Sage-Tips

How good was the MG42 machine gun?

Many military historians argue that the Maschinengewehr 42 – better known as the MG 42 – was the best general-purpose machine gun ever made. It fired up to 1,800 rounds per minute in some versions. That’s nearly twice as fast as any automatic weapon fielded by any army in the world at the time.

How powerful is a Browning machine gun?

M2 Browning

Browning machine gun, cal. .50, M2, HB
Rate of fire	450–600 rounds/min (M2HB) 750–850 rounds/min (AN/M2) 1,200–1,300 rounds/min (AN/M3)
Muzzle velocity	2,910 ft/s (890 m/s) for M33 ball
Effective firing range	1,800 m (2,000 yd)
Maximum firing range	7,400 m (8,100 yd)

How effective is MG 34?

Used by the German military through World War II, the MG34 was extremely effective thanks to its 800- to 900-rpm rate of fire and 7.92x57mm chambering, but it was difficult to mass-produce.

Why was the MG42 such a good machine gun?

The MG42 could deliver a lot more rounds over time than the M1919 Browning. And that made it a more dangerous and effective killer at the front. And importantly that was good. The machine guns gave the Germans an immense advantage because they had the weight of fire at the front where the enemy was.

What is the difference between the MG 34 and the MG 42?

The MG 42 weighed 11.57 kg in the light machine gun role with the bipod, lighter than the MG 34 and easily portable.

How do you change the firing rate of an MG 42?

The cyclic firing rate of the MG 42 can be altered by installing different bolts and recoil springs. A heavier bolt uses more recoil energy to overcome inertia, thus slowing the cyclic rate of the machine gun. Heavy bolts also were used along with stiffer return springs.

What ever happened to the MG-42?

The weapon stayed in the Liniewski family until 2016 when his son Marty donated the weapon to the Museum. In spite of its tendency to overheat, the MG-42 was an excellent weapon that was light-years of ahead of the US counterpart, the Browning M-1919A4 machine gun.