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Vektor SS-77


Mini-SS


Overview

SS-77

The South African SS-77 machine gun on display.
Source: www.ja-galaxy-forum.com - © copyright lies with original owner

Origin
South Africa
Type
Machine gun
Entered service
Early 1990's
Status
In service
Development
1977 - 1986
Developer
South Africa - Vektor
Smith and Soregi
Production
1990 - 2010's (SS-77)
1994 - 2010's (Mini-SS)
Producer
South Africa - Vektor
Designations
SS-77 / Smith & Soregi model of 1977
Notable users
South Africa
Colombia

Description

Introduction

The SS-77 is a machine gun of South African origin. It was developed by Vektor to replace the MAG in South African service. After a prolonged development period starting in 1977 the SS-77 was selected in the early 1990's. Due to reliability issues in the early models the weapon was modified resulting full production to start as late as the early 1990's. The weapon is named after its designers Smith and Soregi and the year in which development started.

Design

The SS-77 is a gas operated machine gun without gas regulator. The SS-77 is belt fed and feeds from left to right. Besides the polymer folding stock, pistol grip and handguard the weapon is all made out of metal. The barrel is fully exposed and features a quick change mechanism. A conversion kit exists to turn the SS-77 into the Mini-SS that fires a the smaller caliber 5.56mm round.

Firepower

The SS-77 is a belt-fed machine gun that fires the 7.62x51mm NATO round. The smaller Mini-SS fires the 5.56x45mm round. The cyclic rate of fire is about 800 rpm. The quick change barrel allows for continuous fire. Since the removal of the the teething problems the SS-77 is reported to be very reliable.

Users

The SS-77 and Mini-SS are widely used by the South African military. Export sales have been made to various nations and are expected to continue. It seems that the SS-77 has been replaced in production by the DMG-5, a major update of the SS-77 design.

Variants

SS-77 Compact

A SS-77 Compact on display. Fitted with grippod.
Source: exT70 @ www.militaryphotos.net - © copyright lies with original owner

SS-77
The SS-77 is the original model that fires the 7.62x51mm NATO round. The original model did not meet the strict reliability target set by the South African military and after subsequent upgrades the SS-77 has a good reliability record. Due to the changes the rate of fire has been reduced from well over 1.000 rpm to 600 to 800 rpm.
Mini-SS
The Mini-SS is a light machine gun version of the SS-77 that is available since 1994. The Mini-SS fires the 5.56x45mm round from a shorter and lighter barrel, making the weapon easier to operated by a single soldier. It can be converted from an existing SS-77 using a conversion kit or bought as is.
SS-77 Compact
The SS-77 Compact is a lightweight variant introduced in 2008. It features a telescopic stock, accessory rails and a grippod instead of the bipod. This makes it a full 2 kg lighter, but the lack of a proper bipod reduces combat effectiveness at longer ranges.

Details

Facts SS-77 Mini-SS SS-77 Compact
General
Origin
South Africa
Type
Machine gun
Caliber
Caliber
7.62x51mm NATO
Feed system
Belt-fed
Barrel length
550 mm
Rifling
4 grooves, 305 mm right hand twist
Muzzle velocity
840 m/s
Operation
Action
Gas operated, fires from open bolt
Fire selector
0 - F
Rate of fire
600 - 900 rpm
Dimensions
Stock type
Side folding stock
Length
1.155 mm stock extended
940 mm stock folded
Weight
9.6 kg empty
Sights
Mechanical
Iron sights, post front and tangent leaf and aperture rear
Sight radius
815 mm
Range adjustment
200 to 1.800 m
Accessories
Bipod
Fixed foldable bipod

Media