — World War II • Design Date — 1941 • Number — up to 120,000 • Weight — 4.9 kg • Length — 1140 mm • Part Length — 546 mm • Cartridge — 7.92×57mm Mauser • Action — Gas-operated, gas trap/ bolt action (G41(M)) • Rate — 20 to 30 rounds per minute • Velocity — 776 m/s • Range — 400 m • Feed — 10-round non-detachable magazine • Illustration — Gewehr 41-M (Mauser version) semi-automatic rifle

While the Germans experimented with semi-automatic rifles as early as 1901, they didn't consider introducing such a weapon until the Soviets began issuing the SVT-40 rifle in large numbers for their troops. German semi-automatic recoil-operated prototypes proved to be too heavy and not meeting military requirements during trials, while their experience with the Mondragón rifle during World War 1, and studies on captured RSC M1917 rifles, both of which had several flaws, left the German High Command skeptical of gas-operated rifles in general, relying instead on tried and tested Mauser bolt-action rifles and recoil-operated light machine guns. Samples of AVS-36 rifles captured during the Spanish Civil War were studied by the Germans, but apparently they still considered gas systems as too impractical for military rifles. During the early years of WWII, the Germans were becoming increasingly aware of other nations adopting semi-automatic rifles in large numbers: besides the AVS-36, the Soviets introduced the SVT-38 (and later the improved SVT-40), while the Americans adopted the M1 Garand to increase their infantry's firepower. According to Smith, the Germans were so familiar with the Garand upon its introduction that popular firearms publications in Germany included photos and descriptions of the M1. The Gewehr 41 would later incorporate a gas trap system similar to the early Garand. In 1940, the Army high command launched a competitive program for a new semi-auto rifle, with Mauser and Walther as the main competitors, and the following restrictions placed upon the design: • no holes were to be bored into the barrel for tapping gas for the loading mechanism; • the rifles were not to have any moving parts on the surface; • and in case the auto-loading mechanism failed, a bolt action was to be included.

It was mostly used in the Eastern Front, where it proved to be less than successful due to the excessive weight and complexity of the Bang system, but it was the only semi-auto rifle the Germans were producing in significant quantities until the introduction of the improved Gewehr 43. The Gewehr 41 was redesigned in 1943 into the Gewehr 43, utilizing a short-stroke piston copied from the SVT-40 rifle, and implementing a conventional detachable box magazine, while keeping the Gewehr 41 locking system. Despite this, the remaining Gewehr 41s were kept in service for the rest of the war. Some German-trained units of the Italian Social Republic such as the 2nd Grenadier Division "Littorio", 3rd Marine Infantry Division "San Marco" and the 4th Alpine Division "Monterosa" were equipped with German weapons including G41(W) rifles.

• Nazi Germany • Italian Social Republic − Received some rifles in 1944