Table of Contents
What was the American equivalent to the MG42?
The T24 machine gun was a prototype reverse engineered copy of the German MG 42 general-purpose machine gun developed during World War II as a possible replacement for the Browning Automatic Rifle and M1919A4 for infantry squads.
Does the German army still use the MG42?
It is the primary general-purpose machine gun of the modern German armed forces (Bundeswehr). A number of other (NATO) armies around the world have adopted the MG3, and it remains in widespread service today. The MG 3 and its preceding variants all share a high level of parts interchangeability with the original MG 42.
What cartridge did MG42 use?
The MG42 was designed in Germany in 1938, and it was placed in action on all fronts by mid-1942. Its original calibre was 7.92 mm, but when West Germany entered the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), the weapon’s bore was modified to fire the NATO standard rifle and machine-gun cartridge of 7.62 mm.
Why is the MG42 so fast?
Originally Answered: Why can the MG42 shoot so fast? It is recoil operated with a booster at the muzzle—the recoil energy of the round cycles the action, and gas pressure trapped inside the booster over the muzzle helps cycle the barrel as well. The combination means an exceptionally fast cycle time.
Does the German Bundeswehr still use the MG-42?
This is a slightly tricky question to answer, because no, the modern Bundeswehr does not use the MG-42. They restarted the numbering system after the war, and the MG-42 was replaced with the MG-1 and MG-3, with old ’42s being converted into MG-2s. These models got West Germany through the Cold War.
How did the MG-42 affect American soldiers during the war?
When faced with such a scenario, many GIs were simply frozen with fear. In fact, the MG-42 was so intimidating that the War Department created a training film to combat the weapon’s psychological effect on soldiers. The film, which downplayed the German machine gun’s lethality, was shown to infantry replacements that had not seen combat.
How accurate is the MG-42 compared to the American machine gun?
With staged demonstrations of American and German automatic weapons, the film insists that while the German machine gun has a much higher rate of fire than its American counterpart, the MG-42 does not possess the same degree of accuracy as an American machine gun.
How were the MG 34 and MG 42 made?
The MG 42 hinged on a design meant for mass production. Even though the German army continued to produce the MG 34 until the end of the war, it was heavily supplemented by the MG 42. The manufactured parts were welded together by hand, but the rest was done by machine.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5foo4PB-kKk