M-1919 .30 cal. Machine Gun

M-1919A4 on packboard. Click for larger image.
Photo courtesy of BMG Parts.

More photos and videos of the M-1919 .30 cal. Machine Gun are available at the linked page and in the Olive-Drab.com Gallery.

At the Olive-Drab.com YouTube Channel, the video Automatic Weapons: American vs. German (1943) compares the M-1919 .30 cal. Machine Gun to the German MG34 & MG42 Machine Guns and to the M-1917 .30 cal. Machine Gun.

Machine Gun, Cal. .30, M1919A4/M1919A6

Official name: Machine Gun, Cal. .30, M1919A4/M1919A6. The M-1919A2, the predecessor to the M-1919A4 and M-1919A6, evolved from the Browning model M-1917 water-cooled machine gun. The M-1919 series .30 cal. machine gun was replaced by the M-60 7.62mm machine gun in the mid-1950s, but continued to be used into the Vietnam War. M-1919A4 was used as both a company level flexible light machine gun on the M-2 tripod mount and as a fixed machine gun on armored vehicles. The M-1919A4 had a heavier barrel with a ventilated barrel jacket, but developed a slower rate of fire (400-550 cpm) than the water-cooled gun. The M-1919 series fired the Army's standard .30-06 round in fabric or metal link belts.

Browning machinegun, cal. .30, M-1919A6 (M2 mount).

The M-1919A5 was a modification to the M1919A4 for use as a tank machine gun. M-1919A6 was a war time modification to add tactical flexibility by substitution of a bipod in place of the tripod and addition of a shoulder stock and carrying handle. The M-1919A6 had a lighter barrel than the M-1919A4 and had a rate of 400-500 cpm. A total of 43,479 M-1919A6 were built. The M-1919 series, still in use around the world, has been one of the most reliable and efficient machine guns ever produced.

M-1919 Series Machine Gun Specifications

M-1919A6 machine gun, 2nd Infantry Division in Korea, October 1950.

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