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Quad M2 .50-caliber Machine Gun Mount

Mounting 4 standard Browning Caliber .50 heavy barrel machine guns, the Quad-50 was primarily an anti-vehicle weapon but, against assaulting infantry, it was a battlefield broom. Selective Fire; recoil operated, air cooled; each gun firing 400-550 710 gr bullets per minute, with an effective range of 2500 yards, it is easy to understand why it was such a fearsome weapon.

TM9-1005-213-10: Operations Manual: M2 .50 Cal Heavy Barrel MG

Quad .50 caliber M2hb, air cooled, Heavy Machine Guns
Heavy Barrel Air-Cooled Heavy Machine Guns

Mounted on a half-track (M-16 Multiple Gun Motor Carriage), WWII AAA vintage, the above gun turret is power driven with four standard Browning .50 caliber M2 heavy barrel machine guns. The drum (Tombstone) magazines held 200 rounds each, and the four guns were fired in tandem by an electric trigger mechanism. Highly effective as an anti-aircraft weapon against strafing attacks in World War II, its primary deployment in Korea was as a devestating antipersonnel weapon.

The Quad-50 was still used during the Vietnam War, in semi-fixed locations to protect the perimeter of fire bases, and very effectively on motor convoy support.
Operation Selective Fire; Semiautomatic or Fully Automatic, recoil operated, air cooled
Caliber .50 (12.7 mm)
Ammunition bullet 710 gr, charge 235 gr
Muzzle velocity 853.4 mps (2930 fps)
Capacity 110-round metallic link belt
Weight 57.8 kg (128 lbs); barrel 81 lbs, tripod 44 lbs
Overall length 165.4 cm (65.1 in), (barrel 45 in)
Rate of fire 400 to 550 rounds per minute
Effective range 2287m (2500 yds)

The .50 caliber machine gun is primarily an anti-vehicular weapon. Its weight, and the weight of its ammunition, make it unsuitable for mobile infantry use. However, in semi-fixed positions such as the MLR in Korea, or mounted on vehicles in file, as in the withdrawal from Chosin, the weapon is magnificent. Its great range and striking power make it deadly in enfilade against troops staging for assault. Again, these capabilities make it ideal for quick reaction against machine gun and mortar positions on heights overlooking road communications.

Against massed infantry attack over ground with relatively constant slope, as against the Chinese human wave assaults on our MLR such as at Vegas, the M2 is a truly terrible force. For mobile deployment, Quad .50s mounted on half-tracks are devastating, going over the hills like a vacuum cleaner.

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