Browning M2 .50cal question.

G

gunnut1980

Inactive
So can anybody help me out? I'm trying to figure out what the difference between the military M2 and a civilian M2 is. other than one is auto and the other is Semi. I'm trying to find out exactly which parts are different in the civilian model. Any input is appreciated. Thanks
 
Not sure about your question. I don't know exactly what a "civilian" M2 is-- one made by a commercial manufacturer rather than one made for the military? If so, they would usually be called a commercial gun and they are essentially the same. An older military gun would be a C&R gun. An exampe of a commercial gun might be newly made sideplates riveted to a demilled top and bottom plate and trunnion, and the rest of the gun assembled from surplus GI parts if available, or newly made parts.

There are also semi .50's, and these are vastly different. The sideplates are thicker so the FA parts can't be inserted into the receiver, the internals are thinner, and the trigger mechanism is entirely different.

I hope this helps you and it's what you were looking for. For more information, check on 1919A4.com and see their tutorials on building guns.
 
I don't know off hand of any semi-auto .50 in the MG configuration, but there may be some. There are some .50 HB M2 machineguns out there, at around $25,000 to $30,000, but no semis that I hit in a quick search.

Jim
 
There are also semi .50's, and these are vastly different. The sideplates are thicker so the FA parts can't be inserted into the receiver, the internals are thinner, and the trigger mechanism is entirely different.
Click to expand...

He's exactly right. Though they're cosmetically similar & share some parts (barrels, tripods, etc), I'd think of them as two separate guns due to BATF regulations. The same way the semi versions of open-bolt machine guns are all closed-bolt.

To add in my totally unasked for opinion, having shot quite a few MGs on the government dime and having played with a few semi-auto belt-feds on my own dime, I have no idea why anyone would want one. They're expensive to feed, of dubious utility & practical accuracy and lack the coolness of full-auto. But if they float your boat and you have the $$$......
 
I'm probably wrong, just thinking out loud, from the tone of his question it almost seems that he was wondering if he couldn't take a semi- auto 50 and well," work it over". Again, I'm probably wrong, just my suspicious nature :eek:
 
They're expensive to feed, of dubious utility & practical accuracy and lack the coolness of full-auto. But if they float your boat and you have the $$$......
Click to expand...

Agreed, they aren't practical, but many NFA weapons aren't either. The market is driven by collectibility. The NFA beltfeds are unaffordable for most, so if they want to own anything close to the real thing, then semi is the way to go.

The semi-auto beltfeds can actually be fun to shoot. I have an M53 (Yugo version of MG42), purchased for $2k and someone offered $2,600 the other week. As quality kits dry up it will become more valuable. I'm not getting rid of it now, but in 20 years...
 
Last edited:
Well, a Lamborghini isn't very practical either (ever try to carry a sheet of plywood in one?) BUT THEY'RE A HECK OF A LOT OF FUN! Same with full auto guns. If you have the resources, by all means, buy one and shoot it.

Really, after buying a semi and the ammo you'll shoot over, say, 5 years, compare that to the price of a full auto, and you may be surprised to see that a full auto isn't totally unreasonable after all.

I have a number of semi's, and a number of full autos, and I can unquestionably say the full autos are more fun to shoot. But the semis have their place too.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top