M2 .50 cal. Machine Gun
Following the use of the .50 cal. machine gun in the 1920s and 1930s, subsequent models of the M2 .50 cal., using the same receiver, were adopted by the various services in both air-cooled and water-cooled versions. During World War II, nearly two million M2 machine guns of all variations were produced.
When mounted in a four-gun configuration, the M2 was known as the Quad-50, a highly effective anti-aircraft weapon in World War II, also used extensively in Korea and Vietnam for anti-personnel purposes.
The M2 .50 cal. Machine Gun went out of production in the 1970s, and by the early 1990s the capability to manufacture the M2 barrel had virtually disappeared from the U.S. industrial base. An Army inventory of 13,000 "unserviceable" M2s were stockpiled, although they required some level of repair or maintenance before they could be used. With combat operations in Iraq and Afthanistan, the Army identified a requirement for an additional 8,000 M2s for fielding in FY2005. During the summer of 2004, Anniston Army Depot began to repair M2s at the rate of 100 per month, with a ramp up to 700 per month by early 2005, once new barrels and other parts were procured.
Description of the Browning M2 .50 Caliber Machine Gun
The Browning M2 .50 Caliber Machine Gun, Heavy Barrel is an automatic, recoil operated, air-cooled machine gun with adjustable headspace and is crew transportable with limited amounts of ammunition over short distances. By repositioning some of the component parts, ammunition may be fed from either the left or right side. A disintegrating metallic link-belt is used to feed the ammunition into the weapon.
Browning machinegun, Cal. .50 HB, M2.
The M2 has a back plate with spade grips, trigger, and bolt latch release. This gun may be mounted on ground mounts and most vehicles as an anti-personnel and anti-aircraft weapon. The gun is equipped with leaf-type rear sight, flash suppressor and a spare barrel assembly. Associated components are the M63 antiaircraft mount and the M3 tripod mount.
Over the years since its introduction, the M2 had been manufactured by a number of different suppliers, most recently Saco Defense.
Browning machinegun, Cal. .50 HB, M2 on M3 Tripod Mount.
Specifications
| Caliber | .50 |
| Effective range (on tripod) | 2000 meters |
| Maximum usable range | 4.22 miles (6.8 kilometers) |
| Method of Feed | Disintegrating link belt |
| Length | 61.42 inches (156 cm) |
| Length of barrel | 24 inches |
| Weight of gun | 84 lbss (38 kg) |
| Weight of tripod | 44 pounds (19.98 kg) |
| Rate of fire | 550 rounds per minute |
M2 .50 on U.S.Navy river patrol boat (PBR), Go Cong River January 1967.
Browning machinegun, Cal. .50 HB, M2 with night vision and other accessories.
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