Breda Modello 1924
Breda Meccanica Bresciana · Machine Gun · Out Of Production · 1924
Also known as: Breda Mod. 24, Modello 24, Breda Mod. 5C, Mitragliatrice Breda Tipo 5C, Breda Tipo 5G, Breda 5C/5G
Overview
The Breda Modello 1924 (Mitragliatrice Breda Tipo 5C) was an Italian light machine gun designed by Societa Italiana Ernesto Breda and adopted in 1924 as one of the first purpose-built light machine guns of the post-First World War era. Conceived alongside the rival Fiat Mod. 26 to replace the SIA Mod. 1918, it was chambered in the standard 6.5x52mm Carcano cartridge and operated by short recoil from a closed bolt, the barrel and bolt being joined by a clamp that disconnected by sliding laterally during recoil. It fed from a 20-round box magazine permanently fixed to the right side of the receiver, charged in place from special horseshoe chargers or ordinary Carcano rifle clips, and was fitted with an unusually early quick-change barrel that separated from its sleeve with a half turn. The convertible design carried dual spade grips for use as a flexible aircraft gun and a wooden stock with bipod for the infantry role. Roughly 2,000 were taken into Italian service as the Modello 24, and the concept was refined through the 5G and the Models of 1928 and 1929 before culminating in the mass-issued Breda 30 of 1930.
Specifications
| Weight (empty) | 10600 g (373.9 oz) |
| Overall Length | 950 mm (37.40") |
| Barrel Length | 450 mm (17.72") |
| Height | 680 mm (26.77") |
| Width | 340 mm (13.39") |
| Action Type | Short Recoil |
| Firing Mechanism | Striker Fired |
| Trigger Type | Single Stage |
| Magazine Capacity | 20 rounds |
| Magazine Type | Fixed |
| Muzzle Velocity | 630 m/s (2067 fps) |
| Muzzle Energy | 2074 J (1530 ft·lbf) |
| Effective Range | 800 m (875 yd) |
| Rate of Fire | 500 rpm |
| Barrel Rifling | Right Hand |
| Frame Material | Steel |
| Barrel Material | Steel |
| Stock Material | Wood |
| Finish | Blued |
Calibers
- 6.5x52mm Carcano · primary — also known as 6.5 Carcano, 6.5x52mm, 6.5 Mannlicher-Carcano, 6.5x52mm Mannlicher-Carcano, 6.5 Italian
Features
- Firing modes: Full Automatic
- Feed systems: Fixed 20 Round Box Magazine, Horseshoe Charger Clips, Standard Carcano Rifle Clips
- Safety mechanisms: Manual Safety
- Features: Short Recoil Clamp Locked Action, Closed Bolt Operation, Fixed Side Mounted 20 Round Box Magazine, Horseshoe Or Rifle Clip Charged, Quick Change Barrel Half Turn, Convertible Aircraft Spade Grips And Infantry Stock Bipod
Variants
- Breda Tipo 5C — Medium Machine Gun Prototype
- Breda Tipo 5G — Light Machine Gun Variant
Service history
Operators
- Royal Italian Army (Regio Esercito) · adopted 1924 · as Modello 24
Conflicts
- Second Italo-Ethiopian War (1935-1937)
Production
Estimated total produced: 2,000 · Production years: 1924-1930
Approximately 2,000 examples adopted as the Modello 24 before the design was refined into the 5G and the Models of 1928 and 1929, ultimately becoming the Breda 30.
Origin
Country of origin: Italy
Designer: Societa Italiana Ernesto Breda
Discontinued: 1930
Notes
The Modello 1924 is the first production stage of the Breda light-machine-gun lineage. Dimensions (overall length 950 mm, height 680 mm, width 340 mm) are taken from a surviving BREDA MOD. 5C specimen (Brescia, 1927) in the Museums Victoria collection; barrel length, weight (~10.6 kg) and the 500 rpm cyclic rate are quoted from the closely related production Breda 30 that evolved directly from it and may differ slightly for the 5C. The side magazine was fixed to the receiver and reloaded by clips rather than detached. Cartridge dimensions follow the canonical GunSpec 6.5x52mm Carcano entry.
Background
Before the infamous Breda 30 became the standard squad automatic of Mussolini's army, there was the Modello 1924 - the awkward first draft. Designed by Ernesto Breda's engineers as a convertible gun that could wear aircraft spade grips one day and an infantry stock the next, it pioneered the strange clamp-locked short-recoil action, the fixed clip-fed side magazine, and the half-turn quick-change barrel that would define the family. Only about 2,000 were taken into service before Breda spent the rest of the decade ironing out the concept into the gun Italian infantry would curse across North Africa.