Negev NG7 7.62mm LMG

Here we have the recently announced Negev NG7 light machine gun from Israel Weapon Industries (IWI), the privatized successor to IMI, the state owned weapons company of Uzi and Desert Eagle fame. It is a derivative of the popular and combat proven Negev 5.56mm LMG, sharing at least 80% of the same parts. The NG7 was designed with Special Operations forces in mind that need a lot of firepower in a package that is as small and light as possible. The IDF has long used the famous FN MAG machine gun (called the M240 in US service), but like many users they found that the MAG was very long and almost prohibitively heavy at around 30 pounds. The NG7 also features a semi automatic mode for the ability to fire single shots for increased accuracy. Several sources have noted that the NG7 is the only 7.62 GPMG or LMG with this capability, but the German MG 34 had this ability as well through virtue of trigger with two different "pulling surfaces". The Negev seems like it will fill its role nicely, it is exceptionally lightweight weighing in at about 17 pounds. It can be fired from a variety of mounts, including pintle mounts on helicopters, land vehicles, and naval vessels.

Negev 5.56mm LMG with the older, drum shaped ammo pouch

The Negev is just about the same as the 5.56mm Negev in terms of furniture and operation. Tritium night sight inserts are attached to the iron sights. It has an optional buttstock that is foldable and adjustable for length of pull with a cheek riser. It retains the somewhat odd Negev foregrip which is detachable and sits angled at about a 45 degrees to the axis of the bore. The NG7 has a two position gas regulator that allows the weapon to continue to work, even when it has become fouled. It is fed from a the left side with a disintegrating belt or with a box magazine fed from the top down. It is stated to fire from the open bolt position which is normal for light machine guns, but I wonder if it has a closed bolt for semi auto firing like the FN offering to the USMC Automatic Rifle competition. The NG7 has a Picatinny rails on the top cover for the attachment of optics and on the foreend for laser aiming devices.


“The new NEGEV NG7 represents the next generation of NEGEV LMGs – providing improved ergonomics as well as increased component reliability. These advances, together with its unique characteristics, make it the most effective lightweight 7.62 available for infantries. As with all other weapons built by IWI, it was developed together with the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). The close cooperation between IWI and the Israeli army in the development of new weapons – and the testing of these weapons on the battlefield by the IDF – is one of the most important factors contributing to the success of our weapons among armies around the world. The NG7 is already generating interest among our customers, and we have received many requests to test it. We are certain that it will become an important part of our product line.” -----Uri Amit, CEO of IWI

IWI NEGEV NG7 Weapon Specs (from Data Sheet):

Models: NEGEV NG7 LMG, NEGEV NG7 LMG SF
Caliber: 7.62x51mm
Operation: Open bolt, gas impact on piston head, rotating Bolt
Firing Modes: Safe, Semi-auto, Auto
Feeding System: Box, Assault Drum Belt Feed
Assault Drum Capacity: 100, 125 rds.
Barrel Rifling: 1:12” twist, 4 grooves
Weight (Kg): Weapon only 7.6, 7.5
Overall (OA) Length (mm)l: 1000, 912
Length with Stock folded (mm): 820, 730
Barrel Length (mm): 508, 420
Firing characteristics: Muzzle velocity (approx.) (m/sec) 860, 810
Cyclic Rate of Fire (ROF) (approx.) (rds/min): 850 – 1050 (gas reg. position 1), 950 – 1150 (gas reg. position 2)
Sight: Rear iron sight Aperture, with elevation drum for 300-1000 m (at 100-m intervals), Back up rear sight Post, built in Picatinny rail
Front Iron Sight: Post type (Adj. for windage & elevation)
Sight Line Radius: 440 mm

Military Technology- Mobile Command/Observation Post

Last week we saw a formidable remote observation and weapons tower. Today we up the game with a mobile, armored, retractable observation and weapons tower.
This is the IDF's Akrab (or Scorpion)
Again a repurposed turretless tank hull (this time a US M60 Patton), they are used for guarding the border with Gaza and possibly the West Bank. Able to extend the armored cherry picker up to around 10 meters, it can easily see over the Israeli Border Wall to monitor Palestinian movements on the other side. Using nightvision and thermal cameras and scopes it has the ability to operate better at night than its adversaries. If its cameras and other sensors were linked to a central command, it would make an excellent intelligence and perimeter defence system able to remotely watch an entire area.

This is an interesting idea that in many ways is perfect for urban warfare. It allows soldiers to have a very safe, although not perfectly safe, observation post. It has a remote weapons station mounted on the top with a M2 .50 caliber Heavy Machinegun, and while it is not as hidden as a sniper would like to be, being able to ignore small arms fire and shell fragments has its benefits too. I doubt if this contraption would stand up to heavy weapons however and it also wouldn't likely have the ability to get out of the way. They have fitted the tower with slat armor to give it some protection from Rocket Propelled Grenade fire, but it looks like the armor is thinner on the sides. I sure would not want to be suspended 30 feet up, hanging over a wall, getting shot at with an RPG. Unlike the Sentry Tech Tower we saw earlier, this could always be redeployed to another location. It can sit behind the wall or buildings and pop up to fire whenever it wants. Also you have to give it some points for creativity, I would surprised as hell to come around a corner and find one of these ugly things staring at me.

All this neatness comes at a price however, and like most of the very well protected IDF armored vehicles, it likely either goes really slow, uses whole lot of fuel or both. Well you can't have everything.

Sentry Tech Tower

This is an IDF remotely operated Sentry-Tech Tower along the Gaza Strip. They are used to control a larger swath of land with a smaller force. The system on the top of the tower is a Rafael Mini-Samson weapon station. It has a M2 Browning .50 caliber machine gun which is linked to day/night cameras and likely either a powerful spotlight or IR light. The tower and weapon system are managed from a control center, mainly operated by female soldiers, who can operate multiple towers, engaging enemies with one or more as the need arises. The weapons are almost always controlled through the remote station, although the weapon can be operated manually if needed. The "observers" need not be limited to the .50 or a 7.62mm machine gun though, they can also mount and fire precision guided weapons like the Lahrat laser guided rocket and the Spike Long Range optically guided missile.

I would think that this system is not quite as formidable as it might seem at first glance. For one thing, a tower of this nature is not going anywhere and the forces on the defensive lose some advantage if your enemy can always pinpoint your location. That gives them the option to go around. (the Maginot Line lesson) A tower like this becomes less of a defensive weapon and more of an area denial one, like a mine field, except Princess Diana wouldn't be quite as upset.
Secondly, the situational awareness of a soldier using a system like this would be limited by the quality and range of their optics. Also, security companies have discovered that people sitting in a dark room watching nothing happen on a bank of screens tend to become about as effective as having the cat watch it after about 20 minutes. I imagine that the system does have a thermal scope integrated and that is extremely useful, as they can often see people who would be obscured even in daylight. Now, if they add some motion detectors, radar, etc. That would make it really something.

All that being said, I will be surrounding my house with these. I will just hook them straight up to the Xbox. Damn squirrels will leave my peaches alone this spring.

Armored Vehicles: Nagmachon

The What?
Well, this:

The Nagmachon is an Israel Defence Forces Armored Personnel Carrier. It evloved from earlier NagmaSho't APCs and both are Sho't Kal tank hulls with no turrets, modified to be infantry carriers and specialist vehicles. Manufactured by Israel Military Industries, the Nagmachon was conceived from the beginning as a Counter Insurgency (COIN) vehicle. Nagmachon is an acronym for Nagmash (APC) and gashon (belly).

Th Nagmachon carries 10 infantrymen and has a crew of 3. In line with most other Israeli military design philosophy, it is extremely heavy at nearly 50 tons (almost twice as much as a WWII tank) and sacrifices mobility for protection. This works fine for the IDF, which operates in a small area, but would make the vehicle quite unsuited for expeditionary or maneuver warfare practiced by the United States military. It has extremely heavy armor on the belly to protect it from anti-tank mines and IEDs. Hence the name. Its sides are fitted with Explosive Reactive Armor (ERA) to counter rocket propelled grenades. The Nagmachon is equipped with four IS-10 grenade launchers. These contain ten smoke grenades each. Early versions fitted three armor panels with vision blocks of bullet resistant glass were attached to the superstructure's roof. Between the panels, two pintle-mounted 7.62 FN MAG (the M240 in U.S. service) machine guns were placed to enable the crew to engage infantry and soft skinned vehicles.

Early version with open shields

As a multi role vehicle, the Nagmachon is sometimes equipped with different engineering devices on its glacis (area of front sloped armor). In conjunction with its specially reinforced belly, this can make it an excellent engineering and anti-mine vehicle. Systems such as the Nochri and Magov anti-mine systems give the Nagmachon the ability to breach mine fields to allow the advance of other vehicles.

Later models were modified with a very notable pillbox on top of the fixed superstructure, providing all round small arms protection.

NagmaSho't and early Namachon

The Nagmachon has been used extensively not only in the Second Intifada, but also in the occupation of Lebanon in the 1980's and the 2006 Lebanon War. It is used as an engineering vehicle to clear lanes for other APCs and vehicles, although it is used primarily as a infantry carrier. Nagmachons are often used to escort the Armored Caterpillar bulldozers on their missions to clear road blocks (and destroy homes). While their protection against small arms fire and older RPGs is good, lack of mobility and light armament hurt the vehicle in many possible scenarios. I would also suspect the elevated superstructure may be extremely vulnerable to the top down attacks of guided antitank weaponry like the IDF encountered in Lebanon in 2006.

Guns I Wish I Had (part3) IMI TAR-21

Israeli Military Industries Tavor Assault Rifle- 21st Century, also known simply as the Tavor.


Designed to replace M16 and M4 rifles and carbines, the Tavor is chambered in 5.56NATO and is compatible with STANAG AR-15 magazines and all NATO 5.56 cartridges.

The Israel Defense Forces decided that they were unhappy with the overall performance and characteristics of the M4, especially its high rate of stoppages and overall length. They began a lengthy process to design a new rifle that would be much more reliable with a shorter overall length, while retaining some of the positive features of the AR-15 series.

The TAR 21 is a bull pup-style assault rifle, meaning that the operating group and magazine are located behind the firing hand, decreasing the overall length of the weapon while not reducing the barrel length. This makes the Tavor much easier to use in urban areas (such as Gaza) and when exiting vehicles than longer weapons. The Tavor was also designed with a red dot sight and a IR/visible laser aiming module built into the weapon. It also has a fold-up iron sight.

The ambidextrous safety/selector has a semi auto, burst, and fully automatic mode and the optic powers off when the safety is on. The end result shows that the Tavor is a very accurate and reliable weapon and in addition to the IDF it has been adopted by several Special Forces and SWAT units worldwide, including India, Turkey, Georgia, and Portugal, with more units and Countries likely to adopt in in the future.

The Tavor is offered in 4 variants:
T.A.R. 21--Basic Carbine

G.T.A.R. 21-- Notched barrel version for attaching a 40mm grenade launcher such as the M203

C.T.A.R. 21-- Compact version for Special Forces



S.T.A.R. 21-- Sharpshooter's version with a bi pod and magnified optic scope

Civilian-legal semi automatic versions of the Tavor are being made, although I have yet to see one for sale, and I imagine they will be quite pricey, likely over $2,000. Oh well.

For purposes of comparison, look at this TAR 21 and a SIG 556. As you can see the Tavor is much shorter than this SIG and yet retains the accuracy of a longer weapon.
Fight smarter.