What rifle and people are in this historical picture?

[geojap]

I found this picture on the internet and cannot determine who the people in the picture are, or the exact model of the rifle. Does anyone know for sure?

I think that is Stalin in the foreground holding an RPK, and possibly Castro in the background, but I cannot confirm this after doing a fair amount of searching on the internet.

 

[paintballdude902]

its george washington firing an ak-47......

bigger pic please

 

[geojap]

Dude that image is 145x97 pixels.

I know, but it's the best I have. Maybe someone has seen the pic before though and knows who/what is in it.

 

[Xader]

Im trying to puzzle out the face.

it looks like a storm trooper (Star Wars not Nazi)

 

[HK G3]

Well, it appears to have a drum magazine that is not attached at an angle, so I'm going to just assume it's a Thompson.

 

[FlyinBryan]

is it a ppsh smg like this?

http://www.modelguns.co.uk/images/ppsh3.jpg

 

[Tinpig]

No reason to believe that Castro and Stalin ever met.
It seems most unlikely...Castro didn't take power until 6 years after Stalin's death in 1953. In 1952 Castro was still a member of Partido Ortodoxo, the nationalist, anti-corruption, and anti-communist political party of the late Eduardo Chibas.

Tinpig

 

[geojap]

Thanks for the reply. Still up in the air then.

 

[Mal H]

Well since the image is called [noparse]http://codemonkeyx.com/images/[/noparse]stalin.jpg, I guess the Stalin guess is a good one.

The person I presume is Stalin looks more like The Predator.

 

[geojap]

That is my domain. Codemonkeyx.com. I have a number of them. I use them to host things I want to put online. That was my best guess, so I named the pic Stalin. It is not indicative of the truth at all.

 

[SaxonPig]

IMO the man holding the firearm bears a resemblance to Joseph Stalin. The bearded man does not look to me like Fidel Castro. But I can't say anything for sure.

I am pretty sure they never met.

 

[Tommygunn]

HK 63;
look how it's being held. That is not a Thompson.

PPSH is a better guess, but I wouldn't swear to it.

We need a BIGGER PICTURE.

 

[Ed Ames]

The guy in the front is Winston Churchill holding a Thompson. The guy behind him to the left is Elvis. The guy to the right is Che Guavara. Behind him is Charlie Chaplin.

Or maybe there is no way to telling with a picture that small.

 

[Kernel]

That ain't Castro. One, it looks nothing like him. Two, no cigar!

 

[Greysand]

I blew it up a little, but it's not much to go on. Whatever it is seems to have a bi-pod, drum mag, hanging mag release behind the drum, rear right charging lever, and flip up rear sight. It also looks like the gas system may be below the barrel.

 

[pkoch62]

RPD, maybe?

http://www.internationalpolicesupply.net/RPD vec.gif

The man in the background may be Lee Harvey Oswald with a fake beard.

 

[Greysand]

Looks about right for an RPD. But it does raise some questions. What is he doing with he right hand? Its not anywhere near the pistol grip.

Perhaps someone just handed it to him for the photograph and he's not really sure how to hold it? His right hand grip looks about right for a mauser action.

 

[230RN]

Clues?

Well, they're at a formal range, judging by what looks like a target frame on the right. The guy holding the gun looks young and fair-haired and is wearing a heavy coat (not for use in Cuba, obviously) that does not look like a shooting jacket. I can't tell for sure, but is he wearing an eyepatch (maybe for dominant-eye control)?

The guy with the beard does resemble Castro. The white lapels are a clue, but I don't know what the Cuban uniform du jour was like.

The guy way in the back does look a little like Stalin, but I think he's wearing glasses. I think his cap has a star on it.

The rifle has a bipod.

Do you have a link to the original picture? On what site did you find it?

 

[tkopp]

More importantly, is the guy holding the weapon also wearing an eye patch? Is he a pirate? Or a Spartan gifted in the art of prose?

 

[mcdonl]

Perhaps someone just handed it to him for the photograph and he's not really sure how to hold it? His right hand grip looks about right for a mauser action.

Pretty good guess considering he has the rear sight raised for a long shot, and he is seemingly pointing at the ground.

He must have been a panic buyer in his day

 

[Hutch]

I think I spotted Heinrich Himmler (last guy on right, background) and Cynthia McKinney (First person to left (what a coincidence))

 

[zoom6zoom]

It's Bigfoot.

 

[Deanimator]

I just found the perfect way to troll THR (at least it worked on me):

Tiny grainy pic in black and white with a firearm in it - ask to identify gun. Ask them to identify it, and they'll spend all sorts of time on it!



Help me identify everything about this picture!

It's a Soviet infantry officer with a Tokarev TT-30 or TT-33 7.62x25mm semi-automatic pistol. I've seen the picture many times. I don't know if it's real combat footage or from a Soviet documentary, since they were prone to conflating the two.

 

[ambidextrous1]

I think you're on the right track, Deanimator.

I was about to post that the drum magazine is too large for .45 ACP, and more likely holds a small rifle cartridge, as you suggested.

I don't know who those guys are; I don't think I've seen them around the club...

 

[Deanimator]

I was about to post that the drum magazine is too large for .45 ACP, and more likely holds a small rifle cartridge, as you suggested.

It's almost certainly an RPD. Given the appearance of the people and their dress, I'd say it's possible that it could be from the Hungarian uprising of '56.