MG 34

Rheinmetall-Borsig AG · Machine Gun · Discontinued · 1934

Also known as: Maschinengewehr 34, MG34, Gerat 1001

Overview

The MG 34 (Maschinengewehr 34) is a German recoil-operated, air-cooled general-purpose machine gun adopted by the Wehrmacht in 1935 and widely regarded as the world's first true general-purpose machine gun (GPMG). Designed by Louis Stange at Rheinmetall-Borsig with contributions drawn from earlier Mauser, Solothurn, and Rheinmetall designs, the MG 34 was revolutionary in that a single weapon could fulfill every machine gun role in the German military: light machine gun on an integral bipod, medium/heavy machine gun on the Lafette 34 tripod with optical sights, vehicle coaxial and anti-aircraft gun, and fortification weapon. Chambered in 7.92x57mm Mauser, the MG 34 operated on a short-recoil principle with a rotary bolt head whose locking lugs engaged helical cam tracks in the barrel extension - a mechanically elegant but intricate system that reportedly fascinated even its Allied captors. The weapon fired from an open bolt and employed a unique progressive trigger: pulling the upper segment marked 'E' produced single shots, while pressing the lower segment marked 'D' delivered full-automatic fire at roughly 800-900 rounds per minute. It fed from 50- or 250-round non-disintegrating metallic belts, 75-round Gurttrommel 34 saddle drums, or 50-round Patronentrommel 34 belt drums, with the feed cover accepting belts from either side. The barrel could be swapped in under five seconds by rotating the receiver, allowing sustained fire far beyond what a fixed-barrel design could deliver. Extensively machined from solid steel forgings, the MG 34 was beautifully made but extraordinarily labor-intensive - each weapon consumed roughly 150 man-hours and cost around 327 Reichsmarks, a figure that drove Germany to develop the stamped-steel MG 42 as a wartime replacement. Despite this, the MG 34 remained in front-line service throughout World War II and never fully disappeared from German arsenals; roughly 577,120 examples were produced between 1935 and 1945 by Mauser-Werke, Rheinmetall-Borsig, Steyr-Daimler-Puch, Waffenfabrik Brünn, and Gustloff-Werke. Post-war stocks saw continued use across the Middle East, Southeast Asia, and the Eastern Bloc well into the 1970s.

Specifications

Weight (empty)12100 g (426.8 oz)
Overall Length1219 mm (47.99")
Barrel Length627 mm (24.69")
Action TypeShort Recoil
Firing MechanismOpen Bolt
Trigger TypeSelect Fire
Magazine Capacity50 rounds
Magazine TypeBelt
Muzzle Velocity765 m/s (2510 fps)
Muzzle Energy3700 J (2729 ft·lbf)
Effective Range1200 m (1312 yd)
Maximum Range2000 m (2187 yd)
Rate of Fire900 rpm
Barrel RiflingRight Hand
Rifling Twist240 mm (9.45")
Number of Grooves4
Frame MaterialSteel
Barrel MaterialSteel
Stock MaterialWood
FinishBlued

Calibers

Features

Variants

Service history

Operators

Conflicts

Production

Estimated total produced: 577,120 · Production years: 1935-1945

Produced by Mauser-Werke, Rheinmetall-Borsig, Steyr-Daimler-Puch, Waffenfabrik Brunn, and Gustloff-Werke. Each gun required approximately 150 man-hours of machining and cost around 327 Reichsmarks, making it the most expensive infantry small arm in the Wehrmacht inventory and directly motivating the stamped-steel MG 42 replacement program.

Origin

Country of origin: Germany

Designer: Louis Stange

Discontinued: 1945

Notes

The MG 34's defining technical innovation was its combination of short-recoil operation with a rotating bolt head locked by helical lugs in the barrel extension - a system closer to a scaled-up rifle bolt than to contemporary machine gun mechanisms, and one that allowed an unusually smooth recoil impulse and symmetrical thrust loading. A muzzle booster harnessed barrel-jacket gas to augment the rearward impulse and guarantee reliable cycling under adverse conditions. The signature progressive 'double-crescent' trigger was one of the earliest practical selective-fire triggers, permitting accurate single shots in the light-machine-gun role without an external selector switch. The MG 34 was also the first machine gun designed from the outset for rapid barrel change as a standard combat procedure rather than a maintenance operation - an operator could release the receiver catch, swivel the receiver, and drop the red-hot barrel out in under five seconds. The Lafette 34 tripod pairing turned the weapon into a precision long-range fire platform: its Zieleinrichtung 34 optical sight and T&E mechanism with automatic traverse were capable of delivering indirect fire out to roughly 3,500 meters. The weapon's great weakness was its extreme sensitivity to mud, dust, and sand, and its intolerance of poor ammunition - problems born of the tight tolerances demanded by its machined construction. Nazi Germany's obsessive pursuit of manufacturing quality made the MG 34 the most expensive infantry weapon in the Wehrmacht inventory; the stamped-steel MG 42 introduced in 1942 cut production time roughly in half and used materially cheaper steel, yet the MG 34 was never fully replaced because its slower cyclic rate (~900 rpm vs. 1,200+ rpm) actually made it preferable for mounted roles in tanks and aircraft, where the lower rate stretched ammunition and was easier on barrel life. The aircraft-pattern derivative MG 81 became the standard Luftwaffe flexible defensive gun.

Background

The MG 34 is considered the world's first true general-purpose machine gun, a single weapon that replaced the infantry light machine gun, the tripod-mounted medium machine gun, the tank coaxial gun, and the aircraft flexible gun in one design. It was so beautifully over-machined from solid steel forgings that each one took roughly 150 man-hours to build - a craftsmanship standard that would literally lose Germany the production war and force the creation of its stamped-steel successor, the MG 42.