PKM GPMG
From The D Archives
The PK is a 7.62 mm general purpose machine gun designed in the Soviet Union and currently in production in Russia. Its NATO equivalents are the FN MAG, MG3, and M60 machine guns. The PK machine gun was introduced in the 1960s and replaced the SGM and RPD machine guns in Soviet service. The PK machine gun can be used as a light anti-aircraft weapon when it is put on an AA mount. One feature typical to Soviet machine guns is that the standard model feeds from the right and ejects its spent cases via an ejection port on the left side of the weapon, as opposed to the right side ejection port seen in most western machine guns.
Spefications
Weight: PK: 9 kg (gun + integral bipod) + 7.7 kg (tripod)PKM: 7.5 kg (gun + integral bipod) + 4.5 kg (tripod). PKT (tank): 10.5 kg
Length: PK, PKM, PKT=1,173 mm, 1,160 mm (45.7 in), 1,098 mm
Barrel length: PK, PKM, PKT = 658 mm, 645 mm, 722 mm
Cartridge: 7.62x54mmR
Action: Gas-Operated, open bolt
Rate of fire: PK&PKM: 650 round/min. PKT: 800 round/min
Muzzle velocity: PK&PKM: 825 m/s
Effective range: 1000 m
Feed system: Belts in 100/200/250 round boxes
Sights: Open sights
Personal notes
When you look at the article page of the PKM on Wiki, you can find a rather funny fact from it: almost all of the other users of this machine gun are poor, third world countries with long conflict-ridden pasts, presents and futures, too. Then we've got Finland among them.
Personally I think that the reason why Finland has this machine gun is because it is so damn cheap on the market - especially compared to the western MG's available out there. And all in all, though, it's not a bad weapon - just the somewhat odd cadre of users, that's all.
While at the army, and during the NCO course I was quite often the designated MG gunner. Quite often I carried the KvKK62, but sometimes they'd slap me with the PKM. Hard to say which one was more of a pain in the ass to carry - I'd say the PKM, though, because the thing was just heavy as fuck and hard to assemble and reassemble. I hated the thing.
The PKM's that we had were of some newer production model, though, since the flash hiders were short and the stocks were made out of some synthetic material instead of wood, like in the earlier models. They were Russian PKM's though, since most of the MG's featured Russian stampings and numbering.
I was trained to an older infantry outfit, which has the KvKK62's as the main fire support weapon - so we didn't get to fiddle around with the PKM's much. Fired it a few times, though - although the thing almost constantly jammed - which the officer in charge of the firing wasn't too happy about. A few of the others had the same problems too, and I remember some logistics guy pondering whether or not it was the ammunition or the weapons that caused it.
