Espingarda m/961
- Category
- Battle Rifle
- Barrel
- 450 mm
- Weight, empty
- 4.70 kg
- Introduced
- 1961
About
What it is, and why it matters
The Espingarda m/961 is the early Portuguese-service variant of the Heckler & Koch G3 battle rifle, license-produced in 7.62x51mm NATO at the state arsenal Fábrica de Braço de Prata after Portugal adopted the roller-delayed-blowback rifle in 1961. Designated officially the 'Espingarda automática 7,62 mm m/961', this first-pattern model is distinguished by a wooden buttstock modelled on the preceding Spanish CETME, ventilated stamped-steel handguards, a folding bipod, an early first-pattern muzzle brake, and flip-type rear sights rather than the later rotating drum sight. It served as the standard infantry rifle of Portuguese forces during the opening years of the Portuguese Colonial War in Angola, Portuguese Guinea, and Mozambique, before production switched in 1963 to the lighter polymer-furniture m/963.
Portuguese conscripts shipped to the bush wars of Africa carried a rifle that was, in effect, a Spanish design refined in Germany and built in Lisbon - the wooden CETME-style stock of the m/961 a visible reminder that the G3's roller-delayed action traced back through the Spanish CETME to wartime German engineer Ludwig Vorgrimler.
Built for only about three years before the contract moved to the m/963 with plastic furniture and a drum rear sight. Early m/961 rifles were supplied from Heckler & Koch in West Germany while domestic license production at Fábrica de Braço de Prata ramped up. Some refurbished examples reportedly remained in Portuguese Marine service with modern accessories.
Specification
Everything measured
IdentityWhat it is, who built it and when.
- Manufacturer
- Fábrica de Braço de Prata
- Category
- Battle Rifle
- Country
- Portugal
- Status
- Out of production
- Produced
- 1961 to 1963
- Variant of
- Licensed production
DimensionsAs issued, without a magazine or an optic.
- Barrel
- 450 mm
- Overall length
- 1025 mm
- Sight radius
- 572 mm
- Weight, empty
- 4.70 kg
- Weight, loaded
- 5.40 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
- Wood
- Finish
- Phosphate
BallisticsFrom the service cartridge, not a handload.
- Muzzle velocity
- 790 m/s
- Muzzle energy
- 2965 J
- Effective range
- 500 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
Ventilated stamped steel handguard
Folding bipod
First pattern muzzle brake
Flip rear sight
Wooden buttstock
Roller delayed action
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 | 4.70 kg | 4.30 kg | Heavier than about 90% |
| Overall lengthAmong 85 7.62x51mm NATO battle rifles | 1025 mm | 1025 mm | Near the median |
| 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 Espingarda m/961
How much does the Espingarda m/961 weigh?
The Espingarda m/961 weighs 4.70 kg (10.36 lb) empty and 5.40 kg (11.90 lb) loaded.
What caliber is the Espingarda m/961?
The Espingarda m/961 is chambered in 7.62x51mm NATO.
How many rounds does the Espingarda m/961 hold?
The Espingarda m/961 holds 20 rounds, fed from a detachable box magazine.
How long is the Espingarda m/961?
The Espingarda m/961 is 1025 mm (40.4 in) long overall, with a 450 mm (17.7 in) barrel.
Who makes the Espingarda m/961?
The Espingarda m/961 is made by Fábrica de Braço de Prata (Portugal). It was designed by Tilo Möller, Theodor Koch, Edmund Heckler.
When was the Espingarda m/961 introduced?
The Espingarda m/961 was introduced in 1961 and discontinued in 1963.
How does the Espingarda m/961 operate?
The Espingarda m/961 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
- Portuguese Armed Forces
- 1961
- Portuguese Marines (Fuzileiros)
- Portugal
Provenance
Confidence in this record
72%
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/espingarda-m-961' \ --header 'X-API-Key: your_key'{ "id": "espingarda-m-961", "name": "Espingarda m/961", "manufacturer": { "id": "fabrica-de-braco-de-prata", "name": "Fábrica de Braço de Prata", "countryCode": "PT", "foundedYear": 1908, "website": null, "logoUrl": null, "description": null, "status": null, "defunctYear": null, "stateOwned": null, "makesFirearms": null, "parentId": null, "predecessorId": null, "createdAt": "2026-06-21 23:00:46", "updatedAt": "2026-06-21 23:00:46", "version": "3d2bd9736689ecd205de4c12f4a1a2361492dc6c39af79fd01d6037af44bc752" }, "category": { "id": "battle-rifle", "name": "Battle Rifle", "description": "Selective-fire rifles chambered in full-power cartridges" }, "country_of_origin": "PT", "year_introduced": 1961, "barrel_length_mm": 450, "weight_empty_g": 4700, "action_type": "roller_delayed_blowback"}