Shooting the Sturmgewehr

by
posted on October 29, 2014
** When you buy products through the links on our site, we may earn a commission that supports NRA's mission to protect, preserve and defend the Second Amendment. **
stg44.jpg

For an all-new season of American Rifleman Television we have been busily filming guns—here in Fairfax, Va., and in Louisiana, as well as the actual battlefields in Belgium and Luxembourg—used during the Battle of the Bulge. We have new cameras, including one that shoots really, really high-speed footage. And that means we need new footage for many guns that appeared on the show before.

The battle that raged from December 1944 though January 1945 was the largest land battle ever fought by the United States Army. And it was the first time that American troops encountered large numbers of Sturmgewehrs. The StG 44, chambered in 7.92 mm Kurtz, was the world's first true assault rifle, and it was capable of either semi-automatic or fully automatic fire. It's fed from a 30-round detachable box magazine. While the shorter 7.92 Kurtz didn't have as much range as, say, the U.S. .30-'06 or 8x57 mm Mauser, what it did have was tremendous firepower. In the video below, American Rifleman Television contributor Kenneth L. Smith-Christmas fires the StG 44 on full automatic. Look for more on the StG 44 and other World War II infantry arms when American Rifleman Television makes its debut the last week of December 2014.

The StG 44 shown above is on display at the December 44 museum in La Gleize, Belgium, and is but one of the guns used 70 years ago during the Battle of the Bulge. In January 2015, ARTV will devote four episodes to the battle and the guns used during it.

Latest

Gotw Wilson Combat Divison 77 Project 1 Web
Gotw Wilson Combat Divison 77 Project 1 Web

Gun Of The Week: Wilson Combat Division 77 Project 1

Join American Rifleman staff on the range in this video to get a closer look at Wilson Combat’s somewhat cryptically named “Division 77 Project 1.” 

The Armed Citizen® July 18, 2025

Read today's "The Armed Citizen" entry for real stories of law-abiding citizens, past and present, who used their firearms to save lives.

Review: POF-USA LMR BASE Rifle

The Patriot Ordnance Factory LMR Base offers a .308 Win. chambering in a lightweight, AR-15-size package, which makes it a capable platform for today's new gun owner. And it comes at a fair price.

2025 Accessory Of The Year: Wyoming Sight Drifter

For each of the past 23 years, the editors of American Rifleman have convened to select our top picks for the past year’s best and most innovative products. Here are the most recent winners.

Henry Donates Rifles To Support Young Leukemia Victim

Henry Repeating Arms has donated a limited run of 50 “Team Keane” Golden Boy .22 lever-action rifles to support 13-year-old Keane Rhodes of Universal City, Texas, who is currently undergoing aggressive treatment for ALL T-cell leukemia.

Rifleman Review: Springfield Armory Echelon

Springfield Armory introduced its Echelon in 2023, bringing a modernized, chassis-style, striker-fired handgun to the market that has since seen several notable line extensions.

Interests



Get the best of American Rifleman delivered to your inbox.