Browning M1919A4 - found in Iraq

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Cienja

Cienja

Senior member
Aug 27, 2007
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I'll be going to see this when it's on display. Too bad they "demilitarized" it...

"OGDEN, Utah (AP) -- A World War II-era Browning machine gun discovered by Utah reservists serving in Iraq will soon have a home in a local museum.

The Standard-Examiner of Ogden reports the M1919A4 machine gun was discovered by the 96th Sustainment Brigade of Utah's Fort Douglas in Taji, Iraq during its 2009-2010 deployment. The unit was working with Iraqi military and found the weapon while sorting through debris after the bombing of a supply depot.

Capt. John Lovejoy says the gun was immediately recognized by reservists, who got permission to keep it.

The gun has been restored and "demilitarized" so that it can't fire.

It will soon be placed in the Browning Arms Museum at Union Station in Ogden.

The Browning Arms Company was founded in Ogden."
 
jlee

jlee

Lifer
Sep 12, 2001
48,518
223
106
Gahhhh, why why why...restore it and leave it alone! :( Damn federal laws...
 
jlee

jlee

Lifer
Sep 12, 2001
48,518
223
106
Numenorean said:
Why would they do that?
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Likely something to do with federal law on "importing" automatic weapons - I'm not overly familiar. You'd think there would be an exception for a US-made military firearm going in a museum...
 
Scotteq

Scotteq

Diamond Member
Apr 10, 2008
5,276
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Numenorean said:
No they didn't. It's not restored if it isn't in the original condition.

They fucked it up is what they did.
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I can appreciate that from a "Holy Crap, A .50 Cal - Let's Shoot it!!" perspective. But it *is* a 60 year old weapon, with highly dubious maintenance (if any at all), and I know that I would be very - VERY - hesitant to fire it. For all we know, the condition of the thing wasn't repairable.

Besides - It may also be the case that no combination of people in the unit had the requisite Type 8 (Importer) and Type 3 (Curio and Relic) Federal Firearms licences.

Come to think of it - a .50 cal machine gun is classified as a "Destructive Device" (which it clearly is!!) under the National Firearms Act, so they're need a Type 9 FFL at a minimun, and have to obtain specific approval from the ATF for the weapon.
 
S

Sluggo

Lifer
Jun 12, 2000
15,488
5
81
jlee said:
Likely something to do with federal law on "importing" automatic weapons - I'm not overly familiar. You'd think there would be an exception for a US-made military firearm going in a museum...
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There will be no exceptions to the red tape. The red tape is there for the good of the people.
 
jlee

jlee

Lifer
Sep 12, 2001
48,518
223
106
Scotteq said:
I can appreciate that from a "Holy Crap, A .50 Cal - Let's Shoot it!!" perspective. But it *is* a 60 year old weapon, with highly dubious maintenance (if any at all), and I know that I would be very - VERY - hesitant to fire it. For all we know, the condition of the thing wasn't repairable.

Besides - It may also be the case that no combination of people in the unit had the requisite Type 8 (Importer) and Type 3 (Curio and Relic) Federal Firearms licences.

Come to think of it - a .50 cal machine gun is classified as a "Destructive Device" (which is clearly is!!), so they're need a Type 9 FFL at a minimun, and have to obtain approval from the ATF.
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An M1919A4 is .30, not .50. A firearm is a machine - take it apart and make sure everything is in order. It's not rocket science.

I'm saying a museum should be able to display a firearm in its original condition. If you're going to destroy it, you might as well make a resin model and paint the damn thing and let a collector own the real one.
 
Scotteq

Scotteq

Diamond Member
Apr 10, 2008
5,276
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jlee said:
An M1919A4 is .30, not .50. A firearm is a machine - take it apart and make sure everything is in order. It's not rocket science.

I'm saying a museum should be able to display a firearm in its original condition. If you're going to destroy it, you might as well make a resin model and paint the damn thing and let a collector own the real one.
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You still need a Type 9, and specific permission from the ATF.
 
PlasmaBomb

PlasmaBomb

Lifer
Nov 19, 2004
11,636
2
81
Brm1919.jpg


Quick pic and more information here -

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M1919_Browning_machine_gun
 
jlee

jlee

Lifer
Sep 12, 2001
48,518
223
106
Scotteq said:
You still need a Type 9, and specific permission from the ATF.
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AS I SAID, that should not be an obstacle for a museum. Whether it is or not, I don't know - I can't afford one so I haven't looked into it.
 
dfuze

dfuze

Lifer
Feb 15, 2006
11,953
0
71
jlee said:
Gahhhh, why why why...restore it and leave it alone! :( Damn federal laws...
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I would have thought the military would have been able to transport something like this using their channels without having to do something permanent to it
 
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