Quote:
Originally Posted by cheesehawk
The MG42 wasn't based of the MG34? I never knew that! My lesson of the day!  |
It was developed to get rid of the Flaws from the MG 34 and it was way easier to manufacture then the MG 34.
The misconception that the MG 42 was a Development from the MG 34 results that ther has been a development called MG 34/41 which was only produced in limited numbers, this weapon was beaten in trials from the
MG 39/41 which later became the MG 42.
The MG 42 was THE Machinegun to face the needs of the Eastern front, it was reliable in dust and even the coldest winters.
Nevertheless the German Industry was never able to fully phase out the MG 34.
From Wiki:
In order to address these issues, a contest was held for a true MG 34 replacement. Three companies were asked to submit designs: Metall und Lackierwarenfabrik Johannes Großfuß AG of Döbeln, Rheinmetall-Borsig of Sömmerda, and Stübgen of Erfurt.[3] Of the number of proposals submitted, Großfuß AG's proved to be the best design, by far, employing a unique recoil-operated roller locking mechanism whereas the two competing designs used a gas-actuated system.[3] Interestingly, the company had no prior experience in weapons manufacture, specializing in pressed and stamped steel parts (the company's staple product was sheet metal lanterns).[3] Ernst Grunow, one of the leading design engineers with Großfuß, knew nothing about machine guns when he was given the task of being involved with the project, but he specialized in the technology of mass production. Grunow would attend an army machine gunner's course in order to familiarize himself with the utility and characteristics of such a weapon, also seeking input from soldiers. He then recycled an existing Mauser-developed operating system and incorporated features from his experiences with army machine gunners and lessons learned during the early stages of the war.[3] The new design required considerably less tooling and was much simpler to build—it took 75 man hours to complete the new gun as opposed to 150 man hours for the MG 34 (a 50% reduction), and cost 250 RM as opposed to 327 RM (a 24% reduction). The MG 42 was made out of stamped metal, making it much easier to produce than other machine guns.