vz. 33

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puška vz. 33
Type	Service rifle
Place of origin	Czechoslovakia
Service history
In service	1934-1945
Used by	Czechoslovakia, Germany.
Wars	World War II
Production history
Designed	1933
Manufacturer	Československá zbrojovka Brno, a.s.
Produced	1934-1942
Number built	approx. 150,000
Variants	Gewehr 33/40 (t)(produced for Germany)
Specifications
Weight	3,35 kg
Length	995/1000 mm (G 33/40 (t) )
Barrel length	490 mm

Cartridge	7,92 x 57 mm (8 mm Mauser)
Caliber	8 mm
Action	Bolt-action
Muzzle velocity	820 m/s
Maximum range	1000 metres
Feed system	5-round internal magazine, two-row, integral box, with quickly detachable floorplate, loaded with stripper clip.

The puška vz. 33^[1] ("rifle model 1933", sometimes referred to as krátká puška vz. 33 - "short rifle model 33") was a Czechoslovak bolt action rifle that was based on a Mauser type action, designed and produced in Československá zbrojovka in Brno during the 1930s in order to replace the obsolete Mannlicher vz. 1895 carbines of the Czechoslovak četnictvo (gendarmerie). The manufacturers designation was vz. 16/33 (model 16/33), and although the rifle is often called carbine vz. 33, that was not an official designation of the Czechoslovak armed forces .

The design was partially based on the Mauser Musketon M12, produced prior to World War I for Brazil, but the bolt mechanism was the same as in standard Czechoslovak army vz. 24 rifle. Production of a slightly modified version continued during the German occupation of Czechoslovakia for the German armed forces. This version was 5 mm longer (due to a different buttplate), a metal plate was attached to the left side of the gunstock and with a German type sling fitted this rifle was issued to German mountain troops as the Gewehr 33/40 (t).

For the Czechoslovak army, gendarmerie and Finanční stráž (literally Finance Guard, which was a custom and border protection armed service under the command of the Czechoslovak Department of Finance) some 25,300 vz. 33 rifles were produced until 1940. From 1940 until 1942 another 131,400 of the Gewehr 33/40 (t) variant were produced for the German army. The German armed forces also used the rifles previously issued to the Czechoslovak military.

A few prototypes of G 33/40(t) with wooden folding stocks were produced for the German paratroopers, but this variant never went into serial production. ^[2]