Lewis gun in WW2?
- Thread starter archerynut
- Start date
That's doubtful. For starters, with the exception of ONE US war correspondent, the first American GI's didn't get to Berlin until AFTER Berlin fell and the war was well over. Most "front line" US troops ended the war in Austria and south-western Germany along the Elbe river.
Next, American GI's were never issued any weapon called an "M1A" in WW2. there was an M1 rifle, and M1 carbine an M1 submachinegun and an M1A1 submachinegun, but the M1A is a commercial M14 clone that didn't exist until the 1970's.
Not exactly. The MG34 was never officially obsoleted during the war. In fact, it could not be. The Germans NEVER designed a fortress, aircraft or vehicle mount suitable for the MG42 with it's stamped square barrel jacet and side-change barrel system. Every panzer made in the Reich wasoutfitted with at least one MG34 right until the bitter end. The Luftwaffe's aircraft were generalyl equipped with MG34 and MG15's right up until 1945. The "Atlantikwall" was fortified with MG42's in the pill-boxes, but the hardened gun positions were all mounted up with MG34's.
Also, MG42 production NEVER reached the numbers required to stop issue of new MG34's to frontline units. The two machineguns were issued concurrently to fighting infantry units throughout the entire war. After 1943, only BRNO was manufacturing the MG34, but they ran several production lines and made a massive number of them compared to the earlier factories.
Few know this but Canada issued Lewis guns not only in .303" but also in .30/06. I donated a 2nd Bn Seaforth Highlanders of Canada WWII printed Lewis .30/06 manual to the Seaforth Highlanders of Canada Museum and Archives years ago.
Also the SAS used Vickers Gas Operated (G.O., also known as Vickers K) guns on their jeeps. With the pan magazine they look a lot like Lewis Guns. The LRDG used some Lewis guns on their patrol trucks as I recall (from photos).
Also the SAS used Vickers Gas Operated (G.O., also known as Vickers K) guns on their jeeps. With the pan magazine they look a lot like Lewis Guns. The LRDG used some Lewis guns on their patrol trucks as I recall (from photos).
Those were Canadian built Chevy trucks like this one:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:PPA_right_side.JPG
Who would have thought 60+ years later, Can Chevy is now on the brink of bankruptcy.
The Vickers was the standard medium machine gun employed by the Machine Gun Company of an infantry battalion in the role of Divisional Support Battalion, of which I think those Camerons were one, and I know the Saskatoon Light Infantry were another.
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- Location
- Tucson, Arizona
I once met a fellow at a gun show who talked about firing a Lewis gun. He was on the gunboat Panay in the Yangtze and he was shooting at the japs before we got into WW2!
Of course he got sunk.
The funniest one was the fellow who picked up my Mk6 Webley. Dot Vebley is de best! I had a luger und it vas no damm goot. I valked into der arms room und trew dot luger down und said giff me a Vebley! (He was a South African) though I wondered a bit at the start
Of course he got sunk.
The funniest one was the fellow who picked up my Mk6 Webley. Dot Vebley is de best! I had a luger und it vas no damm goot. I valked into der arms room und trew dot luger down und said giff me a Vebley! (He was a South African) though I wondered a bit at the start
The Bren was issued with a 96 round (I think) drum mag for the AA role and most were sadly lost at Dunkirk, My grandfather was in the Royal Montreal Regt (MG) and I have a pic of him manning a Vickers gun on the South Downs near where I live now!
Here is an AA mount. I saw a single one in the National Army Museum in Chelsea!
Here is an AA mount. I saw a single one in the National Army Museum in Chelsea!
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my buddy picked up a nice Turkish issue vickers and when I went over to have a look to my surprise there was a very nice big C broadarrow on the front mount .if that gun could talk.. imagine built in England ,sent to Canada, back to England then to Turkey
Get a copy of the Alex Haig book. In WW1 the british army was against lewis guns in the field. General Currie of Canada ordered all the lewis guns canada could get for the army. Thats why we had so many in WW2. We had the most machine guns per soldiers in WW1.
