US Lewis .306 Caliber Machine Gun

By Crusader1307

The Lewis Gun was invented by US Army Officer Issac Lewis in 1911. Based on other earlier designs and attempts, The Lewis Gun was not officially adopted for use by The US Army. Lewis had been working closely with The Royal Army to fund and get into the field his design. In addition to England, - Belgium had an eye on the weapon. The Lewis Gun weighted 28-pounds and was 50 inches in total length (barrel included). Gas operated (and not water-cooled), The gun had an effective range of 800 yards and a maximum range of close to 3,000 yards. The Lewis was designed to fire the .30-06, .303 ans Mauser rounds (it main reason fo being so desirable in combat). It was also fitted for a 50 to 90 round “pan” magazine clip. Later, the 30 round Bren magazine clip was added (giving the Lewis even more mobility on the battlefield). The Belgium's deployed The Lewis first, followed by Great Britain. The US Navy and Marines deployed them as well (despite being ordered not to use them). An aircraft version was also produced. The Lewis was reliable and was still produced up to 1943 (with it being used still by some Forces as late as the mid-1950s).