| Charlton Automatic Rifle | |
|---|---|
 Charlton Automatic Rifle at Waiouru Army Museum | |
| Type | Semi-automatic rifle/Light machine gun |
| Place of origin |
 New Zealand |
| Service history | |
| In service | 1942-1945 |
| Used by | New Zealand |
| Production history | |
| Designer | Philip Charlton |
| Designed | 1941 |
| Produced | 1942-1945 |
| Variants | Electrolux SMLE Model |
| Specifications | |
| Mass | 16 lb (7.3 kg), unloaded |
| Length | 44.5 in (1150 mm) |
|
| |
| Cartridge | .303 British |
| Calibre | 0.3125 inch (7.938 mm) |
| Action | Gas-operated semi-automatic |
| Rate of fire | 600 rounds/minute |
| Muzzle velocity | 2,440 ft/s (744 m/s) |
| Effective firing range | 1,000 yards (910 m) |
| Maximum firing range | 2,000 yards (1830 m) |
| Feed system | 10-round magazine or 30-round Bren gun magazine |
| Sights | Sliding ramp rear sights, fixed post front sights |
The Charlton Automatic Rifle was a fully automatic conversion of the Lee-Enfield rifle, designed by New Zealander Philip Charlton in 1941 to act as a substitute for the Bren and Lewis gun light machine guns which were in chronically short supply at the time. The original Charlton Automatic Rifles were converted from obsolete Lee-Metford and Magazine Lee-Enfield rifles dating from as early as the Boer War,[1] and were intended for use as a semi-automatic rifle with the full-automatic capability retained for emergency use.[2] It used the 10-round Lee-Enfield magazines and modified 30-round Bren magazines.
There were two versions of the Charlton: the New Zealand version, as designed and manufactured by Charlton Motor Workshops in Hastings, and a version produced in Australia by Electrolux, using the SMLE Mk III* for conversion.[3] The two designs differed markedly in external appearance (amongst other things, the New Zealand Charlton had a forward pistol grip and bipod,[4] whilst the Australian lacked this making it lighter and cleaner in appearance,[5] but shared the same operating mechanism.
Approximately 1,500 Charlton Automatic Rifles were manufactured in New Zealand,[6] and nearly all of them were destroyed in an accidental fire at the Palmerston North service storage facility shortly after World War II.[7] An example of the New Zealand-manufactured Charlton Automatic Rifle is known to survive in the Imperial War Museum in London, along with a handful elsewhere– one is on display in the Waiouru Army Museum in New Zealand, and another at the Army Museum (Bandiana) in Australia.
See also[]
- Huot automatic rifle
- Howell Automatic Rifle / Howard Francis machine carbine
- Elkins Automatic Rifle
- Rieder Automatic Rifle
Footnotes[]
- ↑ Skennerton, Ian: The Lee-Enfield Story, page 183. Arms & Militaria Press, Australia, 1993
- ↑ Skennerton, Ian: The Lee-Enfield Story, page 184. Arms & Militaria Press, Australia, 1993
- ↑ Skennerton, Ian: The Lee-Enfield Story, page 185. Arms & Militaria Press, Australia, 1993,
- ↑ https://archive.is/20120716062200/img299.imageshack.us/img299/6537/smallarmsw44.jpg
- ↑ https://archive.is/20120714221624/img299.imageshack.us/img299/7979/smallarmsw42.jpg
- ↑ Skennerton, Ian Small Arms Identification Seriess No. 13: Special Service Lee-Enfields; Commando & Auto Models, page 33. Arms & Militaria Press, Australia, 2001
- ↑ Skennerton, Ian: The Lee-Enfield Story, page 185. Arms & Militaria Press, Australia, 1993
References[]
- Skennerton, Ian The Lee-Enfield Story (1993). Arms & Militaria Press, Australia. ISBN 1-85367-138-X
- Skennerton, Ian Small Arms Identification Series No. 13: Special Service Lee-Enfields; Commando & Auto Models (2001). Arms & Militaria Press, Australia. ISBN 0-949749-37-0
External Image[]
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