In 1914, during the war between and , bolt-action rifles were still the mainstay, but at that time, China successfully developed the semi-automatic rifle .
is an original technology and is completely independently developed.
The person who created the first domestic semi-automatic rifle must start with General Liu Qingen.
Liu Qingen was born in Deyang, Sichuan in 1869. He graduated from the Guangdong Naval Academy, and then interned at Hubei Gun Factory , and then went to Japan for further study at the University of Tokyo, and finally inspected the Krupp Arsenal in Germany for two years.
During the years of studying abroad, Liu Qingen was exposed to Western military technology. At the same time, this also gave him a certain talent for the design of firearms and weapons.
After he returned to China, the Revolution of 1911 broke out in 1911, and Liu Qingen was appointed as the general office of the Hanyang Arsenal, that is, the factory director.
When the war was in an anxious state, Liu Qingen realized the shortcomings of the bolt-action rifle's insufficient firepower and slow rate of fire.
In order to change these and allow individual soldiers to increase their firepower and enhance combat efficiency, General Liu Qingen launched his design plan for a semi-automatic rifle.
However, due to the constant melee and lack of funds at the time, his road to developing a semi-automatic rifle was very bumpy.
At that time, Liu Qingen raised funds everywhere, but his hard work paid off. Finally in 1914, he finally completed the design of a semi-automatic rifle, which was named : General Liu Rifle, Liu-style semi-automatic rifle or self-loading gun .
The automatic mode of General Liu's rifle is very unique and different from normal gas-operated weapons.
A gun mask is installed at the muzzle. When fired, the gas generated by gunpowder will push the muzzle and gas cylinder forward, thus driving a complete set of link mechanisms. In this action, Complete automatic loading, ejection, and ammunition advancement.
Liu Qingen also considered preventing soldiers from wasting ammunition when they were nervous, and combined the hybrid design of semi-automatic with a bolt-action rifle.
designed a gas hoop for this gun with air holes on it. If you switch to the single-shot shooting mode, you can turn the device so that the air holes face outward. The gas generated when firing will pass through the air holes. Discharged to the outside so that the force of impact no longer pushes the shot back, thus achieving single-shot mode.
When performing manual single-shot shooting, the bolt adopts a straight-pull design, which is better than the contemporary Mauser rifle or Enfield rifle in terms of shooting speed.
The basic parameters of Liu's rifle .
Ammunition: fires 7.92×57mm Mauser rifle rounds.
magazine capacity: 6 rounds, non-detachable magazine. Theoretical rate of fire of
: about 45~50 rounds per minute.
full gun length: 1225 mm.
barrel length: 647 mm.
muzzle velocity: 780 meters per second.
gun body weight: 5 kg after adding bayonet.
In 1916, two prototype guns were hand-made by Hanyang Arsenal.
In September of the same year, Liu Qingen came to Beijing Nanyuanyuan shooting range for testing. However, due to the unqualified quality of the springs manufactured by the Hanyang factory, the test of the gun ultimately failed.
But Liu Qingen did not give up.
So, he went to the United States in person with Liu's prototype gun and drawings, and wanted Pratt & Whitney to manufacture it for him. He switched to using machine-processed springs and manufactured a second batch of prototype guns.
Americans at that time were very shocked when they saw the Liu semi-automatic rifle. They did not expect that the old China, which was backward in technology and still in a state of melee at that time, could independently develop a semi-automatic rifle. It was also called by the Americans: General Liu semi-automatic Rifle .
Later, Liu Qingen used the second batch of sample guns to compare with the first batch of sample guns. As a result, the second batch of sample guns using American-made springs completely passed the test.
In 1918, Liu Qingen returned from the United States and purchased a large amount of equipment and materials that could be used to make firearms. However, on his way back to China, a shipwreck suddenly occurred. Not only did he lose all the equipment, General Liu's son also died along with many tourists on the ship. .
In 1919, the machine that sank from the bottom of the sea was salvaged and put into use. However, Liu Qingen, an outstanding military talent, was constantly squeezed out by the warlords because of his career and the death of his son. A sudden cerebral hemorrhage caused to suffer from hemiplegia and , and he could only resign due to illness.
Finally, General Liu Qingen died in Shanghai in 1929 at the age of 60. After that, his rifle failed to achieve mass production equipment.
At that time, the country was weak and had no technical conditions, but it actually developed a semi-automatic rifle completely independently, which surprised Westerners.
But it is a pity that the environment, the situation at the time, the backward conditions, and most importantly, the people's thinking at the time were backward and did not realize the importance of this weapon in the future. In the end, they failed to make this first independent weapon. The semi-automatic rifle developed was a hit.
The design of the Liu semi-automatic rifle was also the most advanced at the time. Later, the American Garand M1 semi-automatic rifle, the German G43 semi-automatic rifle and the Soviet SVT-40 semi-automatic rifle during World War II, all used the Liu semi-automatic rifle. automatic principle.
Especially the Garand M1, its action and principle are very similar to General Liu's rifle.
The only remaining General Liu semi-automatic rifle has become one of the collections of American museums.
