Zastava M76

History

The Zastava Arms M76 sniper rifle is based on the same Kalashnikov action as the previous M70 series automatic weapons, each based on the predecessor form of the Soviet-era AKM/AKMS. The main difference between the Soviet and Yugoslav designs is that the latter was fitted with a muzzle mount to accommodate the single-shot grenade launcher attachment. The M76 borrowed a lot from the M70's design, but instead of chambering the 7.62x39mm Soviet cartridge, it relied on the more powerful and proven 7.92x57mm Mauser variety. As such, the M76 is often compared in form and function to the Soviet-Russian SVD series of sniper rifles. Designed in 1975 and issued to Yugoslav Army specialists in 1976, the M76 served with various warring factions against Croatia, Bosnia, Kosovo and Serbia during the violent and deadly Yugoslav war of the 1990s.

Since then, this type has been replaced by the newer Zastava Arms M91 series sniper rifles - at least in the Serbian army - which are armed with the original and off-the-shelf Soviet 7.62x54mmR cartridge.

The M76 can be used as a Designated Marksman Rifle (DMR) or a Sniper Rifle as required by field commanders. When working with an infantry squad, designated marksmen use additional marksman training to hit targets within range with greater precision than with a carbine, assault rifle, or squad support machine gun. For this role, the designated shooter uses the bolt action system of modern semi-automatic rifles.

By contrast, snipers are specialized battlefield units, usually working alongside scouts in two-person teams, tasked with taking out very specific valuable targets using a very specific set of battlefield survival skills. Therefore, snipers can use semi-automatic rifle systems or manually operated bolt-action rifles.

The M76 is a gas-powered, semi-automatic, fire-only rifle system designed for professional sniper roles. Thus, traditional Kalashnikov-style sight arrangements encourage and support optics. The oscilloscope mount attaches to the top of the receiver (via the side rails) and can accommodate a variety of optics depending on your needs, including electro-optical types (tritium illumination ZRAK M-76 4x5.10 is fairly typical, based on the Soviet PSO-1 4x24 series).

The M76's exterior design is unmistakably a Kalashnikov submachine gun, looking like a modified AK-47 assault rifle with a longer barrel and a shorter magazine and scope frame, rather than simply replicating the SVD's look. The pistol grip, solid stock and forestock all show traditional wooden Kalashnikov furniture, the pull handle is on the right side of the fuselage, as is the ejection port.

The M76 is pneumatically actuated and the cylinder is usually located above the barrel assembly. The magazine is a straight detachable box of 10 rounds.

The M76's semi-automatic firing mode allows the operator to fire ten consecutive rounds at the target without having to reload and re-point the target to the scope. Longitudinal, the M76 is 44.7 inches long and has a barrel length of 21.6 inches.

The empty weight is 9 pounds, 4 ounces, and the muzzle velocity is about 2,300 feet per second.

Unlike other competing Kalashnikov replicas (or Kalashnikov replicas), their M76's Zastava approach produces a sniper weapon system that is very reliable and powerful and is Relatively cheap when needed. As with the original AK-47 assault rifle, the M76 and Kalashnikov-like systems are considered fairly simple to operate, and almost any lightly trained fighter can easily engage and neutralize a given target.

At one point, it was believed that Zastava supplied an export version of the M76 chambered for the 76th 2x51 NATO and 7th 62x54R Soviet standard cartridges, but this claim has so far not been confirmed.

Beyond the Serbian Army, the M76 has seen service use in the armies of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia and Macedonia. North Korea has produced the type locally as the "JeoGyeokBoChong".

Zastava M76 Specification

ROLES

STRUCTURAL

PERFORMANCE

VARIANTS