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General Dynamics Lightweight Medium Machine Gun
The General Dynamics Lightweight Medium Machine Gun is a prototype gas-operated open-bolt general-purpose machine gun chambered in .338 Norma Magnum . It is mechanically based on a patented system called "short recoil impulse averaging," a recoil-mitigating technology derived from the "differential firing" mechanism developed for the cancelled XM806 and XM307 & XM312. In both systems a large part of the gun's mechanism including the barrel and gas system reciprocates during firing and shots are timed to occur when the group is moving forward, forcing recoil to first overcome the momentum of the forward-moving component group. It seems General Dynamics has finally solved the rate-of-fire issues that plagued past iterations of this technology, and while the rate of fire is still at the low end of the scale for a machine gun, it is almost doubled from the XM806 and similar to that of a Browning M2. Because of this technology, it has similar felt recoil to the M240 Machine Gun despite being the same weight as the M240L and almost six pounds ligher than the M240B while firing a much more powerful round.
It was developed in-house by General Dynamics based on the experiences of US forces in Afghanistan around 2010, who were finding their M240s had issues countering insurgent forces using PKMs, particularly when ambushed from high ground at extreme range where the 7.62mm NATO round drifts noticeably more than the 7.62x54mmR.
The .338 Norma Magnum is a Swedish-designed cartridge which fires a 300-grain projectile with over 4,600 foot-pounds of muzzle energy: it is four times more powerful than 7.62mm NATO at 1,000 yards (though on the downside both the rounds and belt links are twice as heavy), and more accurate at range than both 7.62mm NATO and .50 BMG. The concept of a machine gun firing a round intermediate between rifle and true heavy machine gun is not a new one: there was a brief fad for such weapons in the 1930s, resulting in what could be termed "heavy medium" machine guns chambered for rounds like 8x59mmRB Breda.
In May 2017, the United States Marine Corps and SOCOM issued a Sources Sought Solicitation for 5,000 machine guns chambered for a polymer-cased .338 Norma Magnum cartridge. Since the LWMMG is the only machine gun that is currently chambered for .338 Norma Magnum, it is likely that the weapon will be adopted, with sources claiming that it is intended to supplement the Browning M2 and replace the M240 in these services. The LWMMG is designed specifically with replacing the M240 in mind and requires no alteration to existing M240 mountings in order to fit on them.
Specifications
(Prototype, first displayed 2012)
- Type: General-purpose machine gun
- Caliber(s): .338 Norma Magnum (8.6x63mm)
- Weight: 24 lbs (10.9 kg) (first prototypes), 22 lbs (10 kg) (current model)
- Length: 49 in (124.5 cm)
- Barrel length(s): 24 in (61 cm)
- Capacity: Belt-fed, usually 100 round belt box
- Fire Modes: Safe / semi / auto (500rpm)
The Browning M2 appears in the following movies, TV shows, and video games:
Video Games
| Game Title | Appears as | Mods | Notation | Release Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ArmA III | SPMG .338 | Marksmen DLC | 2013 |