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The QLZ-87 (Chinese: 轻兵器 榴弹发射器 自动 1987, pinyin: qīng bīngqì liú dàn fāshè qì zìdòng 1987, light weapon, grenade launcher, automatic, 1987 in English), also known as the Type 87 grenade launcher, is a Chinese automatic grenade launcher.

History[]

The QLZ-87 was designed in the 1980s as a support weapon which enhances the firepower capabilities of a squad. Little is known about the weapon's history other than that. It is currently seeing service in China and Hong Kong.

Design Details[]

The QLZ-87 is a fully-automatic, air-cooled grenade launcher that uses gas operation. It is a further development of the experimental W87 grenade launcher. In light of Chinese designers attempting to reduce the weight of most weapons, the QLZ-87 uses a smaller grenade than most grenade launchers. The weapon's action is said to be quite similar to that of an AR-15 or M16. The weapon's gas system has a manual gas regulator. The weapon's pistol grip is located rather unusually on the right side of the weapon.

The QLZ-87's receiver is made of steel and is of a tubular shape that is notably rather slim. A carrying handle which also acts as the weapon's (non-reciprocating) charging handle is located on the top of the receiver. Drum magazines that hold 6, 9, 12 or 15 rounds are fitted onto the magazine well located at the bottom of the receiver, though the QLZ-87 seems to only use the 6 and 15-round drum magazines in regular service. The weapon comes with a fixed telescopic sight offset to the left as standard.

Ammunition[]

The QLZ-87 uses 35×32mm grenades. There are a few known variants of the grenade, such as fragmentation rounds which provide a kill zone of up to 10 metres (33 feet; 11 yards), or armor piercing rounds with a claimed penetration of 80 millimetres (3.1 inches).

References[]

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