Gun Experts of the OT: MG-42

Not sure if rotary guns fit your definition of a machine gun, but I'll take this one.

You are going to have to state whether it is crew served (or as in the second post) or platform mounted to get a better response. And as the third post noted, how do you intend on employing it. The Germans built their infantry maneuver around it and it was devastatingly effective in that capacity. The United States (for the most part) built their infantry maneuver around the M1 rifle. It is not just the system, but how it is used.

Factoids: the US M60 was based on the MG 42.
The MG 42's descendant the MG 3(carbon copy)is still in use today, although I dont think another gun will ever approach the M2's longevity

The MG-34 was the actual ground breaking innovative machine gun. It marked the transition to light weight, transportable, shoulder fired beltfed machine guns that are still the preeminent source of infantry firepower today. It fundamentally changed battlefield tactics by affording the suppressing fire and killing power of beltfed machine guns to smaller infantry units and allowed a greater place in offensive maneuvering.

The 42 innovated in production. It was cheaper and faster to make. It also had a very neat quick change barrel design feature which compensated for the overheating of barrels. The 34 was too expensive and labor intensive for wartime mass production requirements. It was however manufactured until war's end. The 42 did not supplant it techologically or in battlefield effectiveness.

As for the 42's rate of fire, it is widely considered above the ideal rate. This is why you don't see modern machine guns replicating 1200 rpm capabilities. There is no doubt that the 34 and 42 revolutionized machine gun design and in the hands of a skilled and disciplined gunner, the MG 42 could have a devastating impact on the battlefield.

Evolution of an infantry machine gun

MG 08, MG 08/15, MG 08/18 -- Evolution


If this page loads correctly, it will explain how the company/platoon/squad/fire team machine gun evolved from a heavy, water cooled, tripod-based weapon that provided a base of fire at the Company or maybe even Battalion level in early to mid-World War I, to a lighter machine gun that could be maneuvered to provide a solid base of fire down to the platoon level or lower.

This evolution of the weapon changed the way that infantry attacks, and, the natural progression of this evolution culminates in the way that we see infantry tactics even today.

You can see how the MG34 and the MG42 fit very nicely into this progression of infantry tactics from 1914 to today. In 1914, battalions still formed up on linear fashion to attack. Today, the infantry still uses a remnant of the linear formation, but, you'd have to look at formations down to 4 and 5 personnel to see them "on line" formation.

MG34 and MG42 were very important to this process of evolution, and, I don't think that any of the Allied infantry had adopted this "new" approach to infantry tactics even by 1945.

Read Rommel's book. It's called "Infantry Attacks". It's the book that Patton referred to in the film "Patton". "Infantry Attacks" is an excellent "proto-manual" on infantry tactics. Rommel was an excellent infantry small-unit combat commander.

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It was a combination of equipment, squad tactics and discipline that made the German units of the 1st and 2nd World Wars some of the most efficient of all time.

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And you know, meth

When it's time to "Get the Gatt", I prefer the General Electric GAU-8. How you gunna argue with BBRRRRRRRRT?

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Champagne

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Solid post and right on point. It was not just the incredible rate of fire from the MG34 and MG42, rather it was the way the Wehrmacht deployed and used them. Each squad in a Wehrmacht infantry platoon had a machine gun, either a MG34 or later a MG42. The Wehrmacht built their infantry squads around the machine gun. Compare that to the US Army during WWII who relied on the BAR as the sole automatic weapon at the infantry squad level. And while the BAR was a fine weapon, it was totally outmatched from a firepower standpoint by the MG34 and MG42.

The Red Army did employ a light MG, usually the DP-27, but they were the only force on the Allied side that employed a true machine gun at the infantry squad level. But even here the DP-27 fell short of the MG34, having roughly half the rate of fire, and the DP-27 was completely outmatched by the MG42. In addition to having a far lower rate of fire than both German MGs, the DO-27 also had a pan style magazine that held only about roughly 50 rounds which necessitated frequent reloading, especially during sustained combat. The MG34 and MG42 though were both link belt fed with their belts usually being at least 100 rounds. And the MG34 and MG42 crews had the ability, thanks to the link style belts, to join multiple ammo belts together to further reduce the need for reloading.

Yes, it is the most devastating MG ever designed. The tripod allowed the gun to shoot in a wave pattern that is absolutely devastating. In 8mm they are just brutal to even be around. I have shot quite a few, I might buy one someday, but they are not my favorite to shoot. I am glad I have shot them and got to use all the functions of the mounts. It truly is a shock and awe type weapon.