20.12.

2016

M85machinegunWikipedia

M85machinegun
FromWikipedia,thefreeencyclopedia

TheM85isaheavymachinegunfiring.50BMGammunition
thatwasusedprimarilyforturretedapplicationsinarmored
fightingvehicles.ItwasintendedtoreplacethevenerableM2
machinegunwithasmallerandmuchlighterweapon,suitable
foruseinsidefightingvehicle,asopposedtoonlyonexternal
mounts.ItwasusedontheM60[1]seriesoftanksandthe
LVTP7amphibiouslandingvehicle.

MachineGun,Cal.50,Fixed,M85

Contents
1 Designanddevelopment
2 Variants
2.1 M85
2.2 M85C
3 Seealso
4 References
5 Externallinks

M85machinegun
Type

Heavymachinegun

Placeoforigin

UnitedStates

Servicehistory
Usedby

U.S./NATOaligned
countries

Wars

GulfWar/Operation
DesertStorm

Productionhistory
SeeVariants

Designanddevelopment

Variants

Intendedasasmaller,lighter,morecapablereplacementforthe
venerableM2Browningmachinegun,theM85wasproduced
byGeneralElectric.Theweaponwasdevelopedwithselectable
highandlowratesoffireforengagementofbothgroundandair
targets,afeaturelackingintheolderM2.

Weight

65lb(29.5kg)

Length

Overall:54.5in
(1,384.3mm)

Cartridge

12.799mmNATO(.50
BMG)

Action

Recoiloperated

Rateoffire

400625rd/min

Muzzlevelocity

2,887ft/s(880.0m/s)

Effectivefiringrange

2,187yd(1,999.8m)

Maximumfiringrange

7,330yd(6,702.6m)

Feedsystem

BeltFeed,leftorright
hand

TheM85wasthestandardheavytankmachinegunfortheM60
series,andwasalsousedontheLVTP7amphibiousvehicle.It
isanaircooled,recoiloperatedmachinegun,hasashort
receiverandquickchangebarrel,andcanbeconfiguredforleft
orrighthandfeeding.TheM85issignificantlylighterthanthe
M2,andsignificantlysmaller,aprimeconsiderationforits
intendedroleinsidethecrampedinteriorsofarmoredvehicles.
Firingandchargingareachievedbypullononeoftwocolor
codedpullchains(blackforchargingandredforfiring),orby
meansofasolenoid.

Specifications

TheM85usedtheM15pushthroughlinktofeedammunitionasopposedtotheM2orM9pulloutlinksusedonthe
M2andM3Browningmachineguns.Thiscreatedissueswithammunitionsupplyinuse,sincedespitethesame.50
BMGcartridgesbeingusedinbothpatternsofmachineguntheammunitionwassuppliedalreadypackedonlinksand
relinkingwasnotpracticalinthefield.
InservicetheM85wasfoundtobeunreliableandextremelycomplexcomparedtotheM2machinegun.Theweapon
wasnotfittedtotheM1Abrams,andwasreplacedbytheM2machinegunontheimprovedAAVP7.Anattempt
wasalsomadetomakeaversionoftheM85thatwouldreplacetheM2intheinfantryrolewasdesignatedtheM85C,
andfeaturesstandardspadegripsandcanbefittedtotheM3heavytripod.LiketheM85theM85Cwasextremely
unreliableandunpopularandthisweaponwasnotadopted.
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TheM85wasalsotestedbytheUnitedKingdomunderthedesignationsXL17E1andXL17E2.Theywereequipped
withspecialpurposebarrelsandevaluatedasrangingmachineguns.[2]Theweaponwasnotadoptedforuseonany
Britishvehicles.

Variants
M85
Basicweapon,designedformountinginsidevehiclecupolas

M85C
Flexibleinfantryvariantwithsightsandspadegrips

Seealso
M2Browningmachinegun

References
Notes
1.Hunnicutt,p.6,408
2.Ezell,1988.p.391

Bibliography
Ezell,Ed.SmallArmsToday,2ndEdition.Harrisburg,PA:StackpoleBooks,1988.ISBN0811722805.
Gervasi,Tom.ArsenalofDemocracyIII:America'sWarMachine,thePursuitofGlobalDominance.NewYork,NY:
GrovePress,Inc,1984.ISBN0394541022.
Hunnicutt,R.P."Patton:AHistoryoftheAmericanMainBattleTank."1984,Volume1ISBN0891412301.

Externallinks
TACOMRIHistoricUSSmallArms(http://tri.army.mil/LC/cs/csi/sahist.htm)
M85atGary'sOliveDrabPage(http://www.inetres.com/gp/military/cv/weapon/M85.html)
Retrievedfrom"https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=M85_machine_gun&oldid=683866280"
Categories: 12.7mmmachineguns ColdWarweaponsoftheUnitedStates Heavymachineguns
MachinegunsoftheUnitedStates
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