Darne Machine Gun
Darne · Machine Gun · Discontinued · 1918
Also known as: Mitrailleuse Darne, Darne Modele 1918, leMG 106(f)
Overview
The Darne machine gun was an early French automatic weapon designed by the Darne brothers of Saint-Etienne and used in both flexible aircraft mounts and ground/infantry roles. Gas-operated and air-cooled, it locked by tilting the rear of the bolt up into the receiver and fed via a distinctive two-stage belt mechanism. Deliberately built with crude, cheap, fast-manufacture construction, it was prized for being extremely light and inexpensive, and in its synchronized aircraft form was noted for a very high cyclic rate.
Specifications
| Weight (empty) | 8400 g (296.3 oz) |
| Overall Length | 1112 mm (43.78") |
| Barrel Length | 600 mm (23.62") |
| Action Type | Gas Operated Long Stroke |
| Magazine Capacity | 250 rounds |
| Magazine Type | Belt |
| Muzzle Velocity | 792 m/s (2598 fps) |
| Effective Range | 500 m (547 yd) |
| Rate of Fire | 1100 rpm |
| Barrel Rifling | Right Hand |
| Frame Material | Steel |
| Barrel Material | Steel |
Calibers
- 8x50mmR Lebel · primary — also known as 8mm Lebel, Cartouche Mle 1886, 8x50R
Features
- Firing modes: Full Automatic
- Feed systems: Disintegrating Belt, Fabric Belt, Detachable Drum
- Features: Open Bolt, Air Cooled, Tilting Bolt Lock, Two Stage Belt Feed, Very High Rate Of Fire, Lightweight Low Cost Construction, Propeller Synchronized Variant
Variants
- Darne Modele 1919 — Synchronized Aircraft
- Darne Modele 1933 — Model
Service history
Operators
- French Air Force · adopted 1922
- French Army · adopted 1918
- Wehrmacht (captured) · as leMG 106(f)
Conflicts
- World War I (1914-1918)
Production
Estimated total produced: 11,000 · Production years: 1918-1930s
Approximately 11,000 produced; ~6,000 for France, remainder exported to Spain, Italy, Serbia, Brazil, Lithuania and Czechoslovakia
Origin
Country of origin: France
Designer: Regis Darne
Discontinued: 1935
Notes
Many configurations existed (synchronized, wing/turret, GPMG, automatic-rifle); figures vary accordingly. Overall length is reported as 1112 mm (militaryfactory) vs 1057 mm (modernfirearms); rate of fire ranges ~600-1350 rpm by variant. The 1100 rpm and 1112 mm figures are used here.
Background
The Darne firm was far more famous as a premium shotgun maker, renowned for its distinctive sliding-breech sporting guns; the machine gun was a wartime side venture, and its deliberately crude cheap-and-fast construction was a feature rather than a flaw.