GSh-18 (ГШ-18) | |
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Type | Semi-automatic pistol |
Place of origin | Russia |
Service history | |
In service | 2000–present |
Used by | Russia |
Wars | Second Chechen War Russo-Georgian War Syrian Civil War Russo-Ukrainian War |
Production history | |
Designer | V.P. Gryazev[1] A.G. Shipunov[1] |
Designed | 1998–2000[2] |
Manufacturer | KBP Instrument Design Bureau |
Unit cost | 14,810 roubles (2008) 23,314.44 roubles (2012)[3] |
Produced | 2001[1]– |
Variants | various civilian versions |
Specifications | |
Mass | 590 g (21 oz) |
Length | 184 mm (7.2 in) |
Barrel length | 103 mm (4.1 in) |
Width | 34 mm (1.3 in) |
Height | 136 mm (5.4 in) |
Cartridge | 9×19mm Parabellum 9×19mm 7N21 +P+ 9×19mm 7N31 +P+ |
Action | Short recoil, rotating barrel striker fired |
Muzzle velocity | 535 m/s (1,755 ft/s)–570 m/s (1,870.1 ft/s) |
Feed system | 18-round detachable box magazine |
Sights | Fixed; front blade and rear notch |
The GSh-18 (Cyrillic: ГШ-18) is a 9mm semi-automatic pistol developed by the KBP Instrument Design Bureau in Tula during the 1990s. The pistol's name is derived from its designers—Gryazev and Shipunov—and its magazine capacity of 18 rounds.[1][2]
The GSh-18 entered service in 2000 with the Russian Ministry of Justice.[4] It was only in 2003 that the pistol was widely adopted under Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 166.[4]
The GSh-18 is a rotating-barrel, short recoil, locked-breech pistol with 10 locking lugs spaced equally around the barrel, the large locking surface area resulting in a strong lockup,[5] making it suitable for high-velocity ammunition loads. The GSh-18 may be employed using standard 9×19mm Parabellum rounds, but was designed for the high velocity, Russian armour-piercing 9×19mm 7N31 round. The pistol incorporates a pre-set striker.[1] The slide and working parts are steel, and the weapon has a polymer frame.
Two different designs of grip have been observed.[5] The magazine capacity is 18 rounds, and an additional round may be carried in the chamber. The magazine release is reversible for left-handed shooters and the extractor doubles as a loaded chamber indicator. The magazines are a double stack, double feed design common to Russian military handguns.
The GSh-18 is designed to fire standard 9×19mm Parabellum as well as the Russian 9×19mm 7N21 (Cyrillic: 7Н21) and 7N31 (Cyrillic: 7Н31) +P+ armor-piercing rounds.[6] The 7N31, has demonstrated penetration of 8 mm of steel (15–20 meters of distance).[1][7]
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Modern personal defense weapons (PDWs) and cartridges | ||
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Personal defense weapons |
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PDW-caliber pistols | ||
PDW cartridges |