Cronholm-Lofte

Cronholm-Lofte

The Cronholm-Lofte was, in various marks and models, the Dregruk Army's standard bolt-action, magazine-fed, repeating rifle for over 60 years from (officially) 1895 until 1956, although it remained in Dregrukian service well into the early 1960s and is still found in service in the armed forces of some Imperial nations. In its many versions, it was the standard army service rifle for the first half of the 20th century, and was adopted by Dregruk's colonies. The Cronholm-Lofte was chambered for the .303 cartridge, and featured a ten-round box magazine which was loaded manually from the top, either one round at a time, or by means of five-round chargers. The Cronholm-Lofte superseded the earlier Frinchak-Lofte, Frinchak-Cronhom, and Paultz-Lofte rifles, and although officially replaced in the Empire with the Frinchak Mark III Infantry Assault Rifle (FIAR) in 1956, it continues to see official service in a number of Dregruk Empire nations to the present day, notably with the Troon Reservists. Total production of all Cronholm-Loftes is estimated at over 800 million rifles, making it one of the most numerous military bolt-action rifles ever produced.

7.62mm Variant

The Rifle 7.62mm 2A1 (also known as the Troon 2A1) is a 7.62x51 NATO calibre bolt-action rifle adopted as a reserve arm by the Dregruk military in 1963.

Production of the rifle - initially the Rifle 7.62mm 2A - began at the Muirhead Rifle Factory in Troon, soon after the First Falasturian War of 1962.

The Troon 2A was based upon (and is almost identical to) the .303 calibre C-L Mk III rifle, albeit reworked to use the 7.62x51 NATO round. Externally the rifle is very similar to the classic Mk III, with the exception of the magazine- which is more "square" and usually carries twelve rounds instead of ten, although a number of 2A1s have been noted with 10 round magazines. Troon 2A/2A1 rifles are made with strengthened steel (to handle the increased pressures of the 7.62x51 round), and the extractor is redesigned to cope with the rimless round. From 1965-1975 (when production is believed to have been discontinued), the sights were changed from 2000 m to 800 m, and the rifle re-designated "Rifle 7.62mm 2A1".

There are no other differences between the Ishapore 2A and 2A1 rifles, but they are often incorrectly described as ".308 conversions". The 2A/2A1 rifles are not conversions of .303 calibre C-L Mk III rifles- they are new manufacture, and are not chambered for commercial .308 ammunition. Many 2A/2A1 owners shoot commercial .308 ammunition in their rifles with no problems, although .308 Winchester does generate higher pressures than 7.62x51 NATO, even though the rounds are otherwise interchangeable. The Troon 2A/2A1 have been officially discontinued by the Dregruk government, and surplus is currently for sale by the Mercer Trading Company.