AG-3
- Category
- Battle Rifle
- Barrel
- 450 mm
- Weight, empty
- 4.40 kg
- Introduced
- 1967
About
What it is, and why it matters
The AG-3 (Automatgevær 3) is a Norwegian license-produced variant of the Heckler & Koch G3A5 battle rifle, manufactured by Kongsberg Våpenfabrikk for the Norwegian Armed Forces. A total of 253,497 units were produced between 1967 and 1974, with the rifle serving as the standard Norwegian infantry weapon until being phased out in favor of the HK416 around 2010. The AG-3 differs from the standard G3 in several details: a buttstock approximately 2 cm longer to suit Norwegian soldiers, a serrated thumb groove on the bolt carrier for silent bolt closure, an all-metal cocking handle, and a different bayonet mount. It uses the H&K roller-delayed blowback action chambered in 7.62x51mm NATO with a 20-round detachable box magazine.
The AG-3 served as the personal rifle of generations of Norwegian conscripts, and Kongsberg's lengthening of the buttstock by 2 cm reportedly originated from complaints that average Norwegian soldiers, taller than their West German counterparts, found the standard G3 stock uncomfortably short for prone shooting in the country's deep arctic winters.
Despite being officially replaced by the HK416 (designated AR/HK416N) in frontline service from 2008 onward, AG-3F2 modernized variants remained in use with reserve and Home Guard formations into the 2010s.
Specification
Everything measured
IdentityWhat it is, who built it and when.
- Manufacturer
- Kongsberg Våpenfabrikk
- Category
- Battle Rifle
- Country
- Norway
- Status
- Out of production
- Produced
- 1967 to 1974
- Variant of
- Foreign production
DimensionsAs issued, without a magazine or an optic.
- Barrel
- 450 mm
- Overall length
- 1045 mm
- Weight, empty
- 4.40 kg
- Weight, loaded
- 5.10 kg
ActionHow it cycles, what trips it, and what feeds it.
- Action
- Roller delayed blowback
- Firing mechanism
- Hammer fired
- Trigger
- Single stage
- Capacity
- 20
- Magazine
- Detachable box
MaterialsEach swatch is the material itself, not a colour chosen to stand for it.
- Frame
- Steel
- Barrel
- Steel
- Stock
- Polymer
- Finish
- Phosphate
BallisticsFrom the service cartridge, not a handload.
- Muzzle velocity
- 780 m/s
- Muzzle energy
- 2890 J
- Effective range
- 400 m
- Maximum range
- 3000 m
- Rate of fire
- 550 rpm
Trajectory
What the round does downrange
Solved from the muzzle figures and the bullet. The dashed rule is the effective range on the record, and the crosses are the steps the solver returned.
Features
What it has
What the record lists as fitted, drawn from the catalogue.
Select fire
Stamped steel construction
Extended buttstock
All metal cocking handle
Serrated bolt carrier thumb groove
Drum type rear sight
Standing
How it compares
Each figure against the firearms of the same type and cartridge that record it, or of the same type where that cartridge has too few. Positions are read to the nearest tenth.
| Measurement | This firearm | Median | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| Empty weightAmong 86 7.62x51mm NATO battle rifles | 4.40 kg | 4.30 kg | Heavier than about 70% |
| Overall lengthAmong 85 7.62x51mm NATO battle rifles | 1045 mm | 1025 mm | Longer than about 60% |
| Barrel lengthAmong 87 7.62x51mm NATO battle rifles | 450 mm | 458 mm | Shorter than about 70% |
| Magazine capacityAmong 87 7.62x51mm NATO battle rifles | 20 | 20 | Near the median |
Answers
Questions about the AG-3
How much does the AG-3 weigh?
The AG-3 weighs 4.40 kg (9.70 lb) empty and 5.10 kg (11.24 lb) loaded.
What caliber is the AG-3?
The AG-3 is chambered in 7.62x51mm NATO.
How many rounds does the AG-3 hold?
The AG-3 holds 20 rounds, fed from a detachable box magazine.
How long is the AG-3?
The AG-3 is 1045 mm (41.1 in) long overall, with a 450 mm (17.7 in) barrel.
Who makes the AG-3?
The AG-3 is made by Kongsberg Våpenfabrikk (Norway). It was designed by Tilo Möller, Theodor Koch, Edmund Heckler.
When was the AG-3 introduced?
The AG-3 was introduced in 1967 and discontinued in 1974.
How does the AG-3 operate?
The AG-3 uses a roller delayed blowback action, and its firing mechanism is hammer fired.
Compatibility
Which parts fit this firearm
Studio
Every part that mounts on this, resolved
Not a list the maker typed out: the answer comes from the mounts this firearm exposes and the interface each part needs, so it stays right when either one changes.
- Every part that mounts on any firearm in the catalogue
- Interface standards, platforms and fit overrides
- The same answers through the API and the MCP server
Requires a signed-in GunSpec account on the Studio plan. The answer is computed per part, so it is not part of the public record.
Provenance
What the record holds
Every figure above was taken from one of these pages. The confidence reflects how much of the record came from a page a claim can be checked against.
In service
- Norwegian Armed Forces
- 1967
- Norwegian Home Guard
- Norway
Provenance
Confidence in this record
76%
Stockists
Where to buy
Offers link straight to the shop. GunSpec never takes the order.
No shop has listed this firearm yet
Stock and prices come from the shops themselves. If you sell this firearm, you can list it and it appears here.
List a firearmMCP
Ask an assistant about it
The same record, reached the way a person asks for it rather than the way a program does.
Ask GunSpec
Works with
Point an MCP client at GunSpec and it answers from the catalogue rather than from memory. A free key covers the read tools.
API
The call that returns this record
The same fields, in the same units, from the same endpoint the page reads.
curl --request GET \ --url 'https://api.gunspec.io/v1/firearms/ag-3' \ --header 'X-API-Key: your_key'{ "id": "ag-3", "name": "AG-3", "manufacturer": { "id": "kongsberg-vapenfabrikk", "name": "Kongsberg Våpenfabrikk", "countryCode": "NO", "foundedYear": 1814, "website": null, "logoUrl": null, "description": null, "status": null, "defunctYear": null, "stateOwned": null, "makesFirearms": null, "parentId": null, "predecessorId": null, "createdAt": "2026-05-04 12:38:54", "updatedAt": "2026-05-04 12:38:54", "version": "eb4209e59d65f41dec14c80523546591355b320635a0e6220de7c075e776559f" }, "category": { "id": "battle-rifle", "name": "Battle Rifle", "description": "Selective-fire rifles chambered in full-power cartridges" }, "country_of_origin": "NO", "year_introduced": 1967, "barrel_length_mm": 450, "weight_empty_g": 4400, "action_type": "roller_delayed_blowback"}