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The Lewis Gun was a pre-WWI era American design of machine gun most widely used by the British and Imperial armies that continued to see service all the way through to WWII. It is visually distinctive because of the wide tubular cooling shroud around the barrel, and the top mounted drum magazines. In 1917, the U.S. Army adopted the Lewis Gun, firing the .30-06. But the design was quickly replaced by the famous Browning Automatic Rifle or BAR. The Browning Automatic Rifle (BAR) was family of automatic rifles (or machine rifles) and light machine guns used primarily by the United States and other countries during the 1900s. It was designed in 1917 by the weapons designer John Browning primarily as a replacement for, and improvement on, the French-made Chauchat and Hotchkiss M1909. It was originally intended as a light automatic rifle, but spent much of its career in various guises used as a LMG with a bipod. The first version was, and remains the lightest service machine gun to fire .30-06 Springfield, but its 20 round magazine tended to hamper its use as a light machine gun. The Browning Model 1917 Machine Gun is a heavy machine gun used by the United States armed forces in World War I, World War II, Korea, and to a limited amount in Vietnam; it was also used by some other countries too. It was belt-fed water-cooled machine gun that served alongside the much lighter air-cooled Browning M1919. It was used at the battalion level, and often mounted on vehicles (such as a jeep). There were two main iterations of it; the M1917, which was used in WWI, and the M1917A1 which was used after. The M1917 was used on the ground and some aircraft, and had firing rate of 450 round/min;the M1917A1 had a firing rate of 450 to 600 round/min. The Chauchat (pronounced 'show-shah') was the primary light machine gun used by the French in World War I. Over 250,000 were manufactured, making it the most widely manufactured automatic weapon of World War I, but is generally regarded as one of the great engineering failures in the history of firearms. The Winchester Model 1897 is a pump-action shotgun with an external hammer and tube magazine. Numerous barrel lengths were offered. The United States military used a short-barreled version known variably as the 'trench' or 'riot' shotgun. It was first issued to US troops during World War I. Unlike most modern pump-action shotguns, the Model 1897 fired each time the action closed with the trigger depressed. That and its 6-shot capacity made it effective for close-combat. It was used in limited numbers during World War II by the United States Army and Marine Corps. The Thompson submachine gun, also known as the Tommy Gun, was an American submachine gun (SMG) that became infamous during the Prohibition era. It was a common sight in gangster films of the time, being used both by criminals and by law enforcement officers. The "Tommy Gun" was also known as the "Chicago Typewriter" and "Chicago Piano", and was favored for its compact size and high volume of automatic fire. The Submachine Gun, Cal. .45, M3/M3A1 (1942) was a submachine gun developed by the United States during World War Two as a cheaper substitute for the Tommy Gun. It was nicknamed the "Grease Gun" because of its resemblance to an automotive grease gun. The M1 Garand (more formally the United States Rifle, Caliber .30, M1) was the first semi-automatic rifle to be put in active military service. It officially replaced the Springfield 1903 rifle as the standard service rifle in 1936, until officially replaced by the M14 that was developed from it in 1957. It would be heavily used in WWII, Korea, and to a limited extent in Vietnam. It was primarily used by the U.S., but also some other countries. It continues to be used as a civilian firearm, and by some drill teams. The M1 Carbine (more formally the United States Carbine, Caliber .30, M1) was a lightweight semi-automatic carbine that became a standard firearm in the US military during World War II and the Korean War. It found favor with many frontline troops, and came into wide use over several decades. In selective fire versions, it is known as the M2 and the M3 Carbine. It has also been a popular civilian firearm. The M2 .50 machine gun, nicknamed Ma Deuce by troops, is a heavy machine gun designed just after World War I by John Browning. The M2 .50 was used extensively as a vehicle weapon and for aircraft armament by the US during WW2 and is still in use today. It was very similar in design to the smaller .30-06 and .303 inch Browning Model 1919 machine gun. The M1941 Rifle is an American semi-automatic rifle. Melvin M. Johnson, an American arms designer, developed his semiautomatic rifle by mid-1938, and submitted it to U.S. Army trials. Trials and development of the rifle continued until early 1940, when the Army Ordnance Board finally rejected the Johnson rifle. While several reasons were given for this and other rejections, the primary reason was the advanced state of production on the Garand rifle. The same year, Johnson submitted his rifle for trials to the US Marine Corps, where it was tested against the M1 Garand rifle. The results of the first tests were good for the Johnson, but later the M1 Garand rifle was deemed superior. In 1941 Johnson named his rifle the "Model 1941", and the same year the Dutch Government ordered 70,000 rifles from Johnson for its Dutch East Indies colonies, fearing invasion from Japan. For this order Johnson created the Johnson Automatics Mfg plant. At about the same time U.S. Marine Corps parachutist forces became interested in the Model 1941, as it was easy to take down for compact carry during parachute drop, and then easy and quick to reassemble. As the Dutch colonies were already occupied by Japan, the USMC procured many of the rifles made to Dutch order. M16 is the U.S. Military designation for a family of rifles derived from the Armalite AR-15. It is an assault rifle which fires NATO standard 5.56 mm ammunition. It has been the primary infantry rifle of the United States military since 1967, is in use by 15 NATO countries, and has been the most produced firearm in its caliber. The Colt Commando (and the related CAR-15 and XM-177), like most members of the AR15/M16 family is a gas-actuated locking bolt 5.56 mm carbine, and is produced by the Colt manufacturing. The moniker "Commando” has been used to describe Colt’s ultra-short carbine variants, as well as, "pre-A2 configuration” or "pre-M4” in general. The first weapon in this ultra-short category began production in 1967 for Special Operations units during the Vietnam war. By the end of the conflict, it had been used by members of various elite units, and had been given a slew of official designations in addition to the informal names it received in the field. The M21 is the semi-automatic sniper rifle adaptation of the popular M14 rifle. It is chambered for the 7.62 mm NATO round. The United States Army wanted an accurate sniper rifle during the Vietnam War. It selected the M14 because of its accuracy, reliability, and the ability for a quick second shot. As a result, in 1969, the Rock Island Arsenal converted 1,435 National Match (target grade) M14 rifles by adding a Leatherwood 3-9x Adjustable Ranging Telescope (ART) telescopic sight and furnishing National Match grade ammunition. It was designated the XM21 until 1971 when it became the M21. The M24 SWS is the military version of the Remington 700 rifle. The name SWS stands for Sniper Weapon System. It is the standard sniper rifle in the US Army (since 1988) and the Israeli Defence Forces. The Reising was an American submachine gun patented in 1940. The two versions of the weapon produced during World War 2 were the M50 and the simplified M55. Over 10,000 guns were ordered, primarily by the United States Navy, though some went to the Canadian and Soviet forces. The M4 Carbine is a shorter and lighter version of the M16A2 assault rifle, achieving 80% parts commonality with the M16A2. The M4 has select fire options including semi-automatic and three-round burst (like the M16A2), and the M4A1 has a full auto option in place of the three-round burst. The M4A1 also has a heavier profile barrel to withstand heat from sustained fully automatic fire. Both the M4 and M4A1 Carbine fire 5.56mm NATO and are gas operated, air cooled, magazine fed, selective fire firearms with a collapsible stock. The M240 is a 7.62 mm NATO Medium Machine gun. It is currently used by the US Armed Forces and other NATO forces. It is used extensively in the infantry as well as on vehicles and aircraft. Manufactured by Fabrique Nationale subsidiary FN Manufacturing, Inc. Columbia, SC, the M240 (FN MAG) was chosen by the US military after a world-wide search for a weapon to replace the venerable but troubled M60. The M60 machine gun (also seen M-60, formally Machine Gun, 7.62mm, M60) is a family of American machine guns, firing the 7.62 x 51 mm NATO cartridge. In the U.S. military, it has largely been replaced by various versions of the M240 machine gun. However, it remains in use in every branch, as well as some other countries (another major user was Australia); it continues to be manufactured into the 21st century. The M249 SAW designation is used by the US armed forces. The M249 is an air-cooled, belt-fed, automatic-only firearm that fires from an open bolt position. It can accept linked ammunition through the top-mounted feed tray, or M16 magazines through the side-mounted port. Linked ammunition can be fed from either a loose belt or from a plastic 200-round magazine clipped under the receiver. The SAW (Squad Automatic Weapon) features a built-in bipod and a tripod mounting lug for supported fire, and a quick-change barrel that helps prevent overheating during sustained fire. | ||||||||||
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