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Jiří Fencl

Jiří Fencl

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9cm mortar Škoda "U Cihelny"

The separate infantry bunker KS 14 "U Cihelny", part of the fortifications of the Kralická fortress area, is a two-sided two-winged two-bell army fortress building in the strongest and most durable design (3rd resistance class), situated north of the town of Králíky.
🕔︎ 03.02.2017 👁︎ 26.882

A small KRISS submachine gun after three years

In 2007, the American company TDI ( Transformational Defense Industry, Inc. ) presented a new small KrissVector SMG submachine gun at the Shot Show. This revolutionary weapon uses several revolutionary design solutions, thanks to which it has acquired extraordinary properties. Let's summarize briefly - just for refreshment - these solutions and their effects.
🕔︎ 22.11.2011 👁︎ 78.817

Anti-tank rifle ZB 41

Anti-tank rifle „ Panzerbüchse M. SS 41 / M. Pz. 41 (t) "
🕔︎ 10.09.2011 👁︎ 40.159

Brothers Jan and Jaroslav Kratochvíl

As usual, there are also some czechoslovak weapon designers are better known, while others are less well known and some know almost nothing at all. Much has been written about Václav and Emanuel Holkov, and almost nothing about their third brother František. Quite often it was also written about the Koucký brothers, but practically nothing more is known about the Strakonice brothers Kratochvíl, Jan and Jaroslav. It is true that - in comparison with the above - they worked in the arms industry for a relatively short time, only until the transfer of development and production of weapons to Brno in 1954. Nevertheless, they introduced into service of the Czechoslovak armed forces three of their weapons: self-loading pistols vz. 50 and vz. 52 and self-loading rifle vz. 52 ( later version 52/57 ). Perhaps now is the time for these white spaces in the history of Czechoslovak arms industry to fill at least a little. As children, Jan and Jaroslav lived with their parents in southern Bohemia, in the village of Budislav near Soběslav. Father Lambert worked there as the head of a cooperative distillery, mother Katerina had a lot of housework. They had five children together. The eldest, after his father Lambert, died as a child, but then he was followed by brothers "gunners" Jan and Jaroslav, sister Marie ( married Závodná, a clerk who then lived in Deštná near Jindřichův Hradec ), and Bohumil ( who later became deputy director of Pedagogical Institute in České Budějovice ). After her father's death, her mother Kateřina moved to the village of Sedlečko, a little east of Karlovy Vary, where children and grandchildren regularly went on holiday with her.
🕔︎ 04.06.2011 👁︎ 25.784

Civil "assault" rifle HK MR 308 (et al.)

The tradition of producing civilian, originally military weapons is already very long. The first swallow in this plowed field was probably a civilian sports version of the AR-15 rifle, the AR-15 Sporter from 1963. And then followed a number of other models from various manufacturers. The reason is quite obvious: the armed forces will take a number of military versions from the manufacturer, while the semi-automatic civilian version may address a virtually unlimited segment of the civilian market, which of course leads to a substantial recovery in weapon production.
🕔︎ 03.10.2012 👁︎ 45.984

Desert Tactical Arms (DTA) Sniper Rifles

Desert Tactical Arms snipers, founded to use the SRS system, are, according to the company's materials, "the most versatile sniper system in the world".
🕔︎ 20.02.2015 👁︎ 29.448

Double Bohemia Express 45-70 Gov. of Petr Soukup

The rifleman Petr Soukup (* 1976) from Podlesí pod Landštejnem 1 trained - due to the fears of his parents from such a career, even though he wanted to be a rifleman from childhood - a mechanic of machine tools. He then completed post-secondary studies in the field of artistic blacksmith and locksmith in Brno and worked for five years in Náměšť nad Oslavou with the artistic blacksmith Mr. Pavel Tasovský. He wanted to approach his dream of riflemanship by studying the field of small arms at the Military Academy in Brno, but then he left his bachelor's degree and in 2000–2001 completed a retraining course in the field of rifleman at SŠ-COPT in Uherský Brod. He has been doing business independently in artistic blacksmithing since about 2000, and a year later he finally got his weapons. He had his first business in his hometown of Strmilov, then he bought a homestead in Podlesí and settled there. He gradually learned, tested, and then began making Damascus steel knives. In 2010, he completed his interesting double Bohemia Express in the equally interesting caliber 45-70 Government.
🕔︎ 05.11.2012 👁︎ 33.981

Father of the Scorpion machine guns Miroslav Rybář

After the introduction of the automatic rifle (according to the current terminology of the assault rifle) Sa vz.58 into the army's armament, there was a need to arm commanders, but also scouts, vehicle crews, etc. with a small weapon firing shoulder-fired bursts, which could also be fired with one hand, like a pistol.
The development of the Scorpions for special forces was carried out by Ing. Rybář with a two-year break from 1959 until 1968.

🕔︎ 30.09.2012 👁︎ 23.461

FN SCAR and the others - Similarity (not) purely random?

At this year's IDET exhibition, I heard an interesting interview at the stand of Česká zbrojovka as Uherský Brod. One of the visitors asked a ČZUB employee why their new CZ S 805 assault rifle is so similar to the FN SCAR rifle. And the above-mentioned expert answered in this sense: when entering a similar weapon into development, the manufacturer is bound by a wide range of restrictive technical requirements of soldiers. The designers themselves, of course, also follow modern development trends in the world and know similar foreign ( competitive ) development work, again dictated by ( similar ) requirements of the command of foreign armies. That is why it is said that most of the designers involved ( literally 15 out of 20 ) will come to very similar final results.
🕔︎ 16.11.2011 👁︎ 43.124

HK weapon set for 4.6 mm x 30 rounds

Analyzes of military conflicts in recent decades have confirmed that about 70% of military personnel are not in direct combat contact with the enemy during military deployment and therefore do not need an assault rifle. This is especially true for pilots, drivers, artillery and missile operators, logistics personnel, paramedics, etc. The new PDW ( Personal Defense Weapon ) weapon system seems ideal for them.
🕔︎ 15.05.2011 👁︎ 47.361

Hungarian sniper rifle GEPARD GM6 Lynx

At the IDET 2009 exhibition, I had the opportunity to see the new Hungarian sniper Gepard GM6 Lynx for the first time in nature. It is so far the last, youngest ( but also the smallest and lightest ) member of the Gepard sniper family, which is listed in its range by one of the divisions of the Hungarian company SERO - SERO Special Division.
🕔︎ 01.02.2015 👁︎ 36.136

Hybrid automation system

In the last 60 years or so, two automation propulsion systems have firmly anchored the interest of long automatic weapon designers, both using the pressure of the gases discharged behind the projectile from the bore of the barrel, one with a gas piston and piston rod and the other without piston and piston rod, only with gas tube. They are certainly the most widespread today and other solutions occur only very sporadically. Recently, however, she has stirred up the calm surface of this traditional pond with information about the new system, which is actually a hybrid of the two previous ones. Extensive information about him was provided by the German magazine DWJ 10/2011 in an article Zweigleisig by A. Seremek, who evaluated all systems. Here they are freely presented and only here and there slightly supplemented by his opinions.
🕔︎ 12.02.2015 👁︎ 23.330

Infantry fortress K-S5 U potoka

Infantry bunker KS 5 ( where K = Kralíky section of fortifications, S = Infantry bunker and 5 = serial number of the building in the fortification line ) with the code name " U potoka " is a typical representative of heavy fortification ( TO ), which was to secure the northern border of Czechoslovakia against sudden invasion of the German army, to enable the undisturbed mobilization of the field army and possibly also to protect its flank during a possible retreat ( under the pressure of a stronger adversary ) towards Slovakia.
🕔︎ 21.02.2013 👁︎ 21.786

Ing. Bohuslav NOVOTNÝ - right hand of Jiří Čermák

Ing. Bohuslav Novotný was born on August 5, 1931 in the small village Mouřínov near Bučovice, today the district of Vyškov ( formerly Bučovice ), as the oldest of three children ( sister is one year younger, brother was five years younger). He spent his youth in the village of Dambořice ( almost 2000 inhabitants ), where his father taught ...
🕔︎ 19.02.2015 👁︎ 23.145

Ing. Jaroslav Holeček and his submachine guns vz. 23/25 and 24/26 - Part 2

Another of Holeček's revolutionary ideas was an automatic mortar of 55 mm caliber with a pre-sliding barrel, which was to weigh only 36 kg with two full magazines of six mines and have a cadence of 160 rounds per min. There was nothing like that in the world then. However, when he submitted his proposals to the leadership, he was told to look for ammunition and not get involved in other things. He also dealt with the idea of a unified hydraulic breech kit for various infantry weapons, designed with the maximum number of replaceable parts so that after their simple replacement to suit for submachine guns, rifles and light and heavy machine guns. He wanted to apply a similar kit in automatic mortars with cadence, reaching the cadence of a rocket launcher, but with significantly cheaper ammunition.
🕔︎ 03.11.2012 👁︎ 23.477

Ing. Jeronym Kynčl - Unknown acquaintance (1.díl)

"During the occupation, Janeček's armory internally worked on anti-tank (PT) rifles, an automatic rifle and a machine gun without a piston. After the war Ing. Kynčl prepared a machine gun with a dynamic conclusion, tested under the brand ZJ 483 or later KP 5. […] prepared [prototype repeater] ZJ 480 (whose further development led to K 5), a number of versions of self-loading rifles AK with and without a piston, after which, at the beginning of 1948, he tested his prototype ZJ 481. Experiments with PT 9/7 and 15/11 mm rifles also continued after the war. For the second shot, Janeček's armory designed two PT rifles - a repeater and an automatic one. Ing. J. Kynčl. "
Šáda, M .: Čs. small arms and machine guns. Prague 1971
🕔︎ 21.02.2015 👁︎ 20.417

Ing. Jeronym Kynčl - Unknown acquaintance (2.díl)

In February 1947, the VTÚ informed the Strakonice and Brno armories that it was going to order prototypes of automatic rifles for testing, and also told them the " preliminary general conditions ". ČZ submitted two proposals, Brno's Zbrojovka in the Janeček plant in Nusle also two - AK with a piston and AK without a piston, Prague's Zbrojovka design office, led by Josef Koucký, its design with a piston. Prototypes were ordered from all solutions ...
🕔︎ 25.02.2015 👁︎ 22.425

INNOGUN Hybrid

" No compromises for perfect hunting- Perfect for every situation - Fast sequence of shots - Hunting weapon with new standards - Modular construction - Uncompromising reliability "
These are the slogans with which the manufacturer characterizes his new weapon INNOGUN HYBRID, which appeared as a hot new product at the two largest world exhibitions of weapons this year. It is also described as " Double Rifle & a Pump Action"

🕔︎ 08.03.2013 👁︎ 25.090

Krav Maga Global in the Mýto malting plant

For some time now, I have been going to visit a paintball field set up quite recently in Mýto ( Rokycany district ). Therefore, I was happy to use the invitation on the occasion of the shooting course of trainers of the self-defense and tactical system Krav Maga Global (KMG). On that occasion, I was also lucky enough to ask a few questions to the director of KMG in the Czech Republic, Jakub Otipek.
🕔︎ 11.02.2015 👁︎ 19.556

LM vz. 58 Sa - vz. 58 without a firearms license

Submachine gun vz. 58 represents a weapon with which the vast majority of the current middle-aged Czech male population served the war. Many retired soldiers also remember her with nostalgia; but those who have never held it in their hand are also interested in it. What's more, there are still plenty of these weapons in our territory; they can be purchased relatively cheaply, even without the need for a firearms license.
🕔︎ 10.02.2015 👁︎ 60.358

MAXROUNDS drum magazine

“ Increased combat capability for special forces or the most necessary accessories for IPSC shooters? “ asks László Tolvaj at the beginning of his article in SWM No. 9/2009. And we answer: Probably both.
🕔︎ 23.05.2011 👁︎ 48.071

Modern Heckler and Koch machine guns - MG4 and HK 121 MG43 / MG4

The MG43 / MG4 machine gun is a light 5.56 x 45 NATO machine gun, developed by the well-known German company Heckler and Koch as a counterpart to the G36 assault rifle and a direct competitor of the well-known Belgian rival FN Minimi / M249 SAW Ernst Vervier (who is very similar). Although the Oberndorf company started developing it before 2000, it did not present it to the public for the first time until the trade fair in London in 2001.
🕔︎ 26.09.2012 👁︎ 39.834

Mortars and mortar shells from Slavičín

Mortars are very light and effective artillery weapons, differing from classic works mainly by mounts. They are easy to move and do not need long time to prepare fire. They are designed primarily as an accompanying weapon of infantry to destroy manpower, some uncovered targets, but also resistant targets. They shoot exclusively in the upper group of angles. The smooth barrel does not slip during the shot and the pressure of the gases on its bottom is transmitted by the bearing to the terrain.
🕔︎ 11.02.2015 👁︎ 37.817

New large-caliber sniper rifle DSR 50

Those interested in this type of technology certainly still have in their fresh memory the futuristic sniper rifle DSR No. 1 in rifle calibers 308 Win, 300 WinMag and 338 LapuaMag, developed in 1999 by a small company DSR-precision GmbH from Alspirsbach, attributed mainly to the designer Ingolf Renter and launched on the market in 2000. Sale of a weapon that preceded its time with its concept and construction for many years, left the sniper world in amazement, provided until 2004 by the company AMP Technical Services GmbH from Puchheim, Germany. Since 2004, the DSR company itself has been selling its weapon.
🕔︎ 25.09.2012 👁︎ 43.528

New weapons for the Czech army Part I

On March 18, 2010, two contracts were signed for the supply of new CZ 805 BREN A1 assault rifles, CZ 805 BREN A2 carbine, CZ 805 G1 grenade launchers, CZ SCORPION EVO 3 A1 submachine guns and CZ 75 SP-01 PHANTOM pistols between Česká zbrojovka, as, Uherský Brod (CZUB) and the Ministry of Defense of the Czech Republic (MO CR).
🕔︎ 05.11.2012 👁︎ 35.047

New weapons for the Czech army Part II

For assault rifles and carbines CZ 805, the Ministry of Defense of the Czech Republic ordered 397 suspended grenade launchers CZ 805 G1 caliber 40 mm for a 40 x 46 mm NATO round.
🕔︎ 10.11.2012 👁︎ 26.100

New weapons for the Czech army Part III

According to the second contract from March 2010, CZUB is to supply in 2010-2011 the Ministry of Defense of the Czech Republic also 572 fully automatic CZ SCORPION EVO 3 AI weapons for 9 x 19 mm ammunition - submachine guns (which CZUB refers to as PDW weapons) intended for the Castle Guard. 7.65mm submachine gun vz. 61 Scorpio, of course with accessories and ammunition.
The contract was awarded directly by CZUB by a government decision from autumn 2008 - surprisingly without publication.
🕔︎ 04.03.2013 👁︎ 31.100

Overcharging is not like overcharging

Everyone who is interested - even marginally - in the issue of weapons and ammunition for them has certainly heard about the reloading of ammunition. Usually, the purpose of reloading ammunition on ammunition is to save, especially in cases where the shooter fires hundreds to thousands of rounds during training ( recycling the cartridge can reduce the cost of ammunition by up to 60% ). However, by reloading, it is also possible to produce, for example, so-called "tailor-made" ammunition, ammunition for run-out calibers or ammunition that is otherwise difficult to obtain.
🕔︎ 04.03.2013 👁︎ 35.587

Pecheneg

7.62mm Russian multipurpose machine gun 6P41
🕔︎ 03.05.2016 👁︎ 25.952

Pity of Skoda

During a visit to Pilsen Techmania ( where there is also an exhibition of the history of Škoda ), I realized that Škoda is fixed in the general consciousness of people primarily as a producer of guns and that, on the contrary, very little is known about its remaining weapons program during the war and especially after the war. I therefore turned to an expert, Dr. Vladislav Krátký, to ask him a few questions on this issue.
🕔︎ 13.02.2015 👁︎ 24.515

Please meet: CZ 75 TS Czechmate

The CZ 75 TS Czechmate 9 mm Luger pistol is the latest addition to the Tactical Sports pistol family.
🕔︎ 30.09.2012 👁︎ 29.301

POCKET ARTILLERY - Colt Model 1911

Over the years, a long line of more or less similar pistols ( especially in the original 45 ACP caliber ) has been derived from the legendary Colt Model 1911 A1 army self-loading pistol , using Browning's ingenious shot locking system. In addition to "adult" military sizes, there were, of course, smaller versions - compact, of the Commander type - and then even smaller, almost "pocket", of the Officer's type, both designed primarily for self-defense.
🕔︎ 10.02.2015 👁︎ 28.352

Rifle ZG 47 Galaška

Factory serial production of civilian weapons began in Czechoslovakia practically after World War II (before the war, only a hunting version of the repeater model 24 was sold - model Mauser), when the largest arms factories were looking for new production programs to use capacity previously focused exclusively on military production. Zbrojovka Brno started the production of its Z rifles after 1945, intended for the domestic and Central European market (and obviously also ZP shotguns), in 1946 the ZKM451 small-bore rifles and the Hornet ZKW 465 rifles.
🕔︎ 08.03.2013 👁︎ 96.732

Slovak pistol GRAND POWER K100

With the locking of powerful pistols by rotation, mainly those interested in weapons have met only very rarely. The first swallow in this field was probably the American pistol Savage M. 1907, while the fixed locking of rotations was a specialty of the company Waffenfabrik Steyr. The closest to us were probably Czechoslovakia army pistol vz. 22 and vz. 24 Mauser / Nickel system. Then, after a long period of neglecting this system, the principle of rotation recently came back into spotlight: modern Beretta Cougar, Colt All American, Beretta Px4 Storm pistols appeared on the market - as well as the Slovak Grand Power K 100, which will be discussed later.

🕔︎ 12.11.2011 👁︎ 134.579

Sniper rifles - this year's news

As usual, this year I am also interested, among other things, in the news in sniper rifles, or more generally and less pejoratively, precision rifles. Here is a brief list of just some of these innovations, sorted alphabetically by the name of the manufacturing company.
🕔︎ 07.09.2011 👁︎ 41.998

Walther P88- the last Mohican

The last all-metal Walther pistol, Walther P88, was introduced to the public in 1988 ( hence the number in its designation ).
🕔︎ 22.02.2015 👁︎ 36.138

Weapons par excellence - Brothers Josef and František Koučtí (part 1)

Josef and František Koucký are the world-famous fraternal pair of Czechoslovak designers-gunsmiths. Unfortunately, there is not much information about Josef's private life, because his son Josef lived in Germany for many years and also died there a few years ago. So if any estate after his famous father has survived, it is irretrievably lost. However, the situation is somewhat better around František: his son Vojtěch, who lives in his native house in the Krnsko region, has already forwarded most of the documents to him for publication (for two TV shows about his father, among others), but he still has something left - including memories. That is why the information about František and his life is much more detailed than about Josef.
🕔︎ 31.01.2015 👁︎ 30.309

Weapons par excellence - Brothers Josef and František Koučtí (part 2)

The ZK 483 machine gun was originally designed as a test for the development of a 20 mm caliber weapon. The Military Technical Institute (VTÚ) was instructed to work on this weapon in the middle of 1948, and since 1949 this machine gun has appeared in Konstrukt as ZK 492. However, the development was gradually suppressed, until in 1951 it stopped working completely.
🕔︎ 31.01.2015 👁︎ 33.317

Weapons par excellence - Brothers Josef and František Koučtí (part 3)

Already in the years 1950–1960, small arms ( self-loading pistols vz. 50 and vz. 70, 6.35mm pistols „Z“ and DUO, air pistol ZVP, already mentioned ZKP 493, automatic gas gun APP, signal model 67, Grand revolver or starting pistol UB 70 and UB 71 gradually became a typical Uherské Brod product. ). And so there was very fertile ground for the new 9 mm Para pistol, exhibited for the first time in Madrid and marked by the trade press as a "bomb from Madrid" - the CZ 75 pistol of František Koucký. At that time, unfortunately, no one knew how revolutionary the construction was, nor that the weapon would become the flagship of Česká zbrojovka for many years to come. And the result? - Absolutely insufficient patent protection of the structure meant that variants of this weapon are now produced in the world by literally anywhere ...
🕔︎ 01.02.2015 👁︎ 24.863

What's new "by Janoušek"?

(in the Museum of Armored Vehicles in Smržovka near Jablonec nad Nisou)
🕔︎ 31.01.2015 👁︎ 21.887

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