The weapon had a penetration of just over 4 cm RHA with its standard solid shot armour piercing projectile and quickly became obsolete against modern armour, leading to the development of higher caliber recoilless guns, eventually resulting in the Carl Gustaf 84 mm recoilless rifle in 1948.

The Carl Gustaf 20 mm pvg m/42 fired the 20×180mm rimmed cartridge which had two cutouts in the bottom of the casing.

[3] Unlike comparable anti-tank rifles of the era the 20 mm pvg m/42 was shipped with both high-explosive and armor-piercing projectiles.

[3] The 20 mm pvg m/42 was the world's first shoulder-fired recoil-less weapon, and laid the ground work for the development of the more well-known Carl Gustaf 8.4cm recoilless rifle, which continues to see widespread military service.

[2] The Provisional Irish Republican Army acquired at least one 20 mm pvg m/42 recoilless rifle and first used the weapon in the summer of 1983, carrying out a number of attacks on British Army and Royal Ulster Constabulary fortified observation posts and armored vehicles in Belfast.