Flapper Lock Prototype Friberg/Kjellman Semi-Auto Rifle
Russ Chastain 06.16.20
In this video from about 2.5 years ago, Ian of Forgotten Weapons takes a look at a prototype of a “flapper lock” semi-automatic rifle whose basic design was patented in 1870 but which couldn’t be made viable until smokeless powder came onto the scene in a big way.
The rifle was built in Sweden, and is one of fifty-something rifles made by the company to be used as sales tools in an attempt to procure lucrative government contracts. These prototypes were manufactured in a wide array of configurations and calibers, the one in the video being 8x57mmS.
For a semi-automatic centerfire rifle built around 120 years ago, it’s certainly impressive. But no military contracts were procured, and the company went belly-up.
It has a selector switch that allows it to become a manually-operated repeater rather than a semi-auto; that’s kinda cool.
The safety doubles as a face protector… for real. It’s a flip-up piece located a ways behind the receiver, which blocks the trigger when down — and when you flip it up so the rifle can fire, it prevents you from placing your face in a position to be pummeled by the bolt when it flies rearward.
Inside, a rather small lever is the thing that flings the bolt open and then throws it forward again. Interesting, and rather ingenious.
Unlike many other FW videos, we get to watch the gun being fired at the range. It’s a bit of a jam-O-matic, but recoil is quite mild. We found these photos of a Swedish semiauto conversion, and have no information on the design. Have you seen this rifle?
Any insights? The only reason we’re even saying it’s Swedish is the “Stockholms Vapenfabrik” inscription on the receiver. The rear sight is a Lange type like on a Gewehr 98, but I don’t know what (if anything) can be implied from that.
