QJZ85 / W85 / QJC88 12.7 mm heavy machine gun

The QJZ85 or Type 85 heavy machine gun was developed by China North Industries Corporation (NORINCO) to succeed the previous Type 77. It is tripod mounted and the vehicle mounted version is known as the QJC88 or Type 88.

The belt-fed and fully automatic QJZ85 / QJC88 uses the 12.7x108 cartridge of Russian origin. A variant exists using the 12.7x99 NATO cartridge for export only.

The gas-operated QJZ85 / QJC88 comes with an iron sight, but can also be fitted with an optical sight. Muzzle velocity is 850 m/s and the maximum rate of fire 600 rounds per minute.

The QJZ85 / QJC88 heavy machine gun weighs 18.5 kg and is being succeeded by the Type 89 or QJZ89.

The QJZ85 and QJC88 have been exported abroad as the W85 and have been used in various conflicts. Examples are Sri Lanka, Cambodia and in several African countries such as Chad and Somalia.