Danish Bang Rifle for British Trials
July 24, 2015 Ian McCollum Prototype, Semiauto Rifles 26
British trials Bang Rifle, caliber .303 (photo courtesy National Firearms Centre, Leeds, UK)
One of the first semiautomatic rifles tested by the US military was a design by a Dane named Søren Hansen Bang, which was first presented to the government in 1911. The rifles used a gas trap design which would ultimately inspire many other designers include John Garand. Basically, a sliding nosecap in front of the muzzle would capture some of the gasses from firing and be pushed forward, which in turn pulled a connecting rod and caused a lever to throw the bolt backwards. Complicated enough?
Anyway, thanks to the National Firearms Centre in Leeds, we have some photos of a .303-caliber Bang rifle sent to England for British trials. I don’t know the exact date of the trials, but the NFC lists it as a model 1927 rifle.
