Who's was best? Why do you feel that way?

Well the top 2 images I cannot see, but I hope the MG42 is there because it was by far the best MG of WWII and possibly even of all time. It's rate of fire was colossal, over 1000 rpm. It had good range, accuracy and striking power. It had a superb barrel-exchange system that no other gun really matched. The sound of it's tearing burp was a terrific psychological weapon. Of the three images I can see, the Vickers is really a WWI antique, with excellent reliability. The Japanese woodpecker is based on the French Chauchat I think and is a pretty average gun performace-wise. The .30 cal is reliable but fires too slowly and is too heavy.

MG42. Period.


"They can't abide the cold steel, sir! no, sir! The fuzzy wuzzies, they don't like it up 'em!"

I heard that the MG-42 overheated quite quickly, if true that's a enormous disadvantage ...


Don't try this at home lads

quoted from panda:
"Of course we knew it would be a tuff fight. The little Viets are our tiny cousins. They are practically Chinese but only much shorter."

Actually, the Japanese heavy machine gun was based on the WW1 Maxim, not the Chauchat. But it was an outdated design, no question.

I agree the MG 42 was the best heavy machine gun (non Anti Aircraft) in WW2. Second place would be either the Russian or the American Browning.

mg42 no question.

although it couldnt be fired for more than 4 seconds straight i think,because of how quickly it overheated?

still,an outstanding weapon.

Yeah the "best of the best" was certainly the MG-42. Interestingly, it was a Polish design that the Germans captured. I read someplace that the Americans tried to reverse engineer it, but found it unsuitable for the 30.06 round. I read someplace else that the problem was more a result of problems translating metric into imperial (don't know if that makes any sense though - whatever.)

As for the rediculously high rate of fire, the current "Nato-spec." versions have the option of a "Type R bolt and buffer" (I really have little understanding of what that means) that reduces the rate of fire from 1150-1350 rds/min to 750/950 rds/min (so says the Ian Hogg/ John Weeks "Military Small Arms of the 20th Century" book that my wife bought me for Christmas way back when.)

I think that between the MG-42 and the ZB vz/26 & vz/30 (which were the guns that the UK adopted in .303 to make the Bren Gun) the bad guys sure as hell had the better machine gun designs available to them (and in their 7.92 mm Mauser calibre) during the war.

Not well known, but one of the finest machine guns in WW2:



Introduced in 1937, in service through the 1960 's, the Czech Vz-37 was used by Germany during WW2 and designated the MG37 (T). Considered the finest shooting air cooled machine gun ever made. Used as a tank weapon by Britain and called The Besa, and in German tanks as well. 7.92 x 57 mm Mauser, rate of fire 700 rpm, weight 41 lbs. (feels like a ton!), 100 shot belt ammo.