Posted on 12/28/2020 10:04:53 AM PST by Onthebrink
A strange fact: The Browning Automatic Rifle was loved by American GIs and criminals alike.
Origins
As the M1918 number designation indicates, the Browning Automatic Rifle (BAR) was issued to American soldiers during the end of the First World War. The select-fire weapon was capable of both semi- and fully-automatic firing and was intended to be used while on the move crossing no man’s land.
By firing from the hip, individual BAR operators could bring a high rate of firepower to bear on the enemy while crossing, as most machine guns at the time were much too heavy and unwieldy to be carried by a single soldier.
Though the BAR did put quite a bit of automatic firepower into the hands of the individual soldier and had significant weight advantages over crew-served machine guns, it was by no means light-weight. The original M1918 BAR weighed nearly 16 pounds, with subsequent variants tipping the scales at nearly 20 pounds.
(Excerpt) Read more at 19fortyfive.com ...
A guy had one for sale several years ago on “Cajun Pawn Stars”, IIRC he wanted nearly 20 grand.
The German FG-42 was probably better then the BAR
Isn’t it also the forerunner of the legendary FN MAG?
According to Wiki it was used by the Waffen SS after they occupied Czechoslovakia. I stand corrected. However it was mostly used by the Brits as the Bren gun.
My uncle was a squad BAR man. He had a chance in the UK to fire the Bren. He always wished he could have used the Bren instead of the BAR. Another uncle was a platoon leader with the 3rd Div in Italy. He had occasion to meet t y e 1st Special Service Force. He was jealous of their Johnson LMGs.
Yep.
If only they could invent a pea shooter that fired that cartridge.
Says who?
That I don't know but at first glance, the FN MAG appears as if it's designers had taken a look at the ZB-26.
“...Heavy, no interchangeable barrel, limited magazine capacity....”
Definitely true, especially by today’s standards for sure.
Hickok45, on YouTube, has 3-4 videos reviewing the BAR. I think one of em compares it to a modern FN SCAR in .308. It’s a 30-06 that when fired in full auto is pretty devastating as seen in one of those videos. It would give utter heart failure to a snowflake lib...LOL.
FWIW, my father was a USMC BAR rifleman during WWII (invasion of Okinawa). He was not not a real physically-big man, and while growing up, I always wondered why that guy was so darn strong. Later in life, I had the opportunity to pick up and fire a BAR...then, I understood. Men were men back in those days. Anybody that could lug that thing, along with the ammo, for 4 years was gonna be pretty strong.
Years ago, I remember going out to his place with my first AR as we always shot out there on our makeshift range. I remember him coming out of the house, he picked the AR up, looked it all over, looked at the ammo, then just shook his head and walked back into the house. Never even fired it...LOL
He was a die-hard .30-06 fan. He hunted with an old Springfield 03A3 that he picked up somewhere right up till he couldn’t hunt anymore.
“Way way too light for that .308 NATO cartridge, which only gives up a couple of hundred FPS to the -06.”
If I remember correctly, the M2 Ball .30-06 and the standard 7.62 NATO round have identical muzzle velocities, 2700 fps.
There are videos of a skinny 100lb blonde ripping it up with an M14 on full auto. Probably just takes a bit of practice.
You have to kidding me! the FG42 looked great but was wildly uncontrollable in full auto. And that goofy bayonet! I’d love to see you shoot that oddball 8mm creation.
The BAR is very controllable, with an experienced gunner it could fire very controlled bursts while never losing your sight picture through the peep sight.
Hands down, a more effective weapon.
For a 150 grain round, by design. The .308 uses less powder.
Countless Americans and allies alive today because of the genius of John Moses Browning, a National Hero.
Among many, many others, me and my 5 brothers are alive because of the bomb.
Countless Americans and Japanese alive today because of the bomb. “
“...Countless Americans and allies alive today because of the genius of John Moses Browning, a National Hero....”
Amen to both statements....and it ain’t over yet.
To say that John Browning was a genius is an understatement. The man was utterly brilliant and way ahead of his time...Thank God.
Of the infantry weapons we had in training at the time I loved it, but it was totally phased out shortly after I went through to become a 111. :^)
Had a collapsible bipod for prone and a sling for firing from the waist. I qualified expert, very accurate weapon.
Love to listen to all these “experts” on our Freeper firearms threads! 99% have never been within listening distance to firefight, much less handled a BAR or a full-auto M14!
The BAR was accurate and controllable and very effective. One of the posters said it was “obsolete in WWII”. Not hardly - and was still effective during Korea and in the hands of the ARVN in Vietnam.
My M14 served very well during my time in Vietnam - and was excellent in full auto when you needed that feature. Those idiots in the Youtube videos fire the M14 from the shoulder - which is not even close to how it was designed to be employed. I fired mine from the prone, using a “clothespin” bipod.
I had an army Buddy tell me that “the M14 was too long and too heavy for Vietnam”
I told him that I wished he’d told me “I’d have sent a big, strong Marine to hold his rifle up for him”.
I was too young for Vietnam, but one one of my hunting buddies threw down his M16 when it jammed and picked up an M14 which was what he carried for his tour there. He swore by it.
+1 on JMB, I have 4 of his designs, Mdl 94 30-30, Mdl 62 .22 LR, 1911 (2) .45 & 38 Super. Timeless pieces. The 63 his a hoot to shoot, just hold the trigger and pump.
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