Is there such thing as M1911, I always thought they are K1911 long rifle and K1911 Carbine.
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Is there such thing as M1911, I always thought they are K1911 long rifle and K1911 Carbine.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kli
No there isn't. It's actually a G11 (G = Gewehr = rifle). K11 is the short rifle version (K = Karabiner).
Please note: the German word Karabiner is freely used to describe what we would call "standard length" rifles or short rifles. A Lee-Enfield No.1 or No.4 would also be described as a Karabiner!
So if you see the word Karabiner do not assume that the writer means a real shorty! It just means that it is not a real long rifle, like a Gew98 or a Swiss G11.
A bit more complicated due to the multiple languages spoken in the different regions of the country.
Most German speaking Swiss I know refer to the long rifles as lg96/11 and lg1911 for lange gewehr(long rifle), even though officially it supposed to be IG for Infanterie-gewehr(infantry rifle). Might be a generational thing, dependant on their age.
In the French parts, "Karabiner" is replaced with the French word for it, mousqueton. So K11 and K31 become mq11 and mq31 in the french speaking parts of Switzerland. Remember the Three Musketeers?
Don't want to get into the Italian and Romansh speaking regions and what they call them.
The long one is called G11 and the short one K11.
Many K11 were builded from former model 1889/1900 short rifles or 1905 cavalry carbines.
Look all the same but serial numbers give you the real origins.
I have one converted from a 1889/1900 carbine used by airballoon troops.
K31/43