Ksp m/21 and m/37

Notes: One of the countries which had a license to produce the M-1918 Browning Automatic Rifle was Sweden, where they were produced by Carl Gustav (though the first production batch of 700 was actually made by Colt in the US). The Swedes rechambered the BAR for their standard rifle ammunition of 6.5mm Swedish Mauser.

The first version, the Ksp m/21, was based on the M-1918 BAR. The Swedes, in addition to the caliber change, added a bipod with spiked feet and modified the bayonet lug to accept their standard spike-type rifle bayonet. The barrel was very slightly lengthened to 24.1 inches, and the flash hider was also modified into a wider cone shape. The sights were also modified to accommodate the 6.5mm Swedish Mauser ammunition. After some time, the so-called "Swedish BAR" was given a heavier, quick-change barrel and a few other improvements to increase the reliability and durability of the weapon; this became the Ksp m/37. Approximately four times as many m/37s were built than the m/21 version, but both actually served into the 1980s in a reserve role.

An interesting note is that after World War 2, Carl Gustav tried to convert the m/37 to feed from belts, but the experiment proved to be a spectacular failure. For the most part, Carl Gustav could not produce a belt-fed m/37 that did not jam after firing four rounds or less. This failure pretty much led directly to the Swedish decision to license-produce the MAG.

Weapon

Ammunition

Weight

Magazines

Price

Ksp m/21

6.5mm Swedish

8.9 kg

20

$2077

Ksp m/37

6.5mm Swedish

9.5 kg

20

$2095

Weapon

ROF

Damage

Pen

Bulk

SS

Burst

Range

Ksp m/21

5

4

2-Nil

8

3

7

70

With Bipod

5

4

2-Nil

8

1

3

91

Ksp m/37

5

4

2-Nil

8

3

7

73

With Bipod

5

4

2-Nil

8

1

3

95