Item:
ONSV24OID033

Original U.S. Vietnam War Era M60D Replica Helicopter Door Gun with Bipod - Display Machine Gun

Item Description

Original Item. Only One Available. The M60 machine gun began development in the late 1940s as a program for a new, lighter 7.62 mm machine gun. It was derived from German machine guns of World War II (most notably the FG 42 and to a lesser extent the MG 42), but it contained American innovations as well. Early prototypes, notably the T52 and T161 bore a close resemblance to both the M1941 Johnson machine gun and the FG-42. It was intended to replace the M1918 Browning Automatic Rifle and M1919A6 Browning machine gun in the squad automatic weapon role, and in the medium machine gun role.

The U.S. Army officially adopted the M60 in 1957. It later served in the Vietnam War as a squad automatic weapon with many U.S. units. Every soldier in the rifle squad would carry an additional 200 linked rounds of ammunition for the M60, a spare barrel, or both. The up-gunned M113 armored personnel carrier ACAV added two M60 gunners beside the main .50 caliber machine gun, and the Patrol Boat, River had one in addition to two .50 cal mounts.

During the Vietnam War, the M60 received the nickname "The Pig" due to its size.

The M60D is a mounted variant of the standard M60. It can be mounted on boats, vehicles and as a pintle-mounted door gun in helicopters. When used in aircraft, it differs from the M60C in that it is not controlled by the pilot—rather, it is mounted in a door and operated by a member of the crew. Like the rest of the M60 family, it is an air-cooled, gas-operated, belt-fed weapon. Unlike other models, however, the M60D normally has spade grips and an aircraft ring-type sight or similar, as well as an improved ammunition feed system. A canvas bag is also affixed to the gun to capture ejected casings and links, preventing them from being sucked into the rotor blades or into an engine intake. The M60D was equipped on the UH-1B Huey (using the M23, XM29, M59, and the Sagami mounts), the CH-47 Chinook (using the M24 and M41 mounts) in both door and ramp locations, the ACH-47A "Guns-A-Go-Go" variant of the Chinook (using the XM32 and XM33 mounts), and on the UH-60 Black Hawk (using the M144 mount). The M60D is also used by the British on Royal Air Force Chinooks. In US service, the M60D has been primarily replaced by the M240H. The M60D is still manufactured by U.S. Ordnance and still used on the SH-60 Seahawk.

This is an M60D Display Machine gun with a mixture of original & replica parts. We believe the receiver to be original, deactivated, and re-welded with rails and rivets, but no internals. The entire front of the receiver, including the barrel bushing, is a solid steel replica, meaning that more than 25% of the length has been replaced, as required by the BATF. Meaning a 1/4 length section of the display receiver is solid steel, making this totally legal to own without a license of any kind. Everything forward of this is a replica as well.

The carry handle and rear sight appear to be original, with the handle having a serial number on the side, 7269231. The top cover is a cast aluminum replica, and the spade grip is a custom-fabricated steel piece. The bipod is original, but was cut and rewelded for display on this set. Otherwise, we believe all other pieces to be replicas. There aren’t any markings that would name this as a training or military-made mockup, so we are selling it as is, a mix of original and replica parts meant for display.

This is a very interesting display gun, perfect for any Vietnam War display! The M60D is featured prominently in many Vietnam War movies on helicopters. Comes ready for further research and display!

  • This product is not available for shipping in US state(s): New Jersey, and Washington

    This product is not available for international shipping.
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