Degtyaryov DA Machine-Gun On TUR-5 Ring Mount 1/72 Scale Mini World 7202

At the end of 1943, work began on the creation of hand machine guns for the new intermediate cartridge of 7.62×41 mm. Tests of these cartridges on training grounds showed that the killing power of the bullet and the compactness of the battle are satisfactory at a distance of up to 800 m. This distance, as combat experience has shown, is quite sufficient for hand machine guns. Degtyarov , Simonov , Sudayev and other designers took part in the design of hand machine guns for the new charge.

In 1944, a sample of Degtyarev's design, known as RD-44, came out ahead in competitive tests. RD-44 machine guns were produced in a small series until the end of the war and were tested in the troops. Soon after the war, a modernized version of this machine gun, adapted for the 7.62×39 mm cartridge , was adopted by the Soviet Army as the Degtyarev System Hand Machine Gun (RPD).

The RPD has automation similar to the DPM , but instead of store power, it is powered by a tape. The tape consists of two parts of 50 cartridges and is located in a round box (store) that is attached to the weapon from below. Such a design provided the machine gun with good mobility (no tape hanging) and increased the practical rate of fire. At the same time, thanks to the absence of springs in the magazine, the reliability of the machine gun was improved, as a significant number of delays due to magazine malfunctions were eliminated.

Unlike the DPM, the barrel of the RPD machine gun is unchanged. The experience of combat use of hand-held machine guns has proven that fire from them is usually conducted in short bursts and the barrel without replacement makes it possible to use up the entire carryable supply of cartridges. The spare barrel should always be in service of the machine gun, which makes the system heavier, and the design of the machine gun more complex and less reliable.