Jarmann M1884
Encyclopedia
The Norwegian
Jarmann M1884 was among the first bolt action repeating rifle
s to be adopted in the Western world
. Its adoption, and subsequent modifications, turned the Norwegian Army
from a fighting force armed with single-shot
black powder weapons into a force armed with modern repeating weapons firing smokeless
ammunition. Several thousand were manufactured to equip both Norwegian and Swedish
forces in the 1880s. The design is unique, and was the brainchild of Norwegian engineer Jacob Smith Jarmann
. After the design had been phased out of the Norwegian Army, a number of the weapons were rebuilt as harpoon guns.
in which the rounds were lined up in a tube below the barrel. It has a non-rotating bolt
(the part of the action that seals the rear end of the barrel) locked by a rotating bolt handle, and reputedly a smooth action. However, this action is not considered strong enough to fire modern ammunition
, since the only locking is provided by the rotating bolt handle.
Jacob Smith Jarmann designed his first breech-loading
rifle—firing cardboard cartridges—in 1838, but this was turned down by the armed forces
at the time. The logic was that a rifle capable of firing 13 shots a minute would be impossible to resupply with enough ammunition. In the 1870s, he stepped down from the daily running of his workshop to work on his newly invented bolt-action rifle. According to the patent, three particulars were considered new and unique with the action
he had developed:
Another interesting oddity is that the Jarmann action does not have a separate ejector, but instead relies on the fact that the extractor pushes the spent round down onto the elevator. The resulting friction was enough to safely eject the round from the receiver.
The design was first tested by a joint Norwegian
-Swedish
rifle committee. Their first tests were favorable but highlighted the desirability of a repeating weapon, that is, a weapon with a magazine. Several magazine-fed prototype rifles were built—Ole Herman Johannes Krag
, the designer of the Krag-Petersson
and the Krag-Jørgensen
repeating rifles, designed two different magazines for the Jarmann rifle: one virtually identical to the magazine used on the Krag-Petersson, one which was the forerunner for the magazine he used on the Krag-Jørgensen. Jacob Smith Jarmann himself also made several prototypes, mainly with tubular magazines under the barrel or detachable magazines mounted sideways over the bolt. The latter was considered unusable in the field, and in the end a tubular magazine was selected for the weapon. The magazine is similar to the Kropatschek
tubular magazine and may have been inspired by it, although it is just as possible that the magazine is inspired by the Krag-Petersson
magazine.
Despite being a trailblazer with its then-pioneering design, the Jarmann M1884 cannot be considered successful. The combination of tubular magazine and centerfire ammunition
has been referred to as "too excitable", especially when used with pointed bullets. Also, the balance of the weapon changed with every shot fired. However, both of these issues are common to all firearms that use tubular magazines.
The first Jarmann design was firmly a single-shot weapon, and Jacob Smith Jarmann was reportedly at first unwilling to design a magazine for it. This may explain why the magazine and bolt do not always work well together.
The sights on the Jarmann M1884, as first issued, were graduated to a distance of 2,400 m (2,620 yd), and the original issue ammunition had a muzzle velocity of about 485 to 500 m/s
. At first the gun used paper-wrapped lead bullets but soon changed to a steel jacketed bullet
. During production, the sights were modified, and M1884s with serial numbers higher than 4330 also had a combat sight— by folding the sight arm fully forward, a V-notch was revealed. The combat sight was graduated to 430 m (470 yd), since the path taken by the bullet did not rise over 1.80 meters (6 ft) at this distance. The M1884s with the combat sight were also equipped with a sidemounted volley sight, intended for indirect volley fire over long distances. To be effective, an entire company would have to fire at the same time, which would ensure that at least some of the bullets found their targets. The volley sight was used at distances beyond 1600 meters (about one mile).
cartridge that the various prototypes as well as the service weapon were chambered for. Originally a black powder round with a paper-wrapped lead bullet
, it was later loaded with smokeless powder
and a full metal jacket bullet
. More than 5 million cartridges were manufactured for the M1884, in addition to several thousand specialty cartridges. The following different variations on the 10.15 x 61R cartridge have been identified:
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The Jarmann rifle was a remarkably accurate rifle for its time. In 1886, the joint Norwegian-Swedish rifle committee, which had selected the Jarmann, created a list of the ballistic properties of all the rifles tested. It is clear from the list that the Jarmann M1884 was significantly better than the other rifles tested, although in part this must be due to the higher muzzle velocity
of the Jarmann.
The 10.15 mm bullet fired by the Jarmann was fully enfilading
(meaning that the path of the bullet would pass through a man-sized target) up to 438 m (479 yd), and at a range of 600 metres (660 yd) it did not spread more than 61 cm (24 in) with uncoated lead bullets and 46 cm (18 in) with jacketed bullets. This compared very favorably to the Remington M1867
, then the Norwegian standard weapon, which was enfilading out to 300 m (330 yd) and had a spread at 600 m of 96 cm (38 in).
In comparison, the Gras rifle displayed a spread of 89 cm (35 in) and the Mauser
rifle (presumably a Gewehr 71) had a spread of 80 cm (31.5 in), both at 600 m (660 yd).
.jpg)
Despite the problems with the weapon, no fewer than 30,000 were manufactured for the Norwegian armed forces in the decade between its adoption in 1884 and the later adoption of the Krag-Jørgensen
in 1894. A further 1500 were manufactured for the Swedish Navy
in the same period. In Norwegian service, it replaced the Remington M1867
and the last few kammerlader
s still in use.
When the weapon was chosen and first issued, the military considered it a very good weapon. It had a good rate of fire and had less than half the spread of the Remington M1867 at 600 m (46 versus 96 cm). It was later eclipsed, however by the radical development of firearms at the time. Within a decade it was phased out and replaced by the Krag-Jørgensen
rifle. Even though it was phased out, several second-line units were issued the weapon in 1905, when war between Norway and Sweden was considered imminent.
Towards the end of their use in the armed forces, the original gunpowder cartridges were replaced by cartridges filled with smokeless powder. Despite the increase in muzzle velocity, the sights were not altered, thus radically decreasing the accuracy of the rifle.
guns.
From the mid 1920s and until the German invasion of Norway
, it was possible for civilians to buy surplus Jarmann rifles for about a quarter of what a brand-new Krag-Jørgensen
would cost. Despite the reasonable price, it appears that very few were actually sold. Attempts were also made to sell the rifles and ammunition abroad. In 1929, about 5000 rifles were sold to a German firm, but the fate of these Jarmanns is unknown. In 1936 King Ibn Saud from Saudi Arabia
initiated talks to buy 20,000 Jarmanns with ammunition for his police force, but the request was turned down by the Norwegian parliament, who claimed that the sale of such outdated weapons would reflect badly upon Norway. In 1938 a private investor — Trygve G. Hygen, a former captain in the Norwegian Army — caused a minor international incident
when he offered to sell Jarmann rifles to Ceylon. The British Consulate General
complained to the Norwegian government, pointing out that Ceylon was British and they wanted full control of all weapons sold there. The Norwegian government reprimanded Hygen, and the offer was withdrawn. Attempts were also made by Hygen to sell Jarmanns to Lithuania
, Cuba
, Nicaragua
, Bulgaria
, Italy and the Netherlands
, but without any takers.
.jpg)
It is reported that the Germans melted down the last remaining Jarmann rifles in military warehouses during the Nazi occupation
, since they were "too obsolete to be of interest, too modern to have lying around". It is quite possible that as many as 21,000 Jarmanns were destroyed in this fashion.
s and shooting rescue lines to boat
s in distress. Seeing a ready market, and having access to the several thousand Jarmanns in storage, Kongsberg Våpenfabrikk designed a harpoon gun referred to as the M28.
Comparable weapons from the same era:
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
Jarmann M1884 was among the first bolt action repeating rifle
Repeating rifle
A repeating rifle is a single barreled rifle containing multiple rounds of ammunition. These rounds are loaded from a magazine by means of a manual or automatic mechanism, and the action that reloads the rifle also typically recocks the firing action...
s to be adopted in the Western world
Western world
The Western world, also known as the West and the Occident , is a term referring to the countries of Western Europe , the countries of the Americas, as well all countries of Northern and Central Europe, Australia and New Zealand...
. Its adoption, and subsequent modifications, turned the Norwegian Army
Norwegian Army
Norway achieved full independence in 1905, and in the first century of its short life has contributed to two major conflicts, the Cold War and the War on Terror. The Norwegian Army currently operates in the north of Norway and in Afghanistan as well as in Eastern Europe. The Army is the oldest of...
from a fighting force armed with single-shot
Single-shot
Single-shot firearms are firearms that hold only a single round of ammunition, and must be reloaded after each shot. The history of firearms began with single-shot designs, and many centuries passed before multi-shot designs became commonplace...
black powder weapons into a force armed with modern repeating weapons firing smokeless
Smokeless powder
Smokeless powder is the name given to a number of propellants used in firearms and artillery which produce negligible smoke when fired, unlike the older gunpowder which they replaced...
ammunition. Several thousand were manufactured to equip both Norwegian and Swedish
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
forces in the 1880s. The design is unique, and was the brainchild of Norwegian engineer Jacob Smith Jarmann
Jacob Smith Jarmann
Jacob Smith Jarmann was a Norwegian firearms designer and inventor of the Jarmann rifle.-Biography:Jarmann was born in Gudbrandsdalen at Nord-Fron, in Oppland County, Norway...
. After the design had been phased out of the Norwegian Army, a number of the weapons were rebuilt as harpoon guns.
Description
The Jarmann M1884 fired a 10.15 mm black powder cartridge in an 8-round, tubular magazineMagazine (firearm)
A magazine is an ammunition storage and feeding device within or attached to a repeating firearm. Magazines may be integral to the firearm or removable . The magazine functions by moving the cartridges stored in the magazine into a position where they may be loaded into the chamber by the action...
in which the rounds were lined up in a tube below the barrel. It has a non-rotating bolt
Breechblock
A breechblock is the part of the firearm action that closes the breech of a weapon at the moment of firing....
(the part of the action that seals the rear end of the barrel) locked by a rotating bolt handle, and reputedly a smooth action. However, this action is not considered strong enough to fire modern ammunition
Ammunition
Ammunition is a generic term derived from the French language la munition which embraced all material used for war , but which in time came to refer specifically to gunpowder and artillery. The collective term for all types of ammunition is munitions...
, since the only locking is provided by the rotating bolt handle.
Jacob Smith Jarmann designed his first breech-loading
Breech-loading weapon
A breech-loading weapon is a firearm in which the cartridge or shell is inserted or loaded into a chamber integral to the rear portion of a barrel....
rifle—firing cardboard cartridges—in 1838, but this was turned down by the armed forces
Armed forces
The armed forces of a country are its government-sponsored defense, fighting forces, and organizations. They exist to further the foreign and domestic policies of their governing body, and to defend that body and the nation it represents from external aggressors. In some countries paramilitary...
at the time. The logic was that a rifle capable of firing 13 shots a minute would be impossible to resupply with enough ammunition. In the 1870s, he stepped down from the daily running of his workshop to work on his newly invented bolt-action rifle. According to the patent, three particulars were considered new and unique with the action
Firearm action
In firearms terminology, an action is the physical mechanism that manipulates cartridges and/or seals the breech. The term is also used to describe the method in which cartridges are loaded, locked, and extracted from the mechanism. Actions are generally categorized by the type of mechanism used...
he had developed:
- The extractorExtractor (firearms)An extractor is a part in a firearm that serves to remove brass cases of fired ammunition after the ammunition has been fired. When the gun's action cycles, the extractor lifts or removes the spent brass casing from the firing chamber.-Overview:...
, which not only pulled the spent round out of the breech, but also served to limit the bolt's rearward motion. - The design of the rotating boltRotating boltRotating bolt is a method of locking originally developed by Ferdinand Ritter von Mannlicher and found in his Steyr-Mannlicher M1895 straight-pull bolt-action rifle designed for and issued to the Austro-Hungarian Army...
handle, which served to lock the bolt to the receiver in the forward position. - The way the extractor was secured to the body of the bolt.
Another interesting oddity is that the Jarmann action does not have a separate ejector, but instead relies on the fact that the extractor pushes the spent round down onto the elevator. The resulting friction was enough to safely eject the round from the receiver.
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
-Swedish
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
rifle committee. Their first tests were favorable but highlighted the desirability of a repeating weapon, that is, a weapon with a magazine. Several magazine-fed prototype rifles were built—Ole Herman Johannes Krag
Ole Herman Johannes Krag
Ole Herman Johannes Krag was a Norwegian officer and firearms designer.-Biography:Ole H. J. Krag was born in Vågå, in Oppland county, Norway. Krag grew up in various locations where his father, Hans Peter Schnitler Krag , served as pastor, including Vågå, Fredrikshald and Christiania...
, the designer of the Krag-Petersson
Krag-Petersson
The Krag-Petersson rifle was the first repeating rifle adopted by the armed forces of Norway and one of the first repeating arms used anywhere in the world. Developed by Ole Herman Johannes Krag, the action of the Krag-Petersson was uniquely actuated by an oversized hammer...
and the Krag-Jørgensen
Krag-Jørgensen
The Krag-Jørgensen is a repeating bolt action rifle designed by the Norwegians Ole Herman Johannes Krag and Erik Jørgensen in the late 19th century. It was adopted as a standard arm by Denmark, the United States of America and Norway...
repeating rifles, designed two different magazines for the Jarmann rifle: one virtually identical to the magazine used on the Krag-Petersson, one which was the forerunner for the magazine he used on the Krag-Jørgensen. Jacob Smith Jarmann himself also made several prototypes, mainly with tubular magazines under the barrel or detachable magazines mounted sideways over the bolt. The latter was considered unusable in the field, and in the end a tubular magazine was selected for the weapon. The magazine is similar to the Kropatschek
Kropatschek
A Kropatschek is any variant of a rifle designed by Alfred von Kropatschek. Kropatschek's rifles used an tubular magazine of his design, of the same type used in the German Mauser Gewehr 1871/84 and the Japanese Type 22 Murata.-Variants:Austria-Hungary:...
tubular magazine and may have been inspired by it, although it is just as possible that the magazine is inspired by the Krag-Petersson
Krag-Petersson
The Krag-Petersson rifle was the first repeating rifle adopted by the armed forces of Norway and one of the first repeating arms used anywhere in the world. Developed by Ole Herman Johannes Krag, the action of the Krag-Petersson was uniquely actuated by an oversized hammer...
magazine.
Centerfire ammunition
A centerfire cartridge is a cartridge with a primer located in the center of the cartridge case head. Unlike rimfire cartridges, the primer is a separate and replaceable component....
has been referred to as "too excitable", especially when used with pointed bullets. Also, the balance of the weapon changed with every shot fired. However, both of these issues are common to all firearms that use tubular magazines.
The first Jarmann design was firmly a single-shot weapon, and Jacob Smith Jarmann was reportedly at first unwilling to design a magazine for it. This may explain why the magazine and bolt do not always work well together.
The sights on the Jarmann M1884, as first issued, were graduated to a distance of 2,400 m (2,620 yd), and the original issue ammunition had a muzzle velocity of about 485 to 500 m/s
Metre per second
Metre per second is an SI derived unit of both speed and velocity , defined by distance in metres divided by time in seconds....
. At first the gun used paper-wrapped lead bullets but soon changed to a steel jacketed bullet
Full metal jacket bullet
A full metal jacket is a bullet consisting of a soft core encased in a shell of harder metal, such as gilding metal, cupronickel or less commonly a steel alloy. This shell can extend around all of the bullet, or often just the front and sides with the rear left as exposed lead...
. During production, the sights were modified, and M1884s with serial numbers higher than 4330 also had a combat sight— by folding the sight arm fully forward, a V-notch was revealed. The combat sight was graduated to 430 m (470 yd), since the path taken by the bullet did not rise over 1.80 meters (6 ft) at this distance. The M1884s with the combat sight were also equipped with a sidemounted volley sight, intended for indirect volley fire over long distances. To be effective, an entire company would have to fire at the same time, which would ensure that at least some of the bullets found their targets. The volley sight was used at distances beyond 1600 meters (about one mile).
Ammunition
The aforementioned Norwegian-Swedish committee also designed the 10.15 x 61R10.15 x 61R
The 10.15×61 mmR cartridge was developed for use in the Norwegian Jarmann rifle. It is a rimmed, centerfire cartridge, and was initially loaded with black powder and a lead bullet wrapped in paper...
cartridge that the various prototypes as well as the service weapon were chambered for. Originally a black powder round with a paper-wrapped lead bullet
Bullet
A bullet is a projectile propelled by a firearm, sling, or air gun. Bullets do not normally contain explosives, but damage the intended target by impact and penetration...
, it was later loaded with smokeless powder
Smokeless powder
Smokeless powder is the name given to a number of propellants used in firearms and artillery which produce negligible smoke when fired, unlike the older gunpowder which they replaced...
and a full metal jacket bullet
Full metal jacket bullet
A full metal jacket is a bullet consisting of a soft core encased in a shell of harder metal, such as gilding metal, cupronickel or less commonly a steel alloy. This shell can extend around all of the bullet, or often just the front and sides with the rear left as exposed lead...
. More than 5 million cartridges were manufactured for the M1884, in addition to several thousand specialty cartridges. The following different variations on the 10.15 x 61R cartridge have been identified:
- 10.15 Ball, rounded tip, lead bullet wrapped in paper, black powder (possibly testing-only round)
- 10.15 Ball, flat tip, lead bullet wrapped in paper, black powder
- 10.15 Ball, flat tip, full metal jacketFull Metal JacketFull Metal Jacket is a 1987 war film produced and directed by Stanley Kubrick. It is an adaptation of the 1979 novel The Short-Timers by Gustav Hasford and stars Matthew Modine, Vincent D'Onofrio, R. Lee Ermey, Arliss Howard and Adam Baldwin. The film follows a platoon of U.S...
, smokeless powder - 10.15 Gallery, round lead bullet (for use indoors or at short ranges)
- 10.15 Gallery, same as above but with a ring crimped around the neck of the case
- 10.15 Blank, unpainted wooden 'bullet', smooth case
- 10.15 Blank, same as above but with six long ridges pressed into the case
- 10.15 Blank, same as above but with six long and six short ridges pressed into the case
- 10.15 Dummy, red wooden 'bullet' going all the way to the bottom of the case, six long and six short ridges pressed into the case, and two rings crimped around the neck of the case
- 10.15 Dummy, as above but with just the six long ridges and rings around the neck
- 10.15 Dummy, as above but with brown wooden 'bullet' and two rings crimped around the neck of the case (tests only).
- 10.15 Harpoon round, a blank round crimped shut, used only in the M28 harpoon gun
- 10.15 Harpoon round, as above but closed with a crimped lid
Accuracy
Muzzle velocity
Muzzle velocity is the speed a projectile has at the moment it leaves the muzzle of the gun. Muzzle velocities range from approximately to in black powder muskets , to more than in modern rifles with high-performance cartridges such as the .220 Swift and .204 Ruger, all the way to for tank guns...
of the Jarmann.
The 10.15 mm bullet fired by the Jarmann was fully enfilading
Enfilade and defilade
Enfilade and defilade are concepts in military tactics used to describe a military formation's exposure to enemy fire. A formation or position is "in enfilade" if weapons fire can be directed along its longest axis. A unit or position is "in defilade" if it uses natural or artificial obstacles to...
(meaning that the path of the bullet would pass through a man-sized target) up to 438 m (479 yd), and at a range of 600 metres (660 yd) it did not spread more than 61 cm (24 in) with uncoated lead bullets and 46 cm (18 in) with jacketed bullets. This compared very favorably to the Remington M1867
Remington M1867
The Remington rolling block M1867 was the first truly modern rifle to be adopted by the Norwegian Army. Nominally it had a caliber of 4 Norwegian decimal lines, the actual caliber was 3.88 Norwegian decimal lines , and it fired an 12.615 mm rimfire round.-Birth of the M1867:In the 1860s the...
, then the Norwegian standard weapon, which was enfilading out to 300 m (330 yd) and had a spread at 600 m of 96 cm (38 in).
In comparison, the Gras rifle displayed a spread of 89 cm (35 in) and the Mauser
Mauser
Mauser was a German arms manufacturer of a line of bolt-action rifles and pistols from the 1870s to 1995. Mauser designs were built for the German armed forces...
rifle (presumably a Gewehr 71) had a spread of 80 cm (31.5 in), both at 600 m (660 yd).
Service
Krag-Jørgensen
The Krag-Jørgensen is a repeating bolt action rifle designed by the Norwegians Ole Herman Johannes Krag and Erik Jørgensen in the late 19th century. It was adopted as a standard arm by Denmark, the United States of America and Norway...
in 1894. A further 1500 were manufactured for the Swedish Navy
Swedish Navy
The Royal Swedish Navy is the naval branch of the Swedish Armed Forces. It is composed of surface and submarine naval units – the Fleet – as well as marine units, the so-called Amphibious Corps .In Swedish, vessels of the Swedish Navy are given the prefix "HMS," short for Hans/Hennes...
in the same period. In Norwegian service, it replaced the Remington M1867
Remington M1867
The Remington rolling block M1867 was the first truly modern rifle to be adopted by the Norwegian Army. Nominally it had a caliber of 4 Norwegian decimal lines, the actual caliber was 3.88 Norwegian decimal lines , and it fired an 12.615 mm rimfire round.-Birth of the M1867:In the 1860s the...
and the last few kammerlader
Kammerlader
The Kammerlader, or "chamber loader", was the first Norwegian breech loading rifle, and among the very first breech loaders adopted for use by an armed force anywhere in the world. A single shot black powder rifle, the kammerlader was operated with a crank mounted on the side of the receiver. This...
s still in use.
When the weapon was chosen and first issued, the military considered it a very good weapon. It had a good rate of fire and had less than half the spread of the Remington M1867 at 600 m (46 versus 96 cm). It was later eclipsed, however by the radical development of firearms at the time. Within a decade it was phased out and replaced by the Krag-Jørgensen
Krag-Jørgensen
The Krag-Jørgensen is a repeating bolt action rifle designed by the Norwegians Ole Herman Johannes Krag and Erik Jørgensen in the late 19th century. It was adopted as a standard arm by Denmark, the United States of America and Norway...
rifle. Even though it was phased out, several second-line units were issued the weapon in 1905, when war between Norway and Sweden was considered imminent.
Towards the end of their use in the armed forces, the original gunpowder cartridges were replaced by cartridges filled with smokeless powder. Despite the increase in muzzle velocity, the sights were not altered, thus radically decreasing the accuracy of the rifle.
Fate of the Jarmanns
Jarmann M1884s in their original condition are now extremely rare. During the 1920s and 1930s, a number of the surplus rifles was either sold to civilians or rebuilt into M28 harpoonHarpoon
A harpoon is a long spear-like instrument used in fishing to catch fish or large marine mammals such as whales. It accomplishes this task by impaling the target animal, allowing the fishermen to use a rope or chain attached to the butt of the projectile to catch the animal...
guns.
Operation Weserübung
Operation Weserübung was the code name for Germany's assault on Denmark and Norway during the Second World War and the opening operation of the Norwegian Campaign...
, it was possible for civilians to buy surplus Jarmann rifles for about a quarter of what a brand-new Krag-Jørgensen
Krag-Jørgensen
The Krag-Jørgensen is a repeating bolt action rifle designed by the Norwegians Ole Herman Johannes Krag and Erik Jørgensen in the late 19th century. It was adopted as a standard arm by Denmark, the United States of America and Norway...
would cost. Despite the reasonable price, it appears that very few were actually sold. Attempts were also made to sell the rifles and ammunition abroad. In 1929, about 5000 rifles were sold to a German firm, but the fate of these Jarmanns is unknown. In 1936 King Ibn Saud from Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
initiated talks to buy 20,000 Jarmanns with ammunition for his police force, but the request was turned down by the Norwegian parliament, who claimed that the sale of such outdated weapons would reflect badly upon Norway. In 1938 a private investor — Trygve G. Hygen, a former captain in the Norwegian Army — caused a minor international incident
International incident
An international incident is a seemingly relatively small or limited action or clash that results in a wider dispute between two or more nation-states...
when he offered to sell Jarmann rifles to Ceylon. The British Consulate General
Consul (representative)
The political title Consul is used for the official representatives of the government of one state in the territory of another, normally acting to assist and protect the citizens of the consul's own country, and to facilitate trade and friendship between the peoples of the two countries...
complained to the Norwegian government, pointing out that Ceylon was British and they wanted full control of all weapons sold there. The Norwegian government reprimanded Hygen, and the offer was withdrawn. Attempts were also made by Hygen to sell Jarmanns to Lithuania
Lithuania
Lithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark...
, Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
, Nicaragua
Nicaragua
Nicaragua is the largest country in the Central American American isthmus, bordered by Honduras to the north and Costa Rica to the south. The country is situated between 11 and 14 degrees north of the Equator in the Northern Hemisphere, which places it entirely within the tropics. The Pacific Ocean...
, Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
, Italy and the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, but without any takers.
Occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany
The occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany started with the German invasion of Norway on April 9, 1940, and ended on May 8, 1945, after the capitulation of German forces in Europe. Throughout this period, Norway was continuously occupied by the Wehrmacht...
, since they were "too obsolete to be of interest, too modern to have lying around". It is quite possible that as many as 21,000 Jarmanns were destroyed in this fashion.
M28 Harpoon gun
Between the wars, several Norwegian gunsmiths attempted to create harpoon guns, intended for hunting sealPinniped
Pinnipeds or fin-footed mammals are a widely distributed and diverse group of semiaquatic marine mammals comprising the families Odobenidae , Otariidae , and Phocidae .-Overview: Pinnipeds are typically sleek-bodied and barrel-shaped...
s and shooting rescue lines to boat
Boat
A boat is a watercraft of any size designed to float or plane, to provide passage across water. Usually this water will be inland or in protected coastal areas. However, boats such as the whaleboat were designed to be operated from a ship in an offshore environment. In naval terms, a boat is a...
s in distress. Seeing a ready market, and having access to the several thousand Jarmanns in storage, Kongsberg Våpenfabrikk designed a harpoon gun referred to as the M28.
Comparison with contemporary rifles
The Jarmann was, at the time of its adoption, considered a good weapon. By comparing it to the Remington M1867, which was the standard issue rifle in the Norwegian Army, as well as against the standard service rifles of Germany, France and the United Kingdom at the time it is clear that the Jarmann indeed was an excellent weapon for its time, particularly in its accuracy, range and enfilading effect.| Rifle | Jarmann M1884 | Remington M1867 Remington M1867 The Remington rolling block M1867 was the first truly modern rifle to be adopted by the Norwegian Army. Nominally it had a caliber of 4 Norwegian decimal lines, the actual caliber was 3.88 Norwegian decimal lines , and it fired an 12.615 mm rimfire round.-Birth of the M1867:In the 1860s the... |
Mauser Mauser Mauser was a German arms manufacturer of a line of bolt-action rifles and pistols from the 1870s to 1995. Mauser designs were built for the German armed forces... Gewehr 71/84 |
Gras rifle | Martini-Henry Martini-Henry The Martini-Henry was a breech-loading single-shot lever-actuated rifle adopted by the British, combining an action worked on by Friedrich von Martini , with the rifled barrel designed by Scotsman Alexander Henry... |
| Accuracy at 600 m | 46 cm (18.1 in) | 96 cm (37.8 in) | 80 cm (31 in) | 89 cm (35 in) | 69.5 cm at 1,100 m |
| Enfilading | 438 m (1,437 ft) | 300 m (984 ft) | 350 m (1,150 ft) | 379 m (1,243 ft) | 346 m (1,135 ft) |
| Effective range | 2,400 m (2,620 yd) | 900 m (980 yd) | Unknown | Unknown | 1,370 m (1,500 yd) |
| Rate of fire Rate of fire Rate of fire is the frequency at which a specific weapon can fire or launch its projectiles. It is usually measured in rounds per minute , or per second .-Overview:... |
Unknown | 13 round/min | Unknown | Unknown | 8 to 12 round/min |
| Magazine capacity | 8 | None | 8 | None | None |
| Calibre | 10.15 x 61R | 12.17 x 44 rimfire | 11.15 x 60R | 11 x 59R | .450/577 (11.455 x 65R) |
| Muzzle velocity Muzzle velocity Muzzle velocity is the speed a projectile has at the moment it leaves the muzzle of the gun. Muzzle velocities range from approximately to in black powder muskets , to more than in modern rifles with high-performance cartridges such as the .220 Swift and .204 Ruger, all the way to for tank guns... |
500 m/s (1,640 ft/s) | 381 m/s (1,250 ft/s) | 430 m/s (1,411 ft/s) | 455 m/s (1,493 ft/s) | 416 m/s (1,365 ft/s) |
| Barrel length | 850 mm (33.5 in) | 951 mm (37.4 in) | Unknown | Unknown | 840 mm (33.1 in) |
| Total length | Unknown | 1355 mm (53.3 in) | Unknown | Unknown | 1245 mm (49 in) |
| Loaded weight | 4.5 kg (10 lb) | 4.32 kg (9.52 lb) | Unknown | Unknown | 3.83 kg (8.5 lb) |
See also
Other Norwegian rifles:- KammerladerKammerladerThe Kammerlader, or "chamber loader", was the first Norwegian breech loading rifle, and among the very first breech loaders adopted for use by an armed force anywhere in the world. A single shot black powder rifle, the kammerlader was operated with a crank mounted on the side of the receiver. This...
- Remington M1867Remington M1867The Remington rolling block M1867 was the first truly modern rifle to be adopted by the Norwegian Army. Nominally it had a caliber of 4 Norwegian decimal lines, the actual caliber was 3.88 Norwegian decimal lines , and it fired an 12.615 mm rimfire round.-Birth of the M1867:In the 1860s the...
- Krag-PeterssonKrag-PeterssonThe Krag-Petersson rifle was the first repeating rifle adopted by the armed forces of Norway and one of the first repeating arms used anywhere in the world. Developed by Ole Herman Johannes Krag, the action of the Krag-Petersson was uniquely actuated by an oversized hammer...
- Krag-JørgensenKrag-JørgensenThe Krag-Jørgensen is a repeating bolt action rifle designed by the Norwegians Ole Herman Johannes Krag and Erik Jørgensen in the late 19th century. It was adopted as a standard arm by Denmark, the United States of America and Norway...
Comparable weapons from the same era:
- The German MauserMauserMauser was a German arms manufacturer of a line of bolt-action rifles and pistols from the 1870s to 1995. Mauser designs were built for the German armed forces...
Gewehr 71/84 and Gewehr 88 - The French Lebel Model 1886 rifleLebel Model 1886 rifleThe Lebel Model 1886 rifle is also known as the "Fusil Mle 1886 M93", after a bolt modification was added in 1893. It is an 8mm bolt action infantry rifle which entered service in the French Army in April 1887...
and its forerunner the Gras rifle - The British Martini-HenryMartini-HenryThe Martini-Henry was a breech-loading single-shot lever-actuated rifle adopted by the British, combining an action worked on by Friedrich von Martini , with the rifled barrel designed by Scotsman Alexander Henry...
and Lee-MetfordLee-MetfordThe Lee-Metford rifle was a bolt action British army service rifle, combining James Paris Lee's rear-locking bolt system and ten-round magazine with a seven groove rifled barrel designed by William Ellis Metford...
Sources and references
- Doyon, Keith M1879 & M1881 Jarmann / M1884, M1887 & M1887/90 Jarmann Last retrieved 16 August 2005
External links
- The Jarmann rifle - Background history
- The Jarmann rifle - Shooting and reloading
- Trond Wikborg's (Norwegian gun collector) page on the Jarman M1884
- Page with some pictures and information on the Jarmann
- More pictures of the Jarmann
- Closeups of the Jarmann bolt assembly
- Photo of the M28 from the left side, right side with harpoon and closeup of harpoon and line.
- A photograph of two rather corroded rounds for the M28 .
- The M28 in use