SIG SG 542
| SG 540 | |
|---|---|
The SIG SG 540
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| Type |
Assault rifle (SG-540, SG-543) Battle Rifle (SG-542) |
| Place of origin | Switzerland |
| Service history | |
| In service | 1977–present |
| Used by | See Users |
| Production history | |
| Designer | Schweizerische Industrie Gesellschaft (SIG) |
| Designed | 1970s |
| Manufacturer | MANURHIN INDEP FAMAE |
| Produced | 1977–2002 |
| Variants | SG 542, SG 543 |
| Specifications | |
| Weight | SG 540: 3.52 kg (7.76 lb) fixed stock SG 542: 3.55 kg (7.8 lb) SG 543: 3 kg (6.6 lb) folding stock |
| Length | SG 540: 950 mm (37.4 in) stock extended / 733 mm (28.9 in) stock folded SG 542: 1,000 mm (39.4 in) stock extended / 754 mm (29.7 in) stock folded SG 543: 805 mm (31.7 in) stock extended / 569 mm (22.4 in) stock folded |
| Barrel length | SG 540: 460 mm (18.1 in) SG 542: 465 mm (18.3 in) SG 543: 300 mm (11.8 in) |
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| Cartridge | SG 540, SG 543: 5.56×45mm NATO SG 542: 7.62×51mm NATO |
| Action | Gas-operated, rotating bolt |
| Rate of fire | 650–800 rounds/min |
| Muzzle velocity | SG 540: 980 m/s (3,215 ft/s) SG 542: 820 m/s (2,690.3 ft/s) SG 543: 875 m/s (2,870.7 ft/s) |
| Effective firing range | 100–500 m sight adjustments |
| Feed system | 20- or 30-round detachable box magazine |
| Sights | Rear: rotating diopter drum; front: hooded post |
The SG 540 is a 5.56×45mm NATO assault rifle developed in the early 1970s by Schweizerische Industrie Gesellschaft (SIG, currently SAN Swiss Arms AG) based out of Neuhausen, Switzerland as a private venture primarily destined for export markets and as a potential replacement for the 7.5×55mm Swiss SG 510 automatic rifle known as the Stgw 57 in Swiss service.
Work on a new generation of lightweight rifle using the intermediate 5.56mm round began at SIG in the 1960s and resulted in the somewhat unsuccessful SG 530-1 design that employed a gas-assisted roller-delayed blowback operating mechanism which proved too complicated and expensive to manufacture. As a result, in 1969 SIG chose to dispense with the complex roller-delayed action opting instead for a design using the more robust and simple piston-operated rotating bolt locking mechanism (derived from the Soviet 7.62×39mm AK assault rifle). This combination was to be successful and the rifle entered production as a family of weapons consisting of the base 5.56mm SG 540, the 7.62mm SG 542 battle rifle and the 5.56mm SG 543 carbine, where both 5.56mm variants were designed for use with 5.56×45mm NATO M193 ammunition, while the SG 542—the full size 7.62×51mm NATO rifle cartridge.
Production began between 1973–1974, but due to Swiss federal restrictions on firearms exportation, manufacturing had to be carried out at the MANURHIN (Manufacture de Machines du Haut Rhin) facility in Mulhouse, France.
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