The ZH-29 was a semi-automatic rifle developed in Czechoslovakia during the late 1920s, and used by the Chinese National Revolutionary Army.
== Overview == The ZH-29 is a gas-operated semi-automatic service rifle with a tilting-bolt locking system similar to that which would be later used in the Sturmgewehr 44; although while the bolt of the German gun tilts vertically, that of the ZH-29 does so to the left side. Externally the most distinctive feature is that the barrel is offset at a slight angle to the receiver to compensate for this. Also unusually, the rifle uses an aluminium barrel jacket. An upgraded variant was designated as the ZH-32. In China, Zhang Zuolin's army received 150 ZH-29 and 100 ZH-32 rifles, and the provincial troops of Guangdong also received 33 ZH-32. A derivative prototype was made before 1932 at the Mukden (Shenyang) Arsenal. It is unlikely that these rifles saw action during the Sino-Japanese War. A version of the ZH-29 rifle was chambered in .276 Pedersen cartridge and was submitted to US Army trials but was unsuccessful. During the last stages of the development of the AK-47 assault rifle, the testing grounds committee advised Mikhail Kalashnikov to redesign the trigger group of the AK-46 rifle prototype along the lines of the ZH-29 rifle, which he did. The testing grounds committee also advised every competitor on how to generally improve their firearm designs.
== Users == China: 210 imported in 1930-31 Ethiopia: 100 ZH-32s Italy: Presumably captured from Ethiopia Japan: (Experimental prototype copy developed from captured examples from China) Lithuania Thailand
== See also == Weapons of Czechoslovakia interwar period Kbsp wz. 1938M
References
External links
Popenker, Maxim (28 October 2010). "ZH-29 rifle (Czechoslovakia)". Modern Firearms. World Guns. Retrieved October 8, 2023. "Rifle 7.92 mm Automatic ZH 29". REME Museum of Technology. The Corps of Royal Electrical & Mechanical Engineers. Archived from the original on March 13, 2012. Retrieved December 25, 2012. McCollum, Ian (11 March 2011). "Czech ZH29 rifle". ForgottenWeapons.com. Retrieved December 25, 2012. McCollum, Ian (June 7, 2011). Czech ZH29 early semiauto rifle (YouTube). ForgottenWeapons.com. Archived from the original on 2021-12-21. Retrieved December 25, 2012. Patents charging device patent gas piston rod patent gas pressure regulator patent firing mechanism patent
