PTRS-41

The PTRS-41 is the semi-automatic cousin of the PTRD anti-tank rifle.

PTRS-41
PTRS
Type	Anti-tank rifle
Place of origin	Soviet Union
Service history
In service	1941-Present
Used by	Soviet Union, North Korea, China
Wars	World War II, Korean War, Chinese Civil War
Production history
Designer	Sergei Gavrilovich Simonov
Designed	1941
Produced	1941–1945
Variants	General specifications
Specifications
Weight	20.3 kg (46lbs)
Length	2100 mm (83 in)
Barrel length	1219 mm (47 in)
Cartridge	14.5x114mm
Muzzle velocity	1,114 m/s (3,320 ft/s)
Effective range	3,000 m
Maximum range	10,000 m
Feed system	5-round magazine

Design

The PTRS-41 was produced and used by the Soviet Union during World War II. In the years between the World Wars, the Soviet Union began experimenting with different types of armour-piercing anti-tank cartridges. Finding the 12.7x108mm insufficient, they began development of what would become the 14.5x114mm armour piercing round. Famous Soviet weapons designers such as Vasily Degtyaryov and Sergei Gavrilovich Simonov designed rifles to accommodate this cartridge. In 1938, Simonov designed the PTRS-41, a magazine fed, anti-tank rifle.

The five round magazine was loaded into the receiver and held under pressure by a swing magazine underneath. On firing the last round, the bolt is held open, and the magazine release catch can only be operated when the bolt is locked back. The gas-operated PTRS has a tendency to jam when dirty, and the 14.5 mm cartridge produces significant residue, blocking the gas port. The 14.5 mm armour-piercing bullet has a muzzle velocity of 1012 m/s and good ballistics. It can penetrate an armour plate up to 40 mm thick at a distance of 100 meters.