Ukraine Maxim Gun - It wouldn't hurt if it was chambered in the standard Russian 7.62x54mm cartridge, a variation that is still widespread after 129 years.

Six years after Ukraine first became embroiled in armed conflict with Russia and its proxies, the country is still heavily dependent on stockpiles of Soviet-era aircraft, vehicles, weapons and military equipment, their derivatives, and new designs in use. they use resources in certain ways. In an extreme example, a new video clip from the front lines shows that the Ukrainian army is still actively using the M1910 Maxim machine gun, a pre-WW1 design.

Ukraine Maxim Gun

Ukraine Maxim Gun

The video, which originally aired as part of a segment on Ukraine's Channel 5 television network and has been circulating on social media since at least January 31, 2020, shows a member of the Ukrainian Armed Forces operating an M1910 machine gun at an unspecified location in the country's Luhansk Region that. Luhansk is one of the Ukrainian regions that declared itself an independent republic in 2014, following Russia's illegal annexation of the Crimean Peninsula and the start of Kremlin support for nominally local separatists in eastern Ukraine. Luhansk, together with Donetsk, forms the region known as Donbass, which has been at the center of the conflict ever since.

Russia Sends Pacific Island 'machine Gun Artillery Division' To Ukraine

Indeed, this is not the first time that images of the M1910 in action in Ukraine have surfaced. 2016 Ukraine

The News Network released a video of another Maxim weapon still in service with the country's armed forces.

The Russian M1910 is a direct descendant of the Hiram Maxim machine gun of the same name, which was the first weapon of its kind to be produced and widely used from the mid-1880s. Variants of the then revolutionary weapon were quickly found on battlefields around the world and were produced under license in several countries, including Imperial Russia under the Tsar.

First entering service in 1910, the M1910 was a water-cooled weapon with a large hollow jacket around the barrel that was periodically filled with water to prevent overheating during continuous fire. This variant also fires the standard Russian 7.62x54mm cartridge, the first version of which entered Imperial Russian military service in 1891. After 129 years, this remains the oldest basic cartridge design still in wide use by the military, and Russia still produces new chambered rifles today. this, firing the latest variation of this relatively old bullet.

Maxim Gun Hi Res Stock Photography And Images

Maxim Russia served in the Tsarist armed forces during World War I, then on both sides of the Bolshevik Revolution and the subsequent Russian Civil War, as well as in the Soviet army during World War II. Although the Soviets began replacing it with the newer SG-43 machine gun in 1943, the M1910 remained in production until 1945, with some general improvements added to the design over the years.

It's not clear what specific variant of the M1910 is featured in the recent video from Ukraine, but most notably it lacks the so-called "tractor cap" later on the cooling jacket that was added to most weapons, as seen in the video. below , dating between 1941 and 1943. The weapon seen in the 2016 video clip has this feature.

This large cover allowed machine gun crews to stuff their jackets with snow as an alternative to water that would freeze in the cold Russian winters. It's also worth noting that while the pistol featured in the video from Ukraine is among the last M1910s made in the Soviet Union, it's still 75 years old.

Ukraine Maxim Gun

M1910s of various types remained in reserve in the Soviet Union for decades and were also widely exported to Soviet allies and partner forces. Perhaps unsurprisingly, some are still in depots in Ukraine, which last gained independence after the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991.

Weapons That Threaten Commercial Planes

As long as the weapon itself works, there is no real obstacle to using it. As already mentioned, it uses the standard 7.62x54mm bullet, which is still in production in Ukraine and Russia, among others, more than a century after its introduction. Subsequent Soviet machine gun designs also continued to use interchangeable cartridge belts to further reduce logistical requirements. This particular Ukrainian M1910 appears to be loaded with belt-fed ammunition from the more modern PK series machine guns.

A US Army soldier fires a PK series machine gun during a battle with foreign forces. 7.62x54mm belted ammunition is clearly visible., US Army

There may be some advantages to using the Maxim over newer designs. The video shows it being placed in a fixed machine gun nest, where a water-cooled gun that can fire forever without overheating, as long as the cooling jacket is refilled regularly and nothing is physically damaged, might actually be the ideal choice.

At the same time, it also shows how deep Ukraine had to dig for additional weapons and other military equipment when dealing with one of the world's largest armies and their proxies. However, the fact that this M1910 still functions in some capacity is a testament to the design of the Maxim weapon and the Russian 7.62x54mm cartridge.

Maxim Gun In Ukraine

Unfortunately, since the conflict in Ukraine does not seem to be ending anytime soon, it is possible that these weapons, which are already at least 75 years old, have even longer service. As to why the Ukrainian military still mocks a 100-year-old Russian machine gun, the M1910 still has advantages over more modern weapons

Ukrainian TROOPS fight off Russian invaders with the type of machine guns used when Ukraine was part of the Tsarist Russian Empire. The Maxim M1910 has a steampunk aesthetic: it weighs 68 kg and has an armored weapon shield on a distinctive two-wheeled mount that allows it to be towed behind a vehicle or operated by a gun crew. Russian media ridiculed these antiquities, saying Ukrainians used them because they lacked modern weapons. The truth is more complex.

As the name suggests, the pistol was introduced in 1910. It was a Russian-made version of the first automatic machine gun, patented in 1883 by Hiram Maxim, an American-British inventor. Early Gatling guns had six barrels that required a hand crank. In the Maxim design, when the bullet is fired, recoil sets the action and loads the next round. The finger on the trigger fires a series of bullets. The water-cooled barrel allows it to burn for a long time. Variants of the Maxim gun proved to be a deadly tool of slaughter and terror during the heyday of imperialism in the late 19th century, allowing small European forces to kill those they had captured in the hundreds or thousands. It further revolutionized the war between European countries itself.

Ukraine Maxim Gun

Modern medium machine guns that fire the same 7.62mm rounds as the M1910 are much lighter and more portable - the current Russian PKM weighs less than a fifth. However, they lack water cooling. Even continuous firing for several minutes can cause the barrel to deform or the gun to "boil" when the bullet is fired without pulling the trigger.

Latest Ukraine Updates: Zelenskyy Urges No 'panic' Over Tensions

In 2016, the Minister of Defense of Ukraine confirmed that he had approved the release of some M1910s from the government stock (Maxim weapons are not standard issue, but available on request, as are some regional defense units). An audit in 2012 revealed that Ukraine had stockpiled 35,000 firearms, all made between 1920 and 1950.

Only a handful of M1910s have been seen in action since the Russian invasion in February, but they have reportedly proven effective in defensive positions and fixed fortifications. In addition to being cooled by water, which allows continuous fire, their fixed installation makes it easier to target. A Ukrainian soldier interviewed in 2016 said the M1910 was very accurate at a distance of one kilometer, effective up to three kilometers, and he would not trade it for a more modern weapon. Some M1910s have even been modernized, with images circulating on social media showing vintage machine guns with modern "red dot" electronic sights. The weapon is not officially in service with any other military, although it is also used by Russian-backed separatist militias in the Donbass region and has appeared in conflict zones from Syria to Vietnam.

One element of Russian propaganda may be true: Ukraine's attempt to develop its own copy of the modern Russian CCP in 2011 was unsuccessful. The military reported serious problems with KM Mayak, as it is known, including the fact that it was impossible to aim at targets less than 400 meters away due to the device obscuring the view. The head of armaments of the Ukrainian Armed Forces admitted in 2016 that there were still problems with the weapon, but that the design had been changed. There is still little evidence of the use of KM Mayak. Instead, Ukraine has imported some foreign machine guns, and Ukrainian mechanics are scavenging weapons from damaged Russian vehicles to convert them into infantry weapons. And some troops still use the tried and tested M1910. Machine guns remain an important feature in infantry combat. Just like a century ago

Olga kurylenko maxim ukraine, russian maxim gun, maxim analog, maxim ukraine, airsoft maxim gun, lego maxim gun, maxim semiconductor, maxim gun, german maxim machine gun, lego maxim machine gun, russian maxim machine gun, maxim machine gun