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Classic Weapons of World War II

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Heavy weapons

M1919A4 (USA)

Length 104cm / 41in
Weight 14.06kg / 31lb
Muzzle velocity 854m / 2,800ft per second
Cartridge .30in
Magazine 250-round belt
Rate of fire 500 rounds per minute

The M1919 series of machine gun was more commonly known as the ’30 cal by US troops. Originally built by the Browning company after World War I for use in tanks, the model became a stalwart of infantry support during World War II and was also commonly mounted on trucks, boats and jeeps. A standard, simple blow-back system used the recoil forces of the weapon to pull back the complete breach and barrel assembly to charge the gun after each round was fired.

Though many variants were made, the M1919A4 was the most common with nearly 500,000 examples produced by the end of the war. High standards of design and engineering guaranteed the ’30 as super reliable, even in extremely poor conditions.

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