Weapons · Italy · 1937-1945
Breda Modello 37
heavy machine gun
The Breda Modello 37 was Italy's standard heavy machine gun of World War II, a gas-operated, air-cooled weapon fed from 20-round metal strips and typically mounted on a tripod for sustained infantry support fire. It had an unusual and troublesome feature for a machine gun of its era: rather than ejecting spent cases, it returned them to the feed strip, which required pre-oiled ammunition and made the gun prone to jamming with dust or grit, a serious liability in the North African desert where it saw heavy use. Despite this, crews regarded it as rugged and accurate, and it remained in Italian service into the 1960s.
| caliber | 8x59mm RB Breda |
|---|---|
| weight | 19.4 kg (gun), 38 kg with tripod |
| rate of fire | 450 rpm cyclic, ~200 rpm practical |
| effective range | 800-1,000 m |
Mediterranean and North Africa, Balkans
