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Machine Guns

More Information About Them

The model of machine gun that was used in WW1 was invited in 1884 by Hiram Maxim. The 1914 machine gun, usually positioned on a flat tripod, would require a gun crew of four to six operators.  In theory they could fire 400-600 small-calibre rounds per minute, a figure that was to more than double by the war's end, with rounds fed via a fabric belt or a metal strip. 

       With a shorter range than howitzers soldiers had to see the enemy to fire. The reality however was that these early machine guns would rapidly overheat and become inoperative without the aid of cooling mechanisms; they were consequently fired in short rather than sustained bursts. 

Machine Guns RM: My Work
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