Valmet M82

The Valmet M82 is a bullpup assault rifle with a Valmet RK 62 76 internal design created by Finnish company Valmet.

For the sniper rifle, see Barrett M82.
Valmet M82
TypeBullpup assault rifle
Place of originFinland
Production history
DesignerValmet
ManufacturerValmet
Produced1978–1986
No. builtApprox. 2000
Specifications
Mass3.3 kg
Length710 mm
Barrel length415 mm
Cartridge5.56×45mm NATO
7.62×39mm
ActionGas-operated, rotating bolt
Rate of fire750 rounds/min
Feed system30-round detachable box magazine
SightsIron sights

History

The M82 was introduced in Finland in 1978 and discontinued production in 1986. Only around 2,000 were manufactured, mostly as semi-automatic versions in 5.56 mm NATO caliber for ODIN International Ltd. of Alexandria, Virginia. A few samples were issued to Finnish Army paratroopers, but the rifle was found to be unsuitable as a service weapon. One issue that cropped up during its short service life was that the rear sight of an uncased rifle had a tendency to hit the lower face, nose and cheekbones of the paratrooper during landing. The rifle was also poorly balanced, as nearly all the weight was in the rear.

Technical Data

It is chambered for 5.56×45mm NATO caliber as model 255 470 and for 7.62×39mm caliber as model 255 490. It has a Valmet RK 62 76 receiver, which is made from stamped and riveted sheet metal, constructed inside urethane stock.[1] The trigger of the weapon is polymer to prevent heat of the barrel conducting to it, as the trigger is mounted to the barrel of the gun.

Features

The M82 features an unusual sight arrangement. The front and rear sights, similar to a Bren light machine gun or some other belt fed machineguns, are offset to the left. The sights are aligned normally with the right eye, but are offset from the barrel about 3.175 cm. This results in the rifles windage being accurate for the zeroed range only. Shots taken at closer ranges to zero will hit to the right of the target and shots taken at longer ranges will hit to the left of the target. With the sight offset from the barrel by approximately 3.175 cm, if the rifles windage were zeroed at 50 meters, at 100 meters' distance the windage error would be about 3.125 cm and at 200 meters' distance the windage error would be 9,575 cm. This results in a margin of error making shots over 300 meters difficult. Since the fixed sights do not allow for any elevation adjustment, it is clear that this weapon is meant for combat accuracy (15,24 cm at 100 meters) at short/urban ranges only and not meant to be a precision sniping tool.

The offset sight arrangement and right side ejection mean that this weapon is very difficult to use for left-handed users. Modern bullpups have eliminated this drawback by using centrally-aligned optics and either forward, downward or rearward ejection to allow ambidextrous use in combat situations.

See also

Notes
  1. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2011-07-17. Retrieved 2006-02-26.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
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