Vietnam produces steel for weapons production

To be proactive in producing modern weapons to protect the country, Vietnam's defense industry has mastered specialized steel manufacturing technology.

Currently, Vietnam's defense industry has researched, designed and manufactured many types of weapons. However, materials to manufacture weapons must mostly be imported from abroad.

Importing steel billets for the manufacture of weapons and military equipment does not always meet strict quality requirements and assurances along with financial capabilities.

In particular, there are many types but the quantity of each type is not much and in objective cases, it also affects the political situation of the countries. Therefore, it is necessary to research and manufacture special steel materials for national defense.

The technology topic for manufacturing steel for AKM submachine gun barrels and PKMS heavy machine guns under the KCNQ-06 Program has contributed to the proactive task of manufacturing special steel for weapons manufacturing in general and infantry guns in particular.

Gun barrel made in Vietnam.

Lieutenant Colonel Cao Anh Dung, Manager of Workshop A5, Factory Z127 said: "The requirements for the gun barrel are very high due to the harsh operating conditions when firing, having to endure pressure, temperature, along with great wear and tear and spin.

Therefore, when implementing the steel manufacturing program, we must learn, research and implement many advanced technical measures under strict supervision to create products that meet technical requirements."

For AKM submachine guns and PKMS heavy machine guns, the barrel is a component and the main part of the gun. The barrel has the main function of being the place where the combustion process and the work of the propellant are carried out. It creates the movement of the bullet when it leaves the muzzle, orients the bullet to move towards the target, and creates the necessary rotational speed around the longitudinal axis for the bullet to stabilize its trajectory.

When firing, the gun barrel must work in very harsh conditions, with very high gas pressure from 4,000 to 4,300 kg/cm2. At high temperatures from 2,500 to 3,000 degrees Celsius, the bullet tip when moving causes mechanical erosion and chemical corrosion.

The forces applied during firing and the random forces during use. Therefore, the main requirements for the gun barrel are high durability, not broken during firing. Especially, it must have the necessary hardness... and must have a reasonable price.

Due to the harsh working conditions of the gun barrel, the selection of gun barrel material is a complex task, requiring a comprehensive analysis of the gun's parameters.

The objective of the project is to master the technology of manufacturing alloy steel to manufacture AKM submachine gun barrels and PKMS machine gun barrels. The project has combined the research of domestic and foreign documents on alloy steels for gun barrels. With the results of surveying the technological lines of factories and surveying samples of AKM and PKMS submachine gun barrel materials.

From there, build a set of technical documents for blanks, build blank manufacturing technology, technological documents, test products, test and evaluate products. In which, the main materials used are all popular in the country such as steel for smelting is non-alloy carbon steel...

To create the final product, the project was carried out in coordination with many units such as the Institute of Technology, Factory Z111 under the General Department of Industry of the Ministry of National Defense, Factory Z45 under the General Department of Engineering. In particular, the equipment used in manufacturing the product was all made at the host unit, Factory Z127.

Through survey, analysis and testing, the gun barrel blanks all meet the requirements in terms of shape, size, chemical composition, and mechanical properties of the blanks after heat treatment. The AKM gun barrel and PKMS submachine gun barrel all meet the requirements after static testing and test firing.

According to Baodatviet