CETME rifle

CETME rifle
CETME Model C battle rifle
TypeBattle rifle
Place of originSpain
Service history
In service1961–1992
Used bySee Users
Wars
Production history
DesignerLudwig Vorgrimler
Designed1948-1950
ManufacturerCentro de Estudios Técnicos de Materiales Especiales (CETME)
Produced1950 –1983
Specifications
Mass9.9 lb (4.49 kg)[1]
Length40 in (1,016 mm)[1]
Barrel length17.7 in (450 mm)[1]

Cartridge7.92×41mm CETME (Model A)
7.62×51mm CETME (early Model B)
7.62×51mm NATO (other models)
ActionRoller-delayed blowback[1]
Rate of fireFull-auto: 550-650 rounds per minute[1]
Muzzle velocity2580 ft/sec (786 m/s)[1]
Feed system20-round detachable box magazine
SightsIron sights

The CETME Model 58 is a stamped-steel, select-fire battle rifle produced by the Spanish armaments manufacturer Centro de Estudios Técnicos de Materiales Especiales (CETME).[1] The Model 58 used a 20-round box magazine and was chambered for the 7.62×51mm NATO round (although originally designed for the 7.92×41mm CETME cartridge[2] and later for the reduced power Spanish 7.62×51mm cartridge).[1] The CETME 58 would become the foundation of the widely deployed German Heckler & Koch G3 battle rifle.[1] Semi-automatic variants were also produced for the civilian market.

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i Hogg, Ian V.; Weeks, John (2000). Military Small Arms of the 20th Century (7 ed.). Iola, Wisconsin: Krause Publication. pp. 275–276. ISBN 978-0873418249.
  2. ^ Johnston, Gary Paul, and Thomas B. Nelson. The World's Assault Rifles. Ironside International Publishers, Inc., 2016.