Mikhail Kalashnikov - Obituary

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http://www.smh.com.au/comment/obitu...t-popular-killing-machine-20131227-2zynj.html

 

[Tomasso]

Well, he lived a long life.......while his invention shortened the lives of millions. Saddest part is that he received no royalties.

 

[Stearmen]

I like how Kalashnikov said after meeting Eugene Stoner inventor of the M16, "the American was flying his own plane, while I can barely afford the ticket from Izhevsk to Moscow."

 

[Stearmen]

Well, he lived a long life.......while his invention shortened the lives of millions. Saddest part is that he received no royalties.

I suppose by that criteria, the Mauser Rifle would be the king of killing.

 

[Smithy]

I suppose by that criteria, the Mauser Rifle would be the king of killing.

I'm not so sure Stearmen if you are referring to a specific model like the K98. The AK-47 has been used constantly in conflicts across Europe, Asia, Africa, the Middle East and Latin America for well over 60 years and will continue to be widely used for many, many years to come. And its proliferation as a military rifle across the globe is arguably unrivalled.

 

[AtomicEraTom]

It's a good design, simple, and works well from desert, to jungle, to everything in between. I believe it's the best designed gun in history.

 

[Smithy]

It's a good design, simple, and works well from desert, to jungle, to everything in between. I believe it's the best designed gun in history.

Couldn't agree more with you Tom.

It's brilliance is it's simplicity and hardiness. You don't have to be an expert to use it, and it still works after being treated atrociously. It's probably partly that ability to take huge amounts of abuse and yet still work which has made it such a useful weapon especially for non-professional organisations/militias/insurgent/guerrilla groups.

 

[Otter]

Shamelessly ripped from Wikipedia, a bit like he did with his design!

The AK-47 is best described as a hybrid of previous rifle technology innovations:[37] the trigger mechanism,[38] double locking lugs and unlocking raceway[citation needed] of the M1 Garand/M1 carbine, the safety mechanism of the John Browning designed Remington Model 8 rifle,[citation needed] and the gas system of the Sturmgewehr 44.[citation needed] Kalashnikov's team had access to all of these weapons and had no need to "reinvent the wheel",[37] though he denied that his design was based on the German Sturmgewehr 44 assault rifle.[39] Kalashnikov himself observed: "A lot of Russian Army soldiers ask me how one can become a constructor, and how new weaponry is designed. These are very difficult questions. Each designer seems to have his own paths, his own successes and failures. But one thing is clear: before attempting to create something new, it is vital to have a good appreciation of everything that already exists in this field. I myself have had many experiences confirming this to be so."[25] There are claims about Kalashnikov copying other designs, like Bulkin's TKB-415[2] or Simonov's AVS-31.[40]

 

[1mach1]

For some reason, I thought he died years ago. That's what I get for being out of the loop. [huh]

 

[cookie]

Shamelessly ripped from Wikipedia, a bit like he did with his design!

The AK-47 is best described as a hybrid of previous rifle technology innovations:[37] the trigger mechanism,[38] double locking lugs and unlocking raceway[citation needed] of the M1 Garand/M1 carbine, the safety mechanism of the John Browning designed Remington Model 8 rifle,[citation needed] and the gas system of the Sturmgewehr 44.[citation needed] Kalashnikov's team had access to all of these weapons and had no need to "reinvent the wheel",[37] though he denied that his design was based on the German Sturmgewehr 44 assault rifle.[39] Kalashnikov himself observed: "A lot of Russian Army soldiers ask me how one can become a constructor, and how new weaponry is designed. These are very difficult questions. Each designer seems to have his own paths, his own successes and failures. But one thing is clear: before attempting to create something new, it is vital to have a good appreciation of everything that already exists in this field. I myself have had many experiences confirming this to be so."[25] There are claims about Kalashnikov copying other designs, like Bulkin's TKB-415[2] or Simonov's AVS-31.[40]

I think that says it all. When he invented two of his own weapons during WWII for the USSR they were both failures.

 

[TomS]

It's a good rifle. No question.

 

[gman41]

Was this not a copy of the German weapon introduced late in the war. My understanding is that Hitler said no to the German one but production was put through anyway because people knew how good it was.

 

[matrioshka]

Same concept, but different internally.

 

[Foxer55]

[39] Kalashnikov himself observed: "A lot of Russian Army soldiers ask me how one can become a constructor, and how new weaponry is designed. These are very difficult questions. Each designer seems to have his own paths, his own successes and failures. But one thing is clear: before attempting to create something new, it is vital to have a good appreciation of everything that already exists in this field. I myself have had many experiences confirming this to be so."

His thinking is somewhat incomplete. We contemporarily have codified the answer he was trying to give here by specifying the 'objective' of our intent. The question always is, what is the capability you seek or seek to achieve? Obviously, Mr. Kalishnikov had an idea of what it was he was seeking or trying to do but he could not articulate that thinking in contemporary terms even if he was an independent designer. All weapons development in the contemporary domain begin with specifying in both conceptual and specific detailed performance expectations the need that must be satisfied by a given capability.

 

[Harp]

It's a good rifle. No question.

Once saw an AK-47 buried under sand, dirt, and gravel, then fished out for a shake-n-bake demo.
The exercise was continued with several buckets of water tossed for added emphasis-and after a coffee
break-repeated to similar effect. I always considered the M-1 Garand the best rifle in the world-and still do-
but Kalashnikov designed a weapon of legend that rivals Garand.
Neither man profited by the namesake, which is ironic but quite appropriate.