Cheaper Than Dirt
” The need arose on the battlefield for an easily transportable machine gun to compliment the German Blitzkrieg, a new type of warfare. The High Command placed the MG30, which had promise, into the hands of the artist Paul Mauser. This resulted in the Machine Gun of 1934, or MG34. However, as with most German weapons of that era, it was complicated and it did not react well to dust. Can you say Tiger Tank?
The lock of the MG34 was so complex and required such fine manufacturing tolerances that it was prone to wear down in dirty and dusty environments. This would cause a catastrophic and permanent failure. However, it still was a very successful weapon and it was instrumental through out the Second World War. Nevertheless, a better weapon was waiting in the wings.
That weapon would be the Maschinengewehr 42 Machine Gun of 1942 or just the MG42. The allies in World War II feared no single weapon more. It possessed an unbelievable rate of fire—around 1,200 to 1,500 rounds per minute! “
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