Valmet M82
Encyclopedia
The Valmet M82 is a bullpup
assault rifle
with a Valmet M76
internal design created by Finnish
company Valmet
.
in 1978 and discontinued production in 1986.
Only ~ 2,000 M82 were manufactured, mostly as semi-automatic version in 5.56 mm NATO caliber for ODIN International ltd. in Alexandria, Virginia. Few samples were issued to the Finnish Army
paratroopers, but the rifle was found unsuitable as service weapon. One issue that cropped up during its short service life was that the rear sight of an uncased rifle had a tendency to hit the lower face, nose and cheekbones of the paratrooper during landing. The rifle was also ill-balanced, as nearly all the weight was in the rear of the rifle and its urethane stock was very prone to chipping and breaking.
caliber as model 255 470 and for 7.62x39mm caliber as model 255 490. It has a Valmet M76
receiver, which is made from stamped and riveted sheet metal, constructed inside urethane
stock. Trigger of the weapon is polymer to prevent heat of the barrel conducting to it, as the trigger is mounted to the barrel of the gun.
The offset sight arrangement and right side ejection mean that this weapon is very difficult to be used by left handers and not possible to use left handed in an urban or close combat situation. Modern bullpups have eliminated this drawback by using centrally-aligned optics and either forward, downward or rearward ejection to allow ambidextrous use in combat situations.
Bullpup
Bullpups are firearm configurations in which the action is located behind the trigger group and alongside the shooter's face, so there is no wasted space for the buttstock as in conventional designs. This permits a shorter firearm length for the same barrel length for improved maneuverability, and...
assault rifle
Assault rifle
An assault rifle is a selective fire rifle that uses an intermediate cartridge and a detachable magazine. Assault rifles are the standard infantry weapons in most modern armies...
with a Valmet M76
Valmet M76
The RK 62 76, also known as the Valmet M76 is a gas operated assault rifle of Finnish origin, which was also made in semi-automatic version for civilian market. Based on the earlier Rk 62 , it is a modified AK-47. The gun was in production from 1976 to 1986...
internal design created by Finnish
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
company Valmet
Valmet
' was a Finnish state-owned conglomerate. Valmet was formed in 1951, when the state of Finland decided to group their various factories working on war reparations to the Soviet Union under one company...
.
History
The M82 was introduced in FinlandFinland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
in 1978 and discontinued production in 1986.
Only ~ 2,000 M82 were manufactured, mostly as semi-automatic version in 5.56 mm NATO caliber for ODIN International ltd. in Alexandria, Virginia. Few samples were issued to the Finnish Army
Finnish Army
The Finnish Army is the land forces branch of the Finnish Defence Forces.Today's Army is divided into six branches: the infantry , field artillery, anti-aircraft artillery, engineers, signals, and materiel troops.-History of the Finnish Army:Between 1809 and 1917 Finland was an autonomous part of...
paratroopers, but the rifle was found unsuitable as service weapon. One issue that cropped up during its short service life was that the rear sight of an uncased rifle had a tendency to hit the lower face, nose and cheekbones of the paratrooper during landing. The rifle was also ill-balanced, as nearly all the weight was in the rear of the rifle and its urethane stock was very prone to chipping and breaking.
Technical Data
It is chambered for 5.56x45mm NATO5.56x45mm NATO
5.56×45mm NATO is a rifle cartridge developed in the United States and originally chambered in the M16 rifle. Under STANAG 4172, it is a standard cartridge for NATO forces as well as many non-NATO countries. It is derived from, but not identical to, the .223 Remington cartridge...
caliber as model 255 470 and for 7.62x39mm caliber as model 255 490. It has a Valmet M76
Valmet M76
The RK 62 76, also known as the Valmet M76 is a gas operated assault rifle of Finnish origin, which was also made in semi-automatic version for civilian market. Based on the earlier Rk 62 , it is a modified AK-47. The gun was in production from 1976 to 1986...
receiver, which is made from stamped and riveted sheet metal, constructed inside urethane
Polyurethane
A polyurethane is any polymer composed of a chain of organic units joined by carbamate links. Polyurethane polymers are formed through step-growth polymerization, by reacting a monomer with another monomer in the presence of a catalyst.Polyurethanes are...
stock. Trigger of the weapon is polymer to prevent heat of the barrel conducting to it, as the trigger is mounted to the barrel of the gun.
Features
The M82 features an unusual sight arrangement. The front and rear sights, similar to a Bren Machinegun or some other belt fed machineguns, are offset to the left. The sights are aligned normally with the right eye, but are offset from the barrel about 1.25 inches. This results in the rifles windage being accurate for the zeroed range only. Shots taken at closer ranges to zero will hit to the right of the target and shots taken at longer ranges will hit to the left of the target. With the sight offset from the barrel by approximately 1.25", if the rifles windage were zeroed at 50 meters, at 100 meters distance the windage error would be about 1.25 inches and at 200 meters distance the windage error would be 3.75 inches. This results in a margin of error making shots over 300 meters difficult. Since the fixed sights do not allow for any elevation adjustment, it is clear that this weapon is meant for combat accuracy (6" at 100 meters) at short/urban ranges only and not meant to be a precision sniping tool.The offset sight arrangement and right side ejection mean that this weapon is very difficult to be used by left handers and not possible to use left handed in an urban or close combat situation. Modern bullpups have eliminated this drawback by using centrally-aligned optics and either forward, downward or rearward ejection to allow ambidextrous use in combat situations.