Article about: This Vickers is the oldest I ever had. It's serial number is L1974 - which would put it at roughly October 1914. It is mounted on a 1926 dated tripod. It is now on display at the regimental
I thought it may be interesting to start another thread on weapons that other collectors have owned - and regretted parting with. To start the ball rolling - here's a picture of a combat-damaged Mg08/15 I had up to a few years ago. The cooling-jacket was painted with the legend 'UNKNOWN' followed by a serial number. This was done by the War Trophies Committee in the 1920's when captured guns were being given out to the various regimental museums. The rods are to show the trajectory of the shrapnel.
This is a picture of a Maxim Mg08 on a trench-mount. I was given this by the South Lancs Regimental museum in Warrington in exchange for a WW1 Vickers gun. This was also a captured weapon, which at some time had received combat damage to the cooling jacket and had been repaired.
Another WW1 gun. This one is a Vickers Mk1 'B' series from March 1918, the tripod is an Australian Mk1V from 1942. The Vickers gun was just a modified Maxim and was also referred to as the class 'C' gun. The crank on the Maxim is worked forward to load, and the Vickers crank is worked to the rear. This is because of modifications to the lock (breech-block). The Vickers lock is far more compact, which enabled the receiver to be more shallow. On the Maxim gun there is an awfull lot of dead-space on the receiver which is unused. This 'dead-space' was removed from the Maxim 08/15 which caused the unusual shape to the receiver. The 08/15 was only a lightened-up Maxim 08. All Maxim-type guns have to have the crank-handle worked twice to load. It was normal procedure to only work the crank once when loading, and so have the gun safe and at 'half-cock'.
I would like to point out that no glass was broken in the Greenhouse during the photo-shoot!
Anyone considering purchasing a WW1 Vickers gun is strongly advised to read up on the weapon first. There are an awful lot of scams being worked on collectors who know little about these guns. A genuine British-made WW1 gun should have VSM stamped on the trunnion-block. The date letter-code should always be in front of the serial number. Some guns may be found with replacement VAC or Australian MA parts.
Vickers guns were also fitted with fluted jackets AFTER WW1, so do not be fooled into thinking it is WW1 just because of the jacket. If memory serves me correct there were some guns ('H' series) which were produced with smooth jackets around the end of 1918 or 1919. Many guns were also brought out of storage around 1939 and refurbished, so it is not unusual to find VSM guns with smooth jackets, or even VAC guns with fluted jackets. The rarest guns are the Aircraft guns, as many of these were converted back to ground-guns when WW11 seemed imminent.
I recently had to advise a Dealer that a Vickers gun he had advertised as being WW1 'B' code was actually a WW11 Australian gun. All Australian guns are marked MA, and the letter code (I have only ever seen 'B') is always marked above the serial number. Its a minefield, so tread with care before parting with hard-earned cash.
This gun is a 'C' series Lightweight Vickers from March 1917. The tripod is marked... .303 MAXIM. V&G. 1916. These guns are hard to find now, as the extra work involved in milling the receiver side plates out only produced minimal weight-saving.
Another view of the Lightweight Vickers. Propped up on the tripod is an SMLE Mk111 fitted with a launcher cup for the Mills-Bomb. This particular Vickers had been deactivated in such a way that allowed the removal of the barrel extension-plates (and Crank & Fusee). This was achieved by cutting off the front ends of the rings on the plates which locked over the trunnions on the barrel. When I restored the 08/15 I did the same to that as well. The serial number of the Vickers was C8995, and about a year after I got the gun I was at an arms-fair and came accross a lightweight feed-block. The serial number was just the last few digits out from the gun.
Another German Maxim Mg08. This one was made by DWM in 1915. It is mounted on the AuTomoTo tripod (folded flat) as made in France. This particular gun is listed in Dolf Goldsmith's book, and is one of a batch supplied to Turkey.
An 'A' series gun fitted with the very rare 'five arch' top cover plate. This particular gun had an extremely low serial number, and I'm fairly sure it was the first 'A' gun produced. I feel certain it was stamped 'A001'. The barrel-jacket is smooth, which would indicate it was refurbished for use in WW11. I restored this gun completely and sold it to a dealer in Bolton. I came accross it about six months later in the same shop and was horrified to find it covered in rust. I promptly bought it back.
What's the best Mg you've ever owned?
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