MG-42

The MG-42 or the MachinenGewehr 42, otherwise known as Hitler's Buzzsaw is a general purpose German machine gun created during World War 2. It is a weapon used by the Millennium Organization and its Letzte Bataillon.

Profile
The MG-42 is a general purpose machine gun, designed Werner Gruner and produced by various companies in Germany during World War 2. The weapon is 11.6 kg (25.57 lb) in weight, with a length of 1,220 mm (48 in) long and a barrel length of 530 mm (20.9 in). The weapon is composed of sheet metal, which is much more cost effective than the machined parts of the older MG-34 machine gun. The weapon, depending on the bolt being used, has a rate of fire from 900-1500 rounds per minute, with a muzzle velocity of 740 m/s (2,428 ft/s) and an effective range from 200–2,000 m (219–2,187 yd) without a tripod, but with a tripod, the range is 3,500 m (3,828 yd).

The MG-42 was a rapid firing weapon, which would generate a lot of heat in the barrels, so those operating the weapon would have to swap out the barrel of the gun when they reloaded, otherwise the heat from the barrel would cause it to break. The weapon's ammunition is the standard 7.92×57mm Mauser round, used by most German rifles at the time, fed into the gun via ammunition belts, which went from 50-250 rounds, however there were also 50 round drums that could be mounted on the side of the gun.

History
Originally, the standard general purpose machine gun of the Third Reich was the MG-34, which was regarded as the first of its kind in terms of the modern general purpose machine gun. Despite it's use on the field, the weapon suffered from serious drawbacks, such as malfunctioning upon exposure to the elements and weather. The weapon's means of manufacture, which were machined parts, were also becoming more expensive to produce. As a result, a newer design was created from the more cost effective sheet metal, which became known as the MG-42. The weapon would come into service by 1942 and would see itself against enemy forces on both the Western and Eastern Fronts. It would then earn the nickname of Hitler's Buzzsaw, due to the sound the machine gun made.

The weapon would see service by the reich until it's defeat by 1945. Despite this, the MG-42 would find itself in the service of various other countries, as well as inspiring various other general purpose machine guns such as the Rheinmetall MG-3 and even the American M60 machine gun.