Daewoo K15
- Category
- Machine Gun
- Barrel
- Not recorded
- Weight, empty
- 7.16 kg
- Introduced
- 2018
About
What it is, and why it matters
The Daewoo K15 is a South Korean 5.56x45mm NATO light machine gun developed by S&T Motiv (formerly Daewoo Precision Industries) as a heavily upgraded successor to the K3 SAW. Standardized in late 2018 and delivered to the Republic of Korea Army from December 2022, the K15 retains the gas-operated, belt-fed architecture of the K3 while adding a length-adjustable buttstock, redesigned pistol grip and trigger group, a push-button quick-change barrel, MIL-STD-1913 rails, and integrated day/night electro-optical sighting. It feeds from a 200-round plastic ammunition container and can accept STANAG box magazines in an emergency.
The K15 is the squad-automatic-weapon member of the modular modern ROK Army machine-gun family alongside the K12/K16 7.62mm general-purpose machine gun, both built by S&T (SNT) Motiv. Conceived as a thorough modernization of the three-decade-old K3 rather than a clean-sheet design, it answers long-standing ROK Army complaints about the K3's reliability and ergonomics with tighter manufacturing tolerances, an adjustable five-position stock, and factory-integrated day/night optics with a thermal sight and laser rangefinder.
K15-specific overall length, barrel length, and muzzle velocity have not been openly published; values shared with the parent K3 (e.g. 533 mm barrel, 1030 mm length) are not assumed here and are left null. Confirmed K15 figures: empty weight 7.16 kg (8.4 kg with full fire-control/optic system), cyclic rate up to 1,000 rpm, effective range ~800 m. Naming note: within the modern S&T/SNT Motiv machine-gun family the K15 is the 5.56x45mm NATO light machine gun (K3 successor), while the 7.62x51mm NATO general-purpose machine gun in the same family is the K12 (later redesignated K16). Some secondary sources blur the K12/K15 designations, but primary reporting consistently identifies K15 as the 5.56 LMG.
Specification
Everything measured
IdentityWhat it is, who built it and when.
- Manufacturer
- S&T Motiv (formerly Daewoo Precision Industries)
- Category
- Machine Gun
- Country
- South Korea
- Status
- In service
- Produced
- 2018
DimensionsAs issued, without a magazine or an optic.
- Weight, empty
- 7.16 kg
ActionHow it cycles, what trips it, and what feeds it.
- Action
- Gas operated long stroke
- Firing mechanism
- Hammer fired
- Trigger
- Single stage
- Capacity
- 200
- Magazine
- Belt
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.
- Effective range
- 800 m
- Rate of fire
- 1000 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.
No load solved for this record yetThe flight path is computed from a cartridge and a bullet. This record has no ammunition filed against its chambering, so there is nothing to solve.
Features
What it has
What the record lists as fitted, drawn from the catalogue.
Quick change barrel
Push button barrel latch
Barrel carry handle
Fluted barrel
Strengthened bipod
Length adjustable buttstock
Redesigned pistol grip trigger group
Collapsible front sight
Picatinny rail feed cover
Picatinny rails handguard
Day night optic ready
Dual feed belt or box magazine
Open bolt operation
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 27 5.56x45mm NATO machine guns | 7.16 kg | 6.35 kg | Heavier than about 70% |
| Magazine capacityAmong 26 5.56x45mm NATO machine guns | 200 | 200 | Holds more rounds than about 80% |
Answers
Questions about the Daewoo K15
How much does the Daewoo K15 weigh?
The Daewoo K15 weighs 7.16 kg (15.79 lb) empty.
What caliber is the Daewoo K15?
The Daewoo K15 is chambered in 5.56x45mm NATO.
How many rounds does the Daewoo K15 hold?
The Daewoo K15 holds 200 rounds, fed from a belt.
Who makes the Daewoo K15?
The Daewoo K15 is made by S&T Motiv (formerly Daewoo Precision Industries) (South Korea).
When was the Daewoo K15 introduced?
The Daewoo K15 was introduced in 2018.
How does the Daewoo K15 operate?
The Daewoo K15 uses a gas operated long stroke 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
- Republic of Korea Armed Forces
- 2018
Provenance
Confidence in this record
68%
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/daewoo-k15' \ --header 'X-API-Key: your_key'{ "id": "daewoo-k15", "name": "Daewoo K15", "manufacturer": { "id": "snt-motiv", "name": "S&T Motiv (formerly Daewoo Precision Industries)", "countryCode": "KR", "foundedYear": 1981, "website": "https://www.sntmotiv.com", "logoUrl": null, "description": null, "status": null, "defunctYear": null, "stateOwned": null, "makesFirearms": null, "parentId": null, "predecessorId": null, "createdAt": "2026-02-11 23:44:38", "updatedAt": "2026-02-18 03:43:46", "version": "9db0b6bd86b8c9a1e686c470d1c6a21f813dddaec277f9be6ca224566aa0099d" }, "category": { "id": "machine-gun", "name": "Machine Gun", "description": "Fully automatic firearms for sustained fire" }, "country_of_origin": "KR", "year_introduced": 2018, "barrel_length_mm": null, "weight_empty_g": 7160, "action_type": "gas_operated_long_stroke"}