Firearms / Assault rifles / CIS SAR-21
CIS SAR-21
General Facts
- TYPE
Assault rifle - ORIGIN
Singapore - NICKNAMES
- - DESIGNED
1996 - 1999 - DESIGNER
Ordenance Development and Engineering (ODE) - PRODUCTION
1999 - present - PRODUCERS Singapore - CIS (now ST Kinetics)
- QUANTITY
Unknown - UNIT COST
Unknown - CHARACTERISTICS
Limited costs
Rugged and reliable
Heavy and average ergonomics
Right handed use only
Introduction
The SAR-21 is an assault rifle of Singaporean origin. It was developed in the late 1990's by the Chartered Industries of Singapore (now ST Kinetics) to replace the aging M16A1 in Singaporean service. The SAR-21 is a reliable weapon with limited costs. It suffers from several limited drawbacks, such as being a right handed weapon only and a hard to reach fire selector switch.
Design
The SAR-21 is a modern bullpup assault rifle. It is gas operated and features a long stroke gas piston and a rotating bolt. The furniture is all made out of plastic with the barrel and internal mechanism being made out of metal. The integrated 1.5x optical sight doubles as carrying handle. A visible and IR laser are fitted in the handguard. There are no iron sights. Proprietary plastic translucent magazines were developed for use with the SAR-21, although STANAG magazines can also be used. Later models feature Picatinny rails for mounting optics and accessories.
Firepower
The SAR-21 fires the 5.56x45mm round from a 30 round magazine. It is available with a rifling for either M193 or NATO ammunition. It is a select-fire weapon with a cyclic rate of fire of 450 to 650 rpm. The weight of the weapon and limited rate of fire make the weapon controllable during automatic fire. The maximum effective range is about 400 meters.
Users
The SAR-21 is the standard assault rifle of the Singapore armed forces. It has also been exported in limited quantities to various nations, mostly in Asia.
SAR-21 LWC
The SAR-21 Lightweight Carbine is the latest and most compact variant in the SAR-21 family. It has a much shorter barrel, a short and slim handguard and is fitted with an aiming device.
- Specifications:
- SAR-21 LWC
| Type | Assault rifle |
|---|---|
| Caliber | 5.56x45mm M193 or NATO |
| Magazine | 30 rounds |
| Operation | Gas operated, long stroke gas piston, rotating bolt, closed bolt |
| Fire selector | 0-1-F |
| Rate of fire | 450 - 650 rpm |
| Barrel length | 0.34 m |
|---|---|
| Rifling | 6 grooves, 178 (NATO) or 305 (M193) mm right hand twist |
| Muzzle velocity | ? |
| Stock | Fixed |
| Length | 640 mm |
| Width | ? |
| Height | ? |
|---|---|
| Weight | 3.0 kg empty |
| Sights | Various sights can be fitted on Picatinny rail |
| Remarks | - |
SAR-21 MMS
The SAR-21 MMS is a version of the SAR-21 with a Modular Mounting System and a shorter barrel. The MMS consists of a top Picatinny rail as used on the SAR-21 P-rail, but also includes a triple rail assembly instead of the forearm. The integrated visible and IR laser are removed, but can be added on the accessory rails.
- Specifications:
- SAR-21 MMS
| Type | Assault rifle |
|---|---|
| Caliber | 5.56x45mm M193 or NATO |
| Magazine | 30 rounds |
| Operation | Gas operated, long stroke gas piston, rotating bolt, closed bolt |
| Fire selector | 0-1-F |
| Rate of fire | 450 - 650 rpm |
| Barrel length | 458 mm |
|---|---|
| Rifling | 6 grooves, 178 (NATO) or 305 (M193) mm right hand twist |
| Muzzle velocity | ? |
| Stock | Fixed |
| Length | 755 mm |
| Width | ? |
| Height | ? |
|---|---|
| Weight | 3.5 kg empty |
| Sights | Various sights can be fitted on Picatinny rail |
| Remarks | - |
SAR-21
The SAR-21 is the first and most produced version of the SAR-21 family of assault rifles. The SAR-21 has an integrated 1.5x optical sight, a full size barrel and a smooth handguard that features a visible and IR laser. A sharpshooters version is also available. This has a 3x optical sight instead of the 1.5x optical sight. Otherwise it is completely similar.
- Specifications:
- SAR-21
| Type | Assault rifle |
|---|---|
| Caliber | 5.56x45mm M193 or NATO |
| Magazine | 30 rounds |
| Operation | Gas operated, long stroke gas piston, rotating bolt, closed bolt |
| Fire selector | 0-1-F |
| Rate of fire | 450 - 650 rpm |
| Barrel length | 508 mm |
|---|---|
| Rifling | 6 grooves, 178 (NATO) or 305 (M193) mm right hand twist |
| Muzzle velocity | 945 m/s (NATO), 970 m/s (M193) |
| Stock | Fixed |
| Length | 805 mm |
| Width | ? |
| Height | ? |
|---|---|
| Weight | 3.82 kg empty |
| Sights | 1.5x optical sight |
| Remarks | - |
SAR-21 P-rail
The SAR-21 P-rail is a version of the SAR-21 with a Picatinny accessory rail on top of the weapon instead of the integrated 1.5x optical sight. The charging handle extends to the left side of the weapon instead of upwards. Unlike the SAR-21 MMS it does not feature additional rails and has a full size barrel.
- Specifications:
- SAR-21 P-rail
| Type | Assault rifle |
|---|---|
| Caliber | 5.56x45mm M193 or NATO |
| Magazine | 30 rounds |
| Operation | Gas operated, long stroke gas piston, rotating bolt, closed bolt |
| Fire selector | 0-1-F |
| Rate of fire | 450 - 650 rpm |
| Barrel length | 508 mm |
|---|---|
| Rifling | 6 grooves, 178 (NATO) or 305 (M193) mm right hand twist |
| Muzzle velocity | 945 m/s (NATO), 970 m/s (M193) |
| Stock | Fixed |
| Length | 805 mm |
| Width | ? |
| Height | ? |
|---|---|
| Weight | 3.6 kg empty |
| Sights | Various sights can be fitted on Picatinny rail |
| Remarks | - |
SAR-21 GL
The SAR-21 GL is the grenade launching version of the SAR-21. A variety of mounts for either the 40GL and M203 have been observed. It is believed that a version of the M203A1 has become the standard.
- Specifications:
- SAR-21 GL
| Type | Assault rifle |
|---|---|
| Caliber | 5.56x45mm M193 or NATO |
| Magazine | 30 rounds |
| Operation | Gas operated, long stroke gas piston, rotating bolt, closed bolt |
| Fire selector | 0-1-F |
| Rate of fire | 450 - 650 rpm |
| Barrel length | 508 mm |
|---|---|
| Rifling | 6 grooves, 178 (NATO) or 305 (M193) mm right hand twist |
| Muzzle velocity | 945 m/s (NATO), 970 m/s (M193) |
| Stock | Fixed |
| Length | 805 mm |
| Width | ? |
| Height | ? |
|---|---|
| Weight | 5.3 kg empty |
| Sights | 1.5x optical sight |
| Remarks | with M203 grenade launcher |
SAR-21 LMG
The SAR-21 LMG is a light machine gun version of the SAR-21. It is similar to the SAR-21, but differs in firing from the open bolt position and in having a forward grip and heavier barrel. The barrel is slightly longer, much heavier and features a fixed foldable bipod. The barrel is not of a quick change design.
- Specifications:
- SAR-21 LMG
| Type | Light support weapon |
|---|---|
| Caliber | 5.56x45mm M193 or NATO |
| Magazine | 30 rounds |
| Operation | Gas operated, long stroke gas piston, rotating bolt, open bolt |
| Fire selector | 0-1-F |
| Rate of fire | 450 - 650 rpm |
| Barrel length | 513 mm |
|---|---|
| Rifling | 6 grooves, 178 (NATO) or 305 (M193) mm right hand twist |
| Muzzle velocity | 945 m/s (NATO), 970 m/s (M193) |
| Stock | Fixed |
| Length | 810 mm |
| Width | ? |
| Height | ? |
|---|---|
| Weight | 5 kg empty |
| Sights | 1.5x optical sight |
| Remarks | fixed folding bipod |
5.56x45mm M193 & NATO
All variants of the SAR-21 can fire the 5.56x45mm M193 and NATO round.
