DShK Model 1938
Soviet State Arsenals · Machine Gun · In Service · 1938
Also known as: Dushka, DShK 1938, DShKM, Degtyaryov-Shpagin Krupnokaliberny, Type 54, 12.7mm Degtyaryov
Overview
The DShK Model 1938 is a Soviet-designed heavy machine gun chambered in the formidable 12.7x108mm cartridge, the Soviet answer to the American .50 BMG. Originally developed by Vasily Degtyaryov in 1930 as the DK and redesigned by Georgi Shpagin in 1938 with an improved rotary belt-feed mechanism, the DShK entered service with the Red Army in 1939 and has remained in continuous military use for over 85 years. The weapon operates via a gas-operated long-stroke piston action firing from an open bolt, fed from 50-round non-disintegrating metallic link belts, and delivers a cyclic rate of approximately 600 rounds per minute with devastating terminal ballistics out to 2,000 meters. Mounted on Kolesnikov's wheeled infantry carriage with a detachable anti-aircraft trident, or pintle-mounted atop T-34, KV-1, and IS-series tanks for point-defense against low-flying aircraft, the DShK became the primary Soviet heavy fire support weapon of the Second World War. Its 17.5 kilojoules of muzzle energy will defeat light armor, engage aircraft, and demolish field fortifications with equal effectiveness. The improved DShKM variant of 1946 replaced the complex Shpagin rotary feed with a simpler shuttle mechanism, and the design was widely license-produced as the Chinese Type 54, exported to virtually every Warsaw Pact and Soviet-aligned state, and copied throughout the developing world. Though eventually superseded in Soviet frontline service by the lighter NSV Utyos in 1971, the DShK and DShKM remain in active combat use across dozens of nations and continue to appear on every major battlefield of the 21st century.
Specifications
| Weight (empty) | 34000 g (1199.3 oz) |
| Weight (loaded) | 157000 g (5538.0 oz) |
| Overall Length | 1625 mm (63.98") |
| Barrel Length | 1070 mm (42.13") |
| Action Type | Gas Operated Long Stroke |
| Firing Mechanism | Open Bolt |
| Trigger Type | Single Stage |
| Magazine Capacity | 50 rounds |
| Magazine Type | Belt |
| Muzzle Velocity | 850 m/s (2789 fps) |
| Muzzle Energy | 17500 J (12907 ft·lbf) |
| Effective Range | 2000 m (2187 yd) |
| Maximum Range | 7000 m (7655 yd) |
| Rate of Fire | 600 rpm |
| Barrel Rifling | Right Hand |
| Rifling Twist | 381 mm (15.00") |
| Number of Grooves | 8 |
| Frame Material | Steel |
| Barrel Material | Steel |
| Finish | Blued |
Calibers
- 12.7x108mm · primary — also known as 12.7 Soviet, 12.7mm DShK, 12.7x108mm Russian
Features
- Firing modes: Full Automatic
- Feed systems: Belt Fed Non Disintegrating, 50 Round Belt
- Safety mechanisms: Manual Safety, Trigger Safety
- Features: Quick Change Barrel, Finned Barrel Cooling, Muzzle Brake, Anti Aircraft Sights, Wheeled Mount, Open Bolt Firing, Crew Served, Spade Grips
Variants
- DShKM Model 1946 — Improved Feed Mechanism
- Type 54 — Chinese Copy
- Type 54-1 — Chinese Infantry Variant
- W-85 — Chinese Lightweight Variant
- NSV Utyos — Successor Design
Service history
Operators
- Soviet Red Army · adopted 1938 · as DShK
- Russian Armed Forces · adopted 1991 · as DShKM
- People's Liberation Army · adopted 1954 · as Type 54
- Korean People's Army · adopted 1950 · as DShK
- People's Army of Vietnam · adopted 1955 · as DShK
- Indian Armed Forces · as DShKM
- Egyptian Armed Forces · as DShK
- Syrian Arab Army · as DShKM
- Iraqi Armed Forces · as DShKM
- Islamic Republic of Iran Army · as DShKM
- Afghan National Army · as DShKM
- Polish Armed Forces · adopted 1950 · as DShKM
- East German National People's Army · as DShKM
- Cuban Revolutionary Armed Forces · as DShKM
- Ukrainian Armed Forces · adopted 1991 · as DShKM
Conflicts
- World War II (Eastern Front) (1941-1945)
- Chinese Civil War (1945-1949)
- Korean War (1950-1953)
- Vietnam War (1955-1975)
- Arab-Israeli Wars (1948-1982)
- Soviet-Afghan War (1979-1989)
- Gulf War (1990-1991)
- Iraq War (2003-2011)
- War in Afghanistan (2001-2021)
- Syrian Civil War (2011-present)
- Russo-Ukrainian War (2014-present)
Production
Estimated total produced: 1,000,000 · Production years: 1938-present
Over one million units produced across Soviet DShK/DShKM production (approximately 9,000 during WWII, with massive post-war expansion), Chinese Type 54/W-85, and licensed copies in Pakistan, Iran, Iraq, and Romania. Still manufactured today by multiple nations.
Origin
Country of origin: Soviet Union
Designer: Vasily Degtyaryov
Notes
Often confused as a pure Degtyaryov design, the DShK is actually a collaborative effort: Vasily Degtyaryov provided the base gas-operated action derived from his DP-27 light machine gun, while Georgi Shpagin contributed the belt-feed mechanism that made the weapon practical. The original 1938 model used Shpagin's complex rotary feed drum, which was replaced in the 1946 DShKM with a simpler slider-style feed. Production totals across all Soviet and licensed variants exceed one million units. The weapon's standard Kolesnikov mount allows rapid conversion between ground role (on wheels with a low shield) and anti-aircraft role (trident tripod extension). Quad-mounted DShK installations were common Soviet anti-aircraft platforms throughout WWII. The Chinese Type 54 copy remains in widespread service and has been exported globally; the W-85 is a modernized Chinese lightweight variant. Combat weight with the Kolesnikov wheeled mount is approximately 157 kg; the gun alone weighs 34 kg. The DShK was the primary anti-helicopter threat faced by US aircrews in Vietnam and by Soviet aviation in Afghanistan, where Mujahideen fighters (armed with captured and CIA-supplied DShKs) downed hundreds of Soviet Mi-8 and Mi-24 helicopters before the introduction of Stinger missiles.
Background
Soviet troops nicknamed the DShK 'Dushka' - literally 'sweetheart' or 'dear' in Russian - an affectionate term for a weapon that weighed as much as a motorcycle. Mounted atop T-34 and IS-2 tanks, the Dushka's characteristic muzzle signature became the last thing thousands of Luftwaffe pilots ever saw, and decades later American helicopter crews in Vietnam learned to fear the same distinctive thud-thud-thud as it punched 12.7mm holes through Huey airframes. The weapon has now served in continuous combat for over 85 years with no end to its career in sight - the original 1938 production guns captured by Wehrmacht in Stalingrad would still be combat-effective if issued to a Ukrainian trench today.