In the Battle of the Somme during World War I, the German Ma Keqin MG08 heavy machine gun was enough. In one day, more than 57,000 people fell in front of the MG08 heavy machine gun position. The French army's weapon against MG08 is its own heavy machine gun-Hotchkiss M 19 148mm heavy machine gun (referred to as Hotchkiss M 19 14 heavy machine gun for short). Due to the indiscriminate shooting of MG08 in the Somme River, the French army also strengthened the equipment of machine guns.
The prototype gun of Hotchkiss M 19 14 heavy machine gun was designed by Austrian officer Adolf von Odkarik, and Hotchkiss company bought his research and development patent. With the efforts of designer Bennett and deputy Moxi, the M 1897 heavy machine gun was born. After improvement, Hotchkiss M 19 14 heavy machine gun was produced.
Hotchkiss M 19 14 heavy machine gun adopts the principle of air conduction, and its barrel is air-cooled. On the periphery of the barrel, coiled fins are wound to increase the contact surface with air and promote cooling. It is said that the effect is good, and the cooling speed of the barrel is increased by about 10 times. The ammunition feeding tool adopts metal elastic plate or semi-movable elastic chain for ammunition feeding. The reason why water cooling design and canvas elastic chain are not adopted is that Ma Keqin applied for a patent.
The gun body has a large mass. Although it is an air-cooled machine gun, the mass of the gun body is also increased by coils of tail fins, which is 1.8kg heavier than the MG08 heavy machine gun, reaching 23.6kg However, the standard gun frame is much lighter than the MG08, which is 10.4kg lighter. The theoretical firing rate and effective range of the gun are not less than those of MG08 and Vickers.
What makes the French army like more is the good reliability of Hotchkiss M 19 14 heavy machine guns. At the Battle of Verdun, two Hotchkiss M/KOOC-0/9/KOOC-0/4 heavy machine guns fired almost non-stop within/KOOC-0/0 days, and fired/KOOC-0/50. The reinforcements have arrived, and these two machine guns can still shoot!
The tripods used in Hotchkiss M 19 14 heavy machine guns are mainly 19 15 tripod and 19 16 tripod. Both tripods have excellent high and low shooting boundaries and directional shooting boundaries. Both France and the United States have produced these two kinds of tripods, among which the American goods have a wider shooting range and can shoot 360 degrees.
19 16 The two front legs of the tripod can move back and forth to stabilize the gun. The back leg is equipped with a seat, which allows the shooter to sit and shoot, which is beneficial for the shooter to absorb part of the recoil.
In addition to the standard gun rack, Hotchkiss M 19 14 heavy machine guns are equipped with trench gun racks and anti-aircraft gun racks at 19 18.
When using Hochikis M 19 14 heavy machine guns, it is necessary to set up machine gun positions first, and then set up machine guns. If time permits, you can inject some lubricating oil into the gun body and tripod. According to the regulations of the U.S. Army (the American Expeditionary Force fighting the Germans in France), when shooting the Hotchkiss M 19 14 heavy machine gun, it is best to ensure that there is a large amount of lubricating oil in the box, and the lubricating oil should be replaced in time after use.
Hotchkiss M 19 14 heavy machine guns are not only used on tripods, but also installed on various armored vehicles and tanks. In the early days, the Japanese also copied Hotchkiss's M 19 14 heavy machine gun, called the March 8th heavy machine gun, and gave it a nickname-the kiss of a French girl.