The Wänzl or Wänzel rifle was a breechloading conversion of the Lorenz M1854 and M1862 rifles. The Austro-Hungarian Empire used the Wänzel as their service rifle until they had enough Werndl-Holub M1867 rifles to arm the military.[2][3]
| Wänzl rifle | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Type | Breech-loading rifle |
| Place of origin | Austrian Empire |
| Service history | |
| In service | 1867–1918 |
| Used by | Austrian Empire Qing Empire Kingdom of Dahomey[1] |
| Wars | Herzegovina Uprising (1882) Boxer Rebellion Balkan Wars World War I (rear echelon troops) |
| Production history | |
| Designer | Franz Wänzel |
| No. built | 70,000 |
| Variants | Wänzel Infanterie Gewehr M1854/67 Wänzel Infanterie Gewehr M1862/67 Wänzel JägerStutzen M1854/67 Wänzel JägerStutzen M1862/67 Wänzel Extra-Corps Gewehr M1854/67 Wänzel Extra-Corps Gewehr M1862/67 Wänzel WallGewehr M1872 |
| Specifications | |
| Length | 41.4 in (1,050 mm) to 52.6 in (1,340 mm) |
| Cartridge | 14×33mmR rimfire and centerfire |
| Action | Front-hinged trapdoor |
| Feed system | Single-shot |
The rifle was a lifting block breechloader chambered for the 14×33mm Wänzel rimfire cartridge. The Austrians converted a total of 70,000 Lorenz muskets to Wänzels.
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Kea, R. A. “Firearms and Warfare on the Gold and Slave Coasts from the Sixteenth to the Nineteenth Centuries.” The Journal of African History, vol. 12, no. 2, 1971, pp. 185–213. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/180879. Accessed 2 Jan. 2024
- ^ Никола Гажевић, Војна енциклопедија 7, Војноиздавачки завод, Београд (1974), стр. 548-550
- ^ Никола Гажевић, Војна енциклопедија 10, Војноиздавачки завод, Београд (1976), стр. 676-679
Sources
edit
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