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Remembered Today:


Mark Finneran

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OK, dummy question here :mellow: ... Were they always fed from gunner's right to gunner's left? I thought they worked both ways - or is that only more 'modern' ones?

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One way feed blocks

TT

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The normal 'chest' ie no plate and just the single bar with drag holes fixed.

 

DSC00564.JPG

DSC00565.JPG

Edited by Mark Finneran
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Also in this MG08 thread will be the postcards issued before and during WWI

 

pcmg (9).jpg

Edited by Mark Finneran
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OK, dummy question here :mellow: ... Were they always fed from gunner's right to gunner's left? I thought they worked both ways - or is that only more 'modern' ones?

Julian,

Although TT is quite right in that the feed block will only work one way your question is nevertheless interesting. There is a photo in "The Devil's Paintbrush" by Dolf Goldsmith of a Finnish-made twin, air-cooled Maxim battery which has a left-hand feed on the left-hand gun. I'm not sure if the "Maxims" are converted MG08s however.

Mark,

Excellent photos, here's another.

Michael.

post-53132-0-32582600-1455897936_thumb.j

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Thank you Michael and TT!

Making no claims to expertise in any of never mind all the kinds of 'arms' discussed on the GWF Arms thread, it is good to have a place where one can ask a 'dummy' question and get an answer!

One of the things that did make me wonder about the feeding system on these MG's was a comment made by a Dutch friend of mine, that all German WW1 and WW2 'action' films show the machine-gunner to the left of the screen because in visual terms the left side is seen as 'defensive' against 'orible aggressive peoples charging in from the right - or was it the other way round? Can't remember! Well, I don't know about that... But to my mind feeding a belt from the gunner's left just seems more logical than from the right... (An aside, was Maxim a left hander???!!!)

That photograph, Michael, is a great one! Early war? An NCO with coloured shoulder tabs?

Julian

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just thought but could the above pic be a reversed negative?

TT

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TT beat me to it. Reversed images are common! Incidentally I have a factory made vickers 'reveresed' feedblock VAC for the twin AA set up.... if anybody wants to make an offer...reasonably rare

Back to Imperial German MG I have never seen a ground version but will look at the parabellums next time to see if this was an air gun requirement.

Thanks for all the German MG contributions....I know there are other enthusiasts hiding out there!!!!

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Some 'pretty' postcards

 

 

 

 

pcmg (16).jpg

pcmg (17).jpg

Edited by Mark Finneran
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Thank you Michael and TT!

Making no claims to expertise in any of never mind all the kinds of 'arms' discussed on the GWF Arms thread, it is good to have a place where one can ask a 'dummy' question and get an answer!

One of the things that did make me wonder about the feeding system on these MG's was a comment made by a Dutch friend of mine, that all German WW1 and WW2 'action' films show the machine-gunner to the left of the screen because in visual terms the left side is seen as 'defensive' against 'orible aggressive peoples charging in from the right - or was it the other way round? Can't remember! Well, I don't know about that... But to my mind feeding a belt from the gunner's left just seems more logical than from the right... (An aside, was Maxim a left hander???!!!)

That photograph, Michael, is a great one! Early war? An NCO with coloured shoulder tabs?

Julian

Julian,

I think MG1918 has answered the point about left-hand belt feed appearing in films; the error is surprisingly common.

As far as my photo above is concerned I'm afraid there is no date. My initial thought was that it is 1917/18 because of the spool belt feed which was introduced for aircraft use, particularly for the LMG 14 (Parabellum) with its high rate of fire. However, there are two photos in "The Devil's Paintbrush" by Dolf Goldsmith of the German 37mm Maxim (Maxim Flak M14) which have a spool belt feed and I am uncertain when the spool feed was introduced for anti-aircraft use.

Here's another photo; again, no date I'm afraid.

Regards,

Michael.

post-53132-0-85277200-1456567702_thumb.j

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Thanks Michael, but I still don't quite get why they would belt-feed from the gunner's right. I would have thought that a feeder on the gunner's left could more easily deal with a mis-feed than one on the gunner's right - unless it was to make it easier for the gunner not the feeder to deal with a mis-feed? Remember, I have no practical experience about these things...

And this is another interesting photograph to me as just like in post 44 it seems that these chappies (except for the 'officer' chappie) have single cockades where the 'state' cockade should be, and nothing where the 'national' cockade is supposed to be... 'Mayor' wondered if his one in post 44 was a post WW1 one - I have no idea, as I explained in post 46, but it is certainly 'odd'!

Julian

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  • 3 weeks later...

Julian,

I'm afraid I can't answer either of the questions raised in your last post. I suppose it's fair to say that if there was a particular advantage to be gained from a right-hand feed then subsequent guns would have been similarly designed? I will ask about the "missing" cockades when I next meet with a friend who is an expert on uniforms.

MG1918,

Sorry not to have let you have the scans of the Zeiss scopes - our scanner seems to have stopped working, or at least I can't make it work. However, here is another photo of a postcard in my collection for you. No date on the card, I'm afraid, but I would say 1915.

Michael.

post-53132-0-29354300-1458125850_thumb.j

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Maybe it is something to do with the fusee assembly and therefore clear user access to the feed block. It is clearly easier to feed in the ammo belt with no obstructions, and with a feed block shaped/designed to receive more easily. So perhaps the feed is dictated by the fuse spring assembly. If it were on the other side, then perhaps the ammo feed mechanism would be reversed......perhaps?

Mark

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  • 2 weeks later...

Further WWI postcards.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

pcmg (22).jpg

pcmg (24).jpg

Edited by Mark Finneran
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Postcard imagery.

pcmg (21).jpg

Edited by Mark Finneran
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I am immediately stopping what I am doing now (eating full English breakfast) and going there right now. Should make it for opening hours - excellent displays.

Thanks for sharing.

Mark

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  • 1 month later...

Herewith an MG emplacement as currently recreated at the Remembering 1916 exhibition at Whitgift School in Croydon at the moment.

http://www.remembering1916.co.uk/

Remembering%201916%20German%20Diorama%20

Remembering%201916%20German%20Diorama%20

Remembering%201916%20German%20Diorama%20

It's been confirmed to me today that the exhibition at Whitgift will be open until the end of the year now.

Cheers,

GT.

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  • 1 month later...

Slightly OT but in the spirit of the thread. Since this thread is being followed by a number of leading German MG "nuts", anyone know of existing MP 18s, in public or in private hands? If there is interest, I have a couple of anecdotes. Should a thread about same be started? Has one been started?

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  • 2 weeks later...

Postcards imagery

pcmg (25).jpg

pcmg (26).jpg

Edited by Mark Finneran
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  • 1 month later...

Postcards.

 

pcmg (33).jpg

pcmg (34).jpg

Edited by Mark Finneran
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Postcards

pcmg (35).jpg

pcmg (36).jpg

Edited by Mark Finneran
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