DSHk

The DShK 1938 (Cyrillic: ДШК, for Russian: Дегтярёва-Шпагина Крупнокалиберный, romanized: Degtyaryova-Shpagina Krupnokaliberny, "Degtyaryov-Shpagin large-calibre") is a Soviet heavy machine gun with a V-shaped butterfly trigger, firing the 12.7×108mm cartridge. The weapon was also used as a heavy infantry machine gun, in which case it was frequently deployed with a two-wheeled mounting and a single-sheet armour-plate shield. It took its name from the weapons designers Vasily Degtyaryov, who designed the original weapon, and Georgi Shpagin, who improved the cartridge feed mechanism. It is sometimes nicknamed Dushka (a dear or beloved person) in Russian-speaking countries, from the abbreviation. Alongside the American M2 Browning, the DShK is the only .50 caliber machine gun designed prior to World War II that remains in service to the present day.
= History =
Requiring a heavy machine gun similar to the M2 Browning, development of the DShK began in the Soviet Union in 1929 and, the first design was finalised by Vasily Degtyaryov in 1931. The initial design used the same gas operation from the Degtyaryov machine gun, and used a 30 round drum magazine, but had a poor rate of fire. Georgy Shpagin revised the design by changing it to a belt-fed with a rotary-feed cylinder, and the new machine gun began production in 1938 as the DShK 1938.
During World War II, the DShK was used by the Red Army, with a total of 9,000 produced during the war. It was used mostly in anti-aircraft roles on vehicles such as the GAZ-AA truck, JS-2 tank, ISU-152 self-propelled artillery, and the T-40 amphibious tank. Similar to the PM M1910 Maxim, when deployed against infantry, the DShK was used with a two-wheeled trolley, with which the machine gun weighed a total of 346 pounds (157 kg). After 1945, the DShK was exported widely to other countries in the Eastern Bloc.
In 1946, an improved variant was produced, with a revised muzzle and feeding system. Named the DShK 38/46 or DShK-M, over a million were produced from 1946-1980. The gun was also revised to become more reliable, and easier to manufacture. The new DShK was produced under license in Pakistan, Iran, Yugoslavia, Romania and Czechoslovakia. China produced their own variant of the design, designated the Type 54.
After the war, DShKs were used widely in Vietnam, starting with the Battle of Dien Bien Phu. While not as powerful as anti-aircraft cannons, the DShK was easier to smuggle through Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos. DShKs were a major threat to American aircraft in the Vietnam War, and of the 7,500 helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft lost during the war, most were destroyed by DShKs.
In June 1988, during The Troubles, a British Army Westland Lynx helicopter was hit 15 times by two Provisional IRA DShKs smuggled in from Libya, and forced to crash-land near Cashel Lough Upper, south County Armagh.
In the 2012 Syrian civil war, the Syrian government said rebels used the gun mounted on cars. It claimed to have destroyed, on the same day, 40 such cars on a highway in Aleppo and six in Dael.
The DShK began to be partially replaced in the Soviet Union by the NSV machine gun in 1971, and the Kord machine gun in 1998. The DShK remains in service, though it is no longer produced.
= Design =
The DShK is a belt-fed machine gun that uses a butterfly trigger. Firing the 12.7×108mm cartridge at 600 rounds per minute, it has an effective range of 1.5 miles (2.4 km), and can penetrate up to 20mm of armor up to a range of 500m. The DShK has two "spider web" ring sights for use against aircraft. It is used by infantry on tripod mounts, and is deployed on tanks and armored vehicles for use against infantry and aircraft; nearly all Russian-designed tanks use the DShK.
= Stats =
DShK 	DShK
A Romanian DShK on display at Expomil 2005.
Note the pic is 1920x1080 so can for your desktop
background.	A Romanian DShK on display at Expomil 2005.
Note the pic is 1920x1080 so can for your desktop
background.
Type 	Heavy machine gun
Place of origin 	Soviet Union
Service history 	Service history
In service 	1938–present
Used by 	See Users
Wars 	Winter War
World War II
Korean War
Chinese Civil War
First Indochina War
Operation Trikora
Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation
Vietnam War
Laotian Civil War
Dhofar Rebellion
Cambodian Civil War
Cambodian-Vietnamese War
Sino-Vietnamese War
Six-Day War
Yom Kippur War
Western Sahara War
Angolan Civil War
Iran–Iraq War
The Troubles
Lebanese Civil War
Chadian–Libyan conflict
Somali Civil War
Tuareg rebellion (1990–1995)
Gulf War
Yugoslav Wars
Kargil War
Iraq War
Wars in Afghanistan
Cambodian–Thai border dispute
Operation Enduring Freedom
Liberian Civil Wars
Operation Linda Nchi
Chechen Wars
First Libyan Civil War
Northern Mali conflict
Second Libyan Civil War
2014 pro-Russian conflict in Ukraine
South African Border War
Syrian Civil War
Sri Lankan Civil War
Iraqi Civil War (2014–2017)
Yemeni Civil War (2015–present)
Conflict in Najran, Jizan and Asir
Production history 	Production history
Designer 	Vasily Degtyaryov, Georgi Shpagin
Designed 	1938
Manufacturer 	Tula Arms Plant
Unit cost 	US$2,250 (2012)
No. built 	1,000,000
Variants 	DShK 38/46
Type 54
Specifications 	Specifications
Mass 	34 kg (74 lb 15 oz) (gun only) 157 kg (346 lb 2 oz) on wheeled mounting
Length 	1,625 mm (5 ft 4.0 in)
Barrel length 	1,070 mm (42.1 in)
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Cartridge 	12.7×108mm
Action 	Gas-operated, flapper locking
Rate of fire 	600 rounds/min
Muzzle velocity 	850 m/s (2,800 ft/s)
Effective firing range	2,000 m (2,200 yd)
Maximum firing range 	2,500 m (2,700 yd)
Feed system 	50 round belt
Sights 	Iron/optical