The G36 is a German 5.56mm assault rifle, designed in the early 1990s by Heckler & Koch (H&K) and accepted into service with the Bundeswehr in 1997, replacing the 7.62mm G3 battle rifle.
Development
Work on a successor for the venerable G3 rifle had been ongoing in Germany since the second half of the 1970s. These efforts resulted in the innovative 4.73 mm G11 assault rifle (developed jointly by a group of companies led by H&K), that used caseless ammunition (designed by the Dynamit Nobel company). It had been predicted that this weapon would eventually replace the G3, therefore further development of H&K's series of firearms chambered for the 5.56x45mm NATO cartridge had been halted. Heckler & Koch had no incentive to pursue a new 5.56 mm weapon design, content with the export-oriented HK33 and G41 assault rifles. However, the G11 program came to an abrupt end when the Bundeswehr rejected the design due to defense budget cuts after the unification of East and West Germany and H&K was acquired in 1991 by British Aerospace's Royal Ordnance division (known today as BAE Systems).
Increasing interest in Germany for a modern service rifle chambered for the NATO-standard 5.56 mm cartridge led H&K to offer the German armed forces the G41 rifle, which too was declined. Design work was then initiated from the ground up on a modern 5.56 mm assault rifle, designated "Project 50" or HK50.[1] The prototype was then trialled, where it was rated higher than the rival Austrian Steyr AUG system.
Design details
The G36 is a selective fire 5.56mm assault rifle, firing from a closed rotary bolt. The G36 has a conventional layout and a modular component design. Common to all variants of the G36 family are: the receiver and buttstock assembly, bolt carrier group with bolt and the return mechanism and guide rod. The receiver contains the barrel, carry handle with integrated sights, trigger group with pistol grip, handguard and magazine socket.
The G36 employs a free-floating barrel (the barrel does not contact the handguard). The barrel is fastened to the receiver with a special nut, which can be removed with a wrench. The barrel is produced using a cold hammer forging process and features a chrome-lined bore with 6 right-hand grooves and a 1 in 178 mm (1:7 in) rifling twist rate. The barrel assembly consists of the gas block, a collar with a bayonet lug that is also used to launch rifle grenades and a slotted flash suppressor.
The weapon can be stripped and re-assembled without tools through a system of cross-pins similar to that used on earlier HK designs. For cleaning purposes, the G36 disassembles into the following groups: receiver housing, return mechanism, bolt carrier group and trigger group.
Features
The fire and safety selector is ambidextrous and has controls on both sides of the receiver; the selector settings are described with letters: “S” – safe, “E” – semi-automatic fire and “F” – continuous fire.[1] The weapon safety disables the trigger when engaged. HK also offers several other trigger options, including the so-called “Navy” trigger group, with settings analogous to the standard trigger, but the selector positions have been illustrated with pictograms. A semi-automatic only trigger unit (lacks the “F” setting) is also available. An integrated, manual safety mechanism prevents accidental firing (this is an improved trigger group from the G3 rifle).
The G36 feeds from proprietary 30-round curved magazines with cartridges loaded in a staggered pattern. The magazines are molded from a high-strength translucent polymer and can be clipped together using built-in coupling studs into 2 or 3-magazine packs allowing up to five magazines to be carried side-by-side on the rifle ready for rapid magazine changes. The magazines are not compatible with NATO-standard STANAG magazines, as introduced in the M16. However, the G36 can be used with Beta C-Mag drum magazines (produced by Beta Company), that have a 100-round cartridge capacity and are intended to be used primarily with the MG36 light support weapon.
The weapon is equipped with a side-folding skeletonized stock and a detachable folding bipod, which folds into recesses in the handguard. The G36 can be fired with the stock collapsed. The underside of the butt-stock has holes into which assembly pins can be placed during weapon cleaning and maintenance.
The G36 employs a large number of lightweight, corrosion-resistant synthetic materials in its design; the receiver housing, stock, trigger group (including the fire control selector and firing mechanism parts), magazine well, handguard and carry handle are all made of a carbon fiber-reinforced polyamide. The receiver has an integrated steel barrel trunnion (with locking recesses) and the reciprocating parts move on steel rails molded into the receiver (this feature was issued a US patent, number 5513461, authored by Helmut Weldle).
Variants
The MG36 light machine gun differs from the G36, having a heavier barrel for an increased heat and cook-off resistance.
The G36K (K - kurz or short) carbine has a shorter barrel (fitted with an open-type flash suppressor) and a shorter handguard, which includes a bottom rail that can be used to attach tactical accessories, such as a UTL halogen flashlight from the USP pistol. The carbine’s barrel lacks the capability to launch rifle grenades and it cannot mount a bayonet. The weapon retained the ability to be used with the AG36 grenade launcher. G36Ks in service with German special forces are provided with 100-round C-MAGs.
The G36C (C – Compact) is a further development of the G36K. It has a shorter barrel (than the G36K), and a 4-prong open-type flash suppressor. The use of a reduced length 228 mm barrel forced designers to move the gas block closer to the muzzle end and use a shortened gas piston rod. The handguard and stock were also reduced in length and the fixed carry handle (with optical sights) was replaced with a carry handle with an integrated MIL-STD-1913 Picatinny rail. In place of the dual optical sight found on the regular G36 and G36K, the G36C was equipped with rail-mounted iron sights that consist of a hooded front post and a flip rear aperture. The short handguard has six attachment points, one of which could be used for a vertical foregrip.
The G36A2 is an in-service designation allocated to an upgraded variant of the G36 used by the German Army. The G36A2 is equipped with a quick detachable Zeiss RSA reflex red dot sight[6] mounted on a Picatinny rail that replaces the original red dot sight of the dual combat sighting system. The G36A2 upgrade kit also consists of a new handguard with three Picatinny rails and a handgrip with an integrated switch for operating an Oerlikon Contraves LLM01 laser light module.
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