The Heckler & Koch G36 is a 5.56×45mm assault rifle, designed in the early 1990s by Heckler
& Koch in Germany as a replacement for the heavier 7.62mm G3 battle rifle. It was accepted
into service with the Bundeswehr in 1997, replacing the G3. The G36 is gas-operated
and feeds from a 30-round detachable box magazine or 100-round C-Mag drum magazine.
History 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 4.73mm G11 assault rifle,
that used caseless ammunition. 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, having no incentive to pursue
a new 5.56mm weapon system, was content with the export-oriented HK33 and G41 rifles. However,
the G11 program came to an abrupt end when the Bundeswehr canceled its procurement 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.
Increasing interest in Germany for a modern service rifle chambered for the NATO-standard
5.56mm cartridge led H&K to offer the German armed forces the G41 rifle, which, too, was
rejected. Design work was then initiated from the ground up on a modern 5.56mm assault rifle
designated "Project 50" or HK50. The prototype was then trialed, where it was rated higher
than the rival Austrian Steyr AUG system. Production
The HK50 rifle was selected for service and an initial order was placed for 33,000 rifles
under the Bundeswehr designation Gewehr G36. The order also involved an option for a further
17,000 rifles. Deliveries were first made to the Bundeswehr's NATO Quick Reaction Force
during the third quarter of 1997. The G36's production line began in 1996.
In July 1998, it was announced that the G36 had been selected as the standard rifle for
the Spanish Armed Forces, replacing the 5.56mm CETME Model L and LC rifles. Deliveries first
took place at the end of 1999. These rifles are manufactured in Spain under license by
General Dynamics Santa Bárbara Sistemas at the FACOR facility, in Corunna, Galicia.
In addition, the rifle has been licensed for local production in Saudi Arabia. The manufacturer
in the country is the Military Industries Corporation. Technology transfer was granted
by Germany to Saudi Arabia on June 30, 2008 The first Saudi-made G36 was made at MIC's
factory on June 30, 2009. However, some components of their own G36s are supplied by Heckler
& Koch. 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 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 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 dismantles
into the following groups: receiver housing, return mechanism, bolt carrier group and trigger
group. Features
Fire selector 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. The weapon
safety disables the trigger when engaged. HK also offers several other trigger options,
including the so-called “Marine” trigger group, with settings analogous to the standard
trigger, but the selector positions have been illustrated with pictograms. A semi-automatic
only trigger unit is also available. An integrated, manual safety mechanism prevents accidental
firing. Magazine
The G36 feeds from proprietary 30-round curved magazines very similar to those of the Swiss
SIG 550 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 use a magazine adapter that will accept
STANAG magazines. The G36 can also use Beta C-Mag drum magazines that have a 100-round
cartridge capacity and are intended to be used primarily with the MG36 light support
weapon. Stock
The MG36 variant 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. Material
The G36 employs a large number of lightweight, corrosion-resistant synthetic materials in
its design; the receiver housing, stock, trigger group, magazine well, handguard and carry
handle are all made of a carbon fiber-reinforced polyamide. The receiver has an integrated
steel barrel trunnion and the reciprocating parts move on steel rails molded into the
receiver. Sights
The standard German Army versions of the G36 are equipped with a ZF 3x4° dual optical
sight that combines a 3x magnified telescopic sight and an unmagnified reflex sight mounted
on top of the telescopic sight. The reflex sight is illuminated by ambient light during
the day and uses battery powered illumination for use at night. Electric illumination is
activated automatically by a built in photo sensor and can be manually activated to boost
the brightness of the reticle in daytime low contrast situations.
The export versions have a single telescopic sight with a 1.5x magnification and an aiming
reticule fixed at 300 m. All rifles are adapted to use the Hensoldt NSA 80 third-generation
night sight, which clamps into the G36 carry handle adapter in front of the optical sight
housing and mates with the rifle's standard optical sight. The sighting bridge also functions
as a carrying handle and features auxiliary open sights molded on top of the handle that
consist of a forward blade and rear notch, but these can only be used with the reflex
sight removed, as in the G36V. The optical sight system is produced by Hensoldt AG.
Operating mechanism
The G36 is a gas-operated weapon that uses burnt powder gases from the barrel, bled through
a vent near the muzzle which transmits the gas thrust to the bolt carrier, providing
automation to the moving assembly; it fires from a closed bolt position. The weapon uses
a self-regulating spring-buffered short-stroke gas piston system. The rotary bolt features
7 radial locking lugs and its rotation is controlled by a cam pin guided inside a camming
guide cut-out in the bolt carrier. The bolt also houses a spring-loaded casing extractor
and an ejector. The bolt is automatically locked to the rear
when the last round is expended, but the bolt catch can be deactivated. The bolt catch button
is located at the forward end of the trigger guard. The spring-loaded folding cocking handle
extends forward in line with the barrel of the rifle. It can be swung to either side
of the receiver, depending on whether the user is right or left-handed and is locked
when pressed inward. When locked at a perpendicular angle to the receiver, the handle can be used
as a forward assist to force the bolt into battery, or to extract a stuck cartridge casing.
Spent cartridge casings are ejected through a port located on the right side of the receiver.
A brass deflector keeps cases from striking left-handed operators in the face. There is
no ejection port cover as the bolt closes the ejection port to particulates when it
is forward. The weapon features a hammer-type striking mechanism.
Accessories The rifle can be fitted with a 40 mm AG36
under-barrel grenade launcher, which is a breech-loaded break-action weapon with a side-tilting
barrel. Standard equipment supplied with the G36 includes:
spare magazines, a cleaning and maintenance kit, sling, speed-loading device and an AK-74
blade bayonet. Overheating
In April 2012, reports surfaced that G36 rifles used in Afghanistan would overheat during
prolonged firefights after several hundred rounds were fired. Overheating affected the
accuracy of the G36, making it difficult to hit targets past 100 meters, ineffective past
200 meters, and incapable of effective fire past 300 meters. The G36 has been called unsuitable
for long battles. HK said the rifle was not designed for sustained, continuous fire. German
soldiers gave no negative feedback. Operational commanders advised allowing the weapon to
cool between periods of rapid shooting. In February 2014, the Federal Ministry of Defence
announced that the overheating deficiencies of the G36 was not a result of weapon design,
but of the ammunition. The manufacturer of the ammunition confirmed this, although experts
disagreed. A report by the Bundeswehr on Februar 21st,
2014, revealed that the issues were not the fault of the rifle, but that one manufacturer
of ammunition was making bullets with copper plated jackets that were too thin.
On June 22, 2014, it was reported that Germany’s defense ministry has temporarily halted new
orders worth €34 million over the accuracy concern of the rifle. The Bundeswehr consulted
the Ernst Mach Institut and the Federal Criminal Police Office.
Variants
G36V: Previously known as the G36E, it is the export version of the standard G36. The
G36V has all of the characteristics of the standard rifle with the exception of the sight
setup and bayonet mount. It is fitted with a x1.5 or x3 sight and lacks the integrated
reflex sight; the bayonet mount is a standard NATO type. This version was produced for Spain
and Latvia. MG36: Light machine gun version of the G36
equipped with a heavy barrel for increased heat and cook-off resistance. The MG36 and
MG36E are no longer offered by H&K. G36K: carbine variant with a shorter barrel
and a shorter forend, which includes a bottom rail that can be used to attach tactical accessories,
such as a UTL flashlight from the USP pistol. The carbine's barrel lacks the ability to
launch rifle grenades and it will not support a bayonet. The weapon retained the ability
to be used with the AG36 grenade launcher. G36Ks in service with German special forces
are issued with a 100-round C-Mag drum. There are two variants of the G36K. The first and
most commonly known has x3 scope/carry handle attached to the top, while the second is the
one with the iron sights and rail. G36KV: export version of carbine variant,
G36K with sights like G36V. G36C: This subcarbine model is a further development
of the G36K. It has a shorter barrel than the G36K, and a four-prong open-type flash
hider. The extremely short barrel forced designers to move the gas block closer to the muzzle
end and reduce the length of the gas piston operating rod. The handguard and stock were
also shortened and the fixed carry handle was replaced with a carrying handle with an
integrated MIL-STD-1913 Picatinny rail. The dual optical sight found on the standard G36
and G36K models was replaced with a set of rail-mounted detachable iron sights that consist
of a semi-shrouded front post and a flip-up rear sight with two apertures of different
diameter. The short handguard has four accessory attachment points, one of which could be used
for a vertical grip. G36A2: This is an ordnance 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 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 the shorter G36C stock, new handguard made of aluminium with an optional 4 Picatinny
rails and a vertical foregrip with an integrated switch for operating an Oerlikon Contraves
LLM01 laser light module. Sporting models
Based on the G36, Heckler & Koch also created the semi-automatic SL8 rifle and the straight-pull,
bolt-action R8, which are offered to the civilian sport shooting markets. The SL8 is substantially
different from the G36, it has a modified receiver and a thumbhole stock with a cheek
rest, which is integral with the trigger group. The SL8 has a heavy profile, extended, 510 mm
barrel that does not have a flash hider or bayonet lug. The rifle uses a 10-round single-stack
magazine and an extended top rail used to mount a wide variety of Picatinny-standard
optics. Mounted to the rail are a set of iron sights with a hooded foresight and adjustable
flip rear aperture. The SL8 can also mount the G36 carry handle and integrated sight
assembly, after removing the mechanical iron sights. The SL8 has an unloaded weight of
4.3 kg, overall length of 980–1030 mm and a trigger rated at 20 N.
In November 2013, Heckler & Koch applied for permission from the German Government to sell
a new civilian-legal version of the G36. Called the HK243 in Europe and the HK293 in America,
it is more similar to the G36 assault rifle than previous civilian models. The main difference
is the bolt is redesigned to not allow a conversion to fully automatic fire. It has quad picatinny
rails and accepts STANAG magazines. Four different barrel lengths from 8.9 in to 18.8 in and
four stock models will be offered. Users
Gallery
See also AN-94 Abakan
Armalite AR-18/Sterling SAR-87 SG 550
Kbs wz. 1996 Beryl M4 carbine
Heckler & Koch HK416 Heckler & Koch SL8
Beretta ARX-160 FX-05 Xiuhcoatl
XM8 rifle M27 IAR
AK-12 Table of handgun and rifle cartridges
References Notes
Bibliography
External links Heckler & Koch – official site
Bundeswehr fact sheet Bundeswehr manual ZDv 3/12 regarding small
arms usage 2008 Heckler & Koch Military and LE brochure
G36 in parts Modern Firearms
REMTEK Official HK instruction video part 1
Official HK instruction video part 2 Official HK instruction video part 3
RUAG Ammotech factsheet on German Army DM11 5.56x45mm ammunition