This made me remember a story a veteran once told me. They were doing shooting exercises and the MAG-gunner had a pretty good triggerfinger. He managed to fire just a single round every time. The instructor walked up to him saying "I think I told you to fire that thing in short bursts". The soldier replied "Sir, I'm honestly trying but I can't get them shorter than this". Giggles throughout the platoon in training. 😆
Tbf, I got bitched at by my old CO while we were doing quals with the 240. He was mad I was knocking targets with 1-2 round bursts instead of the 3-5 you're supposed to use.
It is a foolproof way to make sure that you are using an action that works. It also helps the user if he is already familiar with the way it works. And as a designer it is just easier to adapt something than to come up with something completely new.
It blew my mind at 13:12 when you showed how similar the BAR bolt is to the MAG. It's fantastic that you often have the opportunity to show us parts from other guns to demostrate your point like that. Thanks for another great video, Ian.
@@Pwj579 Pretty much everything in use today was influenced by old man Browning. Just look at pistols, his cam actuated short recoil design is still the gold standard. Even some 90 years later. (1911s used a swinging link, the High Power incorporated the cam design. Although the concept may have been in his head even longer)
To paraphrase a Canadian soldier I was talking to once "Everybody loves the firepower of the C6, nobody wants to be the one carrying it or its ammo though". A different soldier soldier said something along the lines of "20 years in the Army and I have only had it jam twice on me and one of those wasn't actually a jam, it was a runaway belt."
Carried this in the 1st Gulf War, excellent weapon and frankly not that heavy once you were used to it. The reliability and firepower was exceptional. Glad its getting all the love it deserves!
@@worldoftancraft The pkm doesn't have a breechblock. It has a oversized AK bolt with all the problems built in. You don't have to blow up the gun to flatten firing pins and damage lugs. So yes if a cheaply made gpmg is wanted. That you can't fix without armourer tools & a torch because 10lb is terrifying onward!
As a former Ma Deuce gunner: Yup! Not even the most retarded and opium strung out insurgent will stick around to argue with a machine gun. And if there ever was an exception to the rule we can rest assured that he didn't do it twice!
It's truly amazing to see how even after his passing, John Moses Browning continues to be among, if not the, premier firearms designer in Western militaries and civilian markets. Everything from the Colt 1911, to the BAR, to the M1919, M2HB, and the M240... It's astonishing how one man has changed and basically created modern Western weaponry, to the point that many of his designs, ideas, or basic mechanical concepts are still used today, 100+ years after his beginning, and decades after his death. Truly an astonishing feat of engineering.
I remember part of the toolkit that was issued with it was a device we called a "sputnik"by squadies, it's official name of it ws "foresight adjusting, extractor removing tool", Its funny the things you remember from more than 30 years ago.
I looked up the cleaning kit and its actually a different part that is called "sputnik", which is a reamer, with three prongs coming out of a circular brass disc used for cleaning the gas plug mechanisn, the Forsight adjusting tool is like a small allen key with a clip on the end. It's all coming back to me. It was a long time ago
Fired these many times in British Infantry. In the Falklands we set up a mock ambush with 6 .50 cals on one side of a valley and a dozen GPMG's on the adjacent side. From my position on the .50 cals after our ammo ran out we sat back, lit a cigarette and watched streams of tracers flutter across the valley. In the darkness of night It was like Star Wars.
In the mid 90’s we trained some support squads and lo and behold the old 6.5 mm barrels where still around. Not only that: the amount of old 6.5 ammo was practically limitless and those conscripts must have fired more than anyone else I’ve trained. To the point they where so trained with belting ammunition that they practically could do it in their sleep. Good times.
@@Audigiant Yes Indeed. Its wierd that you just need to swap barrels for it to run 6.5x55 or 7.62x51. Belts, feedmechanism and bolt+spacing is all great. We used 6.5 and 7.62 in live fire when I was in the service.. you just dont adjust elevation as much with the 6.5 as I recall. We even had the H&k G3 in 6.5x55 for testing in the late 60's..
@@amclips2995 The 6.5 barrels where used for blanks (with red wooden bullets) thus keeping the new 7.62 longer in service. Our Swedish ksp 58 was a slightly different, foldable front sight for example. Adjust elevation when changing calibre? Same rear sight! SA3BOW
Love this gun, as a kid we called these "Brens" (as in the british Bren machine gun) and fond memories of shouting at and complimenting soldiers on top of armored vehicle convoys that frequently passes the main road. Even "playfully" pointed it at us, which thinking about it now was very dangerous and unwise but who cares haha
@@Truthbomb918 Czechoslovakian Vz. 52 and 52/57 was basically belt fed and mag fed BREN in 7.62x45 and 7.62x39 (since BREN and 52 and 52/57 are based on ZB 26 )
The fun is that by som reason there is always volunteers to lug it around as long as they will be able to shoot it. I think the only time I heard of a senior officer pull rank where when we had a improvised squad with reserve officers and NCO's (helping with training) The officer wanted the FN-MAG.... in the end the NCO with lowest rank ended up as squad leader. (probably the one most able to have that role)
During training, nobody wanted to help me carrying it since it was pure pain over days to carry this big chunk of metal.. But at the end, when we all gathered on the shooting range, suddenly everybody wanted to shoot it ! I genuinely fucked them away and kept all the ammo for me ! Sure, nobody wanted to help me clean it.. but it's rather easy when you're used to ! Many years later, my back doesnt thanks me for all the fun i had shooting this beast !
I carried the KSP58 (swedish version) and I remember one time I closed the top cover and gave it a little tap for good measure when the circlip holding the feeding mechanism in place popped out and fell in to the tall grass... Another time the rod inside the recoil spring broke on two of our guns on the same day. That rod was not in the spare parts kit and the guns were useless without them. Sucked to carry, all forgotten when shooting 😁
Wasn't to bad to carry once you figured how to put the sling over the shoulders and made it stay there. Those who carried it with neck for a longer period regretted it later :)
Probably been through the technical armorers. Those guys are not exactly known for their reliability. Was handing out AK 5's to new batch of conscripts, out of 2 crates of freshly armorer serviced rifles of 10 guns each, 3 guns had their hammer snapped off about halfway down. And that was what we noticed on handing them out.
Hahaha, I only have seen the springs let loose on the feed cover mech one time. Interesting about the spares kit, in Canada the bag that comes with the C6 if I remember correctly actually has a full recoil spring assembly. Guess you guys got unlucky with what the Swedish army put in their spares/maintenance kits.
@ 9:47 You can see that Ian is a little confused by the trigger mechanism as it did not behave in the way he was expecting (the sear was actually rising while the trigger was pulled) because the trigger mech was in a state where it behaves this way. This trigger mechanism is actually slightly more complex than what you'd expect. The part that goes up when the trigger is pulled at that moment is actually the sear. When the trigger is first pulled the sear lowers to release the bolt. The sear hook at the front then hooks onto the front part of the sear and holds the rear part of the sear down out of the way of the piston extension (equivalent to bolt carrier) even when the trigger is released. When it is in this state (which is was in the video) the trigger/sear interaction is counterintuitive. When the trigger is released the sear hook protrudes up and is tripped by the piston extension during its rearward travel, releasing the sear which "pops" up in position to catch the piston extension and prevent it from moving froward again. There are two reasons for this: 1: It ensures that the sear will pop up quickly and fully at the right moment of the firing cycle to ensure full engagement of the sear surfaces. Otherwise it would cause the chipping of sear engagement surfaces. 2: It holds the sear down while the action is forward which makes it impossible to apply the safety. This prevents a dangerous situation where the operator applies the safety while the parts are forward and then attempts to cock the weapon. Because the safety blocks the sear from dropping the piston extension ends up being wedged against the sear, which would appear to an inexperienced operator that the weapon is cocked until the slightest impact or vibration of the gun would cause it to slip out and release the action forward, potentially firing the gun or injuring the operator. The gun firing with the safety on would also destroy its trigger mechanism because the piston extension would be shoved with force against a sear that cannot drop down out of its way.
The 240L is a heck of an update. Both are heavy bitches to haul around but if you keep them lubed they just keep going. Replace that CLP spray bottle with some 10w and she just runs and runs. You might be dirty but it is better than dead.
Known as the Jimpey (Gimpey gpmg) in British service this is my favourite mg. A beautifully simple weapon and excellent on a tripod for long range sustained fire (sf) with a sight. Not light at 23lbs but tough as old boots. I field stripped it in my mind alongside you Ian.
Carried it for a tour in Northern Ireland County Fermanagh, 6 months across the bogs, not the easiest to carry around when going over barbed wire fences but still loved it , especially when the tracers ricochet.
The bracket on the left rear side of the receiver is not strictly intended for conventional optics. It's normally used for an indirect fire sight e.g. the C2 which is/was used on mortars. In this role the gun is installed on a tripod with the sight fitted. With the aid of aiming posts and range tables the gun is fired indirectly at targets, the bullets arcing through the air over hills, etc. to create a beaten zone with the plunging fire.
An anecdotal comment. When they just started to be bought in Latin America, some soldiers assumed that MAG meant "Metralleta a Gas" Gas Machine Gun. Unlike the FAL (Fusil Automatique Léger or Fusil Automático Liviano) in this case the initials do not correspond one to one. Greetings from Patagonia Argentina
The original acronym was MAG : “Mitrailleuse À Gaz” French for gas machine gun. The acronym was change to mean “Mitrailleuse d'Appui Général” French for GPMG. Everyone used to call it the “MAG 58” until the M240 came along. (Like the FN Minimi before M249 SAW).
@@george5156 In Argentina no, because here we used the 7.65 Mauser. But I understand that in countries like Uruguay, Chile and Brazil it was. The main drawback for it to remain so is not technical, but legal. Most Latin American countries have heavy restrictions on weapons in the hands of civilians and the 7mm is no longer a standard military caliber (except for parades and protocol). So a large part of the surplus has gone to the USA
Trained, carried and fired one during my National Service. Its heavy as hell to carry on a road match but fun to fire especially night firing exercise. I had an intense ecstasy firing it during living fires, tracer rounds hitting targets and my shoulder sored for days afterward. Worthy pain to have had an once in a lifetime opportunity to fire one of the world's great GPMGs.
I was forced to carry one in the middle of my conscript year here in Sweden (happened to be in the summer with scorching sun. Mine had a hiccup and couldn't fire automatic. I was basically lugging around 15kg of the dumbest semi automatic rifle imaginable. Seeing as we were in the backwater woods of Sweden they never got around to fixing it. I went back to my FN FNC after a couple of weeks. 🤣 So no sore shoulder for me, only a sore back and legs.
I remember visiting an Irish army base with cub scouts when I was 10 years old. Got to pull the charging handle on an FN MAG. Heavy pull. It was a struggle for kids.
@@ALovelyBunchOfDragonballz I got a killer deal about 10 years ago, a swedish mauser that had been properly sporterized decades ago with a Douglas barrel, nice laminate stock and a Lyman micrometer rear sight. It's my favorite hunting rifle.
@@ALovelyBunchOfDragonballz I believe that's because 6.5 Creed more can run in a 308 receiver and 6.5 swedish requires a 30:06 receiver. And most shooters aren't good enough to exploit the increase in range
Loved these as the coax on the M1's. Huge ammo capacity and tyeing it into the gunners system made it super accurate. Almost never had problems, even with the barrel glowing red!
@@user-njyzcip Not that I recall. The overall configuration is different; for example, there is no butt stock, the trigger assembly is much smaller, and there is no carrying handle on the barrel. But I think the barrel profile is the same.
The Canadian version of the MAG, the C6 , still looks like it came off the FN factory floor in the 50s, no rails, wood furniture, all of them probably got purchased in the 50s and 60s . They just got new ones about two years ago or so made by colt Canada called the C6A1 FLEX, and about 400 plus got sent back to colt Canada for defective gas regulation system and defective barrel nuts lol. But CZG owns colt and colt Canada now, so hopefully there will be some better quality control
@@tristanhodgden4286 Yeah, they have no real experience making this type of gun (riveted on steel plate), so it makes sense. They're working through it, and now with the revised feed tray I think the A1 is GTG now. Doesn't change the fact that it's amusing that in 2022 a firearms company made a worse version of a gun from 1958.
When my unit (1/16in) deployed to Bosnia as part of SFOR6 in 1999, we converted our M240C out of our Bradley's to M240B for the deployment the thing that sucked about that was they had no sights. Lol. But when we got back to the states after that deployment. We ended up getting proper M240B. And going from the old M60's to the M240B was a massive upgrade.
This MAG (Machine à Gaz) brings back a lot of memories. When I was doing my service in the Belgian army and Germany exactly 40 years ago, this was one of my favourite weapons. And boy, was it a beast! A little on the heavy side to carry around along with the ammo, but not too bad for a well trained infanterist in his early twenties. Knowing that you could wipe out about anything when under attack makes you have confidence in the future. This toy is one of those things that makes me feel proud to be Belgian.
You really did your service in the army ? Then how can you say MAG means Machine à gaz ? It means Mitrailleuse d'appui général or "General support machine gun", which is much more realistic... Anyway, a good weapon, as much of guns FN made and still makes
@@laurentdevaux5617 In the Infantry School in Arlon our instructors called it "Machine à Gaz". They even added the explantion that the gun works on the principle of gas pressure, hence the name. If that is a mistake, they are to blame. BTW, I can show you a picture when I was in Soest (Germany) in the 9Li Regt (anti tank).
@@laurentdevaux5617 MAG is definitely is "Mitrailleuse Á Gaz". As I also was taught in service and saw the original FN manuals. Google for it FN MAG manual.
Best MAG ever made. The British army have been using it since the 60’s. I used it for 6 years in the 70’s and it never failed me. I put 48 rounds of a 50 round burst on a three man target at 800 meters off the bipod. I’ve never saw anyone remove the trigger group in a a field strip though.
@@LeePenn2492 I made up a 1400 round belt of pure tracer one year. Two 700 round boxes. I was told fire it off as we were getting towards a new ammo allocation period. What a light show with the heavy barrel on😂
On South africa we trained on the old bren but sent to Namibia and Southern Angola with the Mag...Loved that chatter on our section left flank as we waded into Ongiva on Ops Protea with 7 SAI
Its old reliable. Only problem was the length. I did Iraq and not Afghan but was 25th out of Hawaii so im not a stranger to the hump. Lol. We found ways. We did a mission with the marines and their 240G? Idr didn't have the heat shields on the barrel and spare barrel, so we started taking ours off because of the extra weight.
I don't think you could do it without grinding the belt across you face for rightys and eating links for leftys. And your face is literally beside where stuff would out of battery at.
@@fathead8933 out of battery? Its an open & tilting bolt gun it cannot fire out of battery. & theres actually a great spot right between the sight bracket & the feed tray opening.
@1nfamy you can cook rounds out of battery. Silencerco just posted a short showing it on the SAW. It's why part of the clearance procedure is to open the feed tray cover with your face looking away from the feed tray.
As someone who's had a lot of trigger time on the 240L, I love this thing, I wish they still had the adjustable gasblocks they are locked in the highest gas setting now and being able to run our guns at a lower rate would be lovely on the tripod
Used this many times from 1974 to 1994 in the Royal Marines and the Staffordshire regiment. A great gun and who cares about the weight. Single tap, five round or 15 round burst’s it’s great.
Deployed to Afghanistan 2019-2020, I gotta say the Lima version of this thing was my absolute best tool overseas. Sorry 320, nothing replicates a pound town beatin zone of 7.62 out of the trusty 240.
Absolutely agreed. We (South Africans - SANDF and now the SADF) have been using the Mag 7.62x51 since the 70's and it was very prevalent in the Bush War for the same reasons you just mentioned. Reliable, high rate of fire, accurate as it gets and reliable.
@@kiwigrunt330 In some instances, yes. The FN MAG is still in wide circulation here, more so than the SS-77. In fact, I haven't seen many SS-77's in SANDF inventory (but I am hardly qualified to make the above assumption). Denel sold quite a few to either Colombia or Venezuela a while back, so perhaps that's where most went.
My first experience with the Lima was when we first got them my LT told me it was lighter than the bravo, so I was curious, went to lift it like I would a bravo and damn near sent the thing into space 😂 definitely way lighter than the bravo
As an former operator in NL army it is also known as: Mitrailleuse à gaz. (Mag) Which means gas operated MG. We bumped up the gas system on forehand, because on the lowest setting you had a lot of malfunctions.
Yeah, in Canada the original C6 (which we used for about 10 billion years) had a non-adjustable gas regulator. At least, not adjustable on the fly, you had to remove it and then physically rotate it. We were always told to start with it in Position 2, and only set it to 3 if the weapon was extremely dirty.
@@Stylemaster911 We had it also as a coax in the leopard tank. We put it on 3 on forehand. No f*ckin around. Handling it inside the turret is not fun. It's probably because they where the same we had in the leopard 2a4. 15 years of abuse isn't doing anything good.
One quick correction. Although we had a bit different variant of the gun, I think it still applies. You can actually close the top cover with the bolt forward. Thats why there is a plate next to the track and the roller can be depressed inside the bolt. Once you put the bolt back it snaps in place and the gun can be fired.
I had no idea this was first developed for the finest military bullet ever. (6.5) A friend of mine who is about 5’6” humped the Australian MAG58 (he called it) around Cambodia with UN peacekeeping force. He said it was incredibly accurate. He said same thing as everyone else here, best MG ever.
I had a love/hate relationship with my 240B in Iraq. I was very effective, but my particular MG's top cover pin's crush pin had broken off and after about 60 rounds would walk out shifting the feed tray cover jamming the gun. I tried tape but the heat from the Baghdad summer would make it fall off. It wasn't until one of the other 240's was permanently disabled and we cannibalized it for parts, that I was able to finally fix it.
I've never served so please forgive my ignorance but... damn! Don't you guys have like, armourers and such who should be able to fix that right up? That seems really serious and the sort of thing that should be fixed literally as soon as it's noticed or immedietely upon reaching some sort of base if out in the field.
@@jameshealy4594 At the time replacement parts just weren't available. It took four months just to get the broken 240B (took a 7.62x54 PK machinegun round to the receiver) coded out and replaced, but using it as replacement parts repaired three other MGs though.
@@0neDoomedSpaceMarine I'm not sure how it was broken, as it was issued to me that way and at the time you just had to make do. Yes, it ran flawlessly after replacing the pin. I was sad to see it go, as we turned in our belt fed MGs and night vision to a re-issuing facility right before we left country since there was still a shortage of those item in country due to wearing them out and battle damage.
@@jonathanenglish9146 That seems like an oversight on somebody's part. Amazing that basic things can be so difficult given the funding level of the US military. Thanks for telling the story.
I had 3 FN Mags on my Merkava tank. Commander, Co axial and loader. Co axial had short metal stock and special long and thick barrel, attached to 2000 round box. Blew up head size baloons from 1200m. A wonderful machine gun.
Hey I’m a Canadian Forces infantryman and during my BMQ/BCT I got extremely familiar with the C6A1 (FN MAG) and I fucking love it, I still use it in my Company
I dunno about the other countries version but the one we have in Canada, the C6 GPMG, can close the cover even with the bolt forward. Indeed, the lug that actuates the feeding clamps is spring loaded and it would just be pushed downwards by the cover.
I was thinking the same thing. From my memory I remembered being able to close it with the action forward. It’s how it’s loaded. Action forward, open cover, belt on the feed tray, close the cover.
One of my absolute favorite things about this gun is the hard chrome gas piston. It makes cleaning a breeze! Just grab a handful of sand and scour all the carbon off in a couple seconds! (Preferably before the Platoon Sergeant catches you!)
I think one of the most underrated benefits of the MAG58/M240 is how technically simpler it is to operate and maintain than an M60. Putting 2 19 year olds in charge of a M240 is a lot easier than the time it takes to teach a single user to operate and maintain an M60. Probably why the 60 stuck around in special operations after 1995.
Rode with one of these on nearly every vehicle (240B variants) as a backup gunner's weapon in custom-fabricated secondary mounts up and to the left of our M2s or MK-19s (depending on the vic) on the off-chance they had a nasty malfunction. Rarely had to use them but my god was it a blessing to have all the same.
Love it. I am a machinegunner in Swedish Home guard. I have One 58. Made in the 60s. That was converted from 6.5mm to 7.62 Still runs like a Swiss watch.
I know someone locally (South Africa) that I used to shoot IDPA with, who has several variants of these; all of which are still fully operational and obviously auto. IIRC he has an MG3 as well. He is however a Category A Collector, of which there aren't many locally.
I have never fired one, but I maintain M240Bs at work. You just know these are built like tanks. I've seen a few that were abused but I think there has only been one receiver that got bent somehow and got tagged for destruction. I've tagged out many M249s but the M240B is my favorite MG. I hope to get some time on the range with one some day.
We Canucks adopted this as the C6 and in recent years the C6A1. Fantastic machine gun. Edit: we can close ours on a closed bolt, due to our handling drills requiring the belt to be loaded before we cock the weapon.
👍 thanks for that blast from the past. Standard issue during my time in the SADF '68 - '74. We called it the 'LMG' Ligte Mashien Geweer / Light Machine Gun. Heavy yes .. but we had a saying, "Waneer hy praat, dan luister die mense / when it talks, the people listen."😊.
Being an 0311 I didn't get to shoot the 240b very often but when I did it was an absolute dream. Ran smooth as hell and never had a single stoppage. Can't say the same about the 249
Sweet memories! I hav shot the MAG - or ksp 58 as it's known in Sweden - both in 6,5 and 7,63. It's heavy and a nightmare to clean. But when you press the trigger you forget the drawbacks!
Holy shit that is a significant fall! Surely it can't handle that at all angles and must've gotten a little lucky in how it hit? Still, that's incredible.
You can close the feed cover with the bolt in any position. The actuating roller is spring loaded to collapse if it's not lined up and spring up when you charge it.
Loved the Golf and Bravo. Used the Bravo pretty extensively. I hear the Lima is great as well. This is probably the single most loved/respected weapon on the USMC side of things. Boringly reliable and reslient. Extremely effective. A b**** to haul around.
The other coax was the M219, an M73 with 5 major upgrades.. still needed percussive maintenance when it got too dirty. It was a great day when we changed over to the M240 coax
@@Tony-om5kr Percussive maintenance is any kind of "maintenance" which requires hitting the damn thing. Some times with a flat hand. Sometimes with a fist. Sometimes with a hammer, your helmet, the butt stock of your rifle, an empty shell casing, or, if things are dire, the head of a dead fellow/enemy. AKA: "The use of excessive force has resolved the issue" :P
JM Browning designs almost immortal. The BAR-MAG, the 9 mm GP 1935 (High Power) and the .50" M2HB. Of the 3, the first two were finished by successors. And the M1911 .45 still works.
My introduction to this lovely piece of engineering was at 19K OSUT at Ft. Knox. The first time you get to fire one brings a huge grin to your face.... because you've spent countless hours learning to take the damn thing apart and putting it back together. 😂
@SonsOfLorgar loudest sound in an Ambush is CaChunk. I was taught that the PL initiates with Claymore or his personal rifle. The reason was that his closed bolt m4 will most certainly fire. The open bolt 240 or 249 have the ability to override the ammunition. It's only like a 10% chance, but it's still a chance.
@@SonsOfLorgar Did you guys often actually get to ambush Insurgents in Afghanistan? I never imagined the infantry in that situation, seeing as they usually just patrol and eyes in the sky would rather ambush first on sight no? Idk i'm just curious.
Ha! Awesome to see you review the MAG. I fire/clean/maintain these almost on a daily basis. We use the SF (MAG 2015) with the pic rail currently. My heart did a little skip when i saw how dirty the gasblock was😂 After firing they are a pain to clean properly, but with a few extra hands and a lot of gun lube and some music, its easy enough. Not to be ‘that guy’; Our order for disassembling: - make sure the gun is clear and the bolt/moving parts and in the forward position - remove barrel - remove buttstock (lid open at this point) - remove spring - remove the bolt assembly - remove pistolgrip - dissasemble gasblock/port and the front support plate. Keep it up Ian, thanks for the awesome content as usual💪
This takes me back to nu days as a trooper in the Belgian army. Sure it was a beast to Carry around. But compared to the rest of the squad with fnc and minimi I got to play with the serious firepower.
I'm always amazed on how engineered had to make a gun work but also be easy to work on. And also let's not forget to make it also easy to manufacture. Every time Ian take a gun apart, it bring much joy.
The good old GPMG, or "Jimpy" in British service for some decades now and with little modification. Lugged this bad boy up Pen-Y-Fan on Junior Brecon, fired it multiple times on exercise and operations. If it isn't already a legendary machine gun it should be! Put more rounds through this on Ops than I did through my L85A2.
Was wondering when you'd finally do a vid on the MAG. Was in the Israeli army and was given an opportunity to shoot one once, however it was the crustiest MAG probably still in Israeli inventory that they used to give the shortest and smallest soldier/recruit to carry like an M16 on a strap, so he'll grow big and strong. (or at least get some muscle bulk) The less fun part that it basically did a 10 round burst, then a 5 round, and jammed catastrophically so my turn was over..
9:00 "Action must be cocked to close the top cover" This always threw me for a loop because the Canadian SOP was to never hot load, only load when the bolt was forward. Never had any issues closing the top cover with the bolt forward.
Basically just make the cam track roller spring loaded so it can be pushed down when the top cover is closed. It will then pop up into the cam track when the bolt is locked back.
Great MG. Cdn Army acquired the FN MAG (we designated it C6) both as co-ax and AA for use on the Leopard C1 when we purchased the Leo in ’78. It could fire all day with only the rare stoppage which wasn’t everday. Would have liked the integral AA sight the MG 3 had. Only complaint as such that I had was it could be a tiresome chore to clean - heavy carbon build-up. Recall during CAT 81 in Grafenwoehr the US team (crewing M60A3s) for some reason very interested in our C6 so we gave them a demo on it.
@ 9:00 FN has solved this problem on the FN MAG. The feed roller is spring loaded so it can be pushed down by closing the cover with the bolt forwards. When the weapon is cocked the roller pops back up in its channel. The drills in at least some military organizations actually require the operator to close the cover with the bolt forward. However I'm not sure if this solution already existed on the original MAG that we see here or if it was added later.
That is what i was thinking. The ones we had on US tanks(M240's) in the 1980's didn't require the bolt back to close the cover either. SO this bolt back thing is an original FN-MAG thing not seen on the later FN-MAGs or M240's
I was looking for this. For Singapore, our drill is to have the bolt forward and close the top cover before cocking. I assume its for safety incase the pistol grip is faulty, it wont automatically shoot off before the gunner is ready
There is a bit more going on with the trigger mechanism than you think, the part you pointed at 9:56 is the disconnect, not the sear, the sear is the larger pivoting bar behind it, it is moving up and not down when you are pulling the trigger because the disconnect hasn't been tripped/reset by the bolt, which will happen once you release the trigger, as it allows the disconnect to pop up into the path of the bolt. Without the disconnect releasing the sear, neither the lower or upper position you demonstrated while pulling the trigger allows the sear to travel high enough to catch the bolt.
Someone already touched on the point earlier that you can close the feed cover with the breech block fully forward. Also, the rear sight is graduated to 1200 m. When you look at it from the firing position with the sight raised you will see the markings and the sight has a U notch used at these longer ranges. This was mainly used when mounted on the tripod. Used the gun (C6) for 30 years in the Canadian army.
It would be really interesting to see a review of the South African Vector SS-77 which I believe incorporates design elements of the FN-MAG and even draws on some Soviet design concepts as well
It sure would be. My understanding is that the SS77 had some reliability issues early on. It took Denel some 10 to 20 years to figure out that reducing the rate of fire fixed the problem.
Excellent presentation, as always. A word on gun cleaning from an Army Vet that used dental tools to meticulously clean his M-16. CLEANING IS A SCAM! Modern propellants create minimal buildup and what buildup remains simply gets blown away. Now then, use cheap ammo cheap propellants and yes, you have to get that cheap gunk out. But nowadays, a blast of gun scrub, a little wipe off of the excess crud, followed up by your favorite lube and all is fine. Same with barrels. Haven't swabed a barrel in years and all is well.
Yeah, in one way.... the Army always goes too far with cleaning. In another, especially on the C6 you must ensure the gas reg is clear, otherwise you'll run into issues. But yes, overall cleaning the gas regulator + ample lubrication is sufficient.
Fun thing. If you turn the gas regulator too low - the gas pressure is not enough to push the bolt al the way back to lock it. This results in when taking the finger of the trigger - it has no effect, it just keeps firing until it's out of ammunition. You can just leave it and go to take a leak, come back and pretend that you never left. You can make it stop by twisting the belt and jamming it. I admit doing that a couple of times no one was looking - just for fun. This was on a swedish KSP 58.
The British version doesn't use picatiny rail on the top cover, it's on a flip over unit on the side. Also the safety can't be engaged until the action is cocked. We didn't use the iron sights, we had a holo sight with an ir laser.
Yep, same with the original Canadian C6 and C6A1. Ian replied to another comment, apparently that was a later addition to the MAG, but not on this earlier one in the video.
Used this thing for years loved luckily I had a nice armoured vehicle to carry the weight and general purpose and reliability are beyond compare we always carried the but stock you showed as a spare in the vehicle that way the user could pull two pins and remove it from the vehicle mount swap out the but plate for the stock and you had GPMG to push out into perimeter defence or a boost in firepower for abandoning a casualty vehicle.
I absolutely love them. They are super easy to service, gauge, and replace parts on when needed. Super accurate, reliable, durable. I can’t say enough good things about it.
Extremely cool to know that my country, Sweden, was involved in the creation of this gun even if only by ordering it. I had no idea of it's early history. It's still widely used in Sweden but will be phased out for a new Sako built machingun in the following years. I will miss the sound if it but surtenly not carrying it,
The 240 variants are just good weapon systems. The bit about zeroing to the barrel has always been a funny thing to me. In practice, you just "walk" in the fire. Partly because you're assuming that whatever zero you had is shifting as you fire and/or swap barrels.
The only time I would aim it using the sights would be right before first firing in an ambush. After that it just pointing it in the general direction and moving the tracers to where I want to hit.
@darkiee69 I see a man that's drooped some barrels. Lol My thoughts? I'm just gonna ride the tracers because they know where there going. That 145 on that feed tray that I can see vibrating has no idea where they're going.
I was in the Navy and after shooting it a lot you got quite familiar with it and a feel for the trigger, being Auto Only we had a challenge to "Play songs" with it by shooting single shots as Notes of the song: I admit there were no Masterpieces but it was Sure Tons of Fun! Btw I had the occasional dive to bring back a part that fell down while cleaning :)
Great review on a fantastic firearm. I dont know if it applies to the early MAGs (ours is a mutt of MAG and M240 parts) but at least some versions of the MAG allow the top cover to close on a closed bolt. The roller for the top cover that is mounted on the bolt carrier is actually spring loaded to allow it to compress into the carrier if the cover is closed on a closed bolt. A welcome improvement from the MG42. The MAG is a beautiful example of using what you have to make what you want. The sideplate and rivet construction of the FN30 Brownings, the tilting bolt locking and long stroke piston of the FND/BAR were both already in use, and the MG42 derived top cover and fire control gave the reliability, smooth operation and simplicity of each respectively. Again, a fantastic firearm.
The GPMG in British service used to have a changeable firing pin (in case of breakage) with spares kept in a spare parts wallet. Thanks to an incident at the Sennelager Training Area / field firing ranges in Germany around 1980/81 the firing pin was changed to became "fixed" (not field strippable). It had become "standard (unofficial) practice" to use GPMGs with the firing pin removed to (speed) strip down 7.62 belts when more ball ammo was needed for the SLRs (FN FAL) rifles. Unfortunately while doing this in a bivvy area at Sennelager a round was (somehow) discharged. Oops I once fired a 3000 round belt from co-axial GPMG L43 A1 (most held in the "toilet" space under the commanders seat of my Scorpion "tank" RV [CVRT]) in one semi continues engagement that stripped the chromed rifling out of the heavy duty barrel and completely blocked up the "special" gas regulator with carbon.
FN MAG, the best GPMG used on every world... Although it was heavy, but in the right RoF and right place, as long it's enough ammo you can suppressing them a long while...
have a look at the 'Johnson rifle' action, bolt look familiar? and further back ( although both recoil operated) the Webley Mars pistol. Both multi lug rotating bolts having more than a passing resemblance a certain american service rifle :-) 80 years, try 130 ish years ;-)
This made me remember a story a veteran once told me. They were doing shooting exercises and the MAG-gunner had a pretty good triggerfinger. He managed to fire just a single round every time. The instructor walked up to him saying "I think I told you to fire that thing in short bursts". The soldier replied "Sir, I'm honestly trying but I can't get them shorter than this". Giggles throughout the platoon in training. 😆
Tbf, I got bitched at by my old CO while we were doing quals with the 240. He was mad I was knocking targets with 1-2 round bursts instead of the 3-5 you're supposed to use.
RIP your MG trigger sears
It's interesting how both NATO and Soviet 'gold standard' GPMGs are both upside down actions of some older gun.
It is a foolproof way to make sure that you are using an action that works. It also helps the user if he is already familiar with the way it works. And as a designer it is just easier to adapt something than to come up with something completely new.
Or same actions, like it's the case with the MG3
This type of action is tested with blood. Unfortunately that's the only way to prove a weapon of war for a military to want to buy it.
And also the Vickers gun. Flip over that Maxim and hey-ho its better.
And the FAL is basically an upside down BAR switched to short stroke.
Carrying that thing around sucks, but all is forgiven once you press play. And when the adrenaline starts pumping it turns light as a feather.
Only carried it once glad my personal weapon was an Uzi
When you are in maneuvers walking KMs, cold, hungry, you'll love an MG3...
As a former MG3er, I feel you. :D
Still (barely) lighter than two 250 round boxes of belted ammunition for it ;)
Damn sure did but man can you lay down some hate with it and it just the gift that keeps on giving
“Heavy is good, heavy is reliable. If it doesn't work you can always hit them with it.” - Boris The Blade
It blew my mind at 13:12 when you showed how similar the BAR bolt is to the MAG. It's fantastic that you often have the opportunity to show us parts from other guns to demostrate your point like that.
Thanks for another great video, Ian.
Love the "Ghost of John Browning" continuing the influence modern firearms
The MAG is essentially a belt-fed BAR with the feed system from an MG42
@@0neDoomedSpaceMarine and AK bolt is basically an upside down M1 Garand bolt
@@muhammadnursyahmi9440 The Garand Bolt is basically a rip off of the Howell Automatic Rifle ;)
@@Pwj579 Pretty much everything in use today was influenced by old man Browning.
Just look at pistols, his cam actuated short recoil design is still the gold standard.
Even some 90 years later.
(1911s used a swinging link, the High Power incorporated the cam design. Although the concept may have been in his head even longer)
To paraphrase a Canadian soldier I was talking to once "Everybody loves the firepower of the C6, nobody wants to be the one carrying it or its ammo though". A different soldier soldier said something along the lines of "20 years in the Army and I have only had it jam twice on me and one of those wasn't actually a jam, it was a runaway belt."
Yes I had a runaway on the ranges
Carried this in the 1st Gulf War, excellent weapon and frankly not that heavy once you were used to it. The reliability and firepower was exceptional. Glad its getting all the love it deserves!
You just never were in mountans and weren't provided with other existing and viable options : )
@@worldoftancraft If you where in the mountains you would appreciate not having to go down the mountain for a new BCG.
@@alt5494 you witnessed someone, fetching for a new breechlock for a PKM? Intresting and rare sight you did see.
must be a strong fella. i hated carrying it and its barrels. loved shooting it though
@@worldoftancraft The pkm doesn't have a breechblock. It has a oversized AK bolt with all the problems built in. You don't have to blow up the gun to flatten firing pins and damage lugs. So yes if a cheaply made gpmg is wanted. That you can't fix without armourer tools & a torch because 10lb is terrifying onward!
Quote from a British veteran of Afghanistan: "It doesn't take many contacts to become a born-again fan of big, f*ck-off machine guns"
There isn't a soldier alive who's not a fan of at least the supporting fire a big f off machine gun can deliver.
So I highly agree.
As a former Ma Deuce gunner: Yup! Not even the most retarded and opium strung out insurgent will stick around to argue with a machine gun. And if there ever was an exception to the rule we can rest assured that he didn't do it twice!
@@clothar23 I sure hope so. Machine guns proved their worth countless times at this point
@@ALovelyBunchOfDragonballz With someone else carrying the ammo!
Does the three barrel 50bmg Gatling gun quality?
It's truly amazing to see how even after his passing, John Moses Browning continues to be among, if not the, premier firearms designer in Western militaries and civilian markets. Everything from the Colt 1911, to the BAR, to the M1919, M2HB, and the M240... It's astonishing how one man has changed and basically created modern Western weaponry, to the point that many of his designs, ideas, or basic mechanical concepts are still used today, 100+ years after his beginning, and decades after his death. Truly an astonishing feat of engineering.
Truth ;)
And we also have the O.O. H.C.A.R. to admire. 😍
@@rudragirik745 I'm sorry I didn't follow you
@@george5156 The HCAR (heavy combat assault rifle, I believe) is a modernized BAR with a 30 rd 30-06 mag
Don't forget that tilting barrel locking which is used in almost every modern pistol such as Glocks and Sigs was also invented by Browning
I remember part of the toolkit that was issued with it was a device we called a "sputnik"by squadies, it's official name of it ws "foresight adjusting, extractor removing tool", Its funny the things you remember from more than 30 years ago.
I looked up the cleaning kit and its actually a different part that is called "sputnik", which is a reamer, with three prongs coming out of a circular brass disc used for cleaning the gas plug mechanisn, the Forsight adjusting tool is like a small allen key with a clip on the end. It's all coming back to me. It was a long time ago
Fired these many times in British Infantry. In the Falklands we set up a mock ambush with 6 .50 cals on one side of a valley and a dozen GPMG's on the adjacent side. From my position on the .50 cals after our ammo ran out we sat back, lit a cigarette and watched streams of tracers flutter across the valley. In the darkness of night It was like Star Wars.
In the mid 90’s we trained some support squads and lo and behold the old 6.5 mm barrels where still around. Not only that: the amount of old 6.5 ammo was practically limitless and those conscripts must have fired more than anyone else I’ve trained. To the point they where so trained with belting ammunition that they practically could do it in their sleep. Good times.
6.5x55?
@@Audigiant The original ksp58. The design the Swedes ordered from FN.
@@Audigiant Yes Indeed. Its wierd that you just need to swap barrels for it to run 6.5x55 or 7.62x51.
Belts, feedmechanism and bolt+spacing is all great.
We used 6.5 and 7.62 in live fire when I was in the service.. you just dont adjust elevation as much with the 6.5 as I recall.
We even had the H&k G3 in 6.5x55 for testing in the late 60's..
@@amclips2995 The 6.5 barrels where used for blanks (with red wooden bullets) thus keeping the new 7.62 longer in service.
Our Swedish ksp 58 was a slightly different, foldable front sight for example. Adjust elevation when changing calibre?
Same rear sight!
SA3BOW
@@Audigiant I seem to recall 6.5x55 yes. But it was a looong time ago and my main job was the rifle squads.
Love this gun, as a kid we called these "Brens" (as in the british Bren machine gun) and fond memories of shouting at and complimenting soldiers on top of armored vehicle convoys that frequently passes the main road. Even "playfully" pointed it at us, which thinking about it now was very dangerous and unwise but who cares haha
Where?
Northern Ireland I'm guessing?
Hahaha getting flagged sounds pretty fun
@@taytos93 definitely northern Ireland
@@benc3380 yes, because if it's 2 things soldiers are known for it's their respect for firearms safety, and professionalism.
Funny how both the MAG and the PK are both basically earlier proven designs flipped upside down and switched to belt-fed
If they'd made a belt fed bren gun then the fn mag would probably never have been made
The czech VZ Uk59 is also just a flipped VZ Sa58
@@Truthbomb918 They tried quite a bit. The royal armouries actually released a video on the failed belt Bren recently.
@@Truthbomb918 They did search up the the TADEN gun, it wasn't very reliable
@@Truthbomb918 Czechoslovakian Vz. 52 and 52/57 was basically belt fed and mag fed BREN in 7.62x45 and 7.62x39 (since BREN and 52 and 52/57 are based on ZB 26 )
The fun is that by som reason there is always volunteers to lug it around as long as they will be able to shoot it. I think the only time I heard of a senior officer pull rank where when we had a improvised squad with reserve officers and NCO's (helping with training) The officer wanted the FN-MAG.... in the end the NCO with lowest rank ended up as squad leader. (probably the one most able to have that role)
During training, nobody wanted to help me carrying it since it was pure pain over days to carry this big chunk of metal..
But at the end, when we all gathered on the shooting range, suddenly everybody wanted to shoot it ! I genuinely fucked them away and kept all the ammo for me !
Sure, nobody wanted to help me clean it.. but it's rather easy when you're used to !
Many years later, my back doesnt thanks me for all the fun i had shooting this beast !
As a Tanker in US Army struggling with both M73 and M85, we were grateful for the M240..
I carried the KSP58 (swedish version) and I remember one time I closed the top cover and gave it a little tap for good measure when the circlip holding the feeding mechanism in place popped out and fell in to the tall grass...
Another time the rod inside the recoil spring broke on two of our guns on the same day. That rod was not in the spare parts kit and the guns were useless without them.
Sucked to carry, all forgotten when shooting 😁
Wasn't to bad to carry once you figured how to put the sling over the shoulders and made it stay there. Those who carried it with neck for a longer period regretted it later :)
Probably been through the technical armorers. Those guys are not exactly known for their reliability. Was handing out AK 5's to new batch of conscripts, out of 2 crates of freshly armorer serviced rifles of 10 guns each, 3 guns had their hammer snapped off about halfway down. And that was what we noticed on handing them out.
Hahaha, I only have seen the springs let loose on the feed cover mech one time. Interesting about the spares kit, in Canada the bag that comes with the C6 if I remember correctly actually has a full recoil spring assembly. Guess you guys got unlucky with what the Swedish army put in their spares/maintenance kits.
6:30 "matartapp med rulle"
@ 9:47 You can see that Ian is a little confused by the trigger mechanism as it did not behave in the way he was expecting (the sear was actually rising while the trigger was pulled) because the trigger mech was in a state where it behaves this way. This trigger mechanism is actually slightly more complex than what you'd expect. The part that goes up when the trigger is pulled at that moment is actually the sear.
When the trigger is first pulled the sear lowers to release the bolt. The sear hook at the front then hooks onto the front part of the sear and holds the rear part of the sear down out of the way of the piston extension (equivalent to bolt carrier) even when the trigger is released. When it is in this state (which is was in the video) the trigger/sear interaction is counterintuitive. When the trigger is released the sear hook protrudes up and is tripped by the piston extension during its rearward travel, releasing the sear which "pops" up in position to catch the piston extension and prevent it from moving froward again.
There are two reasons for this:
1: It ensures that the sear will pop up quickly and fully at the right moment of the firing cycle to ensure full engagement of the sear surfaces. Otherwise it would cause the chipping of sear engagement surfaces.
2: It holds the sear down while the action is forward which makes it impossible to apply the safety. This prevents a dangerous situation where the operator applies the safety while the parts are forward and then attempts to cock the weapon. Because the safety blocks the sear from dropping the piston extension ends up being wedged against the sear, which would appear to an inexperienced operator that the weapon is cocked until the slightest impact or vibration of the gun would cause it to slip out and release the action forward, potentially firing the gun or injuring the operator. The gun firing with the safety on would also destroy its trigger mechanism because the piston extension would be shoved with force against a sear that cannot drop down out of its way.
Love this gun; one of my all time favorites for sure. The Lima version really makes it a sweet shooter.
Misred as ligma
@@weeerazer3099 lima balls lmao
The 240L is a heck of an update. Both are heavy bitches to haul around but if you keep them lubed they just keep going. Replace that CLP spray bottle with some 10w and she just runs and runs. You might be dirty but it is better than dead.
I remember carrying one at port arms for a mile and a half in basic just because someone bet me I couldn't.
Ligma*
Known as the Jimpey (Gimpey gpmg) in British service this is my favourite mg. A beautifully simple weapon and excellent on a tripod for long range sustained fire (sf) with a sight. Not light at 23lbs but tough as old boots. I field stripped it in my mind alongside you Ian.
Me too I was a stab infantryman, I carried the gimpy loved and hated it.
Carried it for a tour in Northern Ireland County Fermanagh, 6 months across the bogs, not the easiest to carry around when going over barbed wire fences but still loved it , especially when the tracers ricochet.
Same here from the old RUC Rosslea station.
The bracket on the left rear side of the receiver is not strictly intended for conventional optics. It's normally used for an indirect fire sight e.g. the C2 which is/was used on mortars. In this role the gun is installed on a tripod with the sight fitted. With the aid of aiming posts and range tables the gun is fired indirectly at targets, the bullets arcing through the air over hills, etc. to create a beaten zone with the plunging fire.
Firing on fixed lines...SF role .Good stuff👍
An anecdotal comment. When they just started to be bought in Latin America, some soldiers assumed that MAG meant "Metralleta a Gas" Gas Machine Gun. Unlike the FAL (Fusil Automatique Léger or Fusil Automático Liviano) in this case the initials do not correspond one to one. Greetings from Patagonia Argentina
The original acronym was MAG : “Mitrailleuse À Gaz” French for gas machine gun.
The acronym was change to mean “Mitrailleuse d'Appui Général” French for GPMG.
Everyone used to call it the “MAG 58” until the M240 came along.
(Like the FN Minimi before M249 SAW).
@@alexfortin7209 Excellent information! I didn't know it, so the old soldiers weren't so wrong. Thank you very much
Is 7mm Mauser still popular ammo in Latin America?
@@george5156 In Argentina no, because here we used the 7.65 Mauser. But I understand that in countries like Uruguay, Chile and Brazil it was. The main drawback for it to remain so is not technical, but legal. Most Latin American countries have heavy restrictions on weapons in the hands of civilians and the 7mm is no longer a standard military caliber (except for parades and protocol). So a large part of the surplus has gone to the USA
@@bulukacarlos4751 have you shot both? If so what is your opinion?
Trained, carried and fired one during my National Service. Its heavy as hell to carry on a road match but fun to fire especially night firing exercise. I had an intense ecstasy firing it during living fires, tracer rounds hitting targets and my shoulder sored for days afterward. Worthy pain to have had an once in a lifetime opportunity to fire one of the world's great GPMGs.
If your shoulder was sore you didn't pull it tight enough against your shoulder. Never had that problem.
Assuming that was in the SANDF?
@@thepatriotsrage661 Pre 1994 SADF (National Service conscription). After April 1994 changed to SANDF and conscription stopped.
FN MAG still in use.
I was forced to carry one in the middle of my conscript year here in Sweden (happened to be in the summer with scorching sun. Mine had a hiccup and couldn't fire automatic. I was basically lugging around 15kg of the dumbest semi automatic rifle imaginable. Seeing as we were in the backwater woods of Sweden they never got around to fixing it. I went back to my FN FNC after a couple of weeks. 🤣
So no sore shoulder for me, only a sore back and legs.
@@charlesschoeman9488 I know, I live here too ;)
I remember visiting an Irish army base with cub scouts when I was 10 years old. Got to pull the charging handle on an FN MAG. Heavy pull. It was a struggle for kids.
I assume child soldiers are mostly given AK rifles, with the older kids carrying the machine gun.
Could just run it as a crew served with multiple kids
I-- What? They let boy scouts into army bases? I must've had a really bad childhood then
@@AshleyPomeroy child soldiers get sa80s
@@ambivalentonion2620 Which would probably be some sort of double-layer war crime
6.5 Swede is an amazing cartridge, I can only imagine how nice a fn mag in 6.5x55 would be.
@@ALovelyBunchOfDragonballz I got a killer deal about 10 years ago, a swedish mauser that had been properly sporterized decades ago with a Douglas barrel, nice laminate stock and a Lyman micrometer rear sight. It's my favorite hunting rifle.
@@ALovelyBunchOfDragonballz I believe that's because 6.5 Creed more can run in a 308 receiver and 6.5 swedish requires a 30:06 receiver. And most shooters aren't good enough to exploit the increase in range
Loved these as the coax on the M1's. Huge ammo capacity and tyeing it into the gunners system made it super accurate. Almost never had problems, even with the barrel glowing red!
Do the coaxes have heavier barrels?
@@user-njyzcip Not that I recall. The overall configuration is different; for example, there is no butt stock, the trigger assembly is much smaller, and there is no carrying handle on the barrel. But I think the barrel profile is the same.
Ian's "It's full auto or nothing" is certainly an escalation from the classic "It's nerf or nothing!"
The Canadian version of the MAG, the C6 , still looks like it came off the FN factory floor in the 50s, no rails, wood furniture, all of them probably got purchased in the 50s and 60s . They just got new ones about two years ago or so made by colt Canada called the C6A1 FLEX, and about 400 plus got sent back to colt Canada for defective gas regulation system and defective barrel nuts lol. But CZG owns colt and colt Canada now, so hopefully there will be some better quality control
Weird, Colt Canada is usually really good
@@tristanhodgden4286 Yeah, they have no real experience making this type of gun (riveted on steel plate), so it makes sense. They're working through it, and now with the revised feed tray I think the A1 is GTG now. Doesn't change the fact that it's amusing that in 2022 a firearms company made a worse version of a gun from 1958.
When my unit (1/16in) deployed to Bosnia as part of SFOR6 in 1999, we converted our M240C out of our Bradley's to M240B for the deployment the thing that sucked about that was they had no sights. Lol. But when we got back to the states after that deployment. We ended up getting proper M240B. And going from the old M60's to the M240B was a massive upgrade.
This MAG (Machine à Gaz) brings back a lot of memories. When I was doing my service in the Belgian army and Germany exactly 40 years ago, this was one of my favourite weapons. And boy, was it a beast! A little on the heavy side to carry around along with the ammo, but not too bad for a well trained infanterist in his early twenties. Knowing that you could wipe out about anything when under attack makes you have confidence in the future. This toy is one of those things that makes me feel proud to be Belgian.
You really did your service in the army ? Then how can you say MAG means Machine à gaz ? It means Mitrailleuse d'appui général or "General support machine gun", which is much more realistic... Anyway, a good weapon, as much of guns FN made and still makes
@@laurentdevaux5617 In the Infantry School in Arlon our instructors called it "Machine à Gaz". They even added the explantion that the gun works on the principle of gas pressure, hence the name. If that is a mistake, they are to blame. BTW, I can show you a picture when I was in Soest (Germany) in the 9Li Regt (anti tank).
@@laurentdevaux5617 MAG is definitely is "Mitrailleuse Á Gaz". As I also was taught in service and saw the original FN manuals. Google for it FN MAG manual.
Best MAG ever made. The British army have been using it since the 60’s. I used it for 6 years in the 70’s and it never failed me. I put 48 rounds of a 50 round burst on a three man target at 800 meters off the bipod.
I’ve never saw anyone remove the trigger group in a a field strip though.
Awesome bit if kit 1-1 ball tracer
@@LeePenn2492 I made up a 1400 round belt of pure tracer one year. Two 700 round boxes. I was told fire it off as we were getting towards a new ammo allocation period. What a light show with the heavy barrel on😂
On South africa we trained on the old bren but sent to Namibia and Southern Angola with the Mag...Loved that chatter on our section left flank as we waded into Ongiva on Ops Protea with 7 SAI
Aaaaahhhh, the Rooikat battalion.
Hauled that thing around in Afghanistan, the lump. What a great weapon, insanely reliable, controllable. Hated and loved it at the same time
Its old reliable. Only problem was the length. I did Iraq and not Afghan but was 25th out of Hawaii so im not a stranger to the hump. Lol. We found ways. We did a mission with the marines and their 240G? Idr didn't have the heat shields on the barrel and spare barrel, so we started taking ours off because of the extra weight.
@@fathead8933 ^ exactly. Its terribly balanced. If they made a bullpup kit for these it would actually help, as opposed to things like bullpup ARs
I don't think you could do it without grinding the belt across you face for rightys and eating links for leftys. And your face is literally beside where stuff would out of battery at.
@@fathead8933 out of battery? Its an open & tilting bolt gun it cannot fire out of battery. & theres actually a great spot right between the sight bracket & the feed tray opening.
@1nfamy you can cook rounds out of battery. Silencerco just posted a short showing it on the SAW. It's why part of the clearance procedure is to open the feed tray cover with your face looking away from the feed tray.
As someone who's had a lot of trigger time on the 240L, I love this thing, I wish they still had the adjustable gasblocks they are locked in the highest gas setting now and being able to run our guns at a lower rate would be lovely on the tripod
Running on a lower rate would be lovely for dismounts trying to not run out of ammo after 90 seconds.
@@509Gman straight up
Used this many times from 1974 to 1994 in the Royal Marines and the Staffordshire regiment. A great gun and who cares about the weight. Single tap, five round or 15 round burst’s it’s great.
Deployed to Afghanistan 2019-2020, I gotta say the Lima version of this thing was my absolute best tool overseas. Sorry 320, nothing replicates a pound town beatin zone of 7.62 out of the trusty 240.
Absolutely agreed. We (South Africans - SANDF and now the SADF) have been using the Mag 7.62x51 since the 70's and it was very prevalent in the Bush War for the same reasons you just mentioned. Reliable, high rate of fire, accurate as it gets and reliable.
Definitely can imagine it being the go-to suppression weapon at those valley ranges. M249 SAW probably can't even effectively suppress from afar.
@@thepatriotsrage661 Don't you use the SS77 now?
@@kiwigrunt330 In some instances, yes. The FN MAG is still in wide circulation here, more so than the SS-77. In fact, I haven't seen many SS-77's in SANDF inventory (but I am hardly qualified to make the above assumption). Denel sold quite a few to either Colombia or Venezuela a while back, so perhaps that's where most went.
My first experience with the Lima was when we first got them my LT told me it was lighter than the bravo, so I was curious, went to lift it like I would a bravo and damn near sent the thing into space 😂 definitely way lighter than the bravo
As an former operator in NL army it is also known as: Mitrailleuse à gaz. (Mag) Which means gas operated MG. We bumped up the gas system on forehand, because on the lowest setting you had a lot of malfunctions.
Yeah, in Canada the original C6 (which we used for about 10 billion years) had a non-adjustable gas regulator. At least, not adjustable on the fly, you had to remove it and then physically rotate it. We were always told to start with it in Position 2, and only set it to 3 if the weapon was extremely dirty.
@@Stylemaster911 We had it also as a coax in the leopard tank. We put it on 3 on forehand. No f*ckin around. Handling it inside the turret is not fun. It's probably because they where the same we had in the leopard 2a4. 15 years of abuse isn't doing anything good.
Compare that to the Brit (and Kiwi) L7 with ten settings requiring the barrel to be "balanced". J, je moet dat ding wel af en toe schoon maken hoor!
One quick correction. Although we had a bit different variant of the gun, I think it still applies. You can actually close the top cover with the bolt forward. Thats why there is a plate next to the track and the roller can be depressed inside the bolt. Once you put the bolt back it snaps in place and the gun can be fired.
Watching a gimpy tear up a brick wall is a thing of beauty and a fast lesson in cover from fire
Thank you for using the correct term!!!
I had no idea this was first developed for the finest military bullet ever. (6.5) A friend of mine who is about 5’6” humped the Australian MAG58 (he called it) around Cambodia with UN peacekeeping force. He said it was incredibly accurate. He said same thing as everyone else here, best MG ever.
I had a love/hate relationship with my 240B in Iraq. I was very effective, but my particular MG's top cover pin's crush pin had broken off and after about 60 rounds would walk out shifting the feed tray cover jamming the gun. I tried tape but the heat from the Baghdad summer would make it fall off. It wasn't until one of the other 240's was permanently disabled and we cannibalized it for parts, that I was able to finally fix it.
I've never served so please forgive my ignorance but... damn! Don't you guys have like, armourers and such who should be able to fix that right up? That seems really serious and the sort of thing that should be fixed literally as soon as it's noticed or immedietely upon reaching some sort of base if out in the field.
@@jameshealy4594 Ususally that would be the case, but occasionally you get stuck out in the field with little to no time to get to a proper base.
@@jameshealy4594 At the time replacement parts just weren't available. It took four months just to get the broken 240B (took a 7.62x54 PK machinegun round to the receiver) coded out and replaced, but using it as replacement parts repaired three other MGs though.
@@0neDoomedSpaceMarine I'm not sure how it was broken, as it was issued to me that way and at the time you just had to make do. Yes, it ran flawlessly after replacing the pin. I was sad to see it go, as we turned in our belt fed MGs and night vision to a re-issuing facility right before we left country since there was still a shortage of those item in country due to wearing them out and battle damage.
@@jonathanenglish9146 That seems like an oversight on somebody's part. Amazing that basic things can be so difficult given the funding level of the US military. Thanks for telling the story.
I had 3 FN Mags on my Merkava tank. Commander, Co axial and loader.
Co axial had short metal stock and special long and thick barrel, attached to 2000 round box. Blew up head size baloons from 1200m.
A wonderful machine gun.
Hey I’m a Canadian Forces infantryman and during my BMQ/BCT I got extremely familiar with the C6A1 (FN MAG) and I fucking love it, I still use it in my Company
Ahh the FN MAG, so many memories (and shoulder injuries)...and firing the MAG always jiggles the balls in a good way
😂
"jiggles the balls"
Just where are you placing the butt stock? Wincing! ;>)
I dunno about the other countries version but the one we have in Canada, the C6 GPMG, can close the cover even with the bolt forward. Indeed, the lug that actuates the feeding clamps is spring loaded and it would just be pushed downwards by the cover.
I was thinking the same thing. From my memory I remembered being able to close it with the action forward. It’s how it’s loaded. Action forward, open cover, belt on the feed tray, close the cover.
Its left over institutional training from the M60.
Same here, that limitation was an M60 thing. MAG58 has the spring loaded roller.
One of my absolute favorite things about this gun is the hard chrome gas piston. It makes cleaning a breeze! Just grab a handful of sand and scour all the carbon off in a couple seconds! (Preferably before the Platoon Sergeant catches you!)
I'm a big fan as well, though I was actually taught to use that method.
I think one of the most underrated benefits of the MAG58/M240 is how technically simpler it is to operate and maintain than an M60. Putting 2 19 year olds in charge of a M240 is a lot easier than the time it takes to teach a single user to operate and maintain an M60. Probably why the 60 stuck around in special operations after 1995.
Rode with one of these on nearly every vehicle (240B variants) as a backup gunner's weapon in custom-fabricated secondary mounts up and to the left of our M2s or MK-19s (depending on the vic) on the off-chance they had a nasty malfunction. Rarely had to use them but my god was it a blessing to have all the same.
I would love to see a picture of those mounts, they sound cool. Were they mounted on HMMWV's?
@@user-njyzcip nah, rg34s, we were a route clearance unit, if I find an image I will see about linking
Love it. I am a machinegunner in Swedish Home guard. I have One 58. Made in the 60s. That was converted from 6.5mm to 7.62 Still runs like a Swiss watch.
I know someone locally (South Africa) that I used to shoot IDPA with, who has several variants of these; all of which are still fully operational and obviously auto. IIRC he has an MG3 as well. He is however a Category A Collector, of which there aren't many locally.
I have never fired one, but I maintain M240Bs at work. You just know these are built like tanks. I've seen a few that were abused but I think there has only been one receiver that got bent somehow and got tagged for destruction. I've tagged out many M249s but the M240B is my favorite MG. I hope to get some time on the range with one some day.
Oh... Brings back memories! Used one as a Swedish conscript, some 30 years back.
We Canucks adopted this as the C6 and in recent years the C6A1. Fantastic machine gun.
Edit: we can close ours on a closed bolt, due to our handling drills requiring the belt to be loaded before we cock the weapon.
👍 thanks for that blast from the past.
Standard issue during my time in the SADF '68 - '74. We called it the 'LMG' Ligte Mashien Geweer / Light Machine Gun.
Heavy yes .. but we had a saying, "Waneer hy praat, dan luister die mense / when it talks, the people listen."😊.
Being an 0311 I didn't get to shoot the 240b very often but when I did it was an absolute dream. Ran smooth as hell and never had a single stoppage. Can't say the same about the 249
Served as a 240 gunner for almost 2 years, and I gotta say there is no weapon I have more faith in than the 240 Bravo
Whether you call it, M240, C6, GP, MAG or just the Pig, we all know and love this beautiful death machine
Sweet memories! I hav shot the MAG - or ksp 58 as it's known in Sweden - both in 6,5 and 7,63.
It's heavy and a nightmare to clean. But when you press the trigger you forget the drawbacks!
One of these fell out of a blackhawk from 500 feet at fort polk. Still worked
Lol, I'm surprised it didn't level the fort when it hit the ground.
@@reginaldsafety6090 for real
Holy shit that is a significant fall! Surely it can't handle that at all angles and must've gotten a little lucky in how it hit? Still, that's incredible.
lmao
You can close the feed cover with the bolt in any position. The actuating roller is spring loaded to collapse if it's not lined up and spring up when you charge it.
Newer models have that, not older ones.
I knew there would be someone with that info in the comments...that's why there is a little flat triangular piece on the front of the feed arm.
@@jamyers1971 you can see a hint of the cavity at the base of the roller. I work on M240s five days a week, so I spot these things.
I used the older model and u could definitely close the top cover with the bolt foward
That's what I know too. Been that way at least since I was introduced to the MAG in 1985 (Israel)
Loved the Golf and Bravo. Used the Bravo pretty extensively. I hear the Lima is great as well. This is probably the single most loved/respected weapon on the USMC side of things. Boringly reliable and reslient. Extremely effective. A b**** to haul around.
Used this in Afghanistan in 2010 the “gimpy” vehicle mounted to a Husky honestly best machine gun on earth you can’t convince me otherwise 🤣
I have always loved the term general purpose machine gun. As if you could for use it for household repairs, automotive maintenance, and lawn care.
The other coax was the M219, an M73 with 5 major upgrades.. still needed percussive maintenance when it got too dirty. It was a great day when we changed over to the M240 coax
Percussive maintenance? Is that when you beat the gun like a drum to get it to work?
@@Tony-om5kr Percussive maintenance is any kind of "maintenance" which requires hitting the damn thing. Some times with a flat hand. Sometimes with a fist. Sometimes with a hammer, your helmet, the butt stock of your rifle, an empty shell casing, or, if things are dire, the head of a dead fellow/enemy.
AKA: "The use of excessive force has resolved the issue" :P
JM Browning designs almost immortal. The BAR-MAG, the 9 mm GP 1935 (High Power) and the .50" M2HB. Of the 3, the first two were finished by successors. And the M1911 .45 still works.
My introduction to this lovely piece of engineering was at 19K OSUT at Ft. Knox.
The first time you get to fire one brings a huge grin to your face.... because you've spent countless hours learning to take the damn thing apart and putting it back together. 😂
Ah, the old Ksp58! Carried it around for a year and more!
These saved a lot of American lives in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Take contact? Ambushed? You've got a gun that just doesn't quit.
UCP also saved lives and was the most effective camouflage fielded by the U.S military and then I lied so bad
Its reliable, but it's usually the experience of the gun team that makes it effective. There's a reason you don't initiate an ambush with a 240.
@SonsOfLorgar loudest sound in an Ambush is CaChunk.
I was taught that the PL initiates with Claymore or his personal rifle. The reason was that his closed bolt m4 will most certainly fire. The open bolt 240 or 249 have the ability to override the ammunition. It's only like a 10% chance, but it's still a chance.
@@SonsOfLorgar Did you guys often actually get to ambush Insurgents in Afghanistan? I never imagined the infantry in that situation, seeing as they usually just patrol and eyes in the sky would rather ambush first on sight no? Idk i'm just curious.
Ha! Awesome to see you review the MAG. I fire/clean/maintain these almost on a daily basis. We use the SF (MAG 2015) with the pic rail currently.
My heart did a little skip when i saw how dirty the gasblock was😂
After firing they are a pain to clean properly, but with a few extra hands and a lot of gun lube and some music, its easy enough.
Not to be ‘that guy’;
Our order for disassembling:
- make sure the gun is clear and the bolt/moving parts and in the forward position
- remove barrel
- remove buttstock (lid open at this point)
- remove spring
- remove the bolt assembly
- remove pistolgrip
- dissasemble gasblock/port and the front support plate.
Keep it up Ian, thanks for the awesome content as usual💪
Love this thing almost as much as my old SLR... :)
Best MG ever!!!!!!!
I loved how accurate the MAG and M240B are. Made 600m easy to touch.
Surprisingly accurate for an open bolt system.
This takes me back to nu days as a trooper in the Belgian army. Sure it was a beast to Carry around. But compared to the rest of the squad with fnc and minimi I got to play with the serious firepower.
I'm always amazed on how engineered had to make a gun work but also be easy to work on. And also let's not forget to make it also easy to manufacture. Every time Ian take a gun apart, it bring much joy.
The good old GPMG, or "Jimpy" in British service for some decades now and with little modification. Lugged this bad boy up Pen-Y-Fan on Junior Brecon, fired it multiple times on exercise and operations. If it isn't already a legendary machine gun it should be! Put more rounds through this on Ops than I did through my L85A2.
Was wondering when you'd finally do a vid on the MAG. Was in the Israeli army and was given an opportunity to shoot one once, however it was the crustiest MAG probably still in Israeli inventory that they used to give the shortest and smallest soldier/recruit to carry like an M16 on a strap, so he'll grow big and strong. (or at least get some muscle bulk)
The less fun part that it basically did a 10 round burst, then a 5 round, and jammed catastrophically so my turn was over..
((()))
9:00 "Action must be cocked to close the top cover"
This always threw me for a loop because the Canadian SOP was to never hot load, only load when the bolt was forward. Never had any issues closing the top cover with the bolt forward.
That capability was added in a later pattern than this one.
@@ForgottenWeapons That would do it! Mechanically, what changes would you need to make?
Basically just make the cam track roller spring loaded so it can be pushed down when the top cover is closed. It will then pop up into the cam track when the bolt is locked back.
Great MG. Cdn Army acquired the FN MAG (we designated it C6) both as co-ax and AA for use on the Leopard C1 when we purchased the Leo in ’78. It could fire all day with only the rare stoppage which wasn’t everday. Would have liked the integral AA sight the MG 3 had. Only complaint as such that I had was it could be a tiresome chore to clean - heavy carbon build-up. Recall during CAT 81 in Grafenwoehr the US team (crewing M60A3s) for some reason very interested in our C6 so we gave them a demo on it.
@ 9:00 FN has solved this problem on the FN MAG. The feed roller is spring loaded so it can be pushed down by closing the cover with the bolt forwards. When the weapon is cocked the roller pops back up in its channel. The drills in at least some military organizations actually require the operator to close the cover with the bolt forward. However I'm not sure if this solution already existed on the original MAG that we see here or if it was added later.
That is what i was thinking. The ones we had on US tanks(M240's) in the 1980's didn't require the bolt back to close the cover either. SO this bolt back thing is an original FN-MAG thing not seen on the later FN-MAGs or M240's
I was looking for this. For Singapore, our drill is to have the bolt forward and close the top cover before cocking.
I assume its for safety incase the pistol grip is faulty, it wont automatically shoot off before the gunner is ready
There is a bit more going on with the trigger mechanism than you think, the part you pointed at 9:56 is the disconnect, not the sear, the sear is the larger pivoting bar behind it, it is moving up and not down when you are pulling the trigger because the disconnect hasn't been tripped/reset by the bolt, which will happen once you release the trigger, as it allows the disconnect to pop up into the path of the bolt. Without the disconnect releasing the sear, neither the lower or upper position you demonstrated while pulling the trigger allows the sear to travel high enough to catch the bolt.
I can't explain how happy I was when I saw thumbnail, I was waiting for FN MAG for a very, very long time, thank you a lot!
Someone already touched on the point earlier that you can close the feed cover with the breech block fully forward.
Also, the rear sight is graduated to 1200 m. When you look at it from the firing position with the sight raised you will see the markings and the sight has a U notch used at these longer ranges. This was mainly used when mounted on the tripod.
Used the gun (C6) for 30 years in the Canadian army.
I was just about to make the same comment about the Feed cover
It would be really interesting to see a review of the South African Vector SS-77 which I believe incorporates design elements of the FN-MAG and even draws on some Soviet design concepts as well
It sure would be. My understanding is that the SS77 had some reliability issues early on. It took Denel some 10 to 20 years to figure out that reducing the rate of fire fixed the problem.
Excellent presentation, as always. A word on gun cleaning from an Army Vet that used dental tools to meticulously clean his M-16. CLEANING IS A SCAM! Modern propellants create minimal buildup and what buildup remains simply gets blown away. Now then, use cheap ammo cheap propellants and yes, you have to get that cheap gunk out. But nowadays, a blast of gun scrub, a little wipe off of the excess crud, followed up by your favorite lube and all is fine. Same with barrels. Haven't swabed a barrel in years and all is well.
A lot of it is just make-work for young servicemen =)
I do imagine that at some point, the rifling would get smoothed out eventually after having so many rounds fired through it.
Yeah, in one way.... the Army always goes too far with cleaning. In another, especially on the C6 you must ensure the gas reg is clear, otherwise you'll run into issues.
But yes, overall cleaning the gas regulator + ample lubrication is sufficient.
Fabrique Nationale are my favorite manufacturer. A High Power, a FAL and an FN MAG will get you through to the ninth circle of hell.
Fun thing. If you turn the gas regulator too low - the gas pressure is not enough to push the bolt al the way back to lock it. This results in when taking the finger of the trigger - it has no effect, it just keeps firing until it's out of ammunition. You can just leave it and go to take a leak, come back and pretend that you never left. You can make it stop by twisting the belt and jamming it.
I admit doing that a couple of times no one was looking - just for fun. This was on a swedish KSP 58.
The British version doesn't use picatiny rail on the top cover, it's on a flip over unit on the side. Also the safety can't be engaged until the action is cocked. We didn't use the iron sights, we had a holo sight with an ir laser.
But back in the 1980's this was the standard - no holo sights, etc then.... :)
The MAG 58's and British L7's I used back in the 90's could all have the top cover closed with the bolt in any position.
Yep, same with the original Canadian C6 and C6A1. Ian replied to another comment, apparently that was a later addition to the MAG, but not on this earlier one in the video.
Used this thing for years loved luckily I had a nice armoured vehicle to carry the weight and general purpose and reliability are beyond compare we always carried the but stock you showed as a spare in the vehicle that way the user could pull two pins and remove it from the vehicle mount swap out the but plate for the stock and you had GPMG to push out into perimeter defence or a boost in firepower for abandoning a casualty vehicle.
I absolutely love them. They are super easy to service, gauge, and replace parts on when needed. Super accurate, reliable, durable. I can’t say enough good things about it.
Extremely cool to know that my country, Sweden, was involved in the creation of this gun even if only by ordering it. I had no idea of it's early history. It's still widely used in Sweden but will be phased out for a new Sako built machingun in the following years. I will miss the sound if it but surtenly not carrying it,
The 240 variants are just good weapon systems.
The bit about zeroing to the barrel has always been a funny thing to me. In practice, you just "walk" in the fire. Partly because you're assuming that whatever zero you had is shifting as you fire and/or swap barrels.
The only time I would aim it using the sights would be right before first firing in an ambush. After that it just pointing it in the general direction and moving the tracers to where I want to hit.
@darkiee69 I see a man that's drooped some barrels. Lol
My thoughts? I'm just gonna ride the tracers because they know where there going. That 145 on that feed tray that I can see vibrating has no idea where they're going.
I was in the Navy and after shooting it a lot you got quite familiar with it and a feel for the trigger, being Auto Only we had a challenge to "Play songs" with it by shooting single shots as Notes of the song: I admit there were no Masterpieces but it was Sure Tons of Fun!
Btw I had the occasional dive to bring back a part that fell down while cleaning :)
Great review on a fantastic firearm. I dont know if it applies to the early MAGs (ours is a mutt of MAG and M240 parts) but at least some versions of the MAG allow the top cover to close on a closed bolt. The roller for the top cover that is mounted on the bolt carrier is actually spring loaded to allow it to compress into the carrier if the cover is closed on a closed bolt. A welcome improvement from the MG42.
The MAG is a beautiful example of using what you have to make what you want. The sideplate and rivet construction of the FN30 Brownings, the tilting bolt locking and long stroke piston of the FND/BAR were both already in use, and the MG42 derived top cover and fire control gave the reliability, smooth operation and simplicity of each respectively. Again, a fantastic firearm.
The GPMG in British service used to have a changeable firing pin (in case of breakage) with spares kept in a spare parts wallet. Thanks to an incident at the Sennelager Training Area / field firing ranges in Germany around 1980/81 the firing pin was changed to became "fixed" (not field strippable).
It had become "standard (unofficial) practice" to use GPMGs with the firing pin removed to (speed) strip down 7.62 belts when more ball ammo was needed for the SLRs (FN FAL) rifles. Unfortunately while doing this in a bivvy area at Sennelager a round was (somehow) discharged. Oops
I once fired a 3000 round belt from co-axial GPMG L43 A1 (most held in the "toilet" space under the commanders seat of my Scorpion "tank" RV [CVRT]) in one semi continues engagement that stripped the chromed rifling out of the heavy duty barrel and completely blocked up the "special" gas regulator with carbon.
FN MAG, the best GPMG used on every world...
Although it was heavy, but in the right RoF and right place, as long it's enough ammo you can suppressing them a long while...
JM Browning's ghost has a veeery long shadow.
KSP 58! 🇸🇪 still in the ’90 we used 6.5 blanks in training, the army had still millions of rounds lying around…and the old barrels to.
May I mention that Sweden is a member of NATO since four days back. 03/07/2024
So it was a long and bumpy road.
I think it is amazing that the MG42 mechanics are still in use today, 80 years later.
It seems very well optimized.
have a look at the 'Johnson rifle' action, bolt look familiar? and further back ( although both recoil operated) the Webley Mars pistol. Both multi lug rotating bolts having more than a passing resemblance a certain american service rifle :-) 80 years, try 130 ish years ;-)
the mg42 is still used as a weaon by several armies
And BAR mechanics are in use 100+ years later.