Armsel Striker

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Armsel Striker
Armsel Striker no background.png
Type Combat shotgun, Riot control weapon
Place of origin South Africa
Service history
In service1993–present
Used by South African National Defence Force
Israel Police
People's Army of Vietnam
Production history
Designer Hilton R. Walker [1]
Designed1981 [1]
Specifications
Mass4.2 kg (empty)
4.4 kg (loaded)
Length792 mm (31.18 inch)
508 mm (20 inch) (stock folded)
(with 12 in barrel)
Barrel  length191 mm (7.5 in)
305 mm (12 in)
356 mm (14 in)
470 mm (18.5 in)

Cartridge 12 gauge
Action Rotating cylinder
Feed system12-round revolving cylinder
SightsFixed trough and blade iron sights. Optic rail provision.

The Armsel Striker, also known as the Sentinel Arms Co Striker-12, Protecta, Protecta Bulldog and SWD Street Sweeper is a 12-gauge shotgun with a revolving cylinder that was designed for riot control and combat.

Contents

History

The Armsel Striker was designed by Hilton R. Walker, a Zimbabwean (formerly Rhodesian) citizen, in 1981. Walker subsequently emigrated to South Africa, bringing with him the design for the Striker shotgun. His shotgun became a success and was exported to various parts of the world, despite some drawbacks. The rotary cylinder was bulky, had a long reload time, and the basic action was not without certain flaws.

Walker redesigned his weapon in 1989, removing the cylinder rotation mechanism, and adding an auto cartridge ejection system. The new shotgun was named the "Protecta". [2] [3]

A copy of the Striker was made by the American gunmaker Cobray and marketed as the "SWD Street Sweeper" from 1989 to 1993. [4]

Design and features

The Striker's most prominent feature is a 12-round capacity revolving cylinder. Due to the size of the cylinder, unlike usual revolvers which rotate the cylinder with the trigger pull, the Striker utilizes a clock spring that has to be wound manually. Reloading the Striker is a rather cumbersome process as there is no automatic ejection; shells need to be ejected with an ejector rod on the right side of the barrel, before loading the cylinder one shell at a time, advancing the cylinder for each shot with a lever on the back of the gun, before finally winding up the cylinder spring.

The later Protecta model changed the mechanics of the weapon substantially. The cylinder spring was removed; instead the cylinder is advanced by rotating the barrel shroud and attached foregrip, turning the weapon from semi-automatic to manually operated. The Protecta also featured an auto-ejection mechanism that vents excess gas from firing into the cylinder to eject the previously fired round, somewhat simplifying the reloading process. It still retains the ejector rod, as the last round must be ejected manually.

Licensed copies produced by Sentinel Arms combined the semi-automatic, spring-driven design of the Striker and the auto-ejection mechanism from the Protecta into one weapon.

Other features were a top-folding stock and barrel lengths of 18, 12 and 7 inches. [5]

Availability in the United States

After a proposal by the Brady Campaign in 1993, Treasury Secretary Lloyd Bentsen declared the Striker and Street Sweeper destructive devices under the National Firearms Act the following year, their transfer and ownership becoming regulated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). [6] [7]

Variants

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "patent" . Retrieved 1 May 2014.
  2. 1 2 3 Cutshaw, Charles Q. (28 February 2011). Tactical Small Arms of the 21st Century: A Complete Guide to Small Arms From Around the World. Iola, Wiosconsin: Gun Digest Books. pp. 338–339. ISBN   978-1-4402-2709-7.
  3. Jones, Richard D.; White, Andrew (27 May 2008). Jane's Guns Recognition Guide 5e. HarperCollins. p. 355. ISBN   978-0-06-137408-1.
  4. 1 2 3 Walker, Robert E. (2013). Cartridges and Firearm Identification. CRC Press. p. 369. ISBN   978-1-4665-8881-3.
  5. McCollum, Ian. "Forgotten Weapons - Striker 12" . Retrieved 21 August 2025.
  6. Smith, Al (November 2007). American Cultures: Readings in Social and Cultural History. Lulu Enterprises Incorporated. p. 167. ISBN   978-1-4357-0160-1.
  7. "ATF Rul. 94-2". The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF). Retrieved 6 May 2024.
  8. "HOT GAT or FUDD CRAP? Street Sweeper or Roadside Trash? -".
  9. Larson, Erik (27 July 2011). Lethal Passage: The Story of a Gun. Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group. p. 196. ISBN   978-0-307-80331-3.