Daewoo K3
- Category
- Machine Gun
- Barrel
- 533 mm
- Weight, empty
- 6.85 kg
- Introduced
- 1989
About
What it is, and why it matters
The Daewoo K3 is a South Korean 5.56x45mm NATO light machine gun, externally and conceptually similar to the FN Minimi / M249 SAW. Developed by Daewoo Precision Industries (now S&T Motiv) and adopted by the Republic of Korea Armed Forces in 1989 to replace the M60, it serves as the squad automatic weapon of South Korean infantry units and has seen export to several Asian and Latin American militaries.
The K3 was South Korea's first wholly indigenous machine gun design, developed at a time when the Agency for Defense Development was racing to free Korea from dependency on US-supplied small arms. Despite its strong visual resemblance to the FN Minimi, the K3 is a clean-sheet design rather than a license-built copy, a point of considerable national pride during its 1989 adoption.
Like the FN Minimi, the K3 can feed from either a 200-round disintegrating belt or a STANAG box magazine. South Korea began phasing the K3 out in 2025 in favor of the K15 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
- 1989
DimensionsAs issued, without a magazine or an optic.
- Barrel
- 533 mm
- Overall length
- 1030 mm
- Weight, empty
- 6.85 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.
- Muzzle velocity
- 960 m/s
- Muzzle energy
- 1838 J
- Effective range
- 800 m
- Maximum range
- 3600 m
- Rate of fire
- 900 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.
Quick change barrel
Barrel carry handle
Bipod
Dual feed belt or box magazine
Open bolt operation
Fluted barrel
Fixed polymer stock
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 | 6.85 kg | 6.35 kg | Heavier than about 60% |
| Overall lengthAmong 25 5.56x45mm NATO machine guns | 1030 mm | 1020 mm | Longer than about 70% |
| Barrel lengthAmong 26 5.56x45mm NATO machine guns | 533 mm | 465 mm | Longer than about 90% |
| Magazine capacityAmong 26 5.56x45mm NATO machine guns | 200 | 200 | Holds more rounds than about 80% |
Answers
Questions about the Daewoo K3
How much does the Daewoo K3 weigh?
The Daewoo K3 weighs 6.85 kg (15.10 lb) empty.
What caliber is the Daewoo K3?
The Daewoo K3 is chambered in 5.56x45mm NATO.
How many rounds does the Daewoo K3 hold?
The Daewoo K3 holds 200 rounds, fed from a belt.
How long is the Daewoo K3?
The Daewoo K3 is 1030 mm (40.6 in) long overall, with a 533 mm (21.0 in) barrel.
Who makes the Daewoo K3?
The Daewoo K3 is made by S&T Motiv (formerly Daewoo Precision Industries) (South Korea). It was designed by Daewoo Precision Industries design team (Agency for Defense Development collaboration).
When was the Daewoo K3 introduced?
The Daewoo K3 was introduced in 1989.
How does the Daewoo K3 operate?
The Daewoo K3 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
- 1989
- Philippine Army
- Philippines
- Indonesian Marine Corps
- Indonesia
- Colombian Army
- Colombia
- Bangladesh Army
- Bangladesh
- Royal Thai Army
- Thailand
Provenance
Confidence in this record
74%
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-k3' \ --header 'X-API-Key: your_key'{ "id": "daewoo-k3", "name": "Daewoo K3", "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": 1989, "barrel_length_mm": 533, "weight_empty_g": 6850, "action_type": "gas_operated_long_stroke"}