DP-Degtyaryov machine gun

DP-Degtyaryov machine gun

 DP-Degtyaryov machine gun

  DP-Degtyaryov machine gun

  DP-Degtyaryov machine gun

  DP-Degtyaryov machine gun

  DP-Degtyaryov machine gun

  DP-Degtyaryov machine gun

  DP-Degtyaryov machine gun

  DP-Degtyaryov machine gun

  DP-Degtyaryov machine gun ammo

  DP-Degtyaryov machine gun

 DP-Degtyaryov machine gun

Design

The DP-28 was an improvement from the earlier DP-26, both designed by Vasily Degtyaryov. The DP-28 was relatively cheap and easy to manufacture - early models had fewer than 80 parts. The DP was especially able to withstand dirt. In tests it was buried in sand and mud and was still capable of firing more than 500 rounds. The DP's main drawback was its bipod; it could not withstand much abuse and broke easily.[citation needed] Also, the magazine, a pan with 47 rounds that fed in from the top, was relatively small and continuous fire for long periods could not be relied on as much as contemporary belt fed weapons. It took some time[clarification needed] to load a new magazine onto the weapon, and each magazine took a much longer time to reload with ammunition. However, the DP's lower cyclic rate of fire meant a reduced risk of the barrel overheating.

History

The DP had a reputation as an effective light support weapon. It was nicknamed the "Record player" by Red Army troops because the disk-shaped pan magazine resembled a gramophone record and its top cover which revolves while the weapon is fired. Captured by the Finnish army in the Winter War and the Continuation War to partially replace the Lahti-Saloranta M/26, the weapon received the nickname Emma in the service after a popular waltz. In the summer of 1944, the Finnish army had about 3400 Finnish-made Lahti-Salorantas and 9000 captured Soviet-made Degtyarevs on the front.
The Chinese Nationalists received 5,600 DPs from the USSR and used them in the Second Sino-Japanese War and the Chinese Civil War. The Chinese Communists used the DP in the Korean War and copied the DPM as the Type 53.
A number of the RP-46 variant of the DP have been spotted in present day Somalia, in use with militant forces, and also among rebel forces in the 2011 Libyan uprising to overthrow Muammar Gaddafi.
[Variants

DPM, modernized version adopted in 1943-44, with a more robust bipod fastened to the cooling jacket and the recoil spring housed in a tube projecting from the rear of the receiver which necessitated a pistol grip for this model of the weapon (manufactured in China as the Type 53)
DA, for mounting in aircraft (Дегтярёва авиационный, Degtyaryova Aviatsionny; ДА)
DT and DTM, for mounting in AFVs (Дегтярёва танковый, Degtyaryova Tankovy; ДТ and ДТМ)
DTM-4, (ДТМ-4) quad mounted variant.[2]
RP-46, belt fed version adopted in 1946 (manufactured in China as the Type 58)
A semi-automatic-only version that was released in the United States in 2006