The L85 rifle variant of the SA80 family has been the standard issue service rifle of the British Armed ForcesFN FAL. The improved L85A2 remains in service today. The remainder of the family comprises the L86 Light Support Weapon, the short-barrelled L22 carbine and the L98 Cadet rifle.
The SA80 was the last in a long line of British weapons (including the Lee-Enfield family) to come from the national arms development and production facility at Enfield Lock. Its bullpup configuration stems from a late-1940s programme at Royal Small Arms Factory Enfield to design a new service rifle which was known as the EM-2, which though similar in outline, was an entirely different weapon.
History
The system's history dates back to the late 1940s, when an ambitious program to develop a new cartridge and new class of rifle was launched in the United Kingdom based on combat experience drawn from World War II. Two 7mm prototypes were built in a bullpup configuration, designated the EM-1 and EM-2. When NATO adopted the 7.62x51mm rifle cartridge as the standard calibre for its service rifles, further development of these rifles was discontinued (the British Army chose to adopt the 7.62mm L1A1 SLR semi-automatic rifle, which is a license-built version of the Belgian FAL).In 1969, the Enfield factory began work on a brand new family of weapons, chambered in a newly-designed British 4.85x49mm intermediate cartridge. While the experimental weapon family was very different from the EM-2 in internal design and construction methods, its bullpup configuration with an optical sight was a clear influence on the design of what was to become the SA80. The system was to be composed of two weapons: an individual rifle, the XL64E5 rifle and a light support weapon known as the XL65E4 light machine gun. The sheet metal construction, and the design of the bolt, bolt carrier, guide rods, gas system and the weapon's disassembly showed strong similarities to the SAR-87, which was under joint-development by Sterling Armaments Company of Dagenham and Chartered Industries of Singapore.
In 1976, the prototypes were ready to undergo trials. However, after NATO's decision to standardize ammunition among its members, Enfield engineers re-chambered the rifles to the American 5.56x45mm M193 cartridge. The newly redesigned 5.56mm version of the XL64E5 became known as the XL70E3. The left-handed XL68 was also re-chambered in 5.56x45mm as the XL78. The 5.56mm light support weapon variant, the XL73E3, developed from the XL65E4, was noted for the full length receiver extension with the bipod under the muzzle now indicative of the type.
Further development out of the initial so-called "Phase A"pre-production series led to the XL85 and XL86. While the XL85E1 and XL86E1 were ultimately adopted as the L85 and L86 respectively, a number of additional test models were produced. The XL85E2 and XL86E2 were designed to an alternate build standard with 12 components different from E1 variants, including parts of the gas system, bolt, and magazine catch. Three series of variants were created for "Environmental User Trials". XL85E3 and XL86E3 variants were developed with 24 modified parts, most notably a plastic safety plunger. The E4's had 21 modified parts, no modification to the pistol grip, and an aluminium safety plunger, unlike the E3 variants. Lastly, the E5 variants had 9 modified parts in addition to those from the E3/E4 variants.
Design details
Operating mechanism
With the exception of the L98A1, the SA80 system is a selective fire gas-operated design that uses ignited powder gases bled through a port in the barrel to provide the weapon's automation. The rifle uses a short-stroke gas piston system located above the barrel, which is fed gas through a three-position adjustable gas regulator. The first gas setting is used for normal operation, the second—for use in difficult environmental conditions and the third setting prevents any gas from reaching the piston, and is used to launch rifle grenades[citation needed]. The weapon uses a rotating cylindrical bolt that contains 7 radially-mounted locking lugs, an extractor and casing ejector. The bolt's rotation is controlled by a cam pin that slides inside a helical camming guide machined into the bolt carrier.
Features
The family is built in a bullpup layout (the magazine is behind the trigger), with a forward-mounted pistol grip. The main advantage of this type of arrangement is the overall compactness of the weapon, which can be achieved without compromising the barrel length, hence the overall length of the L85 rifle is shorter than a carbine, but the barrel length is that of an assault rifle. However, the adoption of this layout also means the rifle must be used exclusively right-handed since the ejection port and cocking handle (which reciprocates during firing) are on the right side of the receiver, making aimed fire from the left shoulder impossible.The SA80 family is hammer-fired and has a trigger mechanism with a fire-control selector that enables semi-automatic fire and fully automatic fire (the fire selector lever is located at the left side of the receiver, just aft of the magazine). A cross bolt type safety prevents accidental firing and is located above the trigger; the "safe" setting blocks the movement of the trigger.
The L85 rifle features a barrel with a slotted flash suppressor, which also serves as a mounting base for attaching and launching rifle grenades, attaching a blank-firing adaptor or a bayonet.
The weapons are fed from a STANAG magazine, usually with a 30-round capacity. The magazine release button is placed above the magazine housing, on the left side of the receiver. When the last cartridge is fired from the magazine the bolt and bolt carrier assembly lock to the rear.
The weapon's receiver is made from stamped sheet steel, reinforced with welded and riveted machined steel inserts. Synthetics were also used (i.e. the handguards, pistol grip, buttpad and cheek rest were all fabricated from nylon). A Picatinny railed handguard was also developed for the type.
Variants
There are 4 main variants that make up the SA80 'family': the L85A1/L85A2 IW Rifles, the L86A1/L86A2 LSW, the L22A1/L22A2 Carbine and the L98A1/L98A2 Cadet rifles. (the 'L' designation is for "Land Service".)L85 Rifle
A Royal Netherlands Marine Corps captain fires the L85A2
On operations the rifle is often fitted with a LLM01 Laser Light Module. The L85A2 can also mount the L17A2 UGL 40 mm underbarrel grenade launcher. The addition of the underbarrel grenade launcher adds another 3.30 lb (1.49 kg) to the L85A2's weight.
Magazines issued with the L85A1 were aluminium, and not very robust. There are now three types of magazine issued with the L85A2, the most recent being the plastic Magpul EMAG purchases as an Urgent Operational Requirement (UOR), the other two are of steel construction with a stainless steel follower. The main variant is for live ammunition, and the other is exclusively used for blank ammunition. The blank variant is identified by yellow stripes on the magazine, and is designed to prevent the loading of live rounds. As blank rounds are shorter than live rounds, live rounds will not physically fit into the blank magazine. Blank rounds will fit into the normal magazine, but their slightly shorter length creates problems with jamming.
From 2007 an upgrade including the provision of ACOGs, a new handguard incorporating Picatinny rails and a new vortex style flash eliminator is being introduced for use by selected units. (with optional hand grip/bipod),
L86 LSW
Soldiers of the Brigade of Gurkhasblank-firing attachment. equipped with the L85 rifle and L86 LSW with yellow
The increased barrel length, bipod and the optical performance of the SUSAT gives the weapon excellent accuracy. From its inception, the L86 was a target of criticism on much the same basis as the L85. The LSW has the additional issue (shared by any light support weapon derived from a rifle, for example the heavy-barrel FN FAL) of its inability to deliver sustained automatic fire as it does not have a quick-change barrel, and is not belt fed.
The primary use of the LSW has shifted to that of a marksman's weapon within many infantry sections, capable of providing extremely accurate precision fire at ranges of over 600m. The role of a light support weapon is instead filled with the L110A1 FN Minimi which is a belt fed weapon with a quick-change barrel.
The L86A1 was upgraded to the L86A2 at the same time as L85A1 rifles were upgraded to L85A2 standards, undergoing the same set of modifications.
L22 carbine
Based on the L85A1 a compact carbine known as the L22A1 was also developed with a short, 442 mm barrel (the weapon's weight, with the optical sight – 4.42 kg, length – 709 mm). The forward handguard was replaced with a vertical grip. The weapon uses the same SUSAT sight as found on the full size L85. The weapon has been upgraded with a Picatinny rail accessory rail instead of the fixed front grip. These carbine variants are used in small numbers by armoured vehicle crews.L98 Cadet General Purpose Rifles
L98A1
The L98A1 Cadet GP Rifle was a general purpose (GP) rifle used by the Combined Cadet Force and Sea, Marine, Army and Air Cadets in the United Kingdom. It was introduced in 1987 replacing the .303 Lee Enfield No 4 rifles and .303 Bren guns used for weapons training. The L98A1 rifle is now no longer in use, it began a phased decommission in early 2009. UK cadet forces have now received the new L98A2 rifles and LSWs.
The GP rifle was similar to the L85A1 but without the gas parts. It was a manually-operated, single-shot rifle it had a cocking handle extension piece mounted on the right side of the weapon which was cocked with the right hand, it was fitted with adjustable iron sights.
The L98A1 had a number of design features that caused problems. A stoppage occurred if the cocking handle was not fully retracted and released because the spent round failed to eject cleanly fouling the breech and preventing the loading of the next cartridge. This fault was often caused by poor cleaning as dirt, grit and rain easily foul and removed the oil from the exposed cocking handle slide making the action harder to cycle[citation needed]. The absence of the flash suppressor on the L98 also prevented the fitting of a blank firing attachment (BFA) thus increasing the safety distance when from 1m to 50m.
.22 conversions
Two conversion kits existed which enabled the L98A1 to fire .22 LR rimfire cartridges instead of the standard 5.56 mm NATO cartridge. This allowed the weapon to fire live rounds on .22 ranges when full size military ranges are unavailable. Both kits consisted of modified working parts (springs etc.), a special magazine that is the same size and shape as the standard 5.56 mm magazine and a special adapter, shaped like a 5.56 mm cartridge, which was fitted into the L98A1's breech. This adapter contained a smaller breech into which the modified bolt inserts the .22 cartridge. The modified magazine locked into the magazine housing exactly like a normal one would. The first kit was fitted with the standard GP cocking handle and worked in exactly the same way as a single-shot L98A1 cadet GP rifle. The second kit (the L41A1 sub-calibre adaptor) was fitted using a L85A1 cocking handle. It allowed .22 rounds to be fired semi-automatically using direct blow back against the bolt to cycle the next round. The conversion was not permanent and either kit could have been removed from the L98A1 in the time it took to normally strip and reassemble the weapon.L103A1 Drill Purpose Rifle
There was a Drill Purpose (DP) version of the L98A1, known as the L103A1. It was similar to the 'GP' rifle, however, modifications had been made in order to deactivate it: the barrel was sealed by filling it with lead, the firing pin was cut and welded down to the bolt face and the hammer was filed down, making reactivation uneconomical. The weapons were used by cadets for weapons training. The 'DP' could be identified by a white stripe on the hand guard and near the butt of the weapon with the letters 'DP' in the stripe. the bolt carrier assembly (bolt) was painted red and this can be seen from the breech on the right hand side of the weapon.L98A2
The L98A2 GP Rifle was introduced in 2009, as a replacement for the L98A1 Cadet GP Rifle. The main difference between the L98A2 rifle and the L98A1 is the addition of gas parts meaning that the weapon is semi-automatic, rather than single shot. Unlike the L98A1 the A2 has the same cocking handle and operation as the L85A2. The L98A2 can be fitted with the Safe Blank Firing System (SBFS) incorporating a Blank Firing Attachment (BFA) and a blank-only magazine, this reduces the danger area when firing blank from the 50m of the L98A1 to 5m.
L103A2 Drill Purpose Rifle
The L103A2 Cadet DP Rifle is used by cadets for practicing rifle drill and weapons handling. The L103A2 contains similar working and gas parts to the standard live firing weapon.Key distinguishing features[citation needed] and marks on the DP show that it is not capable for live firing:
- The bolt carrier is painted red
- The top cover is painted white
- The cheek pad is painted white
- DP is painted in white on both sides of the butt
- The firing pin is clipped short
- The striker hole in the bolt face is welded shut
- The barrel is welded into the barrel extension (the receiver)
- A portion of the barrel is cut away internally
- The barrel is welded shut
- The rear of the bolt is painted red
- Locking lugs are removed from the DP bolt and their corresponding lugs in the barrel extension welded shut
- A large metal block is welded into the TMH to fit into the hole cut in the barrel, preventing the DP TMH from being fitted to a live weapon
PL-85
A semi-automatic variant has been manufactured for the US market in limited quantities by Prexis as the PL-85. This rifle is very much like the L98A2 mentioned above but can be recognised by its A1 style cocking handle.LEI SA-80
A rimfire variant of the L85-A1 is being offered by LEI - Law Enforcement International Ltd. of St. Albans, Hertfordshire[citation needed]. It is essentially identical to an L85A1 assault rifle, except for being only semi-automatic in operation and feeding through a small, curved magazine of various capacities chambered for the .22 Long Rifle cartridge. The LEI SA-80 is available on several civilian markets in Europe| L85A1 | |
|---|---|
 The L85A1 with SUSAT sight. | |
| Type | Assault rifle/Light Support Weapon |
| Place of origin |  United Kingdom |
| Service history | |
| In service | 1985–present |
| Used by | See Users |
| Wars | Northern Ireland, 1991 Persian Gulf War, Bosnian War, Kosovo War, Sierra Leone Civil War, Afghanistan, Iraq War |
| Production history | |
| Designed | 1970s–1980s |
| Manufacturer | BAE Systems Heckler & Koch Prexis Law Enforcement International Ltd |
| Produced | 1985–1994 |
| Number built | Approx. 350,000 |
| Variants | L85A1 Rifle L85A2 Rifle L86A1 Light Support Weapon L86A2 Light Support Weapon L22A1 Carbine L98A1 Cadet Rifle L98A2 Cadet Rifle PL-85 LEI SA80 |
| Specifications | |
| Weight | 3.82 kg (8.4 lb) (L85A1 empty) 4.98 kg (11.0 lb) (L85A1 with SUSAT sight and loaded 30 round magazine) 6.58 kg (14.5 lb) (L86A1 LSW) 4.42 kg (9.7 lb) (L22A1) |
| Length | 785 mm (30.9 in) (L85A1) 900 mm (35.4 in) (L86A1 LSW) 709 mm (27.9 in) (L22A1) |
| Barrel length | 518 mm (20.4 in) (L85A1) 646 mm (25.4 in) (L86A1 LSW) 442 mm (17.4 in) (L22A1) |
| | |
| Cartridge | 5.56x45mm NATO |
| Action | Gas-operated, rotating bolt |
| Rate of fire | 610–775 rounds/min |
| Muzzle velocity | 940 m/s (3,084 ft/s) (L85A1) 970 m/s (3,182.4 ft/s) (L86A1 LSW) |
| Effective range | 450 m with iron sights, 650 m with SUSAT (L85A2) 850 m (L86 LSW) |
| Feed system | 30-round detachable STANAG magazine |
| Sights | Telescopic SUSAT or ACOG scopes, aperture iron sights |
No comments:
Post a Comment