I live in Switzerland and I owned a "Karabiner 11", a gift from my brother. In my Military Service , my rifle was the Stgw 57 ("Sturmgewehr 57"), which shoots the same cartridge (GP 11 = "Gewehrpatrone 11") like the K11 and the K31 (7.5 mm Swiss). The "Stgw 57" is a very precise, easy to shoot semi/full Auto rifle. The big disadvantage is it's weight and size. It is rather a light machine-gun...But very reliable, very rugged and powerful. A bit a pity, that "Hickok45" does not present it. Later, I shot the actual Swiss Army Rifle, the Stgw90 in 5.56 NATO. Greetings from Switzerland!
das stgw 57 ist etwas ganz feines habe damit während des jungschützenkurses geschossen. werde es mir anschaffen, weil ich es dem stgw90 vorziehe. gruss
The Stgw 57 is super hard to find over here , even in semi auto form. Not to mention really expensive. There are some parts kits hanging around , but getting a properly manufactured receiver is next to impossible. It is the grail rifle for all Swiss collectors here in the states . Your rifles have a good following here . I have three myself and enjoy them a lot .
I finished my service days after we got the Fass 90. This meant I got a Fass 57 as parting present, I also got to keep my Fass 90 on loan from the army as I keep my qualification every year. I now am 56 and still have the rifles in my cellar safety box. Apart for these I have my Dad's and my Father in Law's K31 rifles that I sometimes go and use at the range. The oldest is my grandad's "Mahagoni Flöte" which was a 1911 Rifle, this too very effective and satisfactory to use at the 300 metres range. All the best from Ticino. PS the guy you refer to as having the rifles in the locker is called Mark Heim and was World Champ in combat shooting some time back, he actually lives about 10 minutes drive from my home and about one minute drive from my Dad's.
When Kaizer Wilhelm ask the Swiss president how large an army he could field he said," One million men", the Kaiser said ," What if I sent a four million man army over the Alps?", the Swiss president said," My troops will fire four shots then go home"
I'm not sure it's all that much faster, but it is definitely interesting. It would have the potential to be a little faster probably. The Lee Enfield would still be hard to beat with that great bolt action and 10-round magazine. Then again, take someone who is skilled at loading quickly with stripper clips, and the Mauser or '03 Springfield are very quick to reload and shoot, too.
No kidding? See, I was right; they WOULD be good at making watches, maybe even handy pocket knives if they put their minds to it. My guess is, they could even figure out how to make knives with multiple types of blades on them, at least, that's MY impression from seeing this interesting straight-pull bolt design. I could be wrong, of course.
Thanks. Good to meet you. Of course, how could anybody NOT be in a good mood while hanging out at a gun show! :-) That was one of the best "small town" gun shows I've seen - pleasantly surprised. It was good to run into several viewers from that part of Kentucky, and they were all wearing shoes. :-)
I lived all my life in Belgium but when we were kids my parents took my brother and I with them on several (5 or so) holidays to Switzerland during summer or wintertime. And now I have taken my wife and kids about 3 years in a row as well to that magnificent country which is great in many ways, very beautiful and great quality products such as guns/rifles. At least they understand it is ok for citizens to have guns when being a responsible law abiding person. Kudos for another nice vid !
The Rubin's bolt is an engineering work of art when you watch how it operates and the rifle itself is incredibly accurate too, Not an expensive rifle even here in the UK,but definetly one for shooting at long distances.
Basically you're right with your comments about Swiss gun and ammunition laws. As a member of the Swiss army (almost every male Swiss citizen) you had to keep your personal rifle plus the so called "Taschenmunition" (pocket ammunition) at home. The "Taschenmunition" was a tin container with 50 rounds for your rifle (a K31, Stgw 57, Stgw 90) but you were not allowed to open the can with the ammunition anyway (opening was only allowed in times of mobilization). In every village there was a federal shooting club which offered the ammunition for very low cost and availability of ammunition for sport shooting purpose was not an issue at all. Since 2007 the "Taschenmunition" is not handed out any more but you still have to keep the rifle at home as long as you're in active service of the Swiss army. After completion of the mandatory service in the army you can apply to keep the rifle for sport shooting purpose. Since WW I all Swiss army rifles have been excellent sport shooting rifles and all types (K31, Stgw 57 and Stgw 90) are still used in tournaments nowadays. The K11, K31 is a true marksman rifle if equipped with a modern diopter sight and is still very popular for competition shooting. In fact, all Swiss army rifles and pistols were developed with sport shooting as a primary purpose in mind. There's basically only one type of sport shooting category in Switzerland for rifles. These rifles are used in competitions at 300 m distance only - no water melons, no soda bottles are hurt.
Also something interesting to know about Switzerland is that since the age of 16 you are allowed to be a "young shooter". It means you get member of a local shooting society and the army lends you an army assault rifle to train and do competitions.
Thank you for the review of this carbine. I am happy that you appreciate our Swiss guns, because I just love my range time spent with a fine S&W revolver or 1911 :)
If your Swiss and finished with your service you can choose to keep your rifle. You'll get a permit and the gun gets converted to single fire. That will cost you 150 Bucks. Now the Guns is considered active and has to be shot at least once in a year at the local or neighboring gun clubs in order to keep its status. Usually you get a letter of invitation by the government with all the dates. No more ammo stored at home since 2012. Before it was 50 cartridges in a white metal box that looked like a can of Spam. Arguably this measure was taken to prevent suicides and to make us feel all a little bit more safe :(. Every village as at least one gun range. Not to be mixed up with recreational gun ranges. Its all marksman business once your enter the facility. Shooting position is usually pron at 300 meters. 20 shot program where a minimum set of points has to be achieved. First 20 cartridges are provided by the government. If you fail the program you can repeat it but you have to pay for the ammunition. (very humilating). Never heard of guy not getting it by the second time. Usually it is due to bad weather.
So, can you also decide to get a different rifle / get a license and get a semi-auto or 30-06 bolt action and go hunt mountain goats? or can you just keep your military rifle?
tung nguyen You had to "correct" him on his speaking? If he is from Switzerland, his native tong is probably Swiss-German or some similar mixed language, so he shouldn't be expected to be grammatically correct when speaking English.....especially when the man is trying to teach us something. I count at least FIVE things that you did wrong while trying to "correct" his grammar. Since you are obviously a fool and aren't mature enough to be on this great channel of learning, fellowship and entertainment, I'll teach you something. (1&2) When you said (You're) you should have used a period or a (;) afterwards and not a comma, in the way you were trying to use it. (3) Your (S) should have been capitalized if you used a period like I suggested. (4) You should have used a comma after (sorry). (5) You didn't use a period at the end of your obnoxious statement. (sorry had to) Who had to? You had to? She had to? It had to? Had to do what? Another Know-Nothing-Know-It-All. Just what TH-cam needs. Thank's for showing your ignorance.
gopferdami correct me if i'm wrong. but i heard, that the most suicides in switzerland are still performed with these "former" military rifles, people kept after their service. spam cans don't seem to have good safety features. ;)
This is my grandfather's gun. He got the karabiner 31 in 1941. He performed his active service in Thun and then on the southern border with italy until 1945. br from Switzerland
Since 2008 we can't keep the ammo at home from the military, but you can buy it in every single gun shop and keep that ammo at home. After service we can still keep the army rifle at home if we want. My Dad got the K11 from his grandfather, the K31 from his father and he has the sig510 (stgw57) and me and my brother got the sig550 (stgw90) And all those weapons are from the military. It's been a long tradition here and i'm very proud of it.
@@blazinpuffs Any Swiss who served in the army can take his service rifle home. The reason for this is called home defense. Everyone served in Switzerland is automatically a reservist.
the thing i like about this gun channel is that hickok goes in depth with the gun and shows how to reload it and his personal tips about it. Keep up the good work!
Great video Hickok, as always ! I love when you are talking about my country, and especially about our weapons ^^. Few years ago, we were allowed to keep a 50 rounds box, now we're not but we still keep the rifle at home. My grandpa had a k31, my father a sig510 (fass57, stgw57), I got a sig550 (fass90, stgw90).
i am Swiss and i have one. I got it from my grandfather after he died. He used it in the army. Next to his watch this is the most precious thing i own. not the most expensive but the most precious
I'm swiss, born and raised there. What's interesting about our "weapon-distribution" system is that theoretically every male citizen over 18 would have an assault rifle (military surplus) WITHOUT ammunition in his house; all this is due to the fact that the military service in Switzerland is mandatory, so they give you a gun; in the last decades, however, more and more people didn't want to join the military and so the government offers some alternatives that don't involve weapons or giving weapons. This is what concerns the military and the fact that every male theoretically would have a gun in his house. For what concerns the purchase of a firearm as a civilian there are laws and regulations that defines how many and where would a person put his rifle/rifles. But is not difficult to have a gun as long as there is no criminal history behind an individual. To buy a gun you must also have a proof of some experience in shooting (not everywhere I believe but most of the times) but since almost every man goes to the military that counts. Hope it helped; cheers! :)
+Shizam Shizap What he meant is that the army doesn't give you ammunition to take home. You can however buy your own ammunition at a gunstore. The army used to give every soldier some ammunition to take home. In case of a surprise attack against Switzerland you would use it to fight your way to the assembly area. Some paranoid people managed to change that, thinking that it would make Switzerland "safer" and lower our already extremely low crime rate. It had however no effect on said crime rate.
Even tho I don't have ammunition I still want to keep my SIG 550 at home for, I would say sentimental reasons. I didn't shoot, walk, run, crawled through mud and spent countless hours cleaning this lady just to have it taken from me at the end of my "recruit school". When I go shooting, I usually buy the rounds at the range and use them all the same day
Emperor Javik i think it was more of an image problem the military tried to avoid.. switzerland has one of the highest suicide rates in europe and suicide by service weapon is rather common and not giving out surplus ammunition actually did lower the occurence of that particular case quite a bit
1911 models no, but K31 in .22 (no conversion, factory made) exist. There are two K31's .22 models, one produce by Hammerli and another one by Waffenfabrik Bern
Switzerland is a beautiful country! I'm in the US Army and have visited there on occasion. Don't know much about the firearms there, but I do know that everything made there is absolutely beautiful, including that rifle! Glad you could have the chance to shoot this Hickock!
Oh no! The K-31 beats the K-11 on looks every way till Sunday. I have a select version of the K-31 in a walnut stock with tiger striping . . . it's stunning to look at, but more fun to shoot.
The k31 was engineered to be lighter and as accurate as the 1911 carbine with the same length. The main difference though is the locking lugs are in the front of the bolt instead of middle or rear. This creates more accuracy due to less flex in the bolt when fired.
Great videos! Update 2017: if you finished your service in Swiss army and you want to keep your rifle, you must have accomplished at least two "Feldschiessen" (a public, licence free competition in 300meters Rifle or 25/50meters Pistol, shot with Swiss army guns) and all obligatory shoots (who is still in militia must each year shoot at 300 meters range and have certain number of points) in the past three years. I have done all my obligatory shoots every year and I'm just be demobilized, couldn't keep my rifle because have not done "Feldschiessen"....
In Switzerland we have the so called "Feldschiessen", a public, licence free competition in 300meters Rifle or 25/50meters Pistol, shot with Swiss army guns and some "certified" commercial Pistols.
Can't forget the good old Shutzenfest. Where they Drink beer all day and shoot guns, well a gun that's mounted in a special way so that it can only shoot towards the target. My K31 is slathered in match stickers from past shutzenfest's going back many years. I love how the swiss do many things and embracing shooting sports is one of them. The have a impressive marksmanship culture that I would love to witness one day.
Alright! This is the video I've been waiting for! I have a couple of Mausers and a couple Mosin-Nagants, and others here and there, but my K31s are by far my favorite military surplus type rifle. Thanks so much, Hickok! As an aside, in case no one else has mentioned it; the reason you'll practically never see a Schmidt-Rubin rifle with a dark, trashed-out bore is because the Swiss never used corrosive primers in their ammo. Anyhow, thanks again, & keep up the great work! Life is indeed good.
I am not swiss. But my favorite guns are swiss (K-31 & P226), and the gun I'd like to have the most one day is swiss (Vetterli). And politically, I think every country should be like switzerland. They don't give a f*** about wars in other countries, and they've got direct democrazy. The swiss can not only vote for politicians, they can vote for and against nearly everything. The government can not do anything against the will of the people. That's how democracy is supposed to be.
Hey Hickok45 i just want to thank you for taking the time and money to make all these videos!! They are very informative and fun to watch. I have got so much information from you its great. The past 4 rifles i have bought have come from watching your videos.THANKS again!! And keep em coming!! If im ever in Tennessee i must find you to shoot at the compound would be amazing!!! Much love from NY!!!
nowadays, as before, you have all your military equipment and your gun with you, but the ammo is kept in another place... and yes, everyone has to practice shooting, quite often. There is though the idea that guns could be also kept in a special place, but I do not think this will happen soon. In any case you need some kind of unique culture to do this, everyone has guns, but very very few crimes are done with them, if ever, something VERY different from what you see in the US!
K31 owner here and can attest to the accuracy of Swiss rifles. If anyone here reloads 7.5 Swiss you can get brass from Grafs, Midway or Gunbroker. Something else to note for reloaders: the GP11 surplus ammo is Berdan primed. If you want factory ammo that is boxer primed stick with Prvi or Hornady. Hornady uses Prvi brass with the Prvi or Grafs headstamp. Thanks for the video hickok!!
Great to see you having fun with the old Karabiner. I am Swiss, "built" in 1965. I spend my army weeks in the 80ties ... in Payere as an anti aircraft gunner. Yes, we had our rifle back home with some ammo. In case of an emergency, you woud have to gather at a meeting point where they would hand out the uniform and other essential things. The rifle would bing you safe to that secret meeting-place. Every year you would spend 3weeeks in the army. I seviced 300days all together as a basic soldier. In addition you would have to pass a test with the rifle in a 300m shooting range every year. In the worst case, the swiss army had 600000 man in uniform. In a small country whith (then) only 6-7 Million citizen, that is quet impressive.
I never appreciated straight pull firearms until just recently when I was introduced to a friend's K11. I did some research into the Schmidt-Rubin family of rifles and ended up buying 2 K31s and 960 rounds of GP11 ammunition.
Thanks for this demonstrations on the Swiss 1911.Purchased a K-31 about 10 years ago at a Big-5 sporting goods for $130.Excellent condition,ammo extremely expensive(about 50cents per round)so it is better to find dies and reload.Now the price of this rifle has skyrocketed.But a very fine rifle.Thanks again.
Nice carbine :) one of my favorites. About our rifles, laws have changed a bit since the good old days. People who do serve the country actually have they'r rifle/sidearm at home, the difference is that before they gave us a box of emergency ammo to use only if war is declared, now they do not get that anymore.And for those who do not want to keep a rifle at home now they have the choice to leave it at the arsenal. Still a lot of people keep the rifle at home and shoot them often in competitions
my wife is swiss. her family still had the rifle her grandfather was issued during ww2. yes the swiss keep their weapons at home. i have held this rifle and it is beautifully maintained.
I recently acquired my fathers 1911 model that was manufactured in 1918 Looking for a replacement magazine and knew that I could find information on this great page! Thanks for sharing!
I bought mine back in early 60's out a barrel in what I think was K-mart and they never questioned my age. Kept it for years and my Dad and I would shoot it in the back yard on occasion. I remember we shot an axe blade in half with it once and I was very impressed with it's power. Did a full custom job on the stock and cut it down to carbine length for my gunsmith class project in tech school. I sold it at a gunshow some years later and have missed it ever since.
I've watched a lot of hickok45 videos, and I've finally come to an interesting and unexpected conclusion: it apparently takes AT LEAST fifty years to properly sight in a rifle! With rifles over fifty years old, hickok45 never misses--newer than that, and there's no telling WHERE they shoot!
THanks for pulling that apart Hickok. I had the same problem the first time I fired a straight pull. I kept thinking "I hope this doesn't kick back into my face)
I am not a Swiss but have lived here for 12 years and had been given an enviable chance of owning and shooting the Swiss family of military rifles starting from the Schmidt-Rubin 1911, K11, K31, Fass57 and Fass90. I have learned to love this beautiful and peaceful country and should a time comes that its territory had to be secured from foreign invasion then I'll be the first one to volunteer for it.
I had a K31 and sold it during hard times years ago and regret it but since have picked up a K11 and I love it. i think its got more character than the later K31. Very accurate rifles and the Swiss only used match ammo in them. One thing thats cool about them is you can usually take off the butt plate and you will find the name of the soldier it was issued to and his home address, some people have even contacted some of these soldiers still alive and they were surprised where their rifle ended up and were quite happy to hear their rifle was still around. My rifle had this card too. Pretty neat! I would say they are probably one of the most beautiful and interesting rifles a person could have in a C&R collection and they are one of the most accurate.
I'm from Switzerland... and what you said is pretty much true. All 19 yrs old men in Switzerland you have to do your military service which is 300 days. Then until you're 34 you're asked to keep a rifle at home and you have to each year shoot 30 rounds on a 330 yards target. Today we use the SIG550, most people don't have the ammunition at home. About 1 million people can be moved if needed in 3-5 days for a war. I'm 15, I started shooting last year and i have a sig550 my self at home.
Hey Hickok, I am from Switzerland, reserve officer in the Swiss army, gun owner, regular shooter and even NRA-member. Gun laws in Switzerland are less liberal than in some states in the US. However, we have a large community of gun owners here that fight every day for their rights. Almost every person at the age of 18 can buy a gun. All you need is a state permit, a "clean" criminal record and an ID. That's it. Concealed carry ist forbidden unless you have a special permit.
Hey hickok, I'm german but I got some swiss friends who toled me that you can still take your rifle full auto rifle home once you leave active service. But you can also give it into storage to a so called "zeughaus". The thing that has changed is that the army doesn't issue take home ammo with the rifle.
Thanks Hickok for this video. There was an attempt to change guns laws last Feb but was defeated. The main change is that now, people can VOLUNTARILY choose to keep their gun in the armory. Switzerland is a nation of sharpshooters...obsession with precision. It's still easy to buy guns. All bolt-action (non semi-auto), you don't need a permit. You have to register ownership, that's all..K11, K31, even Remington 700. Pistols, revolvers, semi-auto rifes - permit easy if no police record.
Such an interesting gun, and it astounds me how people just think of a "crazy idea" and it just WORKS. Like John Browning when he saw his lever rifle blowing grass or something from the gas it made from shooting then turned that idea into a Machine Gun. :) Interesting ideas and designs, so many wonderful guns.
im' living near switzerland... and all what you say is true... i know old people from swiss, and they have K11 or K31 or SIG at theyre houses.. nothing change today..
Hey Hickok, this was a sweet video. I own a k-31, but now I want to buy myself a K-11. The action on the older Swiss rifles look like they feed and eject smoothly.
I love his videos, the cool thing about it, he doesn't do much editing. Like he said on one of his videos he does all in one take so we can see all the faults.
Hi Hickok! I'm from Switzerland and here what I can tell about gun ownership in our land of "tall snowy hills" :) If you do your military service, you keep your weapon at home until you're 34 for the simple soldier (the higher your military rank the longer you will stay in the reserve), passed that age you're not more in the reserve and you can choose to keep it, for a small price or give it back. And the military gun is only full auto when on duty, at home it's set up on semi.
Hi there, I am Swiss, and I joined the Swiss army at the age of 20, back in 1966, like every Swiss male had to so at that time. I got the new Sturmgewehr 57, an assault rifle, which is very good. When the Military School was over, after three month, I had to take the gun home, together with my uniform and personal equipment, including 24 rounds of GP 11, 7,5 x 55 Swiss. I was now responsable of my gun and every jear I had to do a test in shooting. I also had to do some repeating Military Services five times three weeks, then four times two weeks until the age of 34. From then on, I had only to show my rifle and equipment once a jear, until the age of 55, that was the normal procedure, very effectif, the Army had to be ready in one day ! They used to say Switzerland has not got an Army, Switzerland IS an Army. Nowadays, the Swiss Soldiers can still take their weapons home, but without ammunition, but you can buy ammo in any gunshop. Switzerland has not always been neutral, infact, they were some very ferocious figthers in the old days and becoming independant was not an easy task. Some 200 battles have been fought on Swiss soil, against Romans, Germans, Austrians, French and Italians. But thats another story, maybe for later. By the way, the pope has a Swiss guard, because in the 1600s the Swiss mercenarys were considered the best. I like your videos a lot, my father had a K31 and my grandfather a K11, both are superbe rifles and I shot them both.
I live in Switzerland and I owned a "Karabiner 11", a gift from my brother. In my Military Service , my rifle was the Stgw 57 ("Sturmgewehr 57"), which shoots the same cartridge (GP 11 = "Gewehrpatrone 11") like the K11 and the K31 (7.5 mm Swiss). The "Stgw 57" is a very precise, easy to shoot semi/full Auto rifle. The big disadvantage is it's weight and size. It is rather a light machine-gun...But very reliable, very rugged and powerful. A bit a pity, that "Hickok45" does not present it.
Later, I shot the actual Swiss Army Rifle, the Stgw90 in 5.56 NATO. Greetings from Switzerland!
das stgw 57 ist etwas ganz feines
habe damit während des jungschützenkurses geschossen.
werde es mir anschaffen, weil ich es dem stgw90 vorziehe.
gruss
The Stgw 57 is super hard to find over here , even in semi auto form. Not to mention really expensive. There are some parts kits hanging around , but getting a properly manufactured receiver is next to impossible. It is the grail rifle for all Swiss collectors here in the states . Your rifles have a good following here . I have three myself and enjoy them a lot .
I'm from switzerland, and i have this carabine in my bedroom on the wall and i Love this rifle it's a wonderful gun.
Computer Tuning Nerds my step dad's relative created the Schmidt Rubin
@@TheAtomicWaffle which part
@@marlonmerz9850Eduard rubin
I finished my service days after we got the Fass 90.
This meant I got a Fass 57 as parting present, I also got to keep my Fass 90 on loan from the army as I keep my qualification every year.
I now am 56 and still have the rifles in my cellar safety box.
Apart for these I have my Dad's and my Father in Law's K31 rifles that I sometimes go and use at the range.
The oldest is my grandad's "Mahagoni Flöte" which was a 1911 Rifle, this too very effective and satisfactory to use at the 300 metres range.
All the best from Ticino.
PS the guy you refer to as having the rifles in the locker is called Mark Heim and was World Champ in combat shooting some time back, he actually lives about 10 minutes drive from my home and about one minute drive from my Dad's.
Braun30 a
God bless the Swiss from your American friends.
When Kaizer Wilhelm ask the Swiss president how large an army he could field he said," One million men", the Kaiser said ," What if I sent a four million man army over the Alps?", the Swiss president said," My troops will fire four shots then go home"
Best war story ever told. Tx.
Swiss made Amazing weapons, expensive, complicate, but amazing.. 😎
Switzerland is modern Sparta
Wait he did ?
I’ve heard so many variations of this story. 100k, 200k, 500k, 1m, Swiss soldier, German soldier, 2 shots, 4 shots
I'm not sure it's all that much faster, but it is definitely interesting. It would have the potential to be a little faster probably. The Lee Enfield would still be hard to beat with that great bolt action and 10-round magazine. Then again, take someone who is skilled at loading quickly with stripper clips, and the Mauser or '03 Springfield are very quick to reload and shoot, too.
The Bob Ross of firearms.
No kidding? See, I was right; they WOULD be good at making watches, maybe even handy pocket knives if they put their minds to it. My guess is, they could even figure out how to make knives with multiple types of blades on them, at least, that's MY impression from seeing this interesting straight-pull bolt design. I could be wrong, of course.
Love the slow motion in the end. The noise of the bolt being pulled and pushed and the empty cartridge hitting the floor is nice.
Thanks. Good to meet you. Of course, how could anybody NOT be in a good mood while hanging out at a gun show! :-) That was one of the best "small town" gun shows I've seen - pleasantly surprised. It was good to run into several viewers from that part of Kentucky, and they were all wearing shoes. :-)
I lived all my life in Belgium but when we were kids my parents took my brother and I with them on several (5 or so) holidays to Switzerland during summer or wintertime. And now I have taken my wife and kids about 3 years in a row as well to that magnificent country which is great in many ways, very beautiful and great quality products such as guns/rifles. At least they understand it is ok for citizens to have guns when being a responsible law abiding person. Kudos for another nice vid !
The Rubin's bolt is an engineering work of art when you watch how it operates and the rifle itself is incredibly accurate too, Not an expensive rifle even here in the UK,but definetly one for shooting at long distances.
Basically you're right with your comments about Swiss gun and ammunition laws. As a member of the Swiss army (almost every male Swiss citizen) you had to keep your personal rifle plus the so called "Taschenmunition" (pocket ammunition) at home. The "Taschenmunition" was a tin container with 50 rounds for your rifle (a K31, Stgw 57, Stgw 90) but you were not allowed to open the can with the ammunition anyway (opening was only allowed in times of mobilization). In every village there was a federal shooting club which offered the ammunition for very low cost and availability of ammunition for sport shooting purpose was not an issue at all. Since 2007 the "Taschenmunition" is not handed out any more but you still have to keep the rifle at home as long as you're in active service of the Swiss army. After completion of the mandatory service in the army you can apply to keep the rifle for sport shooting purpose. Since WW I all Swiss army rifles have been excellent sport shooting rifles and all types (K31, Stgw 57 and Stgw 90) are still used in tournaments nowadays. The K11, K31 is a true marksman rifle if equipped with a modern diopter sight and is still very popular for competition shooting. In fact, all Swiss army rifles and pistols were developed with sport shooting as a primary purpose in mind. There's basically only one type of sport shooting category in Switzerland for rifles. These rifles are used in competitions at 300 m distance only - no water melons, no soda bottles are hurt.
If soda bottles and melons were to be shot there, what kind would they be?
Also something interesting to know about Switzerland is that since the age of 16 you are allowed to be a "young shooter". It means you get member of a local shooting society and the army lends you an army assault rifle to train and do competitions.
Now it's 15 years old for the sig 550. And younger for the 22 long rife.
i even started at 12 not as jungschütz but in a "jugendschiesskurs" haha
I started with 11 with the stgw 57
the sounds in slow motion- the shot, working the bolt, brass hitting the ground - just amazing.
Wow, that's a work of art right there.
Thank you for the review of this carbine. I am happy that you appreciate our Swiss guns, because I just love my range time spent with a fine S&W revolver or 1911 :)
If your Swiss and finished with your service you can choose to keep your rifle. You'll get a permit and the gun gets converted to single fire. That will cost you 150 Bucks. Now the Guns is considered active and has to be shot at least once in a year at the local or neighboring gun clubs in order to keep its status. Usually you get a letter of invitation by the government with all the dates. No more ammo stored at home since 2012. Before it was 50 cartridges in a white metal box that looked like a can of Spam. Arguably this measure was taken to prevent suicides and to make us feel all a little bit more safe :(. Every village as at least one gun range. Not to be mixed up with recreational gun ranges. Its all marksman business once your enter the facility. Shooting position is usually pron at 300 meters. 20 shot program where a minimum set of points has to be achieved. First 20 cartridges are provided by the government. If you fail the program you can repeat it but you have to pay for the ammunition. (very humilating). Never heard of guy not getting it by the second time. Usually it is due to bad weather.
This is true, I'm swiss.
You're,sorry had to
So, can you also decide to get a different rifle / get a license and get a semi-auto or 30-06 bolt action and go hunt mountain goats? or can you just keep your military rifle?
tung nguyen You had to "correct" him on his speaking? If he is from Switzerland, his native tong is probably Swiss-German or some similar mixed language, so he shouldn't be expected to be grammatically correct when speaking English.....especially when the man is trying to teach us something. I count at least FIVE things that you did wrong while trying to "correct" his grammar. Since you are obviously a fool and aren't mature enough to be on this great channel of learning, fellowship and entertainment, I'll teach you something. (1&2) When you said (You're) you should have used a period or a (;) afterwards and not a comma, in the way you were trying to use it. (3) Your (S) should have been capitalized if you used a period like I suggested. (4) You should have used a comma after (sorry). (5) You didn't use a period at the end of your obnoxious statement. (sorry had to) Who had to? You had to? She had to? It had to? Had to do what? Another Know-Nothing-Know-It-All. Just what TH-cam needs. Thank's for showing your ignorance.
gopferdami correct me if i'm wrong. but i heard, that the most suicides in switzerland are still performed with these "former" military rifles, people kept after their service. spam cans don't seem to have good safety features. ;)
This is my grandfather's gun. He got the karabiner 31 in 1941. He performed his active service in Thun and then on the southern border with italy until 1945. br from Switzerland
Since 2008 we can't keep the ammo at home from the military, but you can buy it in every single gun shop and keep that ammo at home.
After service we can still keep the army rifle at home if we want.
My Dad got the K11 from his grandfather, the K31 from his father and he has the sig510 (stgw57) and me and my brother got the sig550 (stgw90)
And all those weapons are from the military. It's been a long tradition here and i'm very proud of it.
What's the rationale behind that?
@@blazinpuffs Any Swiss who served in the army can take his service rifle home.
The reason for this is called home defense.
Everyone served in Switzerland is automatically a reservist.
@@uwibuwi568 I mean the rationale behind not keeping the ammunition from the military?
@@blazinpuffs we had one shooting and then they decided to change the law. ever since the ammo is kept at an armory
awesome!
i am Swiss and I shot one of those a couple of months ago.
it still shoots amazingly well!
so happy and proud to see it here!
I'm looking at purchasing a k31 very soon. I just love these Swiss rifles!
My Dad gave me one of these back in the 80's and I was fascinated by the bolt design. Just recently acquired a K31 as well. Great guns!
I certainly appreciate Mr. 45's humor; "they'd probably be good at making watches, if they wanted to do that..." :)
Those rounds are massive! What a sweet bolt gun.
I've bought ammo from them ( placed an order for some last night), and they seem to do fine.
the thing i like about this gun channel is that hickok goes in depth with the gun and shows how to reload it and his personal tips about it. Keep up the good work!
Yep, even weak, hard-to-see sights beat sights that are pointed somewhere other than where the barrel is. :-)
Great video Hickok, as always ! I love when you are talking about my country, and especially about our weapons ^^. Few years ago, we were allowed to keep a 50 rounds box, now we're not but we still keep the rifle at home. My grandpa had a k31, my father a sig510 (fass57, stgw57), I got a sig550 (fass90, stgw90).
Hickok, what is your monthly budget for soda pop and watermelon?
i am Swiss and i have one. I got it from my grandfather after he died. He used it in the army. Next to his watch this is the most precious thing i own. not the most expensive but the most precious
I'm swiss, born and raised there. What's interesting about our "weapon-distribution" system is that theoretically every male citizen over 18 would have an assault rifle (military surplus) WITHOUT ammunition in his house; all this is due to the fact that the military service in Switzerland is mandatory, so they give you a gun; in the last decades, however, more and more people didn't want to join the military and so the government offers some alternatives that don't involve weapons or giving weapons. This is what concerns the military and the fact that every male theoretically would have a gun in his house.
For what concerns the purchase of a firearm as a civilian there are laws and regulations that defines how many and where would a person put his rifle/rifles. But is not difficult to have a gun as long as there is no criminal history behind an individual. To buy a gun you must also have a proof of some experience in shooting (not everywhere I believe but most of the times) but since almost every man goes to the military that counts.
Hope it helped; cheers! :)
+Isaac Dewitt What is the point of having a gun if it doesn't have ammunition? Without ammunition it's basically a paperweight.
+Shizam Shizap What he meant is that the army doesn't give you ammunition to take home. You can however buy your own ammunition at a gunstore.
The army used to give every soldier some ammunition to take home. In case of a surprise attack against Switzerland you would use it to fight your way to the assembly area.
Some paranoid people managed to change that, thinking that it would make Switzerland "safer" and lower our already extremely low crime rate. It had however no effect on said crime rate.
Even tho I don't have ammunition I still want to keep my SIG 550 at home for, I would say sentimental reasons. I didn't shoot, walk, run, crawled through mud and spent countless hours cleaning this lady just to have it taken from me at the end of my "recruit school".
When I go shooting, I usually buy the rounds at the range and use them all the same day
You can buy ammo though. Just go to a gun shop and show your Strafregisterauszug to buy some.
Emperor Javik i think it was more of an image problem the military tried to avoid.. switzerland has one of the highest suicide rates in europe and suicide by service weapon is rather common and not giving out surplus ammunition actually did lower the occurence of that particular case quite a bit
oh and the mechanism is so visually beautiful. It is a true beauty. Thank you Hickok for featuring this.
Great looking rifle. I enjoyed the history of old military rifles. Great video as always. Do they come in .22lr? :-)
there where some kits to convert it to .22lr
Zimmermann was one that produced those kits.
They didnt come in .22lr they were manifactured in 1911 and it used the gp11 (7.5mm swiss) amunition
I know this comment is wayy too late
Also there was a special coronation made version and it was chambered in .22 lr
1911 models no, but K31 in .22 (no conversion, factory made) exist. There are two K31's .22 models, one produce by Hammerli and another one by Waffenfabrik Bern
Switzerland is a beautiful country! I'm in the US Army and have visited there on occasion. Don't know much about the firearms there, but I do know that everything made there is absolutely beautiful, including that rifle! Glad you could have the chance to shoot this Hickock!
Yeah, you could say that's an error; a model 1911 rifle is much more likely to be dated 1927 than 1827! :-) Thanks.
Thanks for bringing us something different Hickock! You guys are really giving me the bug for a surplus WWII era rifle.
I always thought the K11 has a bit of a sexier look than the K31. Personal taste
Oh
Ditto.
I own a G11 the full fetcht Rifle, I realy Enjoy it
Oh no! The K-31 beats the K-11 on looks every way till Sunday. I have a select version of the K-31 in a walnut stock with tiger striping . . . it's stunning to look at, but more fun to shoot.
Ditto!
man you gotta love those old bolt-action rifles, love the simplicity of it and the wood ....
The k31 was engineered to be lighter and as accurate as the 1911 carbine with the same length. The main difference though is the locking lugs are in the front of the bolt instead of middle or rear. This creates more accuracy due to less flex in the bolt when fired.
Great videos!
Update 2017: if you finished your service in Swiss army and you want to keep your rifle, you must have accomplished at least two "Feldschiessen" (a public, licence free competition in 300meters Rifle or 25/50meters Pistol, shot with Swiss army guns) and all obligatory shoots (who is still in militia must each year shoot at 300 meters range and have certain number of points) in the past three years. I have done all my obligatory shoots every year and I'm just be demobilized, couldn't keep my rifle because have not done "Feldschiessen"....
You might need to get out of the city more often. :-) We have creatures out here in the country.
These guns are masterpieces. Love em' I just picked up my K11 carbine about a week ago, and had to get a K31 too. Well done Switzerland!
Whatever helps you shoot well. :-)
Man i love when hickok looks at these older guns. MORE MORE MORE MORE MORE MORE MORE!!!!!!!
In Switzerland we have the so called "Feldschiessen", a public, licence free competition in 300meters Rifle or 25/50meters Pistol, shot with Swiss army guns and some "certified" commercial Pistols.
Can't forget the good old Shutzenfest. Where they Drink beer all day and shoot guns, well a gun that's mounted in a special way so that it can only shoot towards the target. My K31 is slathered in match stickers from past shutzenfest's going back many years. I love how the swiss do many things and embracing shooting sports is one of them. The have a impressive marksmanship culture that I would love to witness one day.
Great job! I have the longer version of that, the 1911 Langgewehr. Greets from switzerland!!
That's not my thing, at least until my eye sight gets bad or something. :-)
Nothing more pleasing to the ears than a happy hickok
Not sure. Probably a good practice if you're handling it a lot.
Alright! This is the video I've been waiting for! I have a couple of Mausers and a couple Mosin-Nagants, and others here and there, but my K31s are by far my favorite military surplus type rifle. Thanks so much, Hickok!
As an aside, in case no one else has mentioned it; the reason you'll practically never see a Schmidt-Rubin rifle with a dark, trashed-out bore is because the Swiss never used corrosive primers in their ammo.
Anyhow, thanks again, & keep up the great work! Life is indeed good.
Someday you need to show us how big your bottle of Advil is. :)
I love the sound of that bolt being worked! great vid as always!
I am not swiss. But my favorite guns are swiss (K-31 & P226), and the gun I'd like to have the most one day is swiss (Vetterli). And politically, I think every country should be like switzerland. They don't give a f*** about wars in other countries, and they've got direct democrazy. The swiss can not only vote for politicians, they can vote for and against nearly everything. The government can not do anything against the will of the people. That's how democracy is supposed to be.
I'm starting to like the Swiss more and more every day.
Hey Hickok45 i just want to thank you for taking the time and money to make all these videos!! They are very informative and fun to watch. I have got so much information from you its great. The past 4 rifles i have bought have come from watching your videos.THANKS again!! And keep em coming!! If im ever in Tennessee i must find you to shoot at the compound would be amazing!!! Much love from NY!!!
nowadays, as before, you have all your military equipment and your gun with you, but the ammo is kept in another place... and yes, everyone has to practice shooting, quite often. There is though the idea that guns could be also kept in a special place, but I do not think this will happen soon. In any case you need some kind of unique culture to do this, everyone has guns, but very very few crimes are done with them, if ever, something VERY different from what you see in the US!
The sound that the bolt makes is amazing.
watches.... LOL
K31 owner here and can attest to the accuracy of Swiss rifles. If anyone here reloads 7.5 Swiss you can get brass from Grafs, Midway or Gunbroker. Something else to note for reloaders: the GP11 surplus ammo is Berdan primed. If you want factory ammo that is boxer primed stick with Prvi or Hornady. Hornady uses Prvi brass with the Prvi or Grafs headstamp. Thanks for the video hickok!!
this carbine is the simbol of the swiss perfection and precision...and it is very nice!
I love the way the shells pop out after firing!
I just came back inside a few minutes ago from shooting my k11. Supremely accurate.
Great to see you having fun with the old Karabiner. I am Swiss, "built" in 1965. I spend my army weeks in the 80ties ... in Payere as an anti aircraft gunner. Yes, we had our rifle back home with some ammo. In case of an emergency, you woud have to gather at a meeting point where they would hand out the uniform and other essential things. The rifle would bing you safe to that secret meeting-place. Every year you would spend 3weeeks in the army. I seviced 300days all together as a basic soldier. In addition you would have to pass a test with the rifle in a 300m shooting range every year. In the worst case, the swiss army had 600000 man in uniform. In a small country whith (then) only 6-7 Million citizen, that is quet impressive.
Cool rifle. Never seen one before. Thanks Hickok45 for posting all that you do. I watch your videos everyday.
Damn, I love bolt action rifles, the reloading noise and the case flying in the air look so cool!
It's all over the Internet. Anybody who doesn't know about it by now is probably not anybody who is going to be calling his senator anyway.
My favorite Hickock videos are always old mil-surp rifles and vintage revolvers.
Hickok45 I would like to say thank you for making these videos I have learned a lot from them
I never appreciated straight pull firearms until just recently when I was introduced to a friend's K11. I did some research into the Schmidt-Rubin family of rifles and ended up buying 2 K31s and 960 rounds of GP11 ammunition.
Me too friend. I ordered a k11. Loved it soo much I ordered 2 more. Then got an 1896/11. Next to get is the.k31. Im hooked. Rock on man.
@@jeffsnider7842 Keep up the good work... you 2, Pedro!
Thanks for this demonstrations on the Swiss 1911.Purchased a K-31 about 10 years ago at a Big-5 sporting goods for $130.Excellent condition,ammo extremely expensive(about 50cents per round)so it is better to find dies and reload.Now the price of this rifle has skyrocketed.But a very fine rifle.Thanks again.
Nice carbine :) one of my favorites.
About our rifles, laws have changed a bit since the good old days. People who do serve the country actually have they'r rifle/sidearm at home, the difference is that before they gave us a box of emergency ammo to use only if war is declared, now they do not get that anymore.And for those who do not want to keep a rifle at home now they have the choice to leave it at the arsenal. Still a lot of people keep the rifle at home and shoot them often in competitions
my wife is swiss. her family still had the rifle her grandfather was issued during ww2. yes the swiss keep their weapons at home. i have held this rifle and it is beautifully maintained.
I recently acquired my fathers 1911 model that was manufactured in 1918
Looking for a replacement magazine and knew that I could find information on this great page!
Thanks for sharing!
I bought mine back in early 60's out a barrel in what I think was K-mart and they never questioned my age. Kept it for years and my Dad and I would shoot it in the back yard on occasion. I remember we shot an axe blade in half with it once and I was very impressed with it's power. Did a full custom job on the stock and cut it down to carbine length for my gunsmith class project in tech school. I sold it at a gunshow some years later and have missed it ever since.
I've watched a lot of hickok45 videos, and I've finally come to an interesting and unexpected conclusion: it apparently takes AT LEAST fifty years to properly sight in a rifle! With rifles over fifty years old, hickok45 never misses--newer than that, and there's no telling WHERE they shoot!
hickok has already answered this question, "I don't answer IRS questions online"
you have to hand it to hickok he has class!
THanks for pulling that apart Hickok. I had the same problem the first time I fired a straight pull. I kept thinking "I hope this doesn't kick back into my face)
Thank you for one of the most intelligent and informative comments I have read in a long time.
I am not a Swiss but have lived here for 12 years and had been given an enviable chance of owning and shooting the Swiss family of military rifles starting from the Schmidt-Rubin 1911, K11, K31, Fass57 and Fass90. I have learned to love this beautiful and peaceful country and should a time comes that its territory had to be secured from foreign invasion then I'll be the first one to volunteer for it.
This is a very interesting rifle. I love how I've been getting history lessons in firearms from you Hickok. Who said history is boring? I love it!
I had a K31 and sold it during hard times years ago and regret it but since have picked up a K11 and I love it. i think its got more character than the later K31. Very accurate rifles and the Swiss only used match ammo in them. One thing thats cool about them is you can usually take off the butt plate and you will find the name of the soldier it was issued to and his home address, some people have even contacted some of these soldiers still alive and they were surprised where their rifle ended up and were quite happy to hear their rifle was still around. My rifle had this card too. Pretty neat! I would say they are probably one of the most beautiful and interesting rifles a person could have in a C&R collection and they are one of the most accurate.
What an interesting firearm. Most guns have very similar mechanical functions within their classification. Nice to see something fresh.
I'm from Switzerland... and what you said is pretty much true. All 19 yrs old men in Switzerland you have to do your military service which is 300 days. Then until you're 34 you're asked to keep a rifle at home and you have to each year shoot 30 rounds on a 330 yards target. Today we use the SIG550, most people don't have the ammunition at home. About 1 million people can be moved if needed in 3-5 days for a war. I'm 15, I started shooting last year and i have a sig550 my self at home.
Hey Hickok, I am from Switzerland, reserve officer in the Swiss army, gun owner, regular shooter and even NRA-member. Gun laws in Switzerland are less liberal than in some states in the US. However, we have a large community of gun owners here that fight every day for their rights. Almost every person at the age of 18 can buy a gun. All you need is a state permit, a "clean" criminal record and an ID. That's it. Concealed carry ist forbidden unless you have a special permit.
Hey hickok, I'm german but I got some swiss friends who toled me that you can still take your rifle full auto rifle home once you leave active service. But you can also give it into storage to a so called "zeughaus". The thing that has changed is that the army doesn't issue take home ammo with the rifle.
AN-94 is indeed one of the most interesting firearms I have ever seen or heard of, shame that there are not much content on TH-cam about it.
Thanks Hickok for this video. There was an attempt to change guns laws last Feb but was defeated. The main change is that now, people can VOLUNTARILY choose to keep their gun in the armory. Switzerland is a nation of sharpshooters...obsession with precision. It's still easy to buy guns. All bolt-action (non semi-auto), you don't need a permit. You have to register ownership, that's all..K11, K31, even Remington 700. Pistols, revolvers, semi-auto rifes - permit easy if no police record.
Love it, I like that you include old and new guns. And a little history, cool. Keep it up.
The gentlemen who owns that deserves a pat on the back. That rifle looks clean and well cared for.
Thanks for showing and shooting one of my favorite guns!
Such an interesting gun, and it astounds me how people just think of a "crazy idea" and it just WORKS. Like John Browning when he saw his lever rifle blowing grass or something from the gas it made from shooting then turned that idea into a Machine Gun. :) Interesting ideas and designs, so many wonderful guns.
im' living near switzerland... and all what you say is true... i know old people from swiss, and they have K11 or K31 or SIG at theyre houses.. nothing change today..
Hey Hickok, this was a sweet video. I own a k-31, but now I want to buy myself a K-11. The action on the older Swiss rifles look like they feed and eject smoothly.
Great video hickok45! You're awesome, don't ever change.
I love his videos, the cool thing about it, he doesn't do much editing. Like he said on one of his videos he does all in one take so we can see all the faults.
Great video as always Mr. Hickok and i love that what i call dry humor! you crack me up
Hi Hickok! I'm from Switzerland and here what I can tell about gun ownership in our land of "tall snowy hills" :)
If you do your military service, you keep your weapon at home until you're 34 for the simple soldier (the higher your military rank the longer you will stay in the reserve), passed that age you're not more in the reserve and you can choose to keep it, for a small price or give it back. And the military gun is only full auto when on duty, at home it's set up on semi.
Hi there, I am Swiss, and I joined the Swiss army at the age of 20, back in 1966, like every Swiss male had to so at that time.
I got the new Sturmgewehr 57, an assault rifle, which is very good. When the Military School was over, after three month,
I had to take the gun home, together with my uniform and personal equipment, including 24 rounds of GP 11, 7,5 x 55 Swiss.
I was now responsable of my gun and every jear I had to do a test in shooting. I also had to do some repeating Military Services
five times three weeks, then four times two weeks until the age of 34. From then on, I had only to show my rifle and equipment once
a jear, until the age of 55, that was the normal procedure, very effectif, the Army had to be ready in one day !
They used to say Switzerland has not got an Army, Switzerland IS an Army.
Nowadays, the Swiss Soldiers can still take their weapons home, but without ammunition, but you can buy ammo in any gunshop.
Switzerland has not always been neutral, infact, they were some very ferocious figthers in the old days and becoming independant
was not an easy task. Some 200 battles have been fought on Swiss soil, against Romans, Germans, Austrians, French and Italians.
But thats another story, maybe for later.
By the way, the pope has a Swiss guard, because in the 1600s the Swiss mercenarys were considered the best.
I like your videos a lot, my father had a K31 and my grandfather a K11, both are superbe rifles and I shot them both.
willy mueller Those poor swiss guards during the storming of Tuileries Palace.
@@CPTAmaris_Streams2114 Right, and the 147 Swiss Guards that got killed during the sack of Rome in 1527, the remainig 22 safed the pope.
willy mueller That’s what I call service guaranteed
Thanks for your insider view (and your service)
i love the ejected brass flying so high out of the gun
Thanks. Are you allowed to purchase as much ammo as you like for "target practice" and keep it at home?
Hickok45 + FPSRussia = Explosion of way too much awesome