It's great to be able to exhibit items which many people have seen only in books or old newsreel film. Above is one such item.
This is a real relic example of the Fallschirmjäger Gewehr 42 or FG42. This semi automatic/automatic weapon utilised the "gases" that are produced when a cartridge is fired to help re-cock the weapon. Such weapons have the advantage of being lighter to operate, however if the gas chamber was allowed to block with debris then the weapon could fail. On the FG42 the chamber is below the main barrel. You can see where the 10 round box magazine fitted to the left hand side of this rare weapon.

A couple of years later and believe it or not this is the same gun! Due to the scarcity of original parts this weapon has been restored to almost original condition by using some reproduction parts. I'm sure that visitors will have their own views on whether the wholesale rebuilding of such an item is correct.
We'd be very interested in seeing more FG42's if they exist!

Exhibits List