Shotgun Franchi SPAS-15

The Franchi SPAS-15 smoothbore combat shotgun was designed and created by the Italian arms company Luigi Franchi SpA in 1984. The development was based on the previous model - the Franchi Spas-12 automatic special-purpose shotgun.

SPAS stands for Special Purpose Automatic Shotgun, if in Russian - Automatic Special Purpose Shotgun, although this gun is not automatic, but semi-automatic (self-loading), it cannot be fired in bursts.

The company's engineers took into account the experience of its predecessor, as well as the wishes of the military, and tried to design the most convenient automatic rifle for arming the army and police.

The Franchi SPAS-15 automatic shotgun is capable of firing in two ways: in pump-action reloading mode and in semi-automatic mode. In pump-action mode, reloading is carried out by moving the fore-end backwards. Switching between firing modes is accomplished by pressing the button above the fore-end and moving the fore-end slightly forward or backward.

From its appearance one can immediately conclude that the gun is intended for military purposes. As the developers note, the company did not plan to enter the commercial market. Currently, the Franchi SPAS-15 combat rifle is in service with the army and police of Italy, as well as several EU countries, is actively used by the US military, and is used as a service weapon for security forces and civilian self-defense weapons.

The gun is available in several modifications, with folding and non-folding plastic stocks, and with folding metal frame stocks.

general description

The SPAS-15 combat shotgun received approval on the world arms market, thanks to which it entered the commercial market. Currently, it is used mostly for sport or hunting, although it is in service with the army in several countries around the world. At the moment, it is not available for purchase and use in all countries, but in Russia it is quite legal and is sold on the consumer market.

According to the documents, it is a smooth-bore hunting rifle, but this weapon is very poorly suited for hunting. The shotgun has a 12 gauge, or more precisely, uses 12x70 cartridges. Magazines with a capacity of 6 or 8 rounds. Typically, magazines are marked with the maximum number of charges. It can be equipped with either a folding plastic stock or a non-folding one, which is now a rarity.

Users[edit]

Argentina: Used by the National Gendarmerie of Argentina. [4]
Belarus: Used by the anti-terrorism group Almaz. [5]
Brazil: Used by the Military Police GRT unit [6] and BOPE. [7]
China: 1,500 purchased and produced by Norinco for various special police units of the Chinese People's Armed Police and People's Liberation Army Special Operations Forces in China.
Italy: 2,000 units were acquired in 1999 by the Italian Army. [8] Also used by the Carabinieri. [9]
India: Indian special forces, including NSG [10]
Israel: Israeli special forces [11]
Portugal: Portuguese Army. [12]
Tunisia: Tunisian Armed Forces. [13]

Operating principle of SPAS-15

The SPAS-15 smoothbore combat shotgun supports two firing modes: pump-action and self-loading, switching between which is quite simple. The choice of shooting modes (manual pump-action “PUMP” or semi-automatic “AUTO”) is carried out using a button on the top side of the fore-end: to put the gun in semi-automatic mode, you need to press the button and, holding it with your hand, move the fore-end forward until it stops. At the same time, a red “AUTO” mark will appear on the side behind the forend. To put the gun into manual pump-action mode, you need to press and hold the button and move the forend slightly back until it engages with the bolt rods, and a red “PUMP” mark will appear in front of the forend.

The semi-automatic mode in this gun works due to the removal of powder gases. After the shot is fired, the gases are vented through holes in the barrel into the gas chamber. This chamber contains a piston, which is pushed out due to the expansion of gases. At the same time, the bolt frame moves back and the ejector ejects the cartridge case, and when the frame is returned from the magazine, a new cartridge is sent. The chamber is locked by turning the bolt by the barrel, and interaction occurs with the barrel itself, and not with the receiver.

In pump-action mode, the SPAS-15 shotgun works like any other pump-action shotgun, that is, by moving the fore-end back and forth. When the forend is jerked, the same thing happens as in automatic mode (ejecting the cartridge case, chambering the cartridge), but due to the strength of the shooter. To prevent dirt from getting into the fore-end mechanism, the rods are covered with a special cover.

In semi-automatic firing mode, the rate of fire is much higher, but accuracy is reduced due to upward recoil. In non-automatic mode, the accuracy when hitting a target at a long distance is much higher, and the accuracy of fire when firing shotguns increases, but each shot will require much more effort. The gun works normally in any of the modes. "PUMP" mode is usually used for:

Shot with an underbarrel grenade.
Increased shooting accuracy over long distances.
For shooting even cumulative cartridges (such cartridges for 12 gauge actually exist; special variations have been developed for 12 and 15 models).
For firing rubber bullet cartridges.

If we take a closer look at cumulative projectiles, then 12 caliber rescue is capable of penetrating 8-10 mm sheets of steel, or, to be more precise, it “burns through” them. After such ammunition hits the target, a hole remains melted at the edges.

Design Features

The Italian SPAS-15 shotgun uses a traditional automatic gas engine system with an overhead gas cylinder and a short stroke of the gas piston. Locking is carried out by turning the bolt by the barrel, which made it possible to make the receiver from an aluminum alloy. The bolt group, together with the return springs, is combined by return spring guides into a single module, easily removed during disassembly.

The cocking handle is located on the top side of the receiver, under the carry handle, and is easily operated with either hand. The manual safety is located in front of the trigger; under the trigger guard there is an additional automatic safety that is turned off when the handle is covered with your fingers.

In early versions of the weapon, the barrel and receiver itself were made of stainless steel, later of aluminum alloy. The alloy was used to lighten the weight of the entire structure, since this gun can weigh up to 5 kg.

It is equipped with a framed aluminum folding stock or a non-folding plastic one. The magazines are steel with a plastic feeder with a capacity of 6 or 8 rounds.

The sights are open and include an adjustable rear sight on the carrying handle and a front sight on the gas chamber. It is possible to install laser target designators, collimator sights and flashlights.

The sights of the gun played a major role in the abandonment of hunters. The SPAS-15 shotgun is equipped with a rear sight located on the handle for carrying the weapon, which, in turn, is located on top of the receiver. The front sight is attached to the far end of the gas outlet tube. That is, the sighting line is quite short and high, which is justified in military weapons, but is not suitable for hunting weapons if shot shooting is intended. The front and rear sights are non-adjustable. It is possible to install laser target designators, night vision devices, diopter sights, optics, flashlights and collimator sights.

The Italian SPAS-15 combat shotgun is equipped with a safety located on the left side of the firing mechanism housing, directly on the left side of the trigger guard, just in front of the trigger. The safety position on “S” is safety, and on “F” it is fire. There is also an automatic safety, located on the front end of the pistol grip immediately below the trigger guard. It turns off only when the handle is fully and correctly covered by the palm before firing, which increases the safety of handling the weapon.

In the “PUMP” mode, the shotgun will fire only after reloading the cartridge by moving the fore-end, which improves the safety of handling the shotgun. Reloading the magazine quickly and conveniently is made possible by the fact that the magazine latch is located between the trigger guard and the magazine.

The detachable box-shaped single-stack magazine latch is located between the trigger guard and the magazine, which is quite convenient and allows you to quickly reload the weapon.

Standard magazines for the SPAS-15 are designed to accommodate six 12-gauge cartridges with a 70 mm long cartridge case, that is, the gun is not designed to fire 12/76 Magnum cartridges.

There are also high-capacity magazines. At one time, Franchi SPAS-15 with an extended barrel and a fixed polymer butt were produced for the civilian market. On combat models, the butts were either polymer (in later versions) or tubular skeletal type made of aluminum alloys, folding on the left side.

Early release guns were equipped with either fixed plastic stocks or side-folding frame stocks made of aluminum tubes. Later models featured side-folding plastic one-piece stocks.

The gun barrel is cylindrical and can be equipped with replaceable chokes. To supply weapons with ammunition, box-shaped, plastic, single-row magazines with 6 rounds of cartridges and a case length of 70 mm are used. In the version with a barrel larger than 546 mm. The Franchi SPAS-15 shotgun is also sold on the civilian weapons market and has a non-folding stock.

In a sense, the development of the Franchi SPAS-15 was the Model 16, built according to the “bullpup” design and having single fire modes and fixed bursts of three shots. The design of the SPAS-16 stock shows the influence of the Belgian P90 assault rifle.

Design

In early versions of the weapon, the barrel and receiver itself were made of stainless steel, later of aluminum alloy. The alloy was used to lighten the weight of the entire structure, since this miracle can weigh up to 5 kg. It is equipped with a framed aluminum folding stock or a non-folding plastic one. The magazines are steel with a plastic feeder with a capacity of 6 or 8 rounds.

Sighting devices are not at all suitable for hunting, since weapons were made for military operations. At the top of the receiver there is a handle for carrying the weapon, on which in turn there is a rear sight. A front sight is installed at the far end of the gas outlet pipe. Because of this, the aiming line is quite short, which is extremely inconvenient when shooting shotguns. Neither the front sight nor the rear sight can be adjusted. It is possible to install laser target designators, night vision devices, diopter sights, optics, flashlights and collimator sights.

The safety is automatic, that is, it turns off only if the handle is completely and correctly covered by the palm. In “PUMP” mode, the shotgun will fire only after reloading the cartridge by moving the fore-end. This improves the safety of handling the shotgun. When switching the safety to the "S" position, the weapon will be locked, and when moving to "F", the firing mode will be activated. Reloading the magazine quickly and conveniently is made possible by the fact that the magazine latch is located between the trigger guard and the magazine.

Disassembled Spas 15

Technical characteristics of SPAS-15

The performance characteristics of the Franchi SPAS-15 combat shotgun are as follows:

Caliber 12/70 mm.
Barrel length 450 mm.
The length of the weapon when folded is 740 mm, when unfolded 960 mm.
The weight of the gun without magazine is 3.7 kg.
The chamber is 70 mm; using Magnum cartridges, which are 76 mm long, will not work here.
Magazine capacity for 6 or 8 rounds.

A set of different modules, mufflers, muzzle attachments can be installed on the barrel; grenade launcher attachments can also be used.

Links[edit]

Firearms, An Illustrated Guide to the World's Small Arms by Dee Chris McNab
Jones, Richard (2009). Jane's Infantry Weapons 2009-2010
. Jane Information Group. p. 308. ISBN 978-0-7106-2869-5.
List of restricted and prohibited firearms archived February 11, 2010 at the Wayback Machine, Canadian Firearms Center (CFC)
Juan Larrosa. "Blog de las Fuerzas de Defense de la República Argentina". fdra.blogspot.it
.
"DIAMAZ - anti-terror". YouTube
. March 22, 2011
"Fotolog - 9º GRT no desfile de 07 Setembro de 2005. Na foto os Policiais portam da esquerda para à Direita o Fuzil Russo AK-47 (7.62×39 mm), Espingarda Cal.12 semi-automatic Franchi Spas 15 ea Espingarda da CBC cal. 12, regular pump-action ". Photographer
. Retrieved May 29, 2022.
"Google Sites". Sites.google.com
. Retrieved May 29, 2022.
"Archive copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on October 25, 2010. Retrieved February 1, 2010. CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
"Archival copy". Archived from the original on December 8, 2013. Retrieved April 20, 2014.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
https://indiandefence.com/threads/national-security-guard-nsg-news-discussions-pictures.57786/ . Missing or empty |title=( help )
"Archival copy". Archived from the original on July 31, 2016. Retrieved 7 June 2016.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
(PDF). January 17, 2016 https://web.archive.org/web/20160117213826/https://www.exercito.pt/meios/Documents/media_MeiosOp/Armamento/ESP%20CA%C3%87%20SEMI-AUT%20FRANCHI -SPAS.pdf. Archived from the original (PDF) on January 17, 2016. Retrieved May 29, 2022. Missing or empty |title=( help )
"Photographic Image" (JPG). 3.bp.blogspot.com
. Retrieved May 29, 2022.

Advantages and disadvantages

The SPAS-15 combat shotgun has its strengths and weaknesses. Let's start with the positive points:

Very flexible tactically, thanks to semi-automatic or non-automatic firing. This will be useful both during combat operations and during hunting.
A large caliber and the ability to fire shot, rubber or cumulative bullets may also be needed.
Good rate of fire in self-loading mode or excellent accuracy in pump-action mode.

Now a few words about the disadvantages:

Strong recoil negatively affects the accuracy of rapid shooting.
Quite a lot of weight (from 3.7 kg).
The sighting mechanism is inconvenient for hunting.
The cost is about 60-80 thousand rubles, even on the secondary market.

Many gunsmiths criticize the SPAS-15 because it is quite difficult to disassemble and even more difficult to put back together. But in reality this is not entirely true; parsing and collection is quite easy:

First you need to unscrew the holder located on top of the forend, which secures the front sight. Remove the front sight itself.
Switch the gun to “PUMP” mode and turn the holder that has opened on the fore-end upward, then simply pull it out.
Unload the weapon and switch it to “AUTO” state.
Next, just carefully remove the entire forend from the barrel.
After this, you need to remove the two clamps near the butt that hold it and the handle. (here you will need something to pry the latch, an ordinary spoon will do)
Pull the butt out until you can pull out the holder that secures the chamber.
After this, calmly remove the handle and pull out the butt.

If you are seriously thinking about purchasing a shotgun, then you need to consider all aspects carefully. This specimen is not very suitable for hunting. It’s another matter if it is needed for some kind of weapon sport. In this case it will be quite interesting.

Opinions about this shotgun are mixed. Some owners praise it, while others are dissatisfied. The SPAS-15 model was discontinued from production in 2005.

Media fame

The unusual appearance of the Franchi SPAS-15 shotgun allowed it to gain high media fame. It is represented in many cult and good computer games, for example, Warface, Battlefield: Bad Company, GTA IV, Resident Evil 4, Global Operations, Operation 7, Vampire the Masquerade: Bloodlines, Alliance of Valiant Arms, The 3rd Birthday, Jagged Alliance: Back in Action, Battlefield Play4Free, Max Payne 3, Point Blank.

The Franchi SPAS-15 shotgun appeared in such films as Ronin, Spawn, Terminator 2, Predator 2.