Small Arms of the Second World War, Part 1: America · 9:14am Jun 11th, 2014
I've decided to do a series of blog posts covering infantry weapons that were used during WWII. I shall look at each nation individually and try to list as many weapons as I can that were commonly used in frontline service by their respective factions.
These blogs/lists will not contain all of the weapons used by each country, but will try to list most of those that saw service during the war for their respective country. Prototypes or limited service/production weapons will usually not be listed, unless I deem otherwise. This list is in no way a complete inventory of the weapons used by the American military during WWII, and should not be treated as such.
Now with that out of the way, let's get started.
Pistols:
Smith & Wesson Model 10 M&P
Caliber: .38 Special
Action: Revolver, Double
Feed System: 6 round, rotating cylinder
Popular pistol used by the US and it's allies through lend-lease. Was the standard-issue sidearm for the US Navy, and for Marine aircrews.
Colt M1911A1 Pistol
Caliber: .45 ACP
Action: Semi-automatic, Recoil-operated
Feed System: Detachable, 7 round box magazine
The famous Browning design was well liked for its reliability and stopping power among the Allies. The 1911 was the standard sidearm of the US military during the war.
Rifles:
M1 Garand
Caliber: .30-06 Springfield
Action: Semi-automatic, gas-operated
Feed System: Internal magazine fed with 8 round en-bloc clips
The workhorse of the U.S. military, the Garand was the standard issue rifle. Being a semi-auto, it gave the U.S. an advantage against their counterparts, who were usually using bolt-action rifles. The Garand was also the first semi-automatic rifle in the world to be adopted as the standard issue rifle for a country. M1C and M1D variants of the rifle were made, and accepted an off-set scope, allowing the Garand to be a sniper weapon as well.
M1903 Springfield
Caliber: .30-06 Springfield
Action: Bolt-action
Feed System: 5 round internal magazine, usually charged by stripper clips
The Springfield was the standard issue before being replaced by the Garand, but it still served admirably in the war. Many units entered the war with their Springfields, as the M1 hadn't been produced in sufficient numbers to arm the entire military. Some units even used the rifle throughout the war, preferring it over the Garand. It was also used with a scope as a sniper rifle, with mixed results.
M1A1 Carbine
Caliber: .30 Carbine
Action: Semi-automatic, gas-operated
Feed System: 15 or 30 round detachable box magazines
The carbine was intended for troops with specialized training, where carrying a full-sized rifle was found to be unsuitable. (Such as; tankers, radiomen, mortar crews, artillerymen, engineers, rangers, staff personnel, etc.) It was not designed to be a primary weapon used in frontline service, and when it was issued to troops in quantity, mixed reports surfaced. It was praised for its light weight, small size, and firepower, but it was criticized for it's poor penetration and stopping power.
Sub-machineguns:
M1A1 Thompson
Caliber: .45 ACP
Action: Automatic, blowback
Feed System: 20 or 30 round detachable box magazines
RoF: 600-700rpm
The iconic Thompson was the standard issue SMG of the U.S. It was known for it's stopping power and heavy weight. Despite firing the powerful .45 ACP cartridge, its hefty weight reduced its recoil, and it was rather easy to control in full-auto firing.
M3A1 "Grease Gun"
Caliber: .45 ACP or 9mm Parabellum
Action: Automatic, blowback
Feed System: 30 round detachable box magazines
RoF: 450rpm
Designed to be lighter and cheaper than the Thompson, it was to replace it in service. However, unforeseen production delays and complications with it's design and corrections meant that it would not live up to its purpose. Only about 700,00 were built, compared to the 1.5 million Thompsons that were made for the military.
Machineguns:
M1918A2 BAR
Caliber: .30-06 Springfield
Action: Automatic, gas-operated
Feed System: 20 round detachable box magazine
RoF: Around 500rpm
The BAR was used as a squad support weapon, meant to increase the firepower of a unit. It was limited in this role by its small capacity and difficulty to master, as well as its complex rate-reducer mechanism which could cause malfunctions without regular cleaning. The average BAR man's life expectancy in combat was 30 minutes.
Browning M1917A1 Heavy Machinegun
Caliber: .30-06 Springfield
Action: Automatic, recoil operated
Feed System: 250 round fabric belt
RoF: 450-600rpm
The Army's designated heavy machinegun, the M1917A1 came in at about 47 pounds. It was water-cooled, and usually mounted on a tripod and fired from a fixed position.
Browning M1919A4/A6 Medium Machinegun
Caliber: .30-06 Springfield
Action: Automatic, recoil operated
Feed System: 250 round belt
RoF: 400-600rpm
Designed as an air-cooled machinegun, the M1919 was lighter than the M1917, weighing in at about 31 or 32 pounds. The A4 variant was often mounted on a low slung tripod for infantry use and mounted on jeeps and tanks. The A6 variant was equipped with a stock and a bipod, and was intended to become a light machinegun. Even though it was reliable, the A6 was considered too heavy for practical use in this manner. It weighed a little more than 32 pounds, and it was expected to be deployed by only one man.
Browning M2HB Heavy Machinegun
Caliber: .50 BMG
Action: Automatic, recoil operated
Feed System: belts of ammunition
RoF: 485-635rpm
The M2 was, and still is, a staple in the U.S. military. The weapon has been adapted for numerous roles; infantry (fired from a fixed position with tripod), AA, aircraft armament, and vehicle mounted. The large .50 BMG cartridge has a very high muzzle velocity, a large effective range, and immense stopping power and penetration. Reportedly, the weapon was easily able to perforate the plates and fuel tanks of German half-tracks and armored cars. Some instances even state that just the sound of an M2 firing would send enemies scrambling for cover. All and all, the weapon does its job and does it well.
Shotguns:
M1897 Trench Gun
Caliber: 12 gauge
Action: Pump-action
Feed System: 5 round tubular magazine
The "trench sweeper" was a deadly weapon at close range. Lacking a trigger disconnector, the shotgun could be slamfired, emptying it's magazine at an incredible rate to dominate close range fights. It was used in limited quantities in the Pacific theatre, having been mostly phased out by the Model 1912 shotgun.
Winchester Model 12
Caliber: 12 gauge
Action: Pump-action
Feed System: 6 round tubular magazine
While mostly used in the Pacific by the Marines, the Army bought a decent quantity of these shotguns to use for base defense. It too, lacked a trigger disconnector and was slamfire capable.
Anti-tank and other:
M1/M1A1/M9 "Bazooka"
Caliber: 60mm
Action: Battery ignition, single shot, RPG
Feed System: Single 60mm rocket
The Bazooka was a good concept, but did not fare well in practice. The early rockets were notorious for being unreliable, and the weapon was unsuitable for offensively attacking tanks. Instead, it was determined that the weapon was more suited to being used as a last resort to destroy or disable tanks that would otherwise overwhelm infantry at extremely close ranges, 30 yards or so. Mortality rates in Bazooka teams were high, and many troops considered such duties suicidal. The Germans reverse engineered captured Bazookas to create their own (vastly superior) equivalent, the Panzerschreck.
M1A1/M2 Flamethrower
Capacity: 5 gallons
RoF: Half a gallon per second
Burn time: about 7-10 seconds
Carried in backpack-like format, capable of firing reliably at 20-40 yards away, and launching a stream of flaming napalm, what's not to love? Flamethrowers were mostly used for clearing out pillboxes and bunkers, of which they were used to great effect in the Pacific. 150 M1A1 flamethrowers were deployed on D-Day, but 100 were recovered on the beach after the battle, having been abandoned by the soldiers as they slogged out of the water towards the German ramparts.
That's all for now, I'll try to get another one of these done for next week. Thanks for reading!
Smith & Wesson Model 10 M&P and the M1 Garand are arguably my most favorite of this list. The M1 Garand has its problems such as bullet cartridges getting stuck and possibly even exploding in the wielders face, thus causing injury's. I adore revolvers and simple rifles. I have yet to see a revolver rifle. Crafted by the Russians ,The MTs-255 is the closest looking rifle to shoot normal bullets from my point of view, however it does not. The weapon itself is not a rifle, instead it is a shotgun. This disappoints me for some reason.
2198527
Interesting. I don't recall any reliability issues concerning the Garand with the feeding system, or stuck cartridges. You have made me curious, and I must now go searching for information! Learning is fun!
Now that you mention it, I don't really recall any revolver rifles either. I've heard of shotguns in a similar layout, but they're well, shotguns.