Caracal pistol

Caracal F pistol.

Caracal C pistol.

Characteristics

	Caracal F	Caracal C
Type	Double Action Only semiautomatic
Caliber(s)	9x19 Luger, 9x21 IMI, .357SIG, .40SW
Weight unloaded	750 g	700 g
Length	208 mm	196 mm
Barrel length	104 mm	93 mm
Magazine capacity	18 rounds	15 rounds

The Caracal pistol was first shown to the public in 2007. It was designed by the team of European small arms designers, led by Austrian W.Bubits, who previously participated in design of the Steyr M pistol. The Caracal pistols are manufactured in UAE and already in use by military and police forces of several Middle East nations. These pistols also available in several European countries for commercial sales. To prove reliability and durability of Caracal pistols, these guns were submitted for official trials under NATO, German Armed Forces and German Police testing protocols, and Caracal pistols successfully passed all these trials.

Caracal pistols are available in two basic versions, Caracal F (full size) and Caracal C (compact), which are internally similar but have different dimensions and magazine capacities. Caracal pistols are short recoil operated, locked breech weapons that use modified Browning-type locking system with tilting barrel. The trigger is of double-action only type, striker fired, with patented pre-cocked striker system, which allows for low bore axis placement. No manual safeties are provided, but guns are fitted with automated trigger and firing pin safeties. Pistol frames are made from impact-resistant polymer, barrels and slides are manufactured from carbon steel. Double stack magazines hold 18 rounds of 9mm ammo. Pistols are offered with standard fixed sights of with proprietary 'Quick sights' with coloring inserts. An integral Picatinny rail on the frame, below the barrel, allows for easy installation of useful add-ons, such as laser-aiming module or tactical flashlight. Other accessories, designed for this pistol, such as detachable shoulder stocks, forward grips, red dot sight mounts etc are available from manufacturer.

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Nambu Type 94

Nambu Type 94 pistol.

Nambu Type 94 pistol with slide locked back.

Nambu Type 94 pistol, partially disassembled.

Characteristics

Type	Single Action semiautomatic
Caliber(s)	8x22 Nambu
Weight unloaded	580 g empty
Length	181 mm
Barrel length	87 mm
Magazine capacity	6 rounds

Nambu Type 94 pistol was adopted by Imperial Japanese Army in 1934 (year 2594 of the contemporary Japanese calendar). It was developed to complement and eventually replace the older Type 14 Nambu pistol in military service, but limited industrial capabilities of the Imperial Japan didn't let it happen. Originally only a marginally adequate pistol, by the end of WW2 the Type 94 pistol evolved into the one of the worst military sidearms of the period, due to severely deteriorated quality of materials and workmanship, used in production of this gun. Late production examples of this gun can be simply unsafe to fire, and even the early production guns, which were made to more or less high standards of fit and finish, had some undesirable and unsafe features, such as exposed trigger bar, which can cause unintended discharges if the loaded and cocked gun is handled improperly or carelessly. Total production of these pistols between 1934 and 1945 is estimated at 65 - 70 thousands guns.

Nambu Type 94 pistol is short recoil operated, locked breech weapon. To lock the barrel and slide during early stages of recoil, it employs a vertically sliding locking block, which is installed below the breech part of the barrel and allowed to rise and fall for short distance within its guiding cut. The locking block projects to both sides from the barrel, to engage cuts made on the underside of the slide. When parts are in battery, the locking block is forced up by sloped surface on the frame, locking the slide to the barrel. Upon recoil, the sloped surface in the frame allows the locking block to slip down, disengaging from the slide and unlocking it. The breech block (bolt) is made as a separate item and removable attached to the slide by a cross-bolt. The trigger is of single action type, with internal (concealed) hammer. Manual safety lever is located at the left side of the frame, above and to the rear of the grip panel. The single stack box magazine has capacity of just 6 rounds, magazine release button is located at the base of the trigger guard.

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Namby type 14

Nambu Type "A" pistol, also known as Type 04. A predescessor to the Type 14. Note automated grip safety under the triggerguard and a range ajustable rear sights, which disappear from design in the Type 14.

Nambu Type 14 pistol.

Nambu Type 14 pistol, with bolt fully retracted.

Nambu Type 14 pistol, late production, with enlarged triggerguard and magazine retention spring.

Nambu Type 14 pistol, field stripped; note detached triggerguard and a separate locking member under the barrel.

Nambu 8mm ammunition (left) shown next to 9mm Luger cartridges (right) for comparision.

Characteristics
 

Type: Single Action
Chamber: 8x22 mm Nambu
Weight unloaded: 900 g
Length: 230 mm
Barrel length: 117 mm
Capacity: 8 rounds

The type 14 pistol was designed by Japanese general Kijiro Nambu circa 1925 (14th year of the Taisho emperor, hence the official designation), as an iprovement over the earlier pistol of his design. This pistol was adopted by Imperial Japanese Army and widely used during all S-E Asia campaigns and through the World War 2 as a standard Army sidearm.

Type 14 is a recoil operated, locked breech pistol. It featured a short recoiling barrel with the bolt, moving inside the cylindrical barrel extension. The barrel to bolt lock is achieved by the vertically tilting locking member, which is cammed down after the short recoil of the barrel, stopping the barrel and releasing the bolt to complete the ejection and reloading cycyle. The bolt has two symmetrically located recoil springs and a knurled knob at the rear for manual operation. Pistol is striker fired, with single action trigger and manual safety on the left side of the frame, above the trigger. Interestingly enough, the triggerguard with the trigger can be removed from the fun for clearing and maintenance when gun is field stripped. Type 14 Nambu pistol uses single column magazine that holds 8 proprietary bottlenecked rounds of ammunition. Gun has fixed sights and a belt loop at the rear of the frame, above the grip. It can be said that the overall design of the Type 14 was inspired part by the P08 Luger (overall shape) and part by the C-96 Mauser (locking system), but owerall design is quite original. Late production pistols, made in the 1940s, can be distinguished by the enlarged triggerguard that allowed the pistol to be used in winter gloves. These pistols also featured additional magazine retention spring mounted in the front strap of the grip, to avoid magazine loss during the use of the pistol, ans simplified bolt knob.

8x22mm Nambu ammunition use a bottle-necked case with 103 grains (6.67 gramm) jacketed bullet ower the 3.5 grains (0.23 gramms) of smokeless powder, producing muzzle velocities of about 1065 fps (325 m/s) from the Type 14 pistol. In terms of energy this round is far inferior to other pistol cartridges, used by major powers in WW2, such as .45ACP, 9mm Luger and 7.62mm TT.

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